Nusbaum Jessel ( 1887 1975 - Jesse L. Nusbaum-First National Park Service Archeologist Jesse Logan Nusbaum was the first archeologist hired by the Park Service. He is closely tied to the study of the ancient archeology of the Southwest. He was born in Greeley, Colorado, September 3, 1887, to Edward Moore and Agnes Strickland (Moodie) Nusbaum. His parents and maternal grandparents were members of the original Greeley colony organized by Horace Greeley. Nusbaum attended local public schools in Greeley as well as the Colorado Teachers College there, receiving his B. Pedagogy in 1907. After graduation, Nusbaum went to New Mexico State Normal in Las Vegas to teach science and manual arts. In the summer of 1907 he began his connection with Mesa Verde as a photographer and archeological assistant to A. V. Kidder. Departmental Archeologist He spent the following summer in a similar fashion. Jesse Nusbaum. NPS photo. In June of 1909, Nusbaum became the first employee of the School of American Archeology and Museum of New Mexico in Santa Fe under Dr. Edgar L. Hewett. While there he conducted archeological surveys, investigations, excavations, and ruins stabilization in Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Colorado, and New Mexico including the Pajarito Plateau. Nusbaum's work at the museum again brought him to Mesa Verde for the excavation, repair, and stabilization of Balcony House, an important major project that extended into the winter of 1910. He spent 9 months in Washington, D. C., September 1911 to June 1912, working on exhibits for the Panama-Pacific Exposition to be held in San Diego, California. While in Washington, Nusbaum took advanced courses at night and continued his advanced studies in Colorado during the summer of 1913. His innovations at Mesa Verde and manual arts background stood him in good stead during this supervision of the restoration of the New Mexico Palace of Governors in Santa Fe which was completed in Fall of 1913. In 1913, Nusbaum also worked 3 months in the Maya ruins of Yucatan with Dr. S. G. Morley. During his many expeditions with the museum, Nusbaum also helped restore the mission church at Pecos. He used some of its design in the work of the state art museum, built in 1916-19 under his supervision. Jesse L. Nusbaum attempted to become an aviator during World War I but instead became an engineer and served in France. He enlisted in May 1918 and was discharged April 1919. From May 1919 to June 1921, he was employed at the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation in New York City. While Nusbaum was working in New York he took part in several southwest expeditions including those at Hawikuh Pueblo and Basketmaker Cave. In 1921, while still in New York, he was selected by Stephen Mather and Arno Cammerer to become superintendent at Mesa Verde National Park. Director Mather had become disgusted with the conditions that had developed there under a political superintendent. Nusbaum was a very effective superintendent, advancing the development of the park and preserving the N.P.S. Brief Biography-Jesse L. Nusbaum, page 1 Note: Nusbaum met Dorr in 1925 at the Mesa Verde Super intendents Conference Shared personality characteristics In 1942 No sbarm wrote to DORR, describing him as the " Patriarch of the N.P.S." archeological resources. He discontinued grazing, built a museum and developed good interpretive programs, especially ones designed to explain the Antiquities Act. His involvement with the Act led to his designation in 1927 as the lead archeologist and prime enforcer of the Act for the Southwest (while remaining Mesa Verde superintendent). Photo by George Grant (Harpers Ferry Center Collection, HPC-000179): Nusbaum is seated fourth from right; to his right is NPS Director Horace Albright. Photo is 1929, park rangers at Mesa Verde. Nusbaum continued this dual capacity until 1930, when he took a leave of absence to organize and direct the Laboratory of Anthropology at Santa Fe, New Mexico. He continued as director of the laboratory until 1935, having earlier returned to the Park Service and resumed his dual duties as Mesa Verde superintendent and Department of the Interiorl archeologist enforcing the Antiquities Act. Nusbaum continued this dual position for many years. In 1946 he left Mesa Verde and his dual role for Santa Fe. At the National Park Service office there, he took up increased duties as the senior archeologist of the NPS. In this capacity, Nusbaum began one of the first salvage archeology projects when he persuaded El Paso Natural Gas Company to allow archeological excavation along their pipelines. For this, and many other accomplishments, Jesse L. Nusbaum received the Distinguished Service Award from the Department of the Interior in 1954. After a year's extension Nusbaum was forced to retire from the National Park Service at the age of 71 in 1957. However, he continued to do consulting work for many years. He died in Santa Fe in December 1975, at the age of 88. Nusbaum married Aileen Baehrens O'Bryan on September 21, 1920, but was divorced in 1939. She had one son, Deric. Nusbaum subsequently married Rosemary Lewis Rife, a nurse, on December 11, 1947. His civic associations were as follows: Trustee, Laboratory of Anthropology 1923-38; Member, Advisory Board 1927; State Park Commission of New Mexico 1933-36; Council, American Association of Museums 1932-35; Trustee, Indian Arts Fund 1927; Commission, Old Santa Fe Association 1946-75; Management Board, School