National Park Service 

U.S. Department of the Interior 

Cultural Resource Management 

Intermountain Region 

CHIRICAHUA NATIONAL MONUMENT 

Faraway Ranch Special History Study

By Lysa Wegman- French 

Intermountain Cultural Resource Management 

Professional Paper No. 72 
Cover: Post card of the entrance sign to Faraway Ranch, ca. 1950s. Faraway 

Ranch Collections, Western Archeological and Conservation Center, Tucson. 
i

Intermountain Cultural Resources Management 

Professional Paper No. 72 

Faraway Ranch Special History Study 

Chiricahua National Monument 

by 

Lysa Wegman- French 

Cultural Resources Division 

Intermountain Region 

National Park Service 

U. S. Department of the Interior 

Santa Fe, 2006 
ii
iii

CONTENTS 

Introduction 1 

Theme I: An Overview of the People and the 

 History of Faraway Ranch 7 

Theme II: The Federal Presence in the West 31 

Theme III: The Women of the West 67 

Theme IV: Tourism and Guest Ranching 105 

Theme V: Ranching 167 

Bibliography 211 
iv
v

ILLUSTRATIONS 

Illustration 1. The landscape, orchard, and main house of Faraway Ranch. Bonita Creek, 

lined by oak trees, leads to the “Wonderland of Rocks,” Chiricahua National Monument, 

established 1924. vi 

Illustration 2. The Erickson family, ca. 1912. Emma and Neil, front row, with their children 

Lillian, Ben, and Hildegard. 5 

Illustration 3. The Erickson homestead, later their Faraway Ranch, a few years after the 

original cabin and stone house had been added to and expanded with the two story main 

house. The orchard extends to the oak tree- lined banks of Bonita Creek. Ca. 1907. 6 

Illustration 4. Soldier Neil Erickson prior to homesteading in the Chiricahua Mountains. 

 30 

Illustration 5. In 1903, Neil Erickson became an employee of the U. S. Forest Service and 

maintained his office in the ranch house. 30

Illustration 6. Ed and Lillian Erickson Riggs with duded up guest, Faraway Guest Ranch.

 66 

Illustration 7. Emma Erickson and her chickens. 66 

Illustration 8. Guest at Faraway Ranch, 1920s. 104 

Illustration 9. Dudes arriving at Faraway Guest ranch, 1920s. 104 

Illustration 10. Besides a guest ranch, the Faraway was a working ranch with up to 500 cattle. 

Here a guest helps rope a calf. 165 

Illustration 11. Branding cattle at Faraway Ranch. 166 

Note: All illustrations from the Faraway Ranch Collection, Western Archeological and 

Conservation Center, National Park Service, Tucson. 
vi

Illustration 1. The landscape, orchard, and main house of Faraway Ranch. Bonita Creek, 

lined by oak trees, leads to the “Wonderland of Rocks,” Chiricahua National Monument, 

established 1924. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Introduction 

1

INTRODUCTION 

"Context in interpretation - - Every historical park should answer three basic questions 

through its interpretive program- - what happened, why it occurred, and what it means. . . . 

Efforts need to be increased to provide context and meaning."1

The history of Faraway Ranch and the Erickson- Riggs family is a rich and complex 

story. However, if viewed simplistically as we often have, the Faraway Ranch story is one 

more tale of Western settlement. Two Swedish immigrants, one a soldier and the other 

an officer’s family servant, meet at a frontier military post, fall in love and decide to 

homestead along the banks of Bonita Creek in the Chiricahua Mountains. They marry, 

raise a family, and, through hard work and perseverance, build the Erickson 

homestead/ranch. After the turn of the twentieth- century, their oldest daughter marries 

a ranch neighbor and converts the old home into a popular guest ranch, renamed 

Faraway Guest Ranch, which survives over fifty years as gateway to the “Wonderland of 

Rocks,” the Chiricahua National Monument. Of course, history is multifaceted. The 

goal here is to provide several aspects of that richer yet more complicated story. 

Faraway Ranch now plays out its days as an historic site within Chiricahua National 

Monument, in southeastern Arizona. Even before the National Park Service acquired 

the property in the late 1970s, the staff recognized the historical importance of the ranch. 

Since then, the monument’s staff has performed a yeoman’s service studying the ranch, 

preserving it, and interpreting the people and events associated with the site. The 

extensive collection of papers and material artifacts have been catalogued, preserved and 

made accessible to researchers; architectural drawings of the structures have been 

delineated; and studies have been published on a variety of topics including 

archeological remains, the army occupation of the property during the Indian wars, the 

historic landscape, and the appropriate furnishings to interpret the home and ranch. 

Visitors now tour the home and ranch, learning about the Erickson and Riggs families 

and their nearly century- long period of working the land. But the quest for information 

on Faraway Ranch and its residents continues. 

The observation quoted above, made during a National Park Service conference, 

pinpointed the three goals for this special history study: what happened, why it occurred, 

and what it means. This does not imply that all answers to all three questions are 

included. Any event can be viewed from multiple—perhaps innumerable perspectives; 

each provides a new explanation of what happened, why it occurred, and what it means. 

Faraway Ranch could be interpreted under any number of themes, and each would 

present new insight into the history of that place. 

For practical purposes, we have chosen four perspectives- - or thematic contexts- - from 

which to view the ranch. These contexts help us better understand the complex history 

of the ranch. But if truly successful, the contexts will also provide information that we 

can we carry with us, to help us understand our broader history. The ranch can be used 

 

1

 "Discovery 2000," Morning Report, September 12, 2000. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Introduction 

2

as a lens through which we can view the past, as a vehicle through which we can gain a 

better understanding of history. 

To help visitors and park staff to better understand the complex themes of western 

history as exemplified by Faraway Ranch, the series of topics listed below have been 

analyzed and presented here. This study is organized into five thematic chapters. Each 

chapter focuses on a broad Western theme. Thus, the chapters are less sequential than 

topical and need not be read in order of appearance, though one should begin with the 

overview. The themes are: 

1) An overview chronological description of the lives of the people and history of 

Faraway Ranch. 

2) The Federal presence in the West. 

3) Women in the American West. 

4) Tourism and Guest Ranching. 

5) Ranching. 

Each theme stands alone, an essay on the Western experience and how Faraway Ranch 

fit into that experience. 

To provide a background to the Faraway story, this study begins in Sweden, the 

birthplace of Emma Peterson and Nels (later Neil) Erickson, then proceeds through 

their separate migrations to the United States in the 1870s, their wedding, and their 

acquisition of the homestead that would later become part of Chiricahua National 

Monument. Their two daughters, Hildegard and Lillian, began operating a guest ranch 

in the family home in the late 1910s, dubbing it Faraway Ranch; Lillian and her husband 

Ed Riggs subsequently operated the business during the heyday of dude ranches. After 

the death of Ed, 62- year- old Lillian, then blind and almost deaf, continued operating 

the ranch/guest ranch for over two decades, until her death in the late 1970s. 

It was a delight getting to know each member of the Erickson/Riggs family. Any one of 

them on his or her own would make an absorbing study; each possesses a character that 

stands out from the papers that recorded their lives. But together, the family members 

form a fascinating mosaic that represents many stories of the West: immigration, 

ethnicity, gender, disabilities, class, commerce, settlement, conservation, warfare, 

displacement of indigenous peoples, government, and urban/rural issues to name a few. 

We often think of past events as being inevitable, or destined. We fall into the trap of 

thinking that there was only one way that history's story could have played out, and that 

there was a linear progression along the historical path. However, it quickly becomes 

apparent in the Faraway story that there was nothing linear about the route that the 

historical characters took in their lives. Decision points were reached repeatedly: should 

Neil Erickson stay in the army to become an officer, or leave the army? If he left the 

army, should he stay in the West or move back East? Should he live in the city or in the 

country? Thirty- five years later, Lillian Erickson faced the choice of pursuing a writing 

career in California, or returning to the family homestead. Should she marry Ed Riggs? 

Should he move to California to be with her? Should he pursue ranching, or a career as a 

mechanic in town? Each time a decision was made, the person took a fork in the road, 

which then led to another fork, and another. The resulting story was only one out of 

innumerable scenarios that may have occurred. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Introduction 

3

The majority of the research material for this project came from the Faraway Ranch 

Collection. This extensive collection provides an amazing array of information about 

two generations of the Erickson/Riggs family. For the most part, the family members 

had an understanding of the importance of their personal histories, and so they recorded 

it and saved it. Sometimes while reading through their personal papers, I seemed to have 

conversations with the family members. Lillian Erickson Riggs, especially, would seem 

to address my questions. While I sorted though the mountain of material I wondered 

which of the bits and pieces would be most relevant, which were an accurate portrayal of 

the past. From Lillian's diary, she echoed my questions: "How may we evaluate the 

truth? How know the false from the true? Those things which were of so much 

importance a little while ago have almost fallen into oblivion. Events which seemed of 

small importance when they happened stand out like monuments and are never 

forgotten."2

 

Even the National Park Service staff of six decades ago "talked" to me through their 

records. While scanning the monument's monthly reports for information about the 

ranch, I found an entry: "We have two reports from Bill this month. Due to some 

oversight, the December report got lost in the shuffle and we are setting the record 

straight by putting it in here a month late. Otherwise, the historian, fifty years from now, 

in searching these records might think Bill and the Chiricahua camp sat around and 

loafed during December."3

 And on another occasion, while reading Lillian's diary, when 

I wondered why a blind woman would so faithfully type entries in her diary- - a record 

that she would never be able to read- - she answered that her companion Pat Grigg “used 

to say that the entries were for posterity. . . . Perhaps [the next generation] may find 

something here of interest some thirty or forty years hence.”4

 And on another day, she 

observed, “Just now it seems of small note to record the happenings of the last few days. 

Fifty years hence, it may be significant. If any of the doings of us common folks are ever 

significant."5

 I wonder if she ever envisioned the stream of documents that have been 

produced as a result of the Faraway Ranch papers. 

Several comments are in order regarding the mechanics of the study. The Faraway 

Ranch manuscript collection has been expertly organized by the archivists at the 

National Park Service's Western Archeological and Conservation Center in Tucson. 

However, because the papers are so extensive, it can still be difficult to pinpoint the 

location of certain specific items. I have thus made liberal use of footnotes; the notes can 

be used as an additional vehicle to access the archival collection. Except in the first 

footnote in each chapter, I use FRC to reference the Faraway Ranch Collection at the 

Western Archeological and Conservation Center, in Tucson, Arizona. 

 

2

 Lillian Riggs, diary, May 26, 1961, Faraway Ranch Collection, series 2, folder 59, Western Archeological and Conservation 

Center, Tucson, Arizona. 

3

 The note was signed F.P., undoubtedly Frank "Boss" Pinckley, superintendent of Southwest Monuments, "Southwest 

Monuments Monthly Report," January 1938. 

4

 Lillian Riggs, diary, December 26, 1955, Faraway Ranch Collection, series 2, folder 53, Western Archeological and 

Conservation Center, Tucson, Arizona. 

5

 Lillian Riggs, diary, October 18, 1955, Faraway Ranch Collection, series 2, folder 53, Western Archeological and 

Conservation Center, Tucson, Arizona. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Introduction 

4

The manuscript material used in this study- - such as hand- written stories, diaries and 

typed drafts- - invariably contained a sprinkling of spelling, punctuation and 

grammatical errors. When quoting these materials, I was faced with the need to use “sic” 

excessively, thereby spotlighting the inadvertent errors. I became concerned at the 

unnecessary emphasis on these points, which could be distracting to the reader. Thus, 

when quoting such material, I have taken the liberty to correct most errors in spelling 

and punctuation. On a few occasions, I have corrected grammar only to the extent to 

make the quotations reasonably readable. The Erickson family seemed to be rather 

casual in the spelling of people's names: in his early life, Neil used both Nels and Nils; 

Hildegard frequently was spelled Hildegarde, and her daughter's name was sometimes 

spelled Emmajoy and at other times Emajoy. For each person, I have chosen one spelling 

to use consistently in this study. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Introduction 

5

 

Illustration 1. The Erickson family, ca. 1912. Emma 

and Neil, front row, with their children Lillian, 

Ben, and Hildegard. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Introduction 

6

Illustration 2. The Erickson homestead, later their Faraway Ranch, a few years after the 

original cabin and stone house had been added to and expanded with the two story main 

house. The orchard extends to the oak tree- lined banks of Bonita Creek. Ca. 1907. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

7

THEME I: AN OVERVIEW OF THE PEOPLE AND THE 

HISTORY OF FARAWAY RANCH 

“History, although sometimes made up of the few acts of the great, is more often shaped by 

the many acts of the small." 

Mark Yost 

Faraway Ranch possesses an amazing sense of place, and it has seized the affections of 

the many guests who have visited the oak tree- shaded valley. Set in the basin and range 

province of southeastern Arizona, the ranch is situated at the western base of the 

Chiricahua Mountains, now part of Chiricahua National Monument. One travels across 

miles of near desert to reach the seeming oasis with its green vegetation shading the 

summer sun. Once there, the visitor is inclined to linger in the green valley with its 

sloping canyon walls. Indeed, the power of the site caused two generations of the 

Erickson family to stay here for close to a century. The family operated the property as a 

ranch and a guest ranch, but above all, the Faraway Ranch served as their home. 

One might start the story of Faraway Ranch in Sweden in the 1850s. In that decade two 

babies were born who would meet each other over twenty years later- - not in their 

homeland, but almost 5,500 miles away. They would meet in the southwestern United 

States, and would eventually move to what became Faraway Ranch. But before they got 

there, they each followed interesting paths. 

EMMA PETERSON 

May 24, 1854 marks the birth date of Emma Sophia Peterson, one of 6 children. The 

child’s father served as an officer in the Swedish Army; in that country the family 

occupied "what was known as the better class," which provided a certain level of 

comfort and status to the family.1

 This awareness of her respected class status made a 

strong impression on the girl, and this self- image continued through her life. When her 

mother died giving birth to the woman’s seventh child, Emma's father hired a 

housekeeper, two maids and three man servants to care for the children and the 

household.2

 After two years, Emma's father married the housekeeper, Christina, and the 

couple produced four more children.3

 Emma did not get along well with her stepmother 

(who had an "unconquerable temper"), and by the time the girl had become a teenager, it 

became clear that the two disagreed on the direction that Emma's future would take. 

The young, headstrong girl wasn't about to bend to the will of her stepmother, and she 

decided that it was time to leave her childhood home. Emma's older sister and brother 

 

1

 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, Faraway Ranch Collection, series 1, folder 

75- 78, Western Archeological and Conservation Center, Tucson, Arizona. Cited hereafter as FRC. The 1880 U.S. census 

showed Peterson's birth year as 1855. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- Day Saints, FamilySearch, 

<www.familysearch.org>. 

2

 Emma described her mother as "a lovely, but delicate lady, on whom the burden of bearing and caring for six children 

evidently was too much and she died after giving birth to the seventh child." It is notable that Emma thought her mother 

so delicate, in spite of the fact that she was able to bear six children. 

3

 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

8

had previously emigrated from Sweden to the United States, and Emma chose to start 

her new independent life in that country. She secretly asked for money from that 

brother, and when it arrived, she wrote to her father, away on military duty, to ask him to 

meet her at the station so she could say good- bye before she left the country. In 1873, at 

the age of 19, Emma Peterson accompanied a Swedish family to United States, to join her 

sister in Chicago. She disembarked in the U.S. not knowing the English language.4

After arriving in Chicago, Peterson found a job working as a servant. After toiling in 

Chicago for five years, she happened to meet a couple that lived with their 3 children in a 

small town in Colorado. The couple offered a position in their household to Peterson, 

the young woman accepted the offer, and moved to the new state. After working for 

them for two years, Peterson moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado, to work as a cook in 

another household. Less than a year later, a friend had arranged for a maid's position for 

Peterson, working for the commander at Fort Craig, New Mexico Territory. Once again, 

Peterson moved- - a move that would impact her life. Not long after Peterson arrived in 

1883, the commander was transferred out of Ft. Craig, and Major John Kemp Mizner 

moved into the house; Emma stayed with the house and began working for Mizner. 

Meanwhile, Peterson's friend who had arranged for her job at Fort Craig married a Sgt. 

Hyman. Peterson spent much of her free time in the Hyman home. 

