21. Depot

Welcome to the 5 part cell phone tour of Grand Canyon’s Historic Village. We invite you on a journey deep into the past, following the story of this special Village and its unique population of Villagers as they grow together into a one of a kind community.

Your journey begins here at the train depot .  Since 1901, the Railroad has served as a lifeline to the big city of Flagstaff, Arizona .  This link to civilization was crucial in making Grand Canyon an unusually popular and populated park.  Close your eyes and begin the journey.

The year is 1919.  The air smells of smoke and mule sweat.  You can hear the sounds of a horse trotting by, of railroad men joking around, and of tourists bustling about in excitement .  You are surrounded by smartly dressed travelers in tailored suits and hats: they want to look their best when visiting the newly proclaimed Grand Canyon National Park.  In front of you, the El Tovar hotel rises tall and proud from the Rim.  

Several talkative women stand nearby: they are Harvey girls newly employed at the El Tovar.  These young women must be brave and adventurous to travel out here by themselves with neither parents nor husbands to take care of them.   If you listen quietly you can hear 20 year old Bernice Belle from Plainsview, Texas.  

“Girls, today we become true pioneers.  After all, any old galoot could travel out west in a covered wagon, but only the classiest of ladies are chosen to be Harvey Girls at the Grand Canyon.  Golly, just think of all the luxuries inside that hotel.  There might be cold cantaloupes from California, fresh whitefish from the Great Lakes, and even sea turtle soup from the Gulf of Mexico.  Why, I am positively fermenting with excitement!

But I must say, it’s a good thing that the Harvey Company will take care of us.  The rest of this camp is dusty, full of rubbish, and utterly unsuitable for polished women like ourselves.  Why, I think I can smell raw sewage!  
And my heavens, those railroad men are awful rough: spittin and cursin.  There’ll be no husband hunting for me amongst them.  That head waitress was right when said Grand Canyon was no place to settle down and raise a family.

Bernice’s reaction to the Canyon was not uncommon.  From the late 1800s onward, the area had developed as a hodgepodge of fallen down cabins and unsubstantial tents.  Offensive sights and sounds greeted the visitor at every turn.  Conditions only worsened as the population grew .  When Grand Canyon was officially named a National Park in 1919, the rangers recognized this problem and resolved to transform the disgraceful camp into a very unique community.  To learn about their grand plans, continue to stop #2 at the Old Superintendent’s House, located just to your east, where Village Loop Road meets the drive to the El Tovar.