of Brief Biography-Jesse L. Nusbaum, page 2 he took part in several southwest expeditions including those at Hawikuh Pueblo and Basketmaker Cave. In 1921, while still in New York, he was selected by Stephen Mather and Arno Cammerer to become superintendent at Mesa Verde National Park. Director Mather had become disgusted with the conditions that had developed there under a political superintendent. Although he did have some trouble with Colorado politicians, he was able to become a very effective superintendent, advancing the development of the park. He discontinued grazing, built a museum and developed good interpretive programs, especially ones designed to explain the Antiquities Act. His involvement with the Act led to his designation in 1927 as the lead archeologist and prime enforcer of the Act for the Southwest (while remaining Mesa Verde superintendent). Nusbaum continued this dual capacity until 1930, when he took a leave of absence to organize and direct the Laboratory of Anthropology at Santa Fe, New Mexico. He continued as director of the laboratory until 1935, having earlier returned to the Park Service and resumed his dual duties as Mesa Verde superintendent and archeologist enforcing the Antiquities Act. Nusbaum continued this dual position for many years. In the late 40's he left Mesa Verde and his dual role for Santa Fe and increased duties as the senior archeologist of the National Park Service. In this capacity, Nusbaum began one of the first salvage archeology projects when he persuaded El Paso Natural Gas Company to allow archeological excavation along their pipelines. For this, and many other accomplishments, Jesse L. Nusbaum received the Distinguished Service Award from the Department of the Interior in 1954. After a year's extension Nusbaum was forced to retire from the National Park Service at the age of 71 in 1957. However, he continued to do consulting work for many years. He died in Santa Fe in December 1975, at the age of 88. Nusbaum married Aileen Baehrens O'Bryan on September 21, 1920, but was divorced in 1939. She had one son, Deric. Nusbaum subsequently married Rosemary Lewis Rife, a nurse, on December 11, 1947. His civic associations were as follows: Trustee, Laboratory of Anthropology 1923-38; Member, Advisory Board 1927; State Park Commission of New Mexico 1933-36; Council, American Association of Museums 1932-35; Trustee, Indian Arts Fund 1927; Commission, Old Santa Fe Association 1946-75; Management Board, School of American Research, 1947; U.S. International Park and Forest Commission; honorary life member, Museum of New Mexico; Pi Gamma Mu; Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science; and Chairman, Social Sciences, Southwest Division 1932-33 as well as Vice President 1935 of the American Anthropological Association; Society for American Archeology; American Planning and Civic Association; 32 Mason. Nusbaum received an honorary D. Sc. from Colorado State in 1946. In 1923, he and others wrote down their findings in the book Basketmaker Cave in Kane County, Utah. Nusbaum was listed in Who's Who in America from 1931 until 1960 and was also included in Directory of American Scholars and American Men of Science. C. Summary Scope and Contents Notes The Nusbaum Papers consist mostly of correspondence, 1921-1958, with the bulk 1947-1958. Some of the correspondence is annotated and notes, mostly handwritten, are scattered throughout the folders. The papers also include articles, clippings, periodicals, and a few photos. All the papers are arranged in reverse chronological order, i.e. beginning December 1958 and ending with January 1921. The day books, office files of outgoing correspondence, are probably the most significant. However, the day book for 1950, the year pipeline archeology began, is not in the collection. The "Nut File" is quite interesting and is referred to several times in the correspondence. A folder of 1920's correspondence from Stella M. Leviston who donated funds for an entrance gate and for the Mesa Verde Museum is included in the Mesa Verde material. The folder, "Duties of Archeologist-Nusbaum in General Archeological Work" might be most helpful to those unacquainted with NPS procedures. It is important to note that these papers only cover the later part of Nusbaum's career from 1946-7 to 1958, when he was stationed at the Region 3 Office in Santa Fe as a consulting archeologist. It does not ordinarily cover his career as http://www.nps.gov/hfc/products/library/nusbaum.htm 5/1/2007 American Research, 1947; U.S. International Park and Forest Commission; honorary life member, Museum of New Mexico; Pi Gamma Mu; Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science; and Chairman, Social Sciences, Southwest Division 1932-33 as well as Vice President 1935 of the American Anthropological Association; Society for American Archeology; American Planning and Civic Association; 32 Mason. Nusbaum received an honorary D. Sc. from Colorado State in 1946. In 1923, he and others wrote down their findings in the book Basketmaker Cave in Kane County, Utah. Nusbaum was listed in Who's Who in America from 1931 until 1960 and was also included in Directory of American Scholars and American Men of Science. Sources of information about Jesse L. Nusbaum The NPS History Collection, Harpers Ferry Center, Harpers Ferry, West Virginia holds some of Nusbaum's papers. These papers are located in Records Group 5 of the collection. An inventory of these papers is available at . The