NELS ERICKSON 

Meanwhile, our other Swedish native- - Nels Erickson- - had been traveling his own path 

since his birth on April 22, 1859. Erickson's class status was much different from 

Peterson's since he was the first child of a poor farm family. When Nels was 10, his 

father, Erik Nilsson, emigrated from Sweden to the United States. There he obtained a 

job on the Northern Pacific Railroad, and while there was killed by Indians; Nels was 12 

years old and his father's death made a big impression on him. In addition, since Nels 

was the oldest child, much of the responsibility for the support of the family fell to him.5

After spending his teen years working in Sweden, Erickson decided that his future lay in 

America, so in 1879 he left Sweden as a stowaway. After an adventurous trip, he arrived 

in Massachusetts, where he worked a while for his uncle, an earlier immigrant. Erickson 

changed jobs several times, and then by 1881 took a position in a sugar factory. The 

working conditions there were so unbearable that he decided to talk to an Army 

recruiter to learn about the opportunities in the military. The same day that he stopped 

into the recruiting office he found himself signed up, and on his way to New York. 

Because of his memory of his father's death, he volunteered for a position where the 

army was fighting Indians. As a result, within a few months he was stationed at Camp 

Ojo Caliente, in southwestern New Mexico Territory, in the midst of the war on the 

 

4

 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

5

 Neil Erickson, [Untitled: Coming from Sweden, 1879], FRC, series 4, folder 3; Neil Erickson, “A Brief Account of the 

Experience of Neil Erickson During the Apache Campaign of 1882 . . .,” 2 November 1935, FRC, series 4, folder 11; Emma 

Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. Nels' mother was Nilla 

Perrson. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- Day Saints, FamilySearch International Genealogical Index, 

<www.familysearch.org>. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

9

Apache Indians.6 The camp was located about 35 miles west of Fort Craig, where 

Peterson would live, with the San Mateo Mountains separating the two forts. In the 

early spring of 1882, Erickson's troop was ordered to go on the campaign against the 

Apache commanded by Col. George Forsyth; by this time the immigrant was a sergeant.7

 

During the next year and a half, Erickson marched to various locales in New Mexico and 

Arizona; although apparently stationed at Fort Craig in spring 1883, during the summer of 

1883 the troop was on the Gila River in Arizona Territory.8

While Erickson was on the Gila, Emma Peterson arrived to work at Fort Craig. During 

her frequent visits with her friend, "Mrs. Hyman constantly talked about a very nice 

Swedish boy" who was stationed at the fort, but was then out in the field, and would 

come back in the fall of 1883.9

 One evening Sergeant Hyman asked Peterson to go see his 

wife, saying that she wanted to see Peterson very badly. Peterson later recalled, "Well, 

who should I meet there but Sergeant Erickson!"10 Although the soldier did not impress 

Peterson at first, they continued to see each other at gatherings at the Hyman's. 

In June 1884, an army reorganization caused Col. Mizner and the 4th Cavalry to leave Ft. 

Craig. He asked Peterson if she would come along to work for him at Ft. Huachuca, 

Arizona Territory, the post he was ordered to command. Peterson agreed to the move. 

By that time, she and Erickson had become well acquainted, and she specifically asked 

for him to be assigned to be her driver. Mizner accommodated the request, and on the 

trip, Erickson proposed marriage. However, Peterson declined the offer, saying that she 

could not marry an enlisted man, but if he would become an officer she would 

reconsider the proposal. Erickson apparently vowed to do so. The soldier's company 

did not go Fort Huachuca, but rather marched to other locales in the territory, so 

Erickson and Peterson began a relationship based on letter writing. Erickson penned his 

love letters in Swedish, and called his beloved "Emmy." He signed himself Nels, 

although by that time he had adopted the name Neil for use in the United States. Thus 

began the couple's new life in Arizona Territory. 

 

6

 Neil Erickson, [Untitled: Coming from Sweden, 1879], FRC, series 4, folder 3; Neil Erickson, “A Brief Account of the 

Experience of Neil Erickson During the Apache Campaign of 1882 . . .,” November 2, 1935, FRC, series 4, folder 11; Emma 

Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78; and Neil Erickson to 

Lillian Erickson, July 22, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 101- 106. 

7

 Neil Erickson, “A Brief Account of the Experience of Neil Erickson During the Apache Campaign of 1882 . . .,” 2 

November 1935, FRC, series 4, folder 11. 

8

 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, Western 

Archeological and Conservation Center, Tucson, Arizona. Cited hereafter as WACC. 

9

 Emma Erickson to Jess Stanley Hutchison, June 1, 1943, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78; [Neil Erickson, 1927?], FRC, series 1, 

folder 101- 106; and Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, 

WACC. 

10 Emma Erickson to Jess Stanley Hutchison, June 1, 1943, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

10

ARIZONA TERRITORY 

The area that is now southeastern Arizona is a basin and range province- - a near- desert 

with elongated mountain ranges running in a roughly parallel north- south orientation, 

separated by flat arid or semiarid basins. The largest of these mountain ranges is the 

Chiricahua range, just inside the eastern boundary of the current state; falling to the west 

edge of that range is the Sulphur Springs Valley. The junction of this range and valley 

would become the setting for Faraway Ranch. 

Southeastern Arizona had been the home of the Apache Indians since before the Spanish 

first saw them in the 1540s. Because of the strength of the Apache hold on their home, 

the Spanish made few attempts to settle the area that was their northern frontier. The 

Spaniards established a presidio in 1752 at Tubac and moved it four years later to Tucson, 

and Jesuits established a missionary presence, but these isolated spots did not attract 

Spanish settlers. However, at the shift to the Mexican era in the 1820s, ranching and 

mining opportunities encouraged several hundred Mexicans to move to the area now in 

southeastern Arizona. Some of these pioneers resided along the San Pedro River, in 

what was then the Mexican state of Sonora. These isolated Mexican settlements placed 

in the heart of Apacheria faced the anger of the native residents for invading of the area. 

Indian attacks forced out most of the colonists by the mid 1840s, and the region returned 

to the control of the natives. 

However, at the end of the Mexican War in 1848, the land north of the Gila River became 

part of the United States. With the Gadsden Purchase in 1853, the U.S. acquired the 

remainder of Arizona, south of the Gila River, including the future site of Faraway 

Ranch; this became part of New Mexico Territory. Ten years later, Arizona Territory 

was created out of the western half of New Mexico Territory.11 Although the official U.S. 

census of 1860 identified 4,040 Indians and 2,421 whites in Arizona, others estimated that 

in 1864 about 30,000 Indians lived in Arizona, compared to 4,573 others in the 

population.12 The legal juggling of ownership and jurisdictions seemed irrelevant to the 

Apaches, who retained the same possessive attitude about their homelands. But the U.S. 

decided that rather than retreating, as the Spanish and Mexicans had done, the military 

would wage war against the natives; the so- called Apache Wars began in the 1850s and 

continued for three decades. 

In the midst of the wars, mining dominated the economy of the territory. The silver 

mines near Tubac were re- opened in 1856. Rich gold and silver deposits were later 

discovered along the Colorado River and in the interior mountains. The non- Indian 

population in the territory increased to 9,581 in 1870. Tombstone became a boomtown 

due to a silver discovery in 1877; this attracted both eastern and foreign investments, as 

well as the Southern Pacific Railroad, which ran from Yuma to Tucson to El Paso, 

roughly following the route of present- day Interstate 8 and 10 in southeastern Arizona. 

 

11 The federal government created 13 western territories between 1861 and 1888. Arizona became a territory in 1863, the 

third western territory to become so during this era of territorial establishment. 

12 U.S. Census Bureau, <www.census.gov/population/documentation/twps0056/tab17.pdf>, accessed February 21, 2003; 

and Christiane Fischer, "A Profile of Women in Arizona in Frontier Days," Journal of the West 16, no. 3 (July 1977) citing 

Howard Lamar, The Far Southwest, 1846- 1912, 1966, pages 436- 437. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

11

The white population increased four- fold in the 1870s, with over 35,000 residents by 

1880. By the late 1880s, the value of mined copper surpassed silver and gold. Major 

producing areas in southeastern Arizona included Bisbee, Clifton- Morenci, and Globe. 

The copper companies and railroads dominated local and territorial politics. Also in the 

last decades of the nineteenth century, a livestock industry prospered. Large successful 

ranches in southeastern Arizona included the San Rafael, the Empire, and the Sierra 

Bonita ranches.13

The Apache wars continued primarily as a result of American incursions. The 

Chiricahua Indian Reservation established as home for Cochise’s band of Apache, and 

included the lands of future Faraway Ranch, was abolished 1874 and the Apache 

removed to the San Carlos Reservation. By 1875, about 5,000 Apaches had been taken 

onto the San Carlos Reservation in east central Arizona. However, the natives did not 

submit quietly to staying on the reservation, and not all tribal members had been 

captured. Over the next decade, the continuing raids by the non- reservation natives 

combined with the reoccurring outbreaks from the reservation made the region 

dangerous for Euro- and Mexican- Americans. 

It was to this setting that Emma Peterson and Neil Erickson arrived in the territory in 

1884. Only two months after arriving at Ft. Huachuca, Col. Mizner was transferred again; 

Peterson began operating a boarding house at Ft. Bowie.14 Meanwhile, Erickson 

continued to spend much of his time in movement, since his company patrolled the 

region. He frequently volunteered to go to Ft. Bowie for supplies and mail, and would 

take the opportunity to visit Emma while at the fort. 

After Peterson had recommended that he become an officer in order to marry her, 

Erickson started working with a tutor to study to become an officer. However, he soon 

learned more about how men became officers, and he realized how slim the chances 

were for him to gain that status. He dropped the idea, and tried to convince Peterson 

that there were many other opportunities available to him outside of the military. 

After decades of fighting, the war ended when Apache leader Geronimo surrendered on 

September 4, 1886. In the next few weeks, Peterson purchased a house in Bonita Canyon, 

about ten miles south of Fort Bowie, which would become the basis of the Faraway 

Ranch house. Shortly after he learned of her purchase, First Sergeant Neil Erickson was 

discharged from the army on October 10, 1886; his discharge came five years after he had 

enlisted, and only five weeks after Geronimo's surrender. Once Erickson shed his status 

of enlisted soldier, Peterson finally agreed to become engaged.15

 

13 Howard R. Lamar, ed. The New Encyclopedia of the American West (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1998), 45, 46; and 

U.S. Census Bureau, <www.census.gov/population/documentation/twps0056/tab17.pdf> accessed February 21, 2003. 

14 Erickson to Peterson, August 4, 1884, Acc. 1776, WACC; and Acc. 1776, WACC. 

15 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC; Emma 

Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78; Emma S. Erickson, 

“[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2; and FRC, series 20, folder 1. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

12

That October, while Peterson continued to live at Ft. Bowie,16 Erickson moved to the 

house that his fiancée had purchased in Bonita Canyon.17 He didn't last there long. One 

day he came into Ft. Bowie to visit Peterson, and while there he went to the sutler's store. 

There he met some miners who dazzled him with stories about how much money that a 

person could make by running a boarding house in their new mining camp. Emma later 

recalled, "He was excited and that was the first time in my life I ever saw my hubby 

excited." He immediately decided to pursue the opportunity, left for Volcano City, in 

Grant County, southwestern New Mexico, near the Volcano Mine, stopping at Deming 

to buy 2 tents, in which he set up his business.18

About 2 months later, Erickson and Peterson both traveled to Tucson, where they were 

married by an Episcopalian minister in the Cosmopolitan Hotel on January 25, 1887.19

 

Neil wanted Emma to remain in Tucson until he built a house for them at Volcano City, 

but the bride suspected that something was amiss, so in the latter part of March she 

arrived at the mining camp. When Emma examined the accounting books, she 

discovered the poor condition of Neil's business; the bride decided that her new 

husband possessed a poor business sense, and that he placed little value on money. She 

repeatedly brought out these issues throughout their marriage. While Neil built them "a 

nice 2- room house, with good windows and doors," Emma took charge of the business 

and they "tried it out until there was no more business."20

The newlyweds next moved to Lordsburg (and/or possibly Deming), New Mexico, 

where they operated the Arlington Hotel; many of their customers were railroad men. It 

apparently was during the time that they were living in Volcano City or 

Lordsburg/Deming that they traveled to Fort Bowie/Apache Pass for the birth of their 

first child, Lillian Sophia, on February 9, 1888. However, in spite of the joy that this 

addition to their family must have brought, running the hotel was not their ideal 

situation. After a bad experience there, Emma was “sick of the town and the town 

business.” They decided “to move out in the country to Sulphur Springs Valley.”21

 

16 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. Later, her 

granddaughter stated that at the time Peterson was married, she was cooking at the old Vulcan Mine, near Wickenberg, in 

the boarding house. Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, 

WACC. It is possible that Riggs was confused by the fact that just after Emma and Neil married, they lived near the 

Volcano mine, New Mexico, in a mining camp. 

17 Louis Torres and Mark Baumler, Historic Structure Report, Historical and Archeological Data Sections: A History of 

the Buildings and Structures of Faraway Ranch, Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona (Denver: National Park Service, 

Denver Service Center, 1984), 13 citing “Autobiographical notes by Neil Erickson, 1927;" Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. 

Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. Neil Erickson, “A Tribute to Mrs. Mary B. 

Riggs,” ca. 1935, FRC, series 5, folder 15. 

18 Evansville may have been either a nearby town or an alternate name for the mining camp. Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to 

Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

19 Emma later observed, "I married a man I loved and who also loves me. He is true- blue; has no bad habits, only a little 

self- indulging." Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

20 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78; and Quit 

Claim Deed, May 9, 1887, FRC, series 15, folder 3. 

21 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2; Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to 

Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78; Neil Erickson, correspondence, April and 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

13

BONITA CANYON 

When the Ericksons moved to their house in Bonita Canyon in July 1888, they were not 

the first white settlers in the area. In spite of the dangers during the Apache wars, several 

white settlers had established themselves in the locale that would become the Erickson 

home. The couple's nearest neighbors were the Staffords, whose cabin was a short 

distance east of the Erickson home. The year 1880 served as a benchmark in the lives of 

Ja Hu Stafford and his 15- year- old wife Pauline Madsen Stafford. That year they were 

baptized as members of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, moved to 

Arizona Territory, and homesteaded the lower Bonita Canyon. Their first surviving 

child was born five years later, and their family continued to grow until they had five 

children, who lived in their two- room cabin. Ja Hu patented his homestead claim in 

May 1888. Although he originally raised stock and farmed, his orchard and garden 

eventually provided his chief income. He sold vegetables from his garden at Fort Bowie. 

His 2- acre orchard included fruit trees such as apples, apricots, peaches, persimmons, 

and pears.22

The Ericksons' next closest neighbor in Bonita canyon was Louis Prue. He had served in 

the U.S. Army, reportedly acting as a scout under General George Crook.23 After being 

released from the army, he settled in the Sulphur Springs Valley/Bonita Canyon area in 

the spring of 1879, reportedly the first white settler in that locale. Prue built a stone 

blockhouse in which to store food and for protection from Apaches, in case of an attack. 

He established a cattle ranch, and used the waters from Bonita and Pinery Canyon creeks 

for his stock.24

Some of the Ericksons' only other neighbors were the members of the Brannick Riggs 

family, who had moved to the area in 1879. They lived about three miles west of the 

 May 1888, FRC, series 2 Folder 2. At the Arlington hotel they also sold meal tickets to a people (most of whom were men) 

in a variety of occupations,: engineer, printer, fireman, foreman, and helper. April and May, 1888, FRC, series 9, folder 1- 2.

22 Names of the children were Mary Pansy, Anna Mae, Ruby Evelyn, Tom, and Clara Clementine. “Col.” Jay Hu Stafford 

Collection, Acc. 1700, WACC; Stafford Family History Collection, Acc. 1756, WACC; Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: 

Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. They also had a baby who died at birth, named Reveille 

because reveille was being sounded on a bugle at the time of the birth. Cindy Hayostek, "Bonita Canyon Reflections," 

Cochise Quarterly 19, no. 1 (Spring 1989): 37; and Ervin Bond, Cochise County, Arizona: Past and Present (Douglas, Arizona: 

Ervin Bond, 1982), 46. Their cabin is located just west of the Silver Spur Meadow and east of the Faraway ranch house. 

The Stafford homestead consisted of the 160 acres in the S1/2 S1/2 of Section 26, Township 16 South, Range 29 East, GilaSalt River meridian. <www.glorecords.blm.gov/patentsearch/>. At least one source places Pauline's marriage age at 12. 

For additional information on the Stafford family, see Dewey Livingston, A Pioneer Log Cabin in Bonita Canyon: The 

History of the Stafford Cabin, Faraway Ranch Historic District, Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona, Historic Resource 

Study (San Francisco: National Park Service, 1994). 

23 Information from back of a photograph of Prue owned by Tombstone Courthouse State Historic Park, hanging on the 

main floor in 1979. Acc. 1700, WACC. Crook served as commander of the Department of Arizona in 1871 to 1875; he was 

then transferred to the Department of the Platte. General August Valentine Kautz replaced him in Arizona. Crook was 

again stationed in Arizona from 1882 to 1886; he was then replaced by his rival General Nelson Miles. One of Crook's 

hallmarks was his extensive use of Apache scouts in fighting the Apaches. 