largest part of this collection consists of correspondence, however more of the correspondence is outgoing and the incoming is not necessarily kept with its reply. This correspondence deals with the enforcement of the Antiquities Act, archeological topics, pipeline archeology, park areas especially Mesa Verde National Park, and NPS administrative matters. Most of the correspondence dates from 1946-1958, however copies of and actual correspondence from the 1920's and 1930's are occasionally included. Articles, clippings, periodicals, a few photos, and notes make up the rest of the material. This dates from the 1950's with a few earlier clippings. It is largely due to Nusbaum's efforts that the NPS is SO closely tied to Southwest archeology. The Nusbaum Papers consist mostly of correspondence, 1921-1958, with the bulk 1947- 1958. Some of the correspondence is annotated and notes, mostly handwritten, are scattered throughout the folders. The papers also include articles, clippings, periodicals, and a few photos. All the papers are arranged in reverse chronological order, i.e. beginning December 1958 and ending with January 1921. The day books, office files of outgoing correspondence, are probably the most significant. However, the day book for 1950, the year pipeline archeology began, is not in the collection. The "Nut File" is quite interesting and is referred to several times in the correspondence. A folder of 1920's correspondence from Stella M. Leviston who donated funds for an entrance gate and for the Mesa Verde Museum is included in the Mesa Verde material. The folder, "Duties of Archeologist-Nusbaum in General Archeological Work" might be most helpful to those unacquainted with NPS procedures. It is important to note that these papers only cover the later part of Nusbaum's career from 1946-7 to 1958, when he was stationed at the Region 3 Office in Santa Fe as a consulting archeologist. It does not ordinarily cover his career as Mesa Verde superintendent, his earlier archeological work, his architectural work in Santa Fe, his work with the Santa Fe Laboratory of Anthropology, or all his accomplishments prior to the end of World War II. Brief Biography-Jesse L. Nusbaum, page 3 Likewise, Nusbaum's active consulting work after his forced retirement is not ordinarily covered. The Nusbaum Papers therefore give us a glimpse of the height of and the closing of an important archeological career in the NPS while at the same time show the depth and importance of the worked involved. These papers were given by Mrs. Jesse L. Nusbaum (Rosemary). They were generated and collected by her husband during his service as NPS archeologist. They reflect his active correspondence with many university archeologists and other Federal officials on an official and occasionally personal level. Rosemary Nusbaum also has written two books that include information from notebooks and papers by her husband, Jesse: The City Different and the Palace: The Palace of the Governors and its Role in Santa Fe History, including Jesse Nusbaum's Restoration Journals. The Sunstone Press, Santa Fe. 1978. Tierra Dulce: Reminiscences from the Jesse Nusbaum Papers. The Sunstone Press, Santa Fe, New Mexico. 1980. NPS History Collection, Harpers Ferry Center 2004 Finding Aid, Jesse Nusbaum Papers, 1921-1958. accessed 1 May 2007. [This text was compiled by Francis P. McManamon in 2007, and updated in March, 2009. The biographical text is from the "Finding Aide to the Jesse L. Nusbaum Papers, 1921-1958" in the NPS History Collection. The original text was prepared August 7, 1987 by Ruthanne Heriot. Revised July 6, 2004 by David Nathanson Brief Biography-Jesse L. Nusbaum, page 4 6/23/20151 National Park Service History: Person of the Month e-Library National Park Service History .com Person of the Month PERSON OF THE MONTH This article first appeared in the Vol. 4 No. 1 (January 1981) edition of the Courier Jesse L. Nusbaum: Defender of American antiquities by Herb Evison When Mesa Verde National Park was established in 1906, by no means all of the prehistoric ruins on "The Green Table" were included in its boundaries; many were located on lands in the adjoining Ute Reservation and the Utes refused to give them up. However, Congress, in the Act establishing the park, placed under the supervision of the Secretary of the Interior all prehistoric ruins on Indian lands within 5 miles of the park's border In 1907, a survey of the ruins on the Ute Reservation was undertaken. Associated with Archeologists A. V. Kidder and S. G. Morley in this study was a young school teacher who was also a trained archeologist. He was Jesse L. Nusbaum, and the experience of that year was the start of a long association with the Mesa Verde. In 1910, recommended for the job by the Smithsonian Institution, he undertook the restoration and stabilization of Balcony House, one of the notable ruins still on Ute lands Also, by the previous year he was on the staff of the Museum of New Mexico, situated in the Palace of the Governors, facing Santa Fe's Plaza; and from that year into 1913, he was directing the tremendous chore of restoring that historic structure. Commenting, 52 years later, on the Balcony House project, Jess-as he was known to a wide circle of friends and associates-noted that Balcony House was in a difficult position for such work, "high up on the cliff, sheer below, sheer above And it was in terrible shape; it was tottering and would have been gone before long. Visitors there-and in the park-were crawling all over walls, breaking them down.' Ruins stabilization was in its infancy. The work performed at Balcony House can properly be considered a pioneer, and successful, effort He prepared a complete report on the Balcony House project. But to this day, neither it nor the one he compiled on a later dig at Step House, on Wetherill Mesa, has been published. This was the man who, on June 1, 1921 became superintendent of Mesa Verde National Park Director Mather had visited the park late in the fall of the previous year, and was greatly distressed by the evidences of mismanagement that he observed. Nusbaum was recommended to the Service by the Smithsonian Institution; he was then employed in New York at the Museum of the American Indian Heye Foundation and Dr. F. W. Jesse L. Nusbaum working on a pipeline for El Paso Natural Cas Hodge, himself a distinguished archaeologist and then Director of the Co. Foundation, strongly seconded the Smithsonian recommendation The Nusbaum appointment aroused the wrath of Senator Lawrence Phipps of Colorado; who summoned Jess to Washington for a hearing. Though he then gave grudging approval, that did not prevent him from making several subsequent efforts to have him removed Against the Senator's wishes, Jess had insisted on living in the park. Presidents Harding and Coolidge and Secretary Hubert Work all refused to fire Jess. In June 1921, Mesa Verde had two rangers, one on duty in the park, the other in the Mancos office. To provide service to visitors as well as to prevent damage to the ruins, the new superintendent enlisted some of the park's labor force to serve as guides on occasions when there were many visitors. Their service was preceded by an intensive course in Mesa Verde archeology. The only ruin that visitors were allowed to enter without an escort was Spruce Tree House, lying under the eye of headquarters employees. http://npshistory.com/persons-of-the-month/person-of-the-month-0614.htm 1/3 6/23/2015 National Park Service History: Person of the Month As early as 1915 the park had had a museum of sorts, with poorly displayed exhibits in a small log cabin. Jess enlisted the interest of Mrs. Stella Leviston of San Francisco in providing funds for a start on the museum which has now served the park for SO many years; John D. Rockefeller, Jr., a visitor in 1924, supplied the money needed to complete it. So far as I am able to learn, this was the first time that Mr. Rockefeller's nascent interest in the national parks-ultimately to benefit SO enormously from his gifts- manifested itself in the form of a contribution for a specific project. This he supplemented by financing archeological explorations. Jesse L Nusbaum. on his haunches left. at the Cliff Palace or "Speaker Chiefs House" in Mesa Verde NP. (NPS Photo, HPC-001693) One of Superintendent Nusbaum's earliest projects was the building of a campfire circle; there each evening he gave a talk. To supplement these, he arranged for some of the many Navajos who worked in the park in summer to put on tribal dances. Talking about this arrangement many years later, Jess remarked that the men were perfectly willing to perform but had only their work clothes in which to dance. "So I offered to furnish them what they needed-headbands, velveteen shirts, the necessary trousers. They supplemented their dances with part of one of their sings where they sing facing one another in a circle. Since these services were given after the day's work, the performers were allowed to pass the hat; then, in sight of the audience, the take was counted and divided equally among members of the group, with an extra 25 cents for the leader." Soon, however, the General Accounting Office stepped in with a requirement that the hat-passing be done by a ranger, who had to report the amount collected and how it was divided The Navajos liked the arrangement; they made good money at it. When Jess entered on duty he found that the park had been excessively overgrazed. "There was no grass under the trees at all, and everything was browsed as far up as the cattle could reach. And during wet weather the cattle churned up the roads SO badly as to make them almost impassible." An early Nusbaum decision was to reduce grazing by 20 percent a year, to terminate it in 5 years. Though the permittees were not happy about it, he made the decision stick. The result was an almost miraculous recovery of the mesa vegetation. It was on Jess's initiative that arrangements were made for the restoration, on the Mesa Verde, of the wild Merriam turkey-which the cliff-dwellers domesticated-and the bighorn sheep, which had lived on the mesa as recently as the 1880s. He served as superintendent from 1921 to 1931; again, after service as director of the New Mexico Museum of Anthropology, from 1936 to 1939; and for a third time during World War II during the military furlough of Superintendent John S. McLaughlin Throughout his long Government career-indeed, during all his mature life-Jess was a stalwart defender and protector of prehistoric ruins and other archeological resources on the public lands, always subject to the inroads of pot-hunters and other damaging activities. For many years he served as Departmental archeologist, the official watch-dog constantly on the alert for the kinds of activities prohibited by the Antiquities Act of 1906. In that 1962 interview, Jess noted that while he was at Mesa Verde, he was in an excellent position, through his evening campfire talks, to publicize