24 Norma Lee Riggs later established a ranch on the Prue homestead. The house she used as a bunkhouse was probably 

Prue's original house. Acc. 1700, WACC; Neil Erickson, “Some Facts about (Bigfoot) Massai,” n.d., FRC, series 4, folder 

7. Prue didn't receive a patent on his homestead until 1891, indicating that he probably filed his claim between 1884 and 

1886. His 160 acres occupied the W1/2 NE1/4 and the E1/2 NW1/4 of section 33, Township 16 South, Range 29 East, GilaSalt River meridian. <www.glorecords.blm.gov/patentsearch>. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

14

Ericksons.25 In all, Brannick and Mary Riggs had 11 children. The oldest was Thomas 

Jefferson Riggs, whose son Edward would later marry Neil and Emma's daughter 

Lillian.26 The Riggs ranch expanded as the family did, and became an important presence 

in the valley. Their homestead became known as the Riggs Settlement. For a time, the 

Riggs hosted the local post office, named Brannick (or Brannock), which was established 

August 16, 1887 and discontinued April 1, 1891.27 The Ericksons would thus have been 

frequent visitors to the Riggs ranch in those early years. 

The first night that the Erickson family- - including five- month- old Lillian- - all stayed 

at Bonita Canyon, they slept outside, blissful at their new home. During the night two 

enormous crashes resonated through the darkness, terrifying both Neil and Emma. 

They couldn’t fathom the cause of the horrible sounds, until daylight broke, and they 

saw 30 yards away the huge branches from a Black Oak lying on the ground.28

Due to their indebtedness from their business ventures, Neil knew that he needed to take 

jobs that would pay him cash. He was constantly on the move, working for neighbors in 

nearby towns, doing mostly carpenter or mechanical work. Neil constructed barns, 

bookcases and cupboards in neighbors' homes, and built counters and shelves in the 

stores in Willcox.29 Meanwhile, Emma stayed at their home in Bonita Canyon, raising 

Lillian, and taking care of their new orchard and a few cattle. The couple decided to 

move their two- room house that Neil had built near the Volcano Mine, and planned to 

attach it to their Bonita Canyon home. However, Neil first went to Bisbee to take on 

some carpenter work. In the mean time, someone took it upon themselves to move the 

Erickson's New Mexico home to near Lordsburg. This upset Emma considerably, and 

she again pointed out the evidence that her new husband possessed poor judgment, 

which repeatedly caused them to lose money or goods.30 Emma later observed, "Hubby 

has the ability to do many things; has inventive genius; but no use for money. Says: 

'Money is the root of all evil.' And enumerates the crimes committed for the sake of 

 

25 Superintendent Forrest Benson, Jr., Supervisory Park Ranger James A. Randall, and Jerry J. Brown, "Area History: 

Chiricahua National Monument," November 1956, Acc. 145, WACC, Tucson. Brannick Riggs received the patent on his 

land in 1888; it consisted of three parcels comprising the NW1/4 Section 30, Township 16 South, Range 29 East, Gila- Salt 

River meridian. <www.glorecords.blm.gov/patentsearch>. 

26 Brannick had married Mary Elizabeth Robbins in 1856, when he was 28 and she was 18. The next year Thomas was born. 

Ronald A. Cawthorn, <http://frontpage.caninet.com/rcawthorn>. Other early settlers are named in "The Riggs 

Settlement," a newspaper clipping from the Pioneer and Progress edition of a newspaper with no date or title, 

Miscellaneous Faraway Information, Acc. 1726, WACC, and also in "Riggs Family History", Acc. 1700, WACC. 

27 Will C. Barnes, Arizona Place Names, Bulletin vol. 6, no. 1, January 1, 1935 (Tucson: University of Arizona), 61. 

28 Neil Erickson, “Our First Night in Bonita Canyon,” 1931, FRC, series 4, folder 9. 

29 "Hubby is an excellent mechanic and carpenter. Can make anything out of wood; in fact, a cabinetmaker." Emma 

Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78; and Lillian Riggs to 

Richard Y. Murray, June 8, 1972, FRC, series 1, box 9, folder 243- 253. 

30 They planned to move the house using a 4- horse team and with the help of a friend who owned a 6- mule team. Emma 

Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. Neil later referred to 

their property at Steins Pass, which is about 17 miles southwest of Lordsburg, and about five miles south of the Volcano 

Mine. Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, August 5, 1892, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. Steins Pass Post Office existed from 

1888- 1904, though the town lasted well into the twentieth century. It is possible that the Erickson's house had been on 

that property. Many original buildings still exist at this ghost town, which is being restored by the current owners. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

15

money. I tell him he is right; but we can't get along without the cussed stuff." Emma 

once took out an insurance policy on the Bonita canyon property, but had to discontinue 

it because Neil refused to "pay for the support of a lot of idle men."31

Neil knew that he could not support his family on the homestead in the canyon. 

Although they had some cattle, a garden, and the beginnings of an orchard, the property 

did not make them self- sufficient. Neil realized that to financially support his family, he 

had to obtain regular wage- earning work. He moved to Bisbee, the copper mining 

boomtown over 70 miles southwest from their home. There he built an adobe house for 

himself, and he constructed houses to sell. Neil built the first “good houses in Bisbee,” 

declared his unknown biographer, probably one of his daughters.32 He then obtained a 

job with the largest employer in town, the Copper Queen Consolidated Mining 

Company, primarily working at the smelter. He lived in Bisbee for much of the time 

from late 1890 to late 1894;33 during those years, Neil visited home when he could. His 

brother, John, also lived intermittently at their homestead, helping the family. 

In May 1890, Neil and John were both at the ranch, digging a well near the house and 

walling it. Three and four years earlier, the last of the Apache had been either placed on 

guarded reservations or sent to the East. However, one day a male and female Indian, 

keeping out of sight, had traveled into the area, robbed a ranch house in Pinery Canyon, 

and killed a Prue calf along the way. When Prue warned Neil that Indians were coming, 

Neil responded “Let them come, we are here first.” Meanwhile, Ja Hu Stafford had 

found a moccasin track in Bonita Canyon and realized a horse was missing. Even though 

he didn't know about the other signs, the track alarmed him so much that he warned his 

neighbors and alerted the army at Fort Bowie. The troops moved into the area to look 

for the Indians; the man was reputed to be Massai, the Apache who had escaped from a 

train while being removed from Arizona. Neil and Prue (and perhaps Stafford) joined 

the soldiers in the hunt. They followed the man's and the horse's tracks from the place 

where he killed the calf over a low hill to what is now called Rhyolite Canyon, at the 

point about where the National Park Service headquarters buildings are now located. 

From there the tracks went up the canyon, and about 1⁄2 mile up from the mouth the 

tracks met up with those of the woman. She then rode the horse and the man walked up 

the brushy and boulder- strewn canyon. They continued to another canyon, now called 

Massai, which branches to the left. Up that canyon, on top of the ridge is the huge 

boulder overlooking the canyon, behind which the couple camped. The settlers, fearing 

that Indians may have intentionally lured them away from their homes, returned to 

protect their families. The Indians were not found, but reportedly the woman turned up 

at the San Carlos reservation.34

 

31 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

32 “[Untitled, about Neil Erickson],” n.d., Faraway Ranch Collection, series 4, sheet 1 of 6. 

33 Neil Erickson, “Some Facts about (Bigfoot) Massai,” n.d., FRC, series 4, folder 7; and FRC, series 2, folders 2- 3. 

34 Neil Erickson, “Some Facts about (Bigfoot) Massai,” n.d., FRC, series 4, folder 7; and Lillian Riggs, “Early History of 

Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. The identity of the Indians have not been verified. 

Although the family lore states quite clearly that the man was the notorious Massai, Apache accounts question that claim. 

They indicate that Massai's home territory was in New Mexico's Black Range, and that his wife's people were Mescaleros, 

who were not at the San Carlos reservation. Alden Hayes, A Portal to Paradise (Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1999), 

176. This story deserves additional research and analysis of the mythological qualities of the family story. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

16

This foray into Rhyolite Canyon may have been one of the first times that the settlers had 

entered that canyon. Being preoccupied with tracking the Native Americans, and 

maneuvering through the tangled undergrowth and boulders in the canyon, they failed 

to appreciate the unusual rock formations in the area. But according to Erickson family 

lore, this event marks the first time that someone associated with the family ranch 

entered what later became known as the Wonderland of Rocks and Chiricahua National 

Monument.35

The next year, in 1891, Emma delivered the couple's second child. Neil and Emma 

named the baby boy Lewis Benton Erickson; the family called him Bennie while he was a 

boy, and Ben when he matured. Meanwhile, Neil continued to live and work in Bisbee. 

His letters to Emma clearly expressed his unhappiness with the situation: “It is a great 

pity that we can not be so fixed so as to live together, this life is so short that I don’t see 

why in the name of the Great Creator we can not enjoy this life when we have it. I do 

believe that if I shall have to live apart from you and the ones I love the best, I shall before 

long go mad, I tell you I am not far from it now.”36 Although they visited each other from 

time to time, this was not adequate for him. “If you knew, Emmy dearest, how miserable 

I am and have been ever since you left you would surely been back here before now.”37 “I 

get so lonesome that lonesome is no name for it,” he wrote to her.38

Neil worried about Emma and their children while he was away from them, and the 

family worried about him. He wrote to Emma, “You can tell Lillian that she does not 

need to be afraid that I shall get married again.”39 At one point in late 1892, he asked if 

Emma had heard any news about Indians, and said that he had heard that soldiers had 

driven them into Mexico. “However, have John and Stafford to ever be on the lookout 

for them. It is fearful to have you in the mountains and the red- devils out, but should 

you hear of any immediate news of them go to Mr. Prue’s ranch and stay together so you 

will be out of danger."40 Only a month later, Prue died when he fell from a horse. Neil 

remembered the 49- year- old as “a good friend and a neighbor" and was pleased to hear 

that the neighbors "fulfilled his last wish and laid him to rest under the oak on the 

hillside” at the mouth of Bonita Canyon. 41 Prue was buried "where he could watch his 

 

35 Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. In her 

handwritten draft (mislabeled as Neil’s folder 13) Lillian stated, “Without doubt they were the first white men ever to set 

foot in this strange garden.” That sentence was removed from her typed version of Lillian Riggs, “The Wonderland of 

Rocks, Chiricahua National Monument: A Brief History,” n.d., FRC, series 5, folder 27. Lillian also obliquely referred to a 

miner from Scotland who had photographed the rocks earlier. Lillian's version of the story also placed the three white 

settlers alone in the hunt, neglecting to mention the soldiers that Neil described in his account. Neil Erickson, “Some Facts 

about (Bigfoot) Massai,” n.d., FRC, series 4, folder 7; and FRC, series 2, folders 2- 3. 

36 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, March 10, 1893, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

37 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, August 3, 1892, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

38 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, August 14, 1891, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

39 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, March 23, 1893, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

40 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, November 18, 1892, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

41 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, December 23, 1892, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

17

cattle go to water."42 Tragedy struck the canyon again the next year. In 1894, Pauline 

Stafford died in childbirth; the newborn baby died a few months later. Her widower Ja 

Hu continued living at their cabin, and raised their five children, with the help of his 

neighbor Emma Erickson.43

Emma was not immune from ill health herself, and a long- term disability started during 

her pregnancy with their third child. Because Neil was so lonesome in Bisbee, Emma 

decided to move there, open a boarding house and earn enough money to build a house 

in Bisbee. "I went full of ambition and pep," she later recalled, and brought a stove, 

dishes and a maid with her. Neil, however, would not permit her to start a boarding 

house. Although she had always enjoyed good health, she contracted what Emma called 

malaria, which she believed came from the Bisbee water.44 She returned to Bonita 

Canyon, where in a short time she recovered. Neil built a house for the family in Bisbee; 

Emma claimed that it was "the first decent house that was erected there: six large rooms, 

clothes closets, kitchen and pantries. We intended it for our own home, and built it very 

substantially" with maple floors, large windows and blinds. Emma and their two 

children again moved to Bisbee, where she quickly got sick. Once again, Emma had to 

return to the ranch to recuperate, and she vowed to never go back to Bisbee to live until 

the water supply was improved. About that time, Emma's ankle began causing problems; 

she believed that she sprained it, and "had nothing done for it." Her health so concerned 

Neil that he decided it was time to leave Bisbee and move home, so he sold the new 

house for $800, against Emma's objections. She criticized him for being "foolish" for 

selling so cheaply, as she insisted that the house was worth over $2000, and that they 

could have rented it for $60 a month, which "would have kept us in comfort on the 

ranch." He responded that if he hadn't come home, that Emma would have died. "I'm 

too tough to die," she shot back. This episode so irritated her that she felt strongly about 

it twenty years later.45 Such disagreements became common between the couple, with 

Emma being the more critical of the pair. 

Emma's health continued to deteriorate, as her limbs began to swell, which a nurse 

diagnosed as being due to Emma being pregnant. However, the swelling and discomfort 

increased so much that she couldn't walk around the house without holding onto things. 

Nonetheless, she successfully delivered a healthy baby girl, Helen Hildegard, on April 22, 

 

42 Typed note, no date, no source. Acc. 1700, WACC. 

43 "'Col.' Jay Hu Stafford Collection," Acc. 1700, WACC; Stafford Family History Collection, Acc. 1756, WACC; Emma S. 

Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2; and Dewey Livingston, A Pioneer Log 

Cabin in Bonita Canyon: The History of the Stafford Cabin, Faraway Ranch Historic District, Chiricahua National 

Monument, Arizona, Historic Resource Study (San Francisco: National Park Service, 1994), 24. 

44 Malaria was a serious problem in parts of southeastern Arizona, and so Emma may indeed have contracted the disease in 

Bisbee. <http://alic.arid.arizona.edu/sonoran/documents/hastings/alc_arroyo.html>. However, we now know that 

humans get malaria from the bite of a malaria- infected mosquito, rather than from bad water, so Emma was confused 

about the source of malaria. Even so, the water in Bisbee may have transferred an affliction to her that she misdiagnosed 

as malaria. In 1900 Bisbee still had no sewers or municipal water system. Privies and stables contaminated the drinking 

water because of their proximity to wells. Wastes often flushed directly into roads and gullies, causing human excrement 

to spread across yards and down hillsides. Carlos Schwantes, Bisbee: Urban Outpost on the Frontier (Tucson: University of 

Arizona Press, 1992), 33. 

45 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

18

1895. The family affectionately called her Baby into her teens, then shifted to the name 

Hildegard. Six weeks after the birth of the baby, Emma still had not recovered, so she 

went to Hot Springs and while there learned to walk on crutches.46 Later she was 

diagnosed with arthritis; Emma's legs continued to bother her for much of her life, and 

she was sometimes described as being crippled with arthritis.47 The sight in her left eye 

also deteriorated. Although it was probably a coincidence, she blamed a thorn from a 

gooseberry bush that got in her eye, making it inflamed and sore for some time. About 

two years later, she saw black specks in her vision, and in 1899 her sight disappeared in 

that eye."48

The medical profession at that time had not yet developed much scientific information 

on which to base decisions. As did many Americans at the time, the Ericksons sought out 

solutions to their medical problems from anyone who offered hope. And since the 

family's home was distant from any urban areas, much of their medical advice came 

through mail order. For instance, in 1899- 1900, Neil sent subscription funds to Helen 

Wilmans of the Mental Science Headquarters for a home course regarding Emma’s 

health. And in 1900 Emma sent money to the S.A. Weltmer School of Healing, which 

promoted the concept that your body is the external expression of your thoughts and 

that “what we believe is what controls us.”49 Later, Emma became a member of Browne 

Landone's "Empire of Spiritual Creation," for a fee. Emma gushed to him, "I think you 

are a wonderful man, and the cures you have made are most wonderful, and I herewith 

enclose a money order for $20.00."50

By 1900 the need for money again forced Neil to return to Bisbee. Neil's sister also lived 

in Bisbee, and her family often visited the Ericksons at the homestead, where their 

children enjoyed playing with each other.51 As during Neil's earlier Bisbee residence, the 

Erickson family members saw each other as often as they could, but that wasn't often 

enough to satisfy them. Finally, in 1903, Neil obtained an appointment as a forest ranger 

with the U.S. Forest Service. The position was ideal for the family, since he was able to 

use the family home as his office. 

Lillian later fondly remembered her childhood with memories of warm times. "When 

Dad came home from town he always brought us something and made us happy. And 

Mamma always had the house full of good smells and good things to eat when we came 

in." When Lillian was out looking for their horses and came in late, she was afraid that 

her mother would be worried about her, but Emma always said, "No, I didn't worry 

about you. I knew God would take care of you." Emma would say the same thing when 

 

46 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

47 Lillian recalled that Emma was "very ill from arthritis" after Hildegarde was born. "I had to assume more responsibility 

than most children." Lillian Riggs, "Summary of Westward into the Sun," [ca. April 1960], FRC, series 1, box 9. 