the provisions-the prohibitions-of the Antiquities Act; it was also a good listening post for information about http://npshistory.com/persons-of-the-month/person-of-the-month-0614.htm 2/3 6/23/2015 National Park Service History: Person of the Month actual or planned illegal digs. Perhaps the most notable Nusbaum accomplishment, was his success in compelling the El Paso Natural Gas Company to comply with the requirements of the Antiquities Act in its construction of a pipeline from near Farmington, N. Mex., across the Navajo Reservation and through the Flagstaff area to the Colorado River At the start, El Paso officials were strongly opposed. Later, realizing that their cooperation was winning them priceless publicity, they cooperated wholeheartedly. Ultimately, this "pipeline archeology" was practiced along some 7,500 miles of El Paso right-of-way. "Not only was our procedure followed on Federal lands," according to Jess. "Thanks to the interest of the El Paso Company officials, it was applied equally to other public lands and to the private lands crossed by their rights of way." One of the results of pipeline archeology was to arouse the interest and concern-and participation-of highway builders. Though road construction involves cuts and fills rather than a continuous trench, the salvage of archeological values along the route of a road is at least as desirable as along a pipeline. Early in his career, Jess made liberal use of photography as an important means of providing adequate records of such work as that of Balcony House and in the reconstruction of the Palace of the Governors. The result is a priceless collection of photographs, of great historical importance, which his widow Rosemary has devoted much time to examining and arranging. Many of them were used in her published account of the history and restoration of the Palace My own acquaintance with Jess Nusbaum began during his service with the State Museum, Thereafter I had frequent and enjoyable contacts with him On occasion, I even traveled by automobile, with him in the driver's seat; his inveterate habit of pointing out things of interest along the way made this a somewhat scary experience on some of New Mexico's twisting roads. Deep of voice, eloquent, possessed of a robust sense of humor, and one of the best of companions, the friendship we shared to the day of his death is one of my most cherished memories. He was a skilled and dedicated public servant, truly one of the great persons who have given their devotion to the National Park Service and all the fine things it has always stood for. Jesse Nusbaum holding a Navajo child with two Navajo women in the background (NPS Photo, HPC-000186) person_of_the_month-0614.hum Last Updated 01-Jun-2014 http://npshistory.com/persons-of-the-month/person-of-the-month-0614.htm 3/3 JESSE L. NUSBAUM PAPERS, 1921-1958 National Park Service History Collection RG 5 INVENTORY Introduction This inventory covers the papers of Jesse Nusbaum, NPS archeologist. The largest part consists of correspondence, however more of the correspondence is outgoing and the incoming is not necessarily kept with its reply. This correspondence deals with the enforcement of the Antiquities Act, archeological topics, pipeline archeology, park areas especially Mesa Verde National Park, and NPS administrative matters. Most of the correspondence dates from 1946- 1958, however copies of and actual correspondence from the 1920's and 1930's are occasionally included. Articles, clippings, periodicals, a few photos, and notes make up the rest of the material. This dates from the 1950's with a few earlier clippings. It is largely due to Nusbaum's efforts that the NPS is SO closely tied to Southwest archeology. A. Provenance These papers were given by Mrs. Jesse L. Nusbaum (Rosemary). They were generated and collected by her husband during his service as NPS archeologist. They reflect his active correspondence with many university archeologists and other Federal officials on an official and occasionally personal level. B. Biography Jesse Logan Nusbaum was the archeologist in the Park Service and is closely tied to the study of the ancient civilization of the Southwest. He was born in Greeley, Colorado, September 3, 1887, to Edward Moore and Agnes Strickland (Moodie) Nusbaum. His parents and maternal grandparents were members of the original Greeley colony organized by Horace Greeley. Nusbaum attended local public schools in Greeley as well as the Colorado Teachers College there, receiving his B. Pedagogy in 1907. After graduation, Nusbaum went to New Mexico State Normal in Las Vegas to teach science and manual arts. That summer he began his connection with Mesa Verde as a photographer and archeological assistant to A. V. Kidder and spent the following summer (1908) in a similar fashion. In June of 1909, Nusbaum became the first employee of the School of American Archeology and Museum of New Mexico in Santa Fe under Dr. Edgar L. Hewett. While there he conducted archeological surveys, investigations, excavations, and ruins stabilization in Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Colorado, and New Mexico including the Pajarito Plateau. Nusbaum's work at the museum again brought him to Mesa Verde for the excavation, repair, and stabilization of Balcony House, an important major project that extended into the winter of 1910. He spent 9 months in Washington, D. C., September 1911 to June 1912, working on exhibits for the Panama-Pacific Exposition to be held in San Diego, California. While in Washington, Nusbaum took advanced courses at night and continued his advanced studies in Colorado during the summer of 1913. His innovations at Mesa Verde and manual arts background stood him in good stead during this supervision of the restoration of the New Mexico Palace of Governors in Santa Fe which was completed in Fall of 1913. In 1913, Nusbaum also worked 3 months in the Maya ruins of Yucatan with Dr. S. G. Morley. During his many expeditions with the museum, Nusbaum also helped restore the mission church at Pecos. He used some of its design in the work of the state art museum, built in 1916-19 under his supervision. Jesse L. Nusbaum attempted to become an aviator during World War I but instead became an engineer and served in France. He enlisted in May 1918 and was discharged April 1919. From May 1919 to June 1921, he was employed at the Museum of the American Indian, Heye Foundation in New York City. While Nusbaum was working in New York http://www.nps.gov/hfc/products/library/nusbaum.htm 5/1/2007 Mesa Vedre National Park: Shadows of the Centuries (Chapter 7) Page 1 of 14 Duare A. Smith Mesa Verde National Park: Revied. NATIONAL PARK Shadows of the Centuries (amv. Press AlGlando,2002 SERVICE Boulder Chapter 7: The Nusbaum Years JESSE NUSBAUM BECAME SUPERINTENDENT of Mesa Verde National Park on May 21, 1921. Although Nusbaum's appointment attracted little attention from Americans caught up in what would be known as the roaring twenties, his presence dominated the next phase of the park's history. The lanky thirty-two-year-old Nusbaum, the first trained archaeologist to attain the office of superintendent, had worked at Mesa Verde as early as 1907. He and another promising young archaeologist, Alfred V. Kidder, had come with Jesse Fewkes to survey and to photograph ruins. And Nusbaum was the one who completed the Balcony House work for Virginia McClurg. Interested in archaeology since his boyhood in Greeley, Colorado (where he spent hours poring over Nordenskield's text and photographs), Nusbaum had gained wide experience from digging in Central America and the Southwest. In the years to come, one of his major accomplishments would be the upgrading of archaeological research, when he could find the time to devote to it. Those precious hours would become available only in the winter, when snow closed the park roads. [1] By 1921, at the time of his appointment, Nusbaum had acquired a variety of experiences upon which to draw, and he needed them all. Once again, the administration of Mesa Verde had foundered on the rocks of incompetence: Thomas Rickner's superintendency had collapsed under charges of nepotism, cronyism, and partisan politics. One visitor even accused Mancos and Cortez people of entering the park without reporting themselves and of flouting the rules and regulations. Sunday seemed to be a day devoted to revelry. Someone else criticized the lack of protection for the ruins and the inadequate visitors' services and facilities. Jesse Nusbaum inherited a peck of troubles, which he described succinctly as an "unholy mess." The removal of Rickner did not put everything to rights. Chief ranger Fred Jeep, Rickner's soninlaw, lingered on, continuing his practice of illegally excavating park ruins ("pot hunting," Nusbaum disparagingly called it). His wife, Oddie, ran the concessions, and most of the other jobs were held by relatives of the Rickners and the Jeeps. To make matters worse, the highlights of Nusbaum's telephone calls rapidly surfaced on the streets of Mancos. He soon found out why-Rickner's daughter was the operator. Nusbaum immediately requested a replacement for her. [2] In a letter to a friend, dated June 1922, Nusbaum revealed his trying situation. Jeep, he observed, was a sick man, having fallen victim to a large overdose of wood alcohol (bootleggers operated everywhere, flagrantly defying the law of prohibition). Jeep's son wreaked his share of havoc, too, including scribbling over the park register, throwing http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/smith/chap7.htm 8/20/2008 Mesa Vedre National Park: Shadows of the Centuries (Chapter 7) Page 2 of 14 ashes across the recently scrubbed museum floor, and "raising hell in general." Several of Jeep's friends, whom Nusbaum refused to rehire, spent the winter in Mancos recounting how the superintendent had cheated them out of their pay. Nusbaum had had enough. He fired Jeep in 1922, citing a variety of reasons. Nusbaum admitted that he never again "would accept an appointment where a family had intermingled interests." He rose to the challenge: "We are here to win out, put this park in the best shape possible and make every visitor a continual booster for it." [3] All of Nusbaum's considerable skills would be required to achieve the "best shape possible" in the park's administration; there would be no time for archaeology for the moment. Nusbaum had seen signs of what he would be in for during a disconcerting grilling in Washington by Colorado's senior senator, Republican Lawrence Phipps. At one time a partner of Andrew Carnegie, Phipps had come to Denver in 1901. Already a millionaire, he came not to make money, "but to invest in health and happiness to hunt and to fish." This conservative businessman seemed much more concerned about Nusbaum's politics than about his qualifications. [4] Phipps begrudgingly concurred in the appointment, but Nusbaum would hear from him again. Willing to rush in where