48 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

49 FRC, series 1, folders 278- 282, 305- 311. 

50 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

51 Hildegard Hutchison, “Children Playing,” n.d., FRC, series 4, folder 17. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

19

Neil was overdue on one of his ranger trips, when Lillian was inclined to worry. Lillian 

later summed up that time as "Happy days; happy years; and a firm foundation in all the 

things worthwhile."52

EDUCATING THE CHILDREN 

Emma took on the responsibility of teaching the three children in their early years, and 

she taught them to read, write and count. After the children had passed seven- yearsold, they attended the local grammar school, El Dorado School, located a couple of miles 

from the Erickson home at the Riggs Settlement.53 As was common at the time, local 

schools went up only to eighth grade. Neil and Emma wanted their children to continue 

their education, so the couple decided to send them away to school; since Emma's 

brother Charlie lived in Galesburg, Illinois in a ten- room house, that locale became their 

destination.54

In the fall of 1901, when Lillian was 13, she traveled alone to Galesburg, Illinois to attend 

her last year of grammar school. Even though Emma and Neil had apparently planned 

for her to stay at Galesburg and go directly into high school, Lillian returned home after 

one school year, and stayed home for two years.55 Lillian later explained that she 

returned and stayed home because of financial reasons, and because of Emma's health, 

but Emma later explained that Lillian was homesick.56 Whatever the reasons, 16- yearold Lillian again boarded the train for Galesburg in the fall of 1904, to attend high 

school.57 While in Galesburg, she fell in hopelessly in love (as a teenage girl can) with an 

older man: her minister. She dreamt for five years that he would return her feelings, but 

nothing came of her fantasies.58 In spite of this distraction, she dedicated herself to the 

pursuit of her education, and when the 18- year- old returned to Arizona in the spring of 

1906, she had graduated from high school, having completed four years of study in two 

years.59 That autumn she obtained an elementary school teaching position at Wilgus, 

 

52 Lillian Riggs to Emma and Neil Erickson, November 1, 1933, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

53 The school was located on the Riggs family’s old home ranch, where Brannick Riggs opened it in 1882 as a private school 

for his family. Miss Eula Lee Murray taught at the school for one year, until she married Brannick Riggs’ son, Thomas 

Jefferson Riggs. She later gave birth to Edward Murray Riggs, who was destined to marry Lillian Erickson. After Miss 

Murray left the school, Cochise County School District 16 took over its operation. “Riggs Family History,” Acc. 1700, 

WACC. 

 

54 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 

55 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, June 13, 1902, FRC, series 1, folder 101- 106. 

56 Lillian Riggs, "Summary of Westward into the Sun," [ca. April 1960], FRC, series 1, box 9; and Emma S. Erickson, 

“[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 

57 Neil Erickson, diary, FRC, series 2, folder 4; and Lillian Erickson, diary, series 2, folder 42. 

58 Lillian Erickson, diary, July 1905- June 1906, FRC, series 2, folder 43- 44. 

59 Diary, Lillian Erickson, July 1905- June 1906, FRC, series 2, folder 43- 44; Diploma, 1 June 1906, FRC, series 12, folder 13; 

Lillian Erickson, diary, June 6, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53; and Lillian Erickson to Registrar of Smith College, October 19, 

1908, FRC, series 1, box 9, folder 243. 

 Back at home after being gone for almost two years Lillian had a crisis regarding her religion; she wanted to openly 

practice her Christian faith at home, but “Papa does not want me to ask a blessing when he is home. . . . I dream of a home 

where family worship will be a beautiful feature. I am sorry it can’t be here.” Lillian Erickson, diary, June 19, 1906, FRC, 

series 2, folder 44. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

20

about 15 miles southwest of the Erickson home.60 In the next few years, she taught school 

in the area, including holding a position at Paradise.61 During this period of teaching, 

Lillian, not yet 20 years old, began losing her hearing 

In the fall of 1908, it had come time for Ben and Hildegard to move to Galesburg: 17-

year- old Ben to enter high school and 13- year- old Hildegard to attend eighth grade.62

 

However, this time Emma decided to move to Galesburg with them, to look after their 

welfare while they were in school.63 Lillian accompanied the trio to Galesburg, to help 

Ben and Hildegard get settled. While there, she consulted with Dr. Ryan regarding her 

hearing; he diagnosed her with catarrahal deafness.64 After a month, Lillian returned to 

Arizona to live.65 Her responsibilities, since Emma was gone, included cooking and 

keeping house for Neil and two forest rangers that boarded with them during this time.66

 

One of them, Lee Harris, captured Lillian's heart, and she spent many happy months 

dwelling on this new focus of her affection. Once again, however, it seems that the 

object of her affections did not return her feelings. In addition, though Lillian wanted to 

attend college, Harris had discouraged her in that pursuit; though she wrestled with this 

conflict in her mind for a while, she eventually succumbed to his persuasion and decided 

not to attend college.67 But when Harris moved out of the Erickson home, any 

relationship that they may have had seemed to dissolve, and Lillian resolved to go to 

college.68

In the fall of 1911, 23- year- old Lillian returned to Galesburg, this time to attend Knox 

College. Hildegard accompanied her, to attend her third year of high school.69 Ben had 

decided after a year or two of high school to work instead, and the U.S. Forest Service 

 

60 Lillian Erickson, diary, March 23, 1907, FRC, series 2, folder 44. The Wilgus post office was discontinued in 1911. The 

school district was in Township 18 South, Range 28 East. 

61 Lillian Erickson, diary, March 19, 1911, FRC, series 2, folder 47. 

62 Lillian Erickson, diary, August 1908, FRC, series 2, folder 45. 

63 Neil Erickson, September 2, 1908, FRC, series 8, folder 23- 31. 

64 Lillian Erickson, diary, September 12, 1908, FRC, series 2, folder 45. Catarrah, or catarrh, refers to the inflammation of a 

mucous membrane. In 1912, the Michigan School for the Deaf listed the affliction as causing deafness in 4 of their 322 

students. The medical understanding of causes for deafness at that time was not sophisticated; the school also attributed 

deafness to brain fever, a cold in head, congestion of the brain, cutting teeth, gathering in the head, lung fever, hurt at 

birth, and sickness. Michigan School for the Deaf, "Causes of Deafness," Livingston County GenWeb, 

<www.livgenmi.com/1912MIdeafschool~causes.htm>. 

65 Lillian did not look forward to returning to Arizona “to toil alone . . . and fight, fight, fight to establish a Sunday School. . 

. . I must make a success of Sunday School at home. I must rise to the occasion. I must fight, fight , fight for Christ our 

King. . . . “ She lamented that she would be a poor soldier for the King “if I cannot conquer that obstacle- - the obstacle of 

indifference. . . . A Sunday School at home never has been a success but it will be.” Lillian Erickson, diary, September 9, 

1908, FRC, series 2, folder 45. 

66 Lillian Riggs, "Summary of Westward into the Sun," [ca. April 1960], FRC, series 1, box 9. 

67 Lillian Erickson, diary, April 6, 1909 and May 6, 1909, FRC, series 2, folder 46. 

68 Lillian Erickson, diary, July 31, 1909, FRC, series 2, folder 46. 

69 Neil Erickson to Lillian and Hildegarde Erickson, August 25, 1911, FRC, series 1, folder 101- 106. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

21

had hired him; he also worked at the family homestead.70 Even though Emma wanted 

him to finish his high school education, Ben may have found his destiny in other 

directions.71 After the girls lived in Galesburg together for two years, Hildegard had 

finished high school, and Lillian had finished two years of college.72 She had debated 

whether to take a two- year or four- year course in college, and had set her sights on a 

four- year track.73 However, the situation at home had again required her to return to 

Arizona after two years.74 She had taken private lessons and hoped to graduate with the 

class of 1914, but instead she took her place in the graduating class of 1915 at Knox 

College.75 She apparently was able to accomplish this feat through additional private 

lessons, since she taught at Wilgus during the 1913- 1914 school year, and possibly taught 

at Bowie during the 1914- 1915 school year.76

 

During that time she also traveled east, hoping to have her "hearing cured." She noted in 

her diary, “If I get my hearing back again I will be happy.”77 Unfortunately, the treatment 

did not remedy her condition. Following her parents' tendency to seek mail order health 

advice, Lillian subscribed to the services of Susanna Cocroft, originator of the Physical 

Culture Extension Society. Cocroft wrote to the young woman regularly, giving her 

specific instructions on how to lose weight, be poised, exercise, build up her vitality, etc. 

Through her dedicated efforts, Lillian did lose weight during this time. But Cocroft drew 

the line at advising Lillian regarding her deafness. "I realize your hearing is of great 

importance in your teaching and would advise you to go to some good Aurist and while 

natural means may be of great benefit, one who makes a specialty of this trouble should 

be able to get at the cause of the deafness more quickly and relieve it sooner."78

The Erickson family experienced both urban and rural lifestyle during the first decades 

of the century. In the mid- 1910s the members of the Erickson family were all based in 

the family homestead area. Although Arizona became a state in 1912, “poor roads, 

relatively late settlement, and long distances separating ranches and towns" contributed 

to "frontier- like conditions" that continued to exist in Arizona well into the early 

twentieth century.79 In 1910, about two- thirds of the territory's population was rural, a 

 

70 Ben Erickson, “Interview between Ben Erickson . . .,” 28 January 1970, Acc. 1455. 

71 Emma Erickson to Lillian and Hildegarde Erickson, January 18, 1912, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

72 Lillian Erickson, diary, March 24, 1913, FRC, series 2, folder 48. 

73 [Emma Erickson to Lillian and Hildegarde Erickson], n.d. ca. 1912?, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

74 Lillian Riggs, "Summary of Westward into the Sun," [ca. April 1960], FRC, series 1, box 9. 

75 Lillian Riggs to "Classmates and Friends," [1965?], FRC, series 1, box 9; and Certificate, series 12, folder 27. 

76 Lillian Erickson, diary, June 3, 1914, FRC, series 2, folder 48; and Hildegarde Hutchison , [ca. August- September 1931], 

FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153, fiche 55. At some time in her teaching career she also taught at Turkey Creek. Bond, 46; and 

Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. 

77 Lillian Erickson, diary, June 3, 1914, FRC, series 2, folder 48. 

78 Susanna Cocroft, Chicago, to Lillian Erickson, May to July, 1915, FRC, series 1, folder 50- 56. 

79 Mary S. Melcher, “Tending Children, Chickens, and Cattle: Southern Arizona Ranch and Farm Women, 1910- 1940,” 

Ph.D. diss., Arizona State University, 1994, 2. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

22

figure that remained stable for over three decades, until after World War II.80 However, 

all members of the family had also spent time in urban areas, predominately Bisbee and 

Galesburg. Thus they had been exposed to larger mixes of people, attitudes and values. 

Their perspectives would have been influenced by that exposure. 

In 1917, the U.S. Forest Service transferred Neil away from his location in Chiricahua 

National Forest, and thus away from the family homestead. Emma moved with her 

husband to the new assignment. The three younger Ericksons, all in their 20's, took over 

running the small ranch. 

The year 1917 marked an important turning point in the history of the Ericksons' ranch. 

That year, Hildegard began serving meals and boarding guests during weekends at the 

family home. This seemingly small service evolved over time to become an important 

source of income for the family and indeed became the vehicle through which so many 

people came to know and love the ranch. Even the name Faraway Ranch came from this 

business at the family home. Soon after Hildegard started her business, Lillian stopped 

teaching and joined her sister in managing the new enterprise. Only a year after the 

startup, the neighboring Stafford homestead came up for sale. Ja Hu Stafford had 

continued to live at his cabin until 1913, when he died at the age of about 79.81 The 

Erickson sisters purchased the property in 1918 to add to their ranch and guest ranch 

business. Both businesses grew modestly while the sisters managed them, up until 

Hildegard's marriage to Jess W. Hutchinson in 1920. At that time, Hildegard left the 

family home, and Lillian took over management. Also about that time, Lillian began 

visiting Ed Riggs, an old boyfriend who had attended local schools with her. 

ED RIGGS 

Riggs was born Sept 2, 1885, in the Sulphur Springs Valley to Thomas Jefferson Riggs and 

Eula Lee Murray Riggs. Ed's father had been the oldest of 11 children of Mary Elizabeth 

Robbins Riggs and Brannick Riggs, the patriarch of an important regional ranching 

family.82 After Ed's birth, his immediate family soon moved to Goodwin Canyon on the 

San Simon side of Apache Pass.83 Ed’s mother died when Ed was about 4 years old; after 

that, Ed and his brother Charles were raised by their grandparents.84 The children's 

father married a second time in about 1895; it was not a happy marriage. Thomas then 

 

80 US Census Bureau, "Urban and Rural Population: 1900 to 1990,” 

<http://landview.census.gov/population/censusdata/urpop0090.txt>, released October 1995. 

81 Acc. 1700, “Col.” Jay Hu Stafford Collection, WACC; Acc. 1756, Stafford Family History Collection, WACC; and Emma S. 

Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. Perhaps Stafford was no longer a 

practicing member of the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, since a Methodist minister conducted his 

funeral service. Ja Hu’s daughter later married the minister. Acc. 1756, Stafford Family History Collection, WACC. 

82 Ronald A. Cawthorn, "The Cawthorn, Gouthwaite, Hannigan, Topping, Saxby, and Gower Families," 

<http://frontpage.caninet.com/rcawthorn>; and Vynette Sage, transcriber, "The Riggs Cemetery," from information that 

was supplied to the Arizona Death Records, Volume 3, by Charles H. Field, Jr. of Douglas, Arizona, 

<www.mycochise.com/riggs.html>. 

83 Lillian Riggs, “Edward Murray Riggs,” ca. 1951, FRC, series 4, folder 19. 

84 Thomas J. Riggs, diary, November 26, 1890, FRC, series 2, folder 60. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

23

married Anna May Stafford on April 25, 1905.85 The boys attended the El Dorado district 

school, and then attended the University of Arizona. Ed then went to Valparaiso 

University in Indiana. He hoped to earn an engineering degree at Purdue, but the 

requirement of tending the family ranch drew him home.86

In 1908, Ed married Gaye Moore, of San Angelo, Texas, and set up a small ranch. That 

enterprise ended with falling cattle prices and rising mining and automobile activities. 

Riggs began working at the mine at Dos Cabezas as a mechanic in the powerhouse, and 

also maintained the manager's cars. He then worked at a smelter in Douglas and opened 

a garage there. Over time, Riggs became a Mason, joined the Benevolent and Protective 

Order of Elks, and was one of the “President’s Hundred” of the National Rifle 

Association. Ed and Gaye had two children, Eula Lee, and Edward Murray, Jr. (later 

called Lee and Murray), before Gaye died in 1917 of small pox. Gaye's sister, Maye 

Fokes, took over the care of the two children, and Riggs closed his garage and enlisted in 

the army during WWI.87 After the war he re- entered the garage business, first owning a 

garage, then later working at a friend's garage. Lillian later claimed, "Ed made a good 

living and supported, to a great extent, the family of his sister- in- law, who still cared for 

Lee and Murray."88 In fact, Ed was deeply in debt, and was depressed about it.89

WONDERLAND OF ROCKS 

It was during those post- war years that Lillian and Riggs began seeing each other. They 

often visited each other's homes, and Riggs aided Erickson at her guest ranch, where she 

served meals and boarded guests. In 1921, the dating couple pushed into what was called 

the Right Hand Canyon, a tangled, boulder- strewn area impossible for horses to walk 

through. There they were amazed to find remarkable rock formations only a short 

distance from Faraway Ranch. Lillian dubbed this area the Wonderland of Rocks, and it 

would later become Chiricahua National Monument. 

While Ed explored their newly discovered region, Lillian decided to pursue her interest 

in writing, and spent the summer of 1922 in Los Angeles, taking classes to improve her 

skills.90 But at the end of the summer, she returned to Riggs, and married him on 

 

85 Thomas J. Riggs, diary, August, 1891, and an undated entry, FRC, series 2, folder 60. 

86 Lillian Riggs, “Edward Murray Riggs,” ca. 1951, FRC, series 4, folder 19. 

87 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC; and 

Lillian Riggs, “Edward Murray Riggs,” ca. 1951, FRC, series 4, folder 19. The first large mine in the Dos Cabezas area was 

developed in 1878, but mining was sporadic over the next half century. One of the boom periods covered the years 1907-

1918, during the time that Ed Riggs worked at the mine. Bond, 48. An alternate spelling was Dos Cabezos. Since 1919, the 

100 top competitors in the President's Match, a high power rifle competition, have been known as the "President's 

Hundred." 

88 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

89 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, n.d. but possibly ca. 1921, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 

90 Riggs suffered from stomach problems, which caused him to desperately seek remedies. During the summer of 1922, he 

began a milk diet, during which he drank 3 quarts of milk a day, and apparently nothing else. He lost weight but he was 

“almost certain of getting rid of some of my stomach trouble.” During one 10- day period of this regime, he had eaten only 

one sandwich and a piece of pie, both of which upset his stomach, "so now I am sticking by my milk," he testified. Ed 

Riggs to Lillian Erickson, September 7, 1922, and September 12, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. Riggs probably was 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

24

February 26, 1923.91 Ed turned over his house to Maye and her family, while he and his 

children, Eula Lee and Murray, moved to Faraway Ranch. 

A grassroots effort to promote the Wonderland of Rocks gathered strength in 1923, 

peaking with a visit from Governor George W. P. Hunt in July. He supported the effort 

to recognize the U.S. Forest Service site, and on April 18, 1924, President Calvin Coolidge 

proclaimed the area a national monument. 

The designation of Chiricahua National Monument shifted Faraway Ranch into a new 

era. With the flow of tourists passing by their door, the Riggses were able to tap into a 

larger customer base. Since no other restaurant or lodging was available in the 

immediate vicinity of the new park, Faraway Ranch dominated the market. Throughout 

the 1920s, the couple promoted the guest ranch, and at the same time expanded their 

cattle ranching operation. 

Shifts in the family's lives came in the late 1920s. Ed's father, Thomas, died in December 

1926.92 The following year, Ben married Belle Underwood. In December 1927, Neil 

retired, when he was 68 and Emma was 73.93 The couple moved back to their home 

ranch to live with Lillian, Ed, Murray and Eula Lee. Soon after, the elder couple 

purchased some property in a subdivision of Rio Del Mar Country Club, in Aptos, 

California, on the north side of Monterey Bay.94 However, they continued to live at 

Faraway for several years, until they moved to California to live with Hildegard. At that 

time, Neil's asthma grew worse, and he sought treatments for it. In 1931, he tried care 

from a chiropractor, combined with fasting except for consuming 48- 56 ounces of 

orange juice per day. This regime lasted about three weeks; although we have no 

indication of whether Neil was satisfied with the results, Emma thought the outcome 

would have been better had Neil continued with more treatments.95 After a time, the 

Ericksons returned to Faraway, but moved to California again in 1933; they first stayed 

with Hildegard in Sanger, then moved to Oakland (where Emma thought “the traffic is 

somewhat terrible, so I was always uneasy every time Dad was out walking for fear he 

might get run over”). Next, they lived in an apartment in Los Gatos. After this year of 

roving, they again returned to Faraway.96

 familiar with fasting through what has been called the greatest fitness craze of the early twentieth century. The 1901 

publication of Perfect Health: How to Get It and How to Keep It by Charles Courtney Haskell had prompted the fad. R. 

Marie Griffith, "Apostles of Abstinence: Fasting and Masculinity During the Progressive Era," American Quarterly 52, no. 

4 (December 2000): 599- 600. 

91 Lillian and Hildegard each wore Emma's wedding dress for their own weddings. Emma donated the dress to the 

Pioneers' Historical Society Museum. "Story of Dresses . . .", May 1963, FRC, series 1, box 9, folder 243- 253. 

92 “The Riggs Cemetery,” transcribed by Vynette Sage from information that was supplied to the Arizona Death Records, 

Volume 3, by Charles H. Field, Jr. of Douglas, Arizona. www.mycochise.com/riggs.html 

93 Neil received a pension of $30 per month. Certificate, FRC, series 12, folder 21. 

94 FRC, series 14, folder 3; and FRC, series 1, folder 207- 213. 

95 Emma Erickson to Lillian Riggs, July 16, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. This treatment was probably based on Dr. Edgar 

Ward’s theory that asthma and bronchitis were caused by intestinal toxemia. Neil ordered Ward’s Diet Chart through the 

mail in 1931. FRC, series 1, folders 278- 282, 305- 311. See also the discussion of fasting in footnote above. 

96 Emma Erickson to Mrs. W.H. Pierce, March 14, 1934, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

25

A DOWNWARD SPIRAL 

The Depression years brought more changes to Faraway Ranch. Two of the more 

noticeable changes both involved Chiricahua National Monument. First, the road to the 

park was paved in 1934; for Faraway this meant that it was easier for park visitors- - and 

Faraway guests- - to access the region. In addition, the federal government leased 10 

acres of the Riggs's property to use as a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) camp. 

During its years of operation, the camp was home for some 200 young men. Financially, 

the presence of the CCC at the national monument was a boon to the Riggs, since Ed was 

hired as a trail foreman; this brought in regular income during the tight economic period. 

At the same time, the couple continued their cattle ranching enterprise; the ranch had 

expanded to almost 8,000 acres of patented and leased land. Meanwhile, Murray 

attended military school in San Diego. Eula Lee graduated from Knox College in 1932, 

and returned to the ranch to teach at the El Dorado School. She left that job to work at 

Faraway in 1933- 34. A family friend observed, “Lee Riggs is a wonder: sings beautifully, 

and cooks as well, and milks cows, takes good care of the ranch, does her work as well; 

any one should be proud of little Lee.”97 The young woman married Hunter Stratton in 

October 1935. He was a civil engineer who would work at Chiricahua National 

Monument in 1939- 42.98

The year 1937 represented a benchmark in Neil and Emma's lives. On January 25, they 

celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary at a large party that Lillian organized. Over 

200 guests joined the couple to rejoice in their long union. Soon, however, their joy was 

clouded as Neil's health began to fail; he spent time in a hospital in El Paso, writing love 

letters to Emma in Swedish. Meanwhile, the elderly woman also suffered heath 

problems. Her leg continued to bother her, which she attributed to rheumatism; she 

took bathing treatments, which did not help, frustrating the woman. Her doctor 

determined that she had broken her hip. Lillian wanted to wait to tell Emma (since Neil 

was in the hospital), so the doctor simply told the older woman to keep her weight off of 

her right leg and to start using crutches again, as she had years before. At the same time, 

Emma put herself on a milk diet to aid in her treatment. Ed was also suffering from his 

own health problems at this time, and chose to fast to improve his condition. Though 

Neil had been released from the hospital, he soon had a relapse and was re- admitted for 

treatment.99

Neil was unable to recover, and passed away on October 18, 1937, at the age of 78, in 

Lordsburg, New Mexico. He was buried at the mouth of Bonita Canyon where years 

earlier he had planted some cypress trees to mark his desired resting place. Hundreds of 

friends gathered for his funeral.100 The man had led a remarkable life spanning the 

 

97 Nora Stafford to Hildegard Hutchison, May 30, 1934, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

98 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. 

99 Lillian Riggs to Neil Erickson, [May 10, 1937], FRC, series 1, box 9; Emma Erickson to Neil Erickson, April 15 and May 10, 

1937, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78; Beulah Erickson to Lillian Riggs and Neil Erickson, May 5, 1937, FRC, series 1, folder 75-

78; and Emma Erickson to C.O. Anderson, December 31, 1937, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

100 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, October 1937, Acc. 1777, WACC. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

26

nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Lillian later noted: “There are two things that I wish 

to be remembered and emphasized . . . about my father, Neil Erickson. He loved his 

adopted Country and served Her well, five years with the U.S. Cavalry, twenty- five years 

with the U.S. Forest Service. He came to Arizona as a young man to fight Indians to 

avenge the death of his father who years before had been killed by the Indians. At the 

end of his Army Service no one was a greater friend to the Indians than my father. He 

said: ‘The Indians were only fighting for their country, and that if anyone ever tries to 

take it away from me now, I will fight for it too.’”101

Emma also believed her husband had been an extraordinary man: "All who knew Neil 

Erickson knew that he was one of the most honorable, upright and honest men, and 

always did help those who were in need."102 The widow planned to build a museum or a 

monument for the man, built of stone "so it will be indestructible." In the planned 

museum she wanted "a great bookcase which will hold all of dad’s treasured things” such 

as his books and magazines. Emma instructed Lillian to begin collecting materials for the 

museum. Apparently, this monument to Neil never came to be.103

After a short time, Emma moved to Sanger, California to live with Hildegard. There the 

doctor evaluated her hip condition and indicated that at Emma's age (84) there was very 

little that could be done, since he couldn't put her in bed long enough for the cartilage to 

grow back on the hip socket. He recommended that Emma should exercise and that 

massage would be helpful. Hildegard wanted her mother to get a wheel chair; the elder 

woman stubbornly refused.104

When the CCC left Chiricahua National Monument, Lillian and Ed named the former 

CCC area "Camp Faraway" and opened it to groups, offering dormitory- style 

accommodations with cots. They also opened "Camp Faraway Lodge," a former CCC 

building with partitioned rooms and beds. Both the camp and the lodge opened in the 

summer of 1940, managed by a lessor. The new venture was not overly lucrative; but at 

the same time, their cattle ranching business was the most successful it had ever been. In 

1941, they owned at least 300 head of cattle. 

Their fortune turned in 1942, when Lillian lost her sight. The affliction struck Lillian 

hard, especially since she had great difficulty hearing. It took time for her to adjust her 

life so that she could continue with the activities that she enjoyed. Ed offered support in 

any way that he could, and she came to rely on him for things she could no longer do. 

But to add to the difficulties, Ed's health began to deteriorate, due to a heart condition 

and arthritis. About this time, Emma returned to live at Faraway. Almost 90 years old, 

blind in one eye, in a wheel chair, and her hearing declining, Emma needed support 

 

101 Lillian E. Riggs to Mr. Murray, 29 May 1972, Acc. 1726, Miscellaneous Faraway Information, WACC. 

102 Emma Erickson to C. O. Anderson, December 31, 1937, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

103 Emma Erickson to Lillian Riggs, September 8 and September 22, 1938, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

104 Hildegard Hutchison to Lillian and Ed Riggs, October 1938, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153; and Emma Erickson to Lillian 

Riggs, September 22, 1938, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

27

herself.105 Lillian took special care of her mother and included her in all her activities. 

She celebrated Emma's birthday each year with a party that included the elder woman's 

friends and neighbors. Emma's mind continued to be sharp, and she kept up an 

extensive correspondence with her family and friends; in one year, for example, she 

wrote over 200 letters.106 Ed did what he could during this time to help both Lillian and 

Emma. Lillian later recalled, "Ed was so good and always kind. After the loss of my 

sight, he was so considerate and so good to both Mother and me. Mother could not read 

for herself . . . Ed read by the hour to us and was always ready to take Mother for those 

automobile drives which she so loved.107

By the mid 1940s, Ed and Lillian decided to pull out of the guest ranch business. In 1945, 

they sold a portion of the Stafford homestead acreage, containing the Camp 

Faraway/Faraway Lodge to William Sprague, the man who had been leasing the property 

and operating the lodge for several years. As part of the sale, the Riggses agreed to a 10-

year noncompete requirement, and so closed Faraway Ranch as a guest facility. While 

the Riggses continued running their cattle ranch- - with the help of hired hands- -

Sprague opened his newly acquired facility under the name "Silver Spur Ranch." 

Now that they had divested the guest ranch business, the Riggses recognized that they 

needed to either train someone to take over the cattle ranch, or sell the property. They 

appealed to several family members. At that time Ed's son Murray was working in the 

assembly division of an aircraft plant in New York, and was recently married. Murray 

and his wife Anne- - who then were expecting their first child- - happily agreed to come 

to Faraway to work.108 Less than two months after their arrival, Ed suffered a cerebral 

hemorrhage, and died four days later, on June 29, 1950, at the age of 64. Messages of 

condolence came streaming in to Lillian, noting Ed’s "sunny disposition and never 

failing friendship.”109 Nonetheless, the shock wave from her beloved husband’s death 

continued to sweep over Lillian for years. She fell into a deep depression, feeling 

hopeless about her situation. 

Less than five months later, while Emma was having her hair done at a beauty parlor,110

she suffered a cerebral hemorrhage. The 96- year- old woman soon died, on December 

12, 1950. This pushed Lillian even deeper into a depression; she couldn't bear to face a 

future without the two most important people in her life. Her blindness and difficulty in 

 

105 One source indicated that Emma used a wheel chair since about 1937, although a more reliable source showed that she 

was not in a wheelchair in 1938. Another indicated that she didn't start using a chair until about 1946. Lillian Riggs, 

"Summary of Westward into the Sun," [ca. April 1960], FRC, series 1, box 9; Emma Erickson to Lillian Riggs, September 22, 

1938, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78; and Lillian Riggs, [November 1952], FRC, series 8, folder 4- 5. 

106 FRC, series 9, folder 4. 

107 Lillian Riggs, [November 1952], FRC, series 8, box 26, folder 4- 5. 

108 Murray and Anne Riggs to Lillian Riggs, September 14, 1949, FRC, series 1, folder 237; and Hildegard Hutchison to “Ones 

at Faraway,” March 22, 1950, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. 

109 H.W. Williams, Vice President Bank of Douglas, July 6, 1950, FRC, series 1, folder 32- 39. 

110 "She had beautiful hair and it was our joy and pride to have it looking its best. Snow white, thick and wavy, I always 

loved Mother's hair." Lillian Riggs, [November 1952], FRC, series 8, box 26, folder 4- 5. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

28

hearing compounded the situation. She somehow managed to survive a day at a time, 

and continued living at the ranch. A year later Lee moved to the ranch with her husband 

Hunter Stratton; they stayed for two years. In late May 1955, Ben's wife Belle died,111 and 

only a month later, in early July, Lillian observed the fifth anniversary of Ed’s funeral. “It 

has been pretty tough and the end is not yet in sight. How long, O Lord, how long? . . . 

Soon will be the Fourth [of July]. How different from those happy ones we used to have. 

Now there is no real happiness anywhere, or so it seems to be.”112

About that time Lillian Riggs considered retiring and moving to a retirement home for 

the blind. Instead, she went back into the guest business when her noncompetition 

agreement expired in 1955. Riggs once again began renting cottages and rooms in the 

main house, and also began serving meals again. The interaction with her guests helped 

to somewhat reduce Lillian's feeling of isolation. However, after several years, she 

decided to scale back on her involvement with the operation, and leased the cottage 

business. 

In 1958, Ben married Ethel Keller, whom he had met while she was a guest at the ranch. 

Riggs was delighted at the union, and was also happy that the couple moved to a cottage 

at Faraway. Seeing her brother happy again lifted her own spirits, and she enjoyed 

having Ben around the ranch. After a few years, the couple moved into their new home, 

near Faraway. 

SOLACE 

The most important thing that happened to Lillian Riggs in the years after the death of 

her husband and mother came in early 1960, when J.P. (Andy) Anderson joined her staff. 

Anderson quickly became Riggs’s friend and confidant; the woman seemed to come to 

life again, and Anderson enjoyed being with her and working on the ranch. Though he 

continued to be her employee for the next 17 years, it is obvious that they shared much 

more of their lives than that status would imply; in time they shared a special love. He 

satisfied her needs so consistently that she came to rely on him as if he were an extension 

of herself. 

Through the 1960s, Lillian’s guest business operated sporadically: sometimes open and 

operated by Riggs and Anderson, sometimes closed, sometimes operated by a manager. 

Finally, she closed both the meal service and the cottage rentals in 1970. She did 

continue to rent rooms to a few close friends who came for extended stays. At the same 

time, however, Riggs continued to run her cattle operation. While not handling as many 

cattle as she once did, at 81 years old, she had over 70 head of cattle. 

Even so, Riggs knew that it was only a matter of time before she reached the end of her 

life. She gave instructions for her funeral services to Anderson: she wanted to be buried 

in her wedding dress. Since she planned to die at home, she wanted her services to be in 

the living room of her home, (not graveside and not in the Westlawn Chapel, although if 

 

111 Lillian Riggs, diary, June 6, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53. 

112 Lillian Riggs, diary, July 2, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

29

Ben or Ethel preferred the Lutheran Church she would accept that). However, fate 

stepped in, and after suffering a heart attack in 1974, she found herself in the hospital, not 

at home. Riggs suspected her death was at hand; she added an addendum to her 

instructions, which says that her choice for a living room service should be changed to 

the Methodist Church in Willcox since she could not die at home.113 While Riggs was 

correct in believing that she would not die at home, her death did not come for another 

three years. In the interim, she spent much of the time from June 1974 to December 1974 

in the Willcox hospital, and then moved to the nursing home unit of the Willcox 

hospital.114 Although there were times when she did not know anyone, Anderson spent 

many hours by her bedside, holding her hand so she knew that he was there.115 Lillian 

Riggs died on April 26, 1977, at the age of 89. Her brother Ben died soon after at the age 

of 87, on September 30, 1978, and Hildegard also died at about that time at about 83 years 

of age.116 

The National Park Service acquired the Faraway Ranch in June 1979, bringing the land in 

a circle back to the federal government. The home ranch has been preserved, and today 

rangers interpret its history and the Erickson- Riggs family story. 