angels feared to tread, Nusbaum quickly announced that park headquarters would be moved to Spruce Tree camp, where he would also build the superintendent's home. Mancos rose up in righteous anger; letters were dispatched to Phipps, and Nusbaum soon received a call from the irate senator. In no uncertain terms, the senator admonished him to return promptly to Mancos: "It's your responsibility to run the park and attend to Republican lines in that region and let the ranger run the Park." Risking his job, Jesse replied that he had pledged to administer the park in the public interest and that he planned to devote his full time to that responsibility. [5] Nusbaum prevailed, and the headquarters stayed in Mesa Verde. The first project, the superintendent's home, was designed and built by Nusbaum, who based it on Hopi architecture. He also made the furniture along the simple lines of New Mexico's earliest Spanish colonial style. The Nusbaums lived first in a tent, then in a ranger's cottage. Finally, in mid-March 1922, they moved into their uncompleted new home. They, and one other employee, were the first people to winter in the park, their only links to the outside world being a forty-mile pack trail and the slender telephone wire. "We observed Christmas [1921] in great style, having sent in a pack outfit to Mancos several days before for packages that had arrived, Christmas supplies, mail, etc." A decorated tree, a turkey dinner, and wreaths made of red cedar branches with purple berries added to the festivities of the only day Nusbaum took off all month. Work on the house claimed all of his time. During brief spare moments, the family managed to squeeze in skating on the reservoir and sledding. One of the heaviest snow seasons in years locked the Nusbaums in the park. [6] The house was a triumph. When curious tourists clamored to see it inside and out, the Nusbaums bowed to their wishes and opened it for public tours. Overly aggressive individuals inevitably strained their hospitality beyond tolerable limits; in 1925, Park Service Director Stephen Mather, at Nusbaum's urging, ended the open-door policy: "A man's home is his castle and the superintendents of our parks and their families are http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/smith/chap7.htm 8/20/2008 Mesa Vedre National Park: Shadows of the Centuries (Chapter 7) Page 3 of 14 entitled to, and should have, that privacy in their own homes that any other citizen is entitled to." [7] Surviving the flap over moving the headquarters and completing his home freed Nusbaum to put his stamp on the administration and development of the park. Visiting Cliff Palace was more of an adventure in the "olden days." (Courtesy: Mesa Verde National Park) Grazing, after first being reduced, came to an end in 1927, over the strong objections of local cattlemen. Its demise was long overdue because of the damage it caused. Nusbaum described it this way: "The cattle were eating the place up, trampling down shrubbery, browsing, trailing over muddy roads, jumping up the banks of road slopes, tearing them down, and rolling rocks into the road in the process." Jesse had been warned that tampering with grazing permits "was extremely hazardous, very much like professional suicide," but he was not deterred. "We are not in the cattle business," Nusbaum announced emphatically. Angered locals had suffered another blow to the long- established practice of favoritism. Rickner had actually allowed his friends and in-laws to http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/smith/chap7.htm 8/20/2008 Mesa Vedre National Park: Shadows of the Centuries (Chapter 7) Page 4 of 14 graze their cattle without paying a fee. [8] The recipients of his favors quite naturally preferred a less professional, more political superintendent. Coal mining also drew to a close, but with less emotion. This time Nusbaum's job was smoothed by the meagerness of the deposits (only one lessee attempted to operate in the early 1920s, but without success) and the fact that improved roads and trucking made transporting coal to Cortez easier and cheaper. The superintendent discovered that the coal actually came from the adjoining Ute lands, and he shifted whatever royalties accrued to them. In a small way, the question of coal mining at Mesa Verde helped to force a resolution of the larger issue of mining in the parks. By a 1920 act, Congress had ended the activities of prospectors and miners in the national parks; in 1931, a bill specifically prohibited mining in Mesa Verde. Over the years since, mining interests have exerted pressure to open park lands. [9] Mesa Verde, however, has not been one of their targeted areas-its mineral potential is too limited to generate much interest. Nusbaum was also faced with the ongoing water problems. Increased visitation had once more put pressure on the supply; stop-gap measures, consisting of a gas engine and a pump, combined with a water tower near the lodge, allowed the park to accommodate needs into the 1920s. But the vexing impediment to park prosperity would not go away, and again it threatened to inhibit the visitors' enjoyment and limit the campers' stay. The direct relationship between water supply and visitation remained grimly evident. Moving forcefully in the face of the usual shortages of funds, the superintendent installed a new pumping plant, constructed dams to impound spring runoff, and built large tanks and an underground cistern for storage. One of the more interesting