 

113 Lillian Riggs to Andy Anderson, December 17, 1972, and addendum July 23, 1974, FRC, series 1, box 9, folder 243- 253. 

114 Andy Anderson to Shelley Richey, June 26, 1976. FRC, series 1, folder 17- 20. 

115 Hildegard Hutchison to Andy Anderson, August 9, 1976, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. 

116 Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- day Saints, “Family Search,” www.familysearch.org. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Overview 

30

Illustration 3. Soldier Neil Erickson prior to homesteading 

in the Chiricahua Mountains. 

Illustration 4. In 1903, Neil Erickson became an employee of the U. S. Forest Service and 

maintained his office in the ranch house. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

31

THEME II: THE FEDERAL PRESENCE IN THE WEST 

“There are thousands more federal employees in the West than there are cowboys.” 

Wallace Stegner1

The rugged individual is the icon of the American West. His independence and self- reliance are the 

characteristics that define him. (This individual is, of course, a male.) He may be seen as a lone wolf. 

Together—in the popular imagination- - these lone, rugged types conquered the West. These images have 

permeated popular culture, such as films and novels, as well as history books. These stories have made it 

appear that the history of the West is simply a collection of such individuals.2

This impression is erroneous because the American West “is a creation not so much of individual or local 

efforts, but of federal efforts. More than any other region, the West has been historically a dependency of the 

federal government.”3

 It has been, in fact, the federal government that has defined, determined and shaped 

the history of the West. The relationship between the West and the federal government has been central to the 

history of the region. Extensive federal involvement- - along with extensive injections of money- - have been 

integral components of all facets of Western development. “Federal goodwill . . . has been one of the West’s 

principal resources.”4

One need only to look at a map of the country, with the federal land highlighted, to understand the strong 

presence of the government in the West. Every state of the far West (the Montana- New Mexico tier 

westward) is more than 29 percent federally owned, whereas every state to the east contains less than 12 

percent federal land.5

 In Arizona, almost 85% of the land is federally owned or in tribal hands. Only 17% of 

Arizona lands are owned by individuals or corporations.6

“During the nineteenth century, the federal government was essentially a facilitator of western growth. . . . It 

made resources available for private appropriation, investment, and development.”7

 The federal government 

explored and mapped the region through its surveys, conquered the native peoples, removed the natives to 

reservations, and policed the region with the military. The government built roads, subsidized railroads 

(through massive land grants), distributed federal lands to the public, and confirmed and protected mining 

claims. It established territorial governments through which the federal government governed the new 

settlers. 

 

1

 Wallace Stegner, The American West as Living Space (Ann Arbor, 1987), 78. 

2

 Theda Skocpol, Protecting Mothers and Soldiers: The Political Origins of Social Policy in the United States, (Cambridge, 1992), 42- 43; quoted in Karen R. 

Merrill, "In Search of the 'Federal Presence' in the West," Western Historical Quarterly 30, no. 4 (Winter 1999) 454. 

3

 Richard White, “It’s Your Misfortune and None of My Own:” A History of the American West, (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1991) 57. 

4

 Patricia Nelson Limerick, The Legacy of Conquest: The Unbroken Past of the American West, (New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 1987), 138. 

5

 Michael P. Malone, "Beyond the Last Frontier: Toward a New Approach to Western American History," in Trails: Toward a New Western History, ed. 

Patricia Nelson Limerick, Clyde A. Milner II, and Charles E. Rankin (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 1991), 149. 

6

 Kerwin L. Klein, “Frontier Products: Tourism, Consumerism, and the Southwestern Public Lands, 1890- 1990.” Pacific Historical Review 62, no. 1 

(February 1993): 39- 71. 43, citing Arizona Statistical Review, 44th Annual edition, September 1988 (Phoenix, 1988), 74. 

7

 Carl Abbott, “The Federal Presence,” in The Oxford History of the American West, Clyde A. Milner II, Carol A. O’Connor, and Martha A. Sandweiss 

(New York: Oxford University Press, 1994), 470. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

32

The federal government played a central role in the nineteenth- century West; this pattern continued in the 

twentieth century, and the government became even more active in the region. Federal activities included 

withdrawing and managing federal lands and resources (including grass, timber, oil, and recreational space), 

building dams (for irrigation, electricity, flood control and recreation), subsidizing New Deal public works, 

expanding defense spending during World War II and the Cold War, destroying predatory animals, 

subsidizing state highway building and taking part in regional planning through the creation of a national 

highway system.8

Many people have held beliefs that straddled the perceptions of western independence vs. federal 

participation, most not recognizing the region’s contradictions and its ironies. Senator Barry Goldwater, for 

instance, “lauded individual initiative and derided federal interference while lobbying vigorously for defense 

contracts and federal reclamation in Arizona.”9

 Others have recognized this dichotomy. In 1947, author 

Bernard DeVoto described the western attitude toward government as “get out and give us more money.”10

Viewing the history of the West with the role of the federal government exposed leads to a very different story 

than that of rugged individuals independently conquering the region. The Erickson/Peterson/Riggs family 

lives were interwoven with the federal government throughout their residence in the West. They present an 

excellent case study of the many ways that the federal government and the Westerner have a symbiotic 

relationship. It is notable that the family members were involved in so many of the various types of federal 

activities: Neil Erickson fought in the Indian Wars while enlisted in the U.S. Army; Emma Peterson Erickson 

benefited from the presence of federal monies while working at Fort Craig, Fort Huachuca, and Fort Bowie; 

Neil and Emma claimed federal land through the Homestead Act and the Enlarged Homestead Act; Neil 

administered a newly created forest reserve and helped the U.S. Forest Service evolve as a force in the West; 

Ed and Lillian Riggs played instrumental roles in obtaining national monument status for the "Wonderland of 

Rocks;" Ed supervised New Deal recruits while employed as trail boss for the Civilian Conservation Corps; 

and the family eventually sold the Faraway Ranch land back to the U.S. government. 

THE U.S. ARMY IN THE WEST 

The seeds of Neil Erickson’s association with the U.S. Army began not in the West, but in the St. Paul, 

Minnesota area. At that time, Neil- - then known as Nels- - was 12 years old, and living in Sweden. But the 

boy's father had emigrated from his home to the United States, where he obtained employment with the 

Northern Pacific Railroad. The federal government- - in an effort to encourage constructing a railroad from 

Lake Superior to the Pacific Ocean- - gave public lands to the railroad to lay the tracks, and granted an 

additional 40 million acres (an area slightly smaller than Washington state) to raise capital. The land grants 

came in the form of alternate square miles; this checkerboard pattern of ownership is still obvious today on 

maps of many Pacific Northwest forests.11 While the Swedish immigrant worked on the railroad about 150 

miles from St. Paul, Indians killed him. This tragedy marked young Nels, and he carried its memory with him. 

 

8

 Merrill, 450; Limerick,The Legacy of Conquest, 138; and Abbott, 470 and 475. 

9

 Merrill, 458. 

10 Bernard DeVoto, “The West Against Itself,” Harper’s Magazine (January 1947), 8; quoted in Merrill, 458. 

11 Derrick Jensen and George Draffan with John Osborn, Railroads and Clearcuts: Legacy of Congress's 1864 Northern Pacific Railroad Land Grant

(Spokane, Washington: Inland Empire Public Lands Council, 1995). 

 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

33

In time, Nels himself followed his father's migration to the United States; there he found employment in a 

Massachusetts sugar factory in 1881. Erickson loved to tell stories, and so naturally while working there, he 

shared his life story with his Irish co- worker, including the story of his father's death. The Irishman told 

Erickson that “right at that time the American army was out fighting Indians.” Apparently that information 

did not have an immediate impact on Erickson. But his intolerable working conditions at the sugar factory 

soon prompted him to consider other options. As Erickson later recalled, “Well I didn’t have much real 

notion of becoming a soldier until one day after working in the sugar factory, where it was so hot, all we wore 

were shoes without tops and a barley sack about the waist. I decided to find out about the army.” Erickson 

went to talk to a recruiter, but was promptly sworn into the army, and was immediately shipped to New York, 

without having even enough time to return to his boarding house to collect his belongings. Accepting his new 

position in life, Erickson apparently recalled his father’s demise at the hands of Indians. He volunteered for 

an assignment where the army was fighting Indians; Erickson was assigned to the 4th Cavalry, Troop E and was 

stationed at Camp Ojo Caliente, in southwestern New Mexico Territory, by Christmas 1881. In the early spring 

1882 his troop was ordered to go on the Apache campaign commanded by Col. George Forsyth.12

 

Apache Indians had been in the region since before the 1540s, when the Spanish encountered them in 

present- day southern Arizona.13 During that Spanish era, there were few European settlers in the region 

between the settlements on the Rio Grande River in New Mexico and the California coast; it was too remote 

and too much under the control of Indians. However, in the 1820s, the beginning of the Mexican era, the area 

of present- day southern Arizona experienced a surge of mining activity, ranching and population growth. 

The population of Tucson and Tubac, then the two largest settlements in present- day Arizona, increased 

dramatically to 465 and 303, respectively, by 1831. Almost all of the so- called Spanish land grants in Arizona- -

nearly all of which are south of the Gila River- - date to this expanding era of 1820 to 1833.14 Many Mexican 

colonists were attracted to the San Pedro River (which flows through Benson today). 

The settlers, however, had to withstand attacks by the small bands of Apaches that raided Mexican 

settlements. By the 1840s, “Apache and Comanche raiders had contributed more than any other Indian 

groups to create a climate of fear and pessimism that extended throughout northern Mexico.” Among the 

most powerful subtribes of Apaches were Chiricahuas, who lived in the rugged mountains of southwest New 

Mexico and southeast Arizona. The tribe was mobile (utilizing Spanish- introduced horses) and nomadic; they 

lived in temporary villages, and subsisted on wild plants and animals. “Indians slaughtered or ran off 

livestock, destroyed or appropriated crops, and rendered mining a risky occupation. They captured women 

and children and killed men. Everywhere, travelers felt unsafe, even near sizable cities like Chihuahua. 

Indeed, once outside a Mexican settlement, the traveler for all practical purposes entered Indian territory.”15

 

 

12 Neil Erickson, “A Brief Account of the Experience of Neil Erickson During the Apache Campaign of 1882 . . .,” 2 November 1935, Faraway Ranch 

Collection, series 4, folder 11, Western Archeological and Conservation Center, Tucson. Hereafter cited as FRC. 

Emma later recalled that Neil was in charge of drilling all the new recruits who came to the post. Emma Erickson to Jess Stanley Hutchison, June 1, 1943, 

FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. Camp Ojo Caliente was located west of Fort Craig and about eighteen miles north of the present town of Winston. Troops 

were stationed there, until 1882, because of actions of the Apaches. Robert W. Frazier, Forts of the West (Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1965) 

101. 

13 Martyn D. Tagg, with contributions by Mark F. Baumler and Linda J. Pierce, The Camp at Bonita Cañon: A Buffalo Soldier Camp in Chiricahua 

National Monument, Arizona, Publications in Anthropology No. 42. (Tucson: Western Archeological and Conservation Center, 1987), 22. 

14 David J. Weber, The Mexican Frontier, 1821- 1846: The American Southwest Under Mexico, (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1982), 183. 

15 Weber, 87. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

34

The Mexican settlers were not able to withstand the attacks by the resident Apaches. By the mid- 1840s, the 

natives had driven out most of those colonists. As a result, the Mexican population of Arizona south of the 

Gila River actually declined during the Mexican era (1821 to 1848).16

The Apaches did not function as one cohesive nation. Indeed, the Chirichuas were one of six distinct Apache 

tribes, and the Chiricahuas were further divided into three bands: Southern, Central and Eastern. The 

Southern band, also known as the Pinery Apache, hunted, gathered and raided primarily in northern Sonora 

and Chihuahua, Mexico. Noted members of this band later included Geronimo and Chato. The Central band, 

whose leaders included Cochise, ranged throughout southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. 

The Eastern band ranged in western New Mexico.17

Furthermore, Apaches did not recognize a central government or political structure and instead operated in 

small community groups. The groups thus acted independently, so at any one time some groups may have 

been at peace with the Mexicans, while other groups were not, and at the same time some Apache groups may 

have been at war with each other. This enabled the Mexicans to utilize the so- called peaceful Apaches, or 

Apaches de paz, as allies against other Apache groups. Thus the story was not simply a binary model of 

“Indians vs. whites.” For instance, a 57- man volunteer militia that rode out of Tucson to fight Apaches in 

1834 included 20 Apaches de paz, in addition to 10 Pima Indians; over half the company members were thus 

Indians. In another instance, in the 1840s, a Mexican military officer stated that the only thing that saved the 

soldiers stationed at Tubac from annihilation at the hands of the Apaches were the Apaches de paz, who lived 

nearby.18

By the time of the Mexican- American war and the end of the Mexican era in the late 1840s, Indian peoples 

retained control over much of the far northern frontier of Mexico. With the 1853 Gadsen Purchase, the 

United States acquired southern Arizona. The relationship between the Apaches and the Euro- American 

settlers continued in the same pattern as had been established during the Spanish and Mexican eras. 

As historian Richard White has observed, 

The ultimate conquest of most of the West was military, undertaken by the United States Army. There’s 

a mythic version of the conquest of the West that asserts conquest took place by armed settlers, that it 

took place, in some places, by cowboys who moved in to graze cattle. Most of this is absolute nonsense. 

The actual conquest of the West was carried out by the United States Army. It took place through a 

systematic positioning of troops, at one time or another, all over the West. 

He also noted the great economic impact of the military. Neighboring 

New Mexico in the 1850s started a very long Western tradition: the economy came to depend on 

military spending for U.S. troops. . . . The estimates were that just below ten percent of all the money in 

circulation in New Mexico came from military spending. As Colonel Edwin Sumner commented, the 

truth is that the only resource of this country is the government’s money.19

 

 

16 Weber, 184. 

17 Howard R. Lamar, ed. The New Encyclopedia of the American West, (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1998), 39. 

18 Weber, 117, 109. 

19 Richard White, “Context of Settler Communities,” in Settler Communities in the West: Historic Contexts for Cultural Resource Managers of Department 

of Defense Lands, Robert Lyon, ed. (Denver: National Park Service, Rocky Mountain Region, 1994), 25- 26. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

35

In southern Arizona, conflicts between the tribes and the newly arrived United States government increased 

and erupted into the so- called Apache wars, which lasted from the 1850s until 1886. The U.S. Army occupied 

the area by establishing and manning a number of forts in southeastern Arizona territory; from seven to ten 

forts operated in that quadrant in the 1860s- 80s. About 1,200 military troops manned these forts.20 Together 

with the forts in southwestern New Mexico, these installation and troops demonstrated an intense 

concentration of military force. 

In 1869, President U.S. Grant announced his “Peace Policy”—the government’s new method of conquering 

Indian America. The initiative utilized a “humanitarian rationale resting on military force, [which] proved 

lethally effective.”21 Under this policy, Native Americans were to be placed on reservations, but instead of 

simply isolating them as had been done previously, the tribes would be assimilated into Euro- American 

culture. This assimilation would occur through education and the introduction to agricultural practices; the 

government would provide food and supplies until the tribes were self- sufficient. Operating under this policy, 

the U.S. Army- - represented by General George Crook and his soldiers- - used military tactics to round up 

5,000 Apaches by 1875 and placed them on the San Carlos Reservation in east central Arizona.22

 

During the first half of the 1880s, the Chiricahua Apaches held at San Carlos Reservation resisted staying on 

the reserve. This led to frequent outbreaks, resulting in continued warfare between the army and the Apaches. 

In the spring of 1882, Col. George Forsyth, in charge of six troops of the U.S. cavalry- - including Neil 

Erickson- - , was in the field on the line of the Southern Pacific Railroad, between the stations of Separ and 

Lordsburg, in the New Mexico territory. A group of “renegade” Apaches lived 20 to 50 miles south of the 

Mexican border, in the Sierra Madre Mountains. They would stealthily make their way northward to the 

border, cross it at night and raid area ranchers. They rarely spent more than one night within the U.S., but 

would quickly cross back over the border to Mexico. During that time the military was concerned that these 

Apaches would try to enter the San Carlos Reservation, to convince the reservation Indians to break out and 

return to Mexico with them. The troops were directed to prevent that from occurring.23 Nevertheless, in April 

1882, Chato, Naiche, Geronimo, and Chihuahua, along with a war party of about 60 men, broke into the 

reservation and convinced (or abducted) Loco, head of the Warm Springs Apaches (also known as the 

Mimbreño or Eastern Chiricahua Apaches), and his people to leave with them. Forsyth was ordered in 

pursuit; Neil Erickson was one of the soldiers under his command in this effort.24 Those Apaches ambushed 

Erickson and his troop in Horseshoe Canyon, on the eastern flank of the Chiricahua Mountains.25 After over 

two hours of firing, the Indians faded away into the mountains. By autumn 1882, Neil Erickson’s troop 

movement had taken him to Fort Craig, New Mexico Territory; during the summer of 1883 the troop was on 

 

20 Patrick Hamilton, The Resources of Arizona, "under the authority of the legislature" np, 1881, 

<http://southwest.library.arizona.edu/reaz/front.1_div.1.html>. 

21 Brian Dippie, “The Visual West,” in Milner, 690. 

22 Dictionary of American History, revised edition, vol. 1 (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1976), 142. 

23 Gen. George A. Forsyth, “An Apache Raid,” n.d., FRC, series 4, folder 14. 

24 [Neil Erickson, 1927?], FRC, series 1, box 5, folder 101- 106, fiche 47. 

25 Neil Erickson, as told to Leonard M. Cowley, “Trailing the Apache,” August 1931, Our Army, FRC, series 4, folder 12. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

36

the Gila River in Arizona Territory, then in the fall of 1883 they returned to Fort Craig.26 It was during his time 

at Fort Craig that he met Emma Peterson. 

While Erickson was earning his salary as an employee of the federal government, Peterson worked as a 

housekeeper and servant for the Fort Craig commanding officer, thus earning her income indirectly from the 

federal government. Since the army was the "single largest purchasing and employment agency in the 

Southwest, it benefited a wide assortment of civilians." 27 The Swedish woman is an example of the civilians 

who gained from the federal presence in the Southwest. 

Peterson had moved to Fort Craig to work for Lt. Col. Henry Martyn Lazelle, who had been the commander 

of the fort since December 1882.28 Located in New Mexico’s middle Rio Grande valley, Fort Craig was about 

30 miles south of Socorro, and four miles from the village of San Marcial. When Peterson reached Socorro, 

the town was booming, due to the construction of the Santa Fe Railroad.29 The Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe 

had received a generous land grant across part of Arizona and New Mexico from the federal government to 

encourage the construction of the line. When Lazelle was transferred out of Fort Craig, Peterson worked in 

the same house for Major John Kemp Mizner, who commanded a company of the 4th Regiment of Cavalry.30

 

Mizner's wife had gone East and apparently a Captain Haskil moved in with Mizner; Emma kept house for the 

two officers.31

 

26 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, Western Archeological and Conservation 

Center, Tucson. Cited hereafter as WACC. 

Fort Craig's role was to provide protection from roving bands of Apaches and to guard the north- south route along the Rio Grande River; it was 

abandoned in 1885. Frazier, 98. 

27 Darlis A. Miller, Soldiers and Settlers: Military Supply in the Southwest, 1861- 1885, (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1989), xiv. 

28 Lt. Col. Henry M. Lazelle was on the expedition for the survey of the Northern Pacific Railroad from May to November 1871, so he may have been in 

the area when Indians killed Neil Erickson's father. Lazelle had served in the army during the Civil War; in that capacity he had commanded the 

regiment against Mosby's Guerillas, and had received brevet major for gallant and meritorious services in action near Culpepper, Virginia. After his 

duty related to the railroad survey, he then became commander of Fort Sully, Dakota in the late 1870s; from there he was sent to the Black Hills to build 

Fort Meade. From 1879 to 1882 he served as commandant of cadets at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. He later became a colonel and 

subsequently retired in 1894. Records of Living Officers of the United States Army (Philadelphia: L.R. Hamersly & Co., 1884), 339; and Heitman, Francis 

B., Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army, vol. 1 (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1903), 620. 

29 The resident Pueblo Indians abandoned the Socorro area during the Pueblo Revolt in 1680 and the area remained in the Apache domain until the 

1800s, when the Spanish settled the area to protect the historic Camino Real, the road connecting Santa Fe and Mexico City. By the late 1850s about 

600 people lived in Socorro, but the boom began in 1880 when the Santa Fe Railroad arrived and the population jumped to 4,000. Boom times 

continued in the 1880's and early '90's with extensive mining in the mountains and hills, and smelters to handle the ore, along with farming, ranching 

and extensive mercantile activities. "A Brief History of Socorro," <www.socorro.com/city/7History.html>. 

30 Emma Erickson to Jess Stanley Hutchison, June 1, 1943, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. Mizner graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point 

in 1856. After being on duty at forts Leavenworth and Laramie, he served in the Civil War. During that encounter he earned brevet major for gallant 

and meritorious services at the battle of Corinth, Mississippi, brevet lieutenant colonel for gallant and meritorious services in action at Panola, 

Mississippi, and brevet brigadier general for gallant and meritorious services during the war. After the war he guarded surveying parties involved in 

building the Northern Pacific Railroad, and served in Texas and in Indian Territory. He was transferred to New Mexico in 1881. Mizner had become a 

major in 1869; he became a lt. colonel in 1886, then a colonel. In 1890 he succeeded Col. Benjamin H. Grierson as commander of the 10th Cavalry, the 

African- American regiment. Mizner became a brigadier general in 1897, the same year that he retired. He died in 1898 and is buried in Arlington 

National Cemetery. Records of Living Officers of the United States Army (Philadelphia: L.R. Hamersly & Co., 1884), 121; and Heitman, Francis B., 

Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army, vol. 1 (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1903), 718. 

31 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, Series 4, folder 2. Some inconsistencies exist in descriptions of Emma 

Peterson’s position at Fort Craig regarding whom she worked for when, and whether the officers’ wives and children were present. However, 

combining the versions plus referring to military sources, this interpretation seems to be accurate. See Emma Erickson to Jess Stanley Hutchison, June 

1, 1943, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78; Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, Series 4, folder 2; Eula Lee Murray Riggs, 

“Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. # 1721, Western Archeological and Conservation Center, Tucson; and No 

author [Hildegard or Lillian Erickson?], “[Untitled, about Neil Erickson],” FRC, Series 4, folder 1. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

37

Erickson and Peterson met at Fort Craig, through a common military friend. In time, Erickson spent his free 

evenings visiting with the young woman. When the night guard came around calling the hours, at the house 

where the couple was visiting he would call softly, “Nine o’clock and Neil is well.”32

In June 1884, the 6th Cavalry, which had been posted at forts in Arizona, was relieved from duty in Arizona, 

and was ordered to exchange stations with the 4th Cavalry. The companies of the 4th were to leave their 

current posts (including Fort Craig) and take post at forts Huachuca, Bowie, Lowell and McDowell.33 Col. 

Mizner was ordered to command Fort Huachuca; he asked Peterson if she would continue her employment 

with him by moving to the post.34 After consulting with a friend, an officer’s wife, Peterson decided to go. The 

colonel was very accommodating to Peterson, and provided his buggy and a fine horse for her travel, and 

arranged for Erickson to be her driver. 

During that move, Neil was devoted to looking after Peterson’s needs. He “drove her in a single buggy” and 

“her tent was always the first one up.”35 Even so, Peterson turned down Erickson’s marriage because she 

would not marry a soldier- –an enlisted man- - but she suggested that he study for an officer’s commission. 

Though Erickson wanted to stay with the woman he loved, Erickson's troop did not go at Fort Huachuca; 

instead, the couple was separated in mid June 1884 at Steins Pass. His troop then traveled to Fort Lowell near 

Tucson, then on to Fort McDowell in July.36 They then continued to other forts in the territory and to 

assignments in the field. One such assignment involved successfully intercepting a band of Mexican soldiers 

who had mutinied and headed for the United States in the Yuma area.37

Meanwhile, Erickson considered Peterson's ultimatum regarding becoming an officer. Although he wanted to 

please her, he understood that the path to becoming an officer would not be easy. He wrote to her, 

The only way for me to get [shoulder epaulettes] is to go through a war because it would take about four 

or five months for me to go through enough school to become good through examination. There are 

many young men who have sat at West Point for five years and not done anything else but study, and 

still don’t become accepted into the service as second Lieutenant. . . . I want to seek higher education in 

the spring in order to attain the goal which you have laid out for me, but I beg you Beloved Emma, not 

to look at me with contempt if I don’t attain this goal.38

After Erickson’s troop arrived at Fort McDowell, he followed through and engaged a private tutor. However, 

his responsibilities in the Army soon prevented him from studying. Nonetheless, he investigated the 

opportunity for him to become an officer, but everything he learned turned him away from that career path. 

 

32 “[Untitled, about Neil Erickson],” FRC, series 4, folder 1. 

33 Rodenbough, Theo. F. and William L. Haskin, ed. The Army of the United States (Governor's Island, New York: Military Service Institution of the 

United States, 1896; reprint, New York: Argonaut Press Ltd., 1966), 218. 

34 Still operative today, Fort Huachuca is located at present day Sierra Vista, about fifteen miles north of the Mexican border. Established in 1877, it was 

intended to protect settlers and travelers from the Apache Indians. Frazier, 9. 

35 “[Untitled, about Neil Erickson],” FRC, series 4, sheet 1 of 6. 

36 Neil Erickson, FRC, series 2, folder 1; and Erickson to Peterson, July 7, 1884. Acc. 1776, WACC. Fort McDowell was near Phoenix, which had a 

population of just over 2,000 in 1880. www.ci.phoenix.az.us/citygov/history.html 

 

37 [Neil Erickson, 1927?], FRC, series 1, box 5, folder 101- 106, fiche 47. 

38 Erickson to Peterson, July 27, 1884. Acc. 1776, WACC. 
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38

He discovered that to be a candidate one had to be appointed by the President. He also found out that many 

soldiers had submitted applications, and that the first in line were that year’s eighty graduates from West 

Point. His troop commander had recommended a fellow soldier in the 4th Cav. but the soldier still had not 

received a promotion. Neil realized that he would have to wait another five years, and that even then he could 

still not achieve officers’ status. Although Peterson continued to push him on the topic, the Swede resisted. 

“To answer your question concerning officers, I will say that I gave up hope a long time ago,” he responded. 

“Dear Emmy, I will not waste my time in the army when I can be free and go as I please. And here in this 

country there are many other places which suit me better than that one you so very much will have me fill."39

In 1885, tensions were high in the southwest regarding the Apaches at San Carlos Reservation, and the army 

feared a revolt. In April, the army brought into Arizona Territory the 10th Cavalry- - the segregated AfricanAmerican regiment- - to increase the number of troops on hand. On the night of May 17, 1885, about 150 

Chiricahua men, women and children escaped from San Carlos Reservation, successfully fleeing south into 

Mexico. Geronimo led them, and accompanying him were other experienced warriors such as Natchez, 

Chihuahua, Mangus, and Old Nana.40

 

General George Crook devised a strategy to return the escapees to the reservation. First, he relied extensively 

on Apache scouts to track their fellow tribesmen, as he had done in the past. He thus continued the technique 

utilized by the earlier Mexicans, who relied on the “peaceful Apaches.” In this complex system of alliances, 

while the U.S. Army was fighting the enemy Apaches, the scouts were conducting their own inter- tribal 

warfare. Second, Crook secured trails and waterholes along the border to prevent raids and to protect the 

local settlers. Without access to water, Crook reasoned that the Apaches could be kept in Mexico until their 

capture.41 To ensure that the Apaches stayed in Mexico, troops were stationed in detachments along the 

border. Crook explained: 

To each detachment was assigned five Indian scouts to watch the front and detect the approach of the 

hostiles. These troops were stationed at every point where it was thought possible for the hostiles to 

pass. Every trail, every waterhole, from the Patagonia Mountains [between Nogales and Sierra Vista, 

Arizona] to the Rio Grande [in south- central New Mexico] was thus guarded. . . . In addition to this a 

second line was similarly established in rear of the front, both to act as a reserve, and to prevent the 

passing of any hostiles who might elude the vigilance of the first line.42

Neil Erickson’s Troop E was active in this pursuit, and was detailed at Fort Huachuca, and then Mud Springs 

until the end of the Apache campaign. Crook placed the 10th Cavalry in the second line of defense, near 

springs and passes. One such location was a small spring in Bonita Canyon, the future site of Faraway Ranch. 

The first troop of 10th Cavalry soldiers- - sometimes referred to as buffalo soldiers- - arrived at Bonita Canyon 

in September 1885. The location must have been important to the Apaches, since it offered the only pass 

through the Chiricahua Mountains. In addition, the active spring in the canyon provided reliable water in a 

semi- desert environment. The troop established a typical army camp, including tents for the soldiers, a 

 

39 Erickson to Peterson, January 12, 1885. Acc. 1776, WACC. 

40 Tagg, 31, 33. 

41 Tagg, 33. 

42 Brigadier General George Crook, Resume of Operations against Apache Indians, 1882- 1886, (n.p.: 1886; reprinted as Crook's Resume of Operations 

against Apache Indians 1882 to 1886, London: Johnson- Taunton Military Press, 1971); quoted in Tagg, 34. 
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39

kitchen tent, and a stable, while the officers stayed in an existing cabin. During their first month there, 

Apaches- - who had eluded Crook’s soldiers- - stole horses from ranchers in Whitetail Canyon, just north of 

Bonita Canyon. After the troop unsuccessfully chased the Indians for the next several weeks, the camp 

became quiet, and life there must have touched on being boring. The major duty of the troops seems to have 

been acting as couriers for the southern mail service out of Fort Bowie, which was about 12 miles north of the 

canyon and was headquarters of the U.S. Army's Department of Arizona. Other points along this mail route 

included White's Ranch (about 10 miles south of Bonita Canon), Mud Springs (where Neil Erickson was 

stationed for some time) and Cloverdale, New Mexico (the southern terminus).43

 

Meanwhile, the army continued to press on Geronimo and his allies. In early 1886 the Indian leader 

communicated that he wished to speak directly with Crook, and as a sign of good faith, turned over Nana and 

a number of other Indians to the army as hostages. Nana expressed a desire to see his wife, who was at San 

Carlos Reservation. Erickson, who was a duty sergeant at the reservation at that point, was given the 

assignment to escort the elderly woman to the prisoner; he successfully completed his task, in spite of having 

to spend a night camping en route.44

The meeting between Geronimo and Crook in March 1886 served as an important benchmark in the war. 

After meeting for two days a few miles south of the Mexican border at Canon de los Embudos, Geronimo 

surrendered to Crook. However, within days Geronimo and a group of his followers escaped. Days later, 

General Crook tendered his resignation, due to mounting criticism for failing to re- capture the Chiricahuas. 

In April, the commander of the army appointed Brigadier General Nelson A. Miles as the new Commander of 

the Department of Arizona. 

In spite of the change in command, few changes occurred at the Bonita Canyon camp. During that spring and 

summer, the Bonita canyon troops were occasionally ordered to picket- - or patrol- - the surrounding territory. 

For instance, on May 5, 1886 the commanding officer was ordered to "have a couple men sleep at Riggs Ranch 

every night" for protection.45 Ed Riggs, Neil Erickson's future son- in- law, had been born the previous 

September; it is possible that the 8- month- old was at the family's ranch while the soldiers were guarding it. 

During that summer of 1886, settler Louis Prue began supplying the camp at Bonita Canyon with fresh beef. 

His ranch was near the mouth of the canyon. Apparently Ja Hu and Pauline Stafford sold part of the produce 

from their orchard and vegetable garden to the soldiers of the camp. The couple, some of the earliest white 

settlers of the Sulphur Springs Valley, had moved to the canyon five years earlier than the Tenth Cavalry. 

Remnants of their fruit- tree orchard are still extant.46

 

Also during the 10th’s tenure in Bonita Canyon, the soldiers decided to build a monument, possibly as an 

activity to fill in the empty hours. The stone masonry structure included a large block inscribed “In memory 

of Jas. A. Garfield.” The structure is commonly called the Garfield Monument, in reference to James A. 

Garfield, 20th president of the United States, who was both inaugurated and assassinated in 1881. In addition, 

 

43 Tagg, 44. It is likely that the Mud Springs where Erickson was located was about 40 miles south of Lordsburg, New Mexico, and about 25 miles north 

of Cloverdale. There is also a Mud Spring, New Mexico about 115 miles north- northeast of Fort Bowie, and a Mud Springs Ranch about 25 miles 

northwest of Lordsburg. 

44 Neil Erickson, as told to Leonard M. Cowley, “Trailing the Apache,” August 1931, Our Army, FRC, series 4, folder 12. An alternate version is that 

General Crook had brought Nana's wife to Erickson's E troop while they were camped near Erie's Mud Springs Ranch. Erickson escorted the woman 

from there, utilizing an army ambulance. Alden Hayes, A Portal to Paradise (Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1999), 162. 