innovations came with an acre-sized catchment, covered with galvanized sheet metal, which was connected to tanks to catch, filter, and store rain water. [10] In desperation, a second catchment unit was built, but visitors' demands still exceeded the water supply. By 1930, the forecast of acute water shortages forced the planning process to begin all over again. Some people began to understand why the Anasazi had left! Resolving the grazing and mining issues out of the three most pressing problems, and staying nearly even with the third, would have satisfied most men, but Nusbaum had only begun. He rapidly moved on to improving the park experience for the visitors. No more youngsters gave tours; regularly scheduled morning and afternoon auto caravan trips to the ruins, conducted by rangers, took their place. No more people scampered over the ruins and picked up shards at will if the superintendent could prevent it. Signs were posted to instruct visitors, and evening campfire talks enlightened them on the park's attractions and its history. Upgrading the professionalism of the rangers became one of the superintendent's first priorities. Although the program was designed to please the public, it elicited at least one complaint from a contrary tourist who said that a ranger "used too big words." Nusbaum investigated and ascertained that the ranger had been "conscientiously" carrying out his duty; it was recommended that he simply refrain from using "unusual and obscure words." When the 1927 season arrived, the park was open from May 15 to November 1. Car trips were scheduled for 8:00 a.m. and 1:15 p.m. sharp, with no deviations in time allowed. http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/smith/chap7.htm 8/20/2008 Mesa Vedre National Park: Shadows of the Centuries (Chapter 7) Page 5 of 14 Shorter trips, at 10:00 a.m. and at 3:30 p.m., accommodated latecomers. The daily fee of one dollar allowed tourists to come in as early as 5:00 a.m., and they could now drive faster, as the speed limit had been increased to twelve miles per hour on the hills and twenty-five miles per hour on the open stretches. Wagon teams still retained the right of way, but cars no longer had to stop as long as they passed the horses at less than eight miles per hour. That restriction held little significance-horses had become rarer than automobiles had been before the war. Free public campgrounds lured the campers away from Mrs. Jeep, and for the first time, they were well marked and easily found. Campers, admonished to "leave your camp site clean when you leave the park," did not always obey, forcing park employees to clean up after them. Everyone was warned to conserve water, not to bathe in the park's reservoirs, and to abide by all the other rules and regulations. [11] Mesa Verde had come of age as a professionally operated and administered park. Most of the changes in the park can be attributed to the car, a mixed blessing, indeed. Its use contributed growing numbers of visitors; they came at greater velocity but not always with an increased appreciation of what they saw. The use of automobiles had produced that breed of tourists who trailed a cloud of dust in their hurry to cover as many miles and visit as many places as possible in the shortest time. What could be experienced and enjoyed along the way began to seem to be of little consequence. The automobile, better roads, and camping facilities brought vacations and Mesa Verde within the economic reach of almost everyone. The impetus was reflected dramatically in park attendance, which jumped to over 16,800 in 1928 (six times what it had been in 1920), a record that stood until 1931. Nevertheless, isolation, relatively weak promotional efforts, and no nearby major population center continued to affect visitation to Mesa Verde; Rocky Mountain National Park attendance in 1928 topped 250,000. Mesa Verde's unique role as a cultural park also hurt it. While park advocates and other Americans were debating the functions that parks should serve-a "people's playground" versus a nature experience, for example-Mesa Verde sat on the sidelines. [12] It was evident that more American vacationers than ever were traveling west, but it was by no means clear what was enticing them there. If attendance figures can serve as indicators it seems safe to assume that scenery, recreation, and mountains outclassed mesas, history, and cliff dwellings in influencing vacation plans. Visitors' reactions to Mesa Verde provide interesting reading. A sampling from the 1920s included these: "The Cliff dwellings should be counted as one of the Wonders of the World," "Good retreat for honeymooners," "A most interesting and educational park full of romance and thrills," and "Today is the realization of a ten year ambition. Hats off to Mesa Verde." [13] Jesse Nusbaum worked unstintingly during these years; nothing stopped or even slowed him once he had made up his mind to do something. Almost nothing, that is Government reports were known to have driven him nearly to distraction. He complained repeatedly about "useless" reports, until he finally exploded to the director after being informed that other park superintendents complied: "I admit I have been negligent in the matter-I would rather be doing the work-helping with it, no matter how strenuous, than writing reports to Washington telling how much 'I' was accomplishing." Sometimes he 111, BPD. http://www.nps.gov/history/history/online_books/smith/chap7.htm 8/20/2008