45 Tagg, 45. 

46 Tagg, 47, 52. 
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the smaller stones that made up the monument were also engraved, primarily with names and initials, most of 

which can be tied to men in the 10th. The tiered structure was about ten feet square at the base, and about that 

same height.47

Meanwhile, the Geronimo Campaign had not prevented Neil Erickson and Emma Peterson from pursuing 

their relationship. Both had moved since their courtship journey, due to their federal connections. Erickson 

had followed troop movements throughout southeastern Arizona and southwestern New Mexico. 

Meanwhile, Major Mizner had served as commander at Fort Huachuca from June to September 1884, and 

then he was directed to go to St. Louis. Peterson then moved to Fort Bowie, where she managed a boarding 

house, thus continuing to economically utilize the military presence.48 Fort Bowie served as the military 

staging and supply center during the Apache conflict, and employed about one hundred civilians, in addition 

to having approximately 200 soldiers stationed there. Erickson volunteered frequently to go to that fort for 

supplies and mail, and would visit Emma while there.49

The fall of 1886 brought numerous changes. In a culmination of a 17- month campaign, an exhausted 

Geronimo and the remainder of his group surrendered to General Miles in September 1886. Miles took 

Geronimo to Fort Bowie, where Peterson saw him as a prisoner. The 10th Cavalry abandoned the camp at 

Bonita Canyon on September 15, 1886, one year after it was established. During its existence, it was occupied 

at various times by troops E, H and I, and from 40 to 100 men were stationed there.50 A month after 

Geronimo’s surrender, on Oct 10, 1886, Erickson was discharged from the army, as a first sergeant, at Fort 

Huachuca. Only then did he and Peterson become engaged.51

 

During Erickson’s term in the army, his attitude towards Indians had shifted. He later told his son, Ben, 

“Before I got through I was more in sympathy with the Indians than I was with the white man.”52 Decades 

later, Neil wrote, 

I do not blame the Indian for going on the warpath. As I look back over the fifty years since the 

campaigns in the ‘80’s, I would say that there were plenty of excuses for their attitude toward the whites. 

Not for one minute do I condone the depredations and outrages they committed, but there are many 

things which can drive even civilized men to despair.53

Neil also stated, 

 

47 By 1920 the monument had deteriorated extensively. Although Neil Erickson tried to interest the both the government and Garfield family in 

restoring the monument, he was unable to obtain assistance. As an alternative to disintegration, Lillian and Ed Riggs asked Neil if they could 

disassemble the structure and use the stones to build a fireplace in their home at Faraway Ranch. Reluctantly, Neil approved the plan, and the 

engraved stones were moved to the house. Today, the 60 stones comprise what is called the Garfield Fireplace. The base of the monument was 

discovered during a 1986 archeological survey. For a more detailed history and description of the monument, see Tagg, 59- 75 and 94- 96. 

48 Fort Huachuca, http://usaic.hua.army.mil/history; and “Register of Guests, Fort Bowie Hotel, Miss Emma Peterson, Proprietress”, December 25, 1885-

April 17, 1886 [on one page] FRC, series 2, folder 2. 

49 Leavengood, 4. 

50 For a more extensive history of the camp at Bonita Canon, see Tagg. 

51 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d. Acc. 1721, WACC; Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: 

Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2; and FRC, series 20, folder 1. 

52 Ben Erickson, “Interview between Ben Erickson . . .,” 28 January 1970. Acc. 1455, WACC. 

53 Neil Erickson, as told to Leonard M. Cowley, “Trailing the Apache,” August 1931, Our Army, FRC, series 4, folder 12. 
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41

I can tell you now though, that if I had known as much about Indians then as I do today after seeing how 

they were treated by the Government and the [Indian] agents, I think I would have deserted the United 

States army and gone with the Apaches. Those Indians got a raw deal. They were hunted from mountain 

to mountain and when they went on reservation they starved. The agents sold the supplies intended for 

the Indians. It was a bad business.54

HOMESTEADING 

In 1862, Congress passed an act that greatly impacted settlement in the West. The Homestead Act was 

designed to distribute public lands to citizens, or intended citizens, who owned less than 160 acres. Aside 

from minor filing fees, the only compensation required was residence, cultivation, and improvement. It was 

an immensely popular measure, with almost two million entries being made nationally. However, satisfying 

the requirements were not as easy as some had believed them to be, since only an estimated 783,000 entries 

were actually patented, a default rate of about 60%.55 In Arizona Territory, even fewer homestead claims 

resulted in a transfer of title.56

To file a claim, and eventually successfully patent, a few rather simple rules had to be followed. The entry had 

to be made by a citizen, or a person who intended to become a citizen. A woman could apply for a 

homestead, and a single woman’s rights were not forfeited upon marriage. However, a husband and wife 

could not both hold separate unfinished claims.57 After filing the claim, the person was required to begin 

living on the claim within six months, and live there for five years. Also during the residency, the claimant had 

to build improvements and cultivate the land. If at the end of five years the claimant could prove that he or 

she had successfully met the requirements- - and had paid the $18 in administrative fees- - the U.S. government 

would grant title to the homesteader. Alternately, after fourteen months of residency, a claimant could "prove 

up" by paying $1.25 per acre.58

At the time that Emma Peterson was living in Fort Bowie, “an old settler” came to her house and told her that 

he owned “the most beautiful place in Bonita Canyon that [she] could wish to see.” He suggested that she 

might want to look it over and might want to buy the cabin. She agreed to see the locale and found that he 

had not exaggerated, fell in love with the area, and decided to buy the house.59

Apparently, the old settler was Mr. Newton, who had built a two- room cabin on government land in Bonita 

Canyon.60 Newton was living there when the 10th U.S. Cavalry was ordered to camp at Bonita Canyon. When 

 

54 Benton, C.B. "Sgt. Neil Erickson and the Apaches: With a Description of Fort Craig." Page 130. In Westerners Brand Book, Westerners Los Angeles 

Corral. Westerners Los Angeles Corral: Los Angeles, 1948. 

55 E. Wade Home, Land and Property Research in the United States, (Salt Lake City: Ancestry, Inc., 1997), 140. 

56 Patrick Henderson, "The Public Domain in Arizona: 1863- 1891" (Ph.D. diss., University of New Mexico, 1965), 81. 

57 It is estimated that women comprised 10 to 15 percent of the homesteaders in some states in the early twentieth century. Milner, 307. 

58 Hone, 140- 145. 

59 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 

60 Neil Erickson later gave the construction date of the cabin as 1884. Neil Erickson Homestead Application 1171 for Section 27, T16S, R29E, patented 

November 22, 1894; Tucson, Arizona; General Land Office; Records of the Bureau of Land Management, Record Group 49; National Archives, 

Washington, DC. 
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the troops arrived, Newton decided he could earn some money. As Emma later related, "Of course he had a 

place on which he and his wife were living; well, he sold that place to a captain, a small house with two rooms 

in it.” Capt. Charles Cooper of the 10th U.S. Cavalry occupied the cabin during the Geronimo campaign of 

1885- 86.61 Cooper’s daughter, Birdie, gathered information for a book while living there, which was published 

in 1924 under the title When Geronimo Rode.

62 Peterson explained that when Emma arrived, “Of course I 

could not buy the land [from Newton] as it was government land. But . . . I bought this home from Mr. Nuton 

[Newton].”63

Emma then traveled to the Government Land Office in Tucson to file a homestead claim for the 160 acres 

around the Newton cabin. When informed that only one family member could file a claim she decided to let 

her husband- to- be claim the land instead.64

Neil Erickson was discharged from the army on October 10, 1886; that fall, while Peterson lived at Fort Bowie, 

Erickson lived in the cabin that Emma had purchased, building fences and making improvements.65 After 

marrying in January 1887, they tried business enterprises elsewhere, but eventually moved to Emma's cabin in 

Bonita Canyon. By the time they moved to there, in July 1888, Emma and Neil had enlarged both their family 

and their house. Their first- born child, Lillian, had been born five months earlier. Also, Neil had added a 

room to the old Newton place.66 In December of 1888, Neil traveled to Tucson to file on the homestead for 

 

61 “A tent was erected to serve as a kitchen and dining room with a negro woman in charge. The present site of Faraway’s ranch house is the exact place 

where Captain Cooper’s cabin stood and the tent kitchen stood where the ranch yard now is." [Lillian Riggs], “Faraway Ranch: The Gateway to the 

Wonderland of Rocks.” Hoofs and Horns, October 1934. After the surrender of Geronimo, Captain Charles Cooper, leading a detachment of H 

Company, forced the surrender of a small party of Apaches under Mangus. 

62 She published the book under her married name, Forrestine Hooker; she had married a scion of Colonel Henry Hooker, who had founded the large 

and successful Sierra Bonita Ranch at the north end of the Sulphur Springs Valley. She apparently obtained much of the information for her book from 

General Nelson A. Miles' book Personal Recollections and Observations. Charles B. Gatewood to Neil Erickson, December 22, 1926, FRC, series 1, folder 

118. 

 

63 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2; and Neil Erickson, “Our First Night in Bonita Canyon,” 

1931, FRC, series 4, folder 9. Emma introduces a conundrum when she said that Newton sold the cabin to the captain, but that she also bought the 

cabin from Newton. Neil indicated that Cooper “occupied” rather than purchased the cabin, which would resolve the problem. 

 At least two secondary sources identified J.H. Stafford as the man who sold the cabin to Emma. Half a century later, Lillian explained that Captain 

Cooper sold the cabin to neighbor J.H. Stafford, and that later Stafford, while visiting Fort Bowie, told of the place he had bought in Bonita Canyon 

near his own home, and that Peterson then purchased the cabin from Stafford. [Lillian Riggs], “Faraway Ranch: The Gateway to the Wonderland of 

Rocks.” Hoofs and Horns, October 1934. However, since both Emma and Neil clearly stated that Newton was the man who owned the cabin, and Emma 

clearly stated that she purchased the cabin from Newton, it seems likely that Newton is the correct person. 

 It is not known what happened to Newton after he sold the cabin. Ben Erickson later recalled the explanation he had heard: “The story goes” that 

Newton was a deserter from the Army. He got wind that neighbor Louis Prue had turned him in. “So when they went up there to get him, they found 

his trail, he done left the cabin and took off south east . . . as far as I know they never did know where he went.” Ben Erickson, “Interview between Ben 

Erickson . . .,” 28 January 1970, Acc. 1455, WACC. If this story is true, it seems that Newton was either courageous or foolish to rent his cabin to an 

army captain while the army occupied that area, and to later visit Fort Bowie to entice Emma to but his house, while being wanted by the army for 

desertion. 

64 Emma described the transaction in three slightly different ways in her autobiography, but in all three instances she indicates that she did actually 

make the initial claim on the homestead: “Of course I could not buy the land [from Newton] as it was government land. But I made application for the 

160 acres.” Also, “Before I got married I had filed on a 160- acre homestead; it was all you could get at that time. Besides that the government was very 

stingy about their land, and would only permit one member of a family to hold land that you had filed on.” And also, “My homestead that I had I 

thought would be embarrassing to my husband so I had him to file on it.” Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, 

series 4, folder 2. 

65 Louis Torres and Mark Baumler, Historic Structure Report, Historical and Archeological Data Sections: A History of the Buildings and Structures of 

Faraway Ranch, Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona, (Denver: National Park Service, Denver Service Center, 1984), 12, citing Emma to Landone, 

August 3, 1923, FRC, Box 102; and Torres, 13. 

66 Neil Erickson, “Our First Night in Bonita Canyon,” 1931, FRC, series 4, folder 9. 
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43

the property surrounding their cabin.67 At that time, as required by the law, he swore that he planned to 

become a United States citizen, and renounced his fidelity to the king of Sweden. 

After moving in, the couple continued to make improvements to the homestead. They dug a well, and then 

used the stones they’d removed from the well excavation to build a stone house, they raised a garden, and they 

ran a few cattle, but they made little money. 

Making a living at the ranch was difficult. The ranch “was never self- supporting. Mr. Erickson always had to 

work at outside jobs, and they were very poor.”68 Fortunately for Neil, his father had been a carpenter, and 

Neil had inherited his tools and his skills. Neil began working as a carpenter for neighbors, but ultimately 

decided that to earn a living he had to move to Bisbee, more than 70 miles from the ranch; he spent much of 

late 1890 to late 1894 there.69 In January 1894, while testifying regarding his homestead claim, Neil estimated 

that he had spent a total of about two years of the previous 5- 1/2 years away from the homestead to make a 

living. A homestead claimant could be absent for a total of only six months during any year, and could not 

maintain a residence elsewhere.70 Even so, Neil received the patent on his 160- acre homestead claim in 1894.71

 

He also experienced another involvement with the federal government about that time: Neil became a citizen 

of the United States in November 1893.72 During the time that Neil lived in Bisbee, Emma lived on the 

homestead with their 2 children. 

With the birth of his third child in spring 1895, Neil sold his Bisbee house and moved back to ranch. 

However, by 1900 the need for money forced Neil to return to Bisbee. He was frustrated with the situation 

and wanted to sell the ranch. He probably didn’t realize that the federal government would soon present him 

with another opportunity, this time to earn money while living at the ranch. 

 

67 The 160 acres that Neil Erickson claimed consisted of the S1⁄2 of the SE1⁄4 and the S1⁄2 of the SW1⁄4 Section 27 T16S R29E of Gila and Salt- River Meridian 

in Arizona Territory. Neil Erickson Homestead Application 1171 for Section 27, T16S, R29E, patented November 22, 1894; Tucson, Arizona; General Land 

Office; Records of the Bureau of Land Management, Record Group 49; National Archives, Washington, DC. Neil was one of 353 people who filed a 

homestead claim in Arizona under the Homestead Act in 1888, the largest number of claimants up to that time. Of them, only 42 received their final 

certificate on the land, and an additional 34 people commuted the claim to cash. Patrick Henderson, "The Public Domain in Arizona: 1863- 1891" (Ph.D. 

diss., University of New Mexico, 1965), 226. 

68 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d. Acc# 1721, WACC. 

69 The first mineral discoveries at Bisbee were made in 1877 by troops from Fort Bowie. By 1880, 400 people—mostly young, single men—had flocked to 

the mining camp; that same year the Copper Queen Mine was capitalized for $2.5 million. After hitting the large copper ore body in 1884, the mine- -

owned by Phelps, Dodge and Company- - became the second largest copper producer in the West (after Butte, Montana). As the wealth generated by 

the Copper Queen increased, so did the population of Bisbee. The population in 1899 was 4,000; when the town incorporated in 1902 it consisted of 

about 8,000 people; and the all- time high population occurred in 1918, when about 25,000 people lived there. In the early 1900s it was the largest city 

in Arizona. Carlos A. Schwantes, ed., Bisbee: Urban Outpost on the Frontier, (Tucson: Universiy of Arizona Press, 1992), 6, 10, 15. 

70 Neil Erickson Homestead Application 1171 for Section 27, T16S, R29E, patented November 22, 1894; Tucson, Arizona; General Land Office; Records of 

the Bureau of Land Management, Record Group 49; National Archives, Washington, DC. 

71 Although Neil finished the paperwork for the patent in January, 1894, the title was not officially transferred to him until November 22, 1894. Neil 

Erickson Homestead Application 1171, final certificate 645 for Section 27, T16S, R29E, patented November 22, 1894; Tucson, Arizona; General Land 

Office; Records of the Bureau of Land Management, Record Group 49; National Archives, Washington, DC.; and Bureau of Land Management, 

"Records of the General Land Office," <www.glorecords.blm.gov/PatentSearch/>. 

72 Citizenship certificate, November 1893, FRC, series 12, folder 8. 
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U.S. FOREST SERVICE, AND MORE HOMESTEADING 

The “quiet revolution”73 in the West began in 1891, the year of the first forest withdrawals, when the federal 

government began to withdraw its federal lands from distribution in large quantities. Although there had 

been a few previous examples of federal withdrawal of land, such as Yellowstone National Park, the federal 

reserves marked a major shift in the direction of land management. Previously the federal government had 

been distributing public lands to private corporations and the general public as quickly as possible. The 

concept of reserving some land for perpetual government ownership was contrary to previous patterns of 

thought, and it upset numerous people. 

The revolution in federal land policy was guided by “an elite cadre of professional bureaucrats. . . . Among 

these, the most prominent and influential was Gifford Pinchot.” In 1898, Pinchot became the chief of the 

Department of Agriculture’s Division of Forestry; from there he “launched one of the most ambitious and 

successful careers in American conservation history.” When he started in his position, Pinchot had only 

eleven employees, and all of the forest reserves were under the Department of the Interior; “the division was 

without forests to manage.”74

Theodore Roosevelt, destined to become a pivotal figure in the conservation movement, became president in 

1901. The powerful progressive leader was committed to protecting the remnants of a “vanishing wilderness 

landscape.”75 At the time he entered office, the federal government possessed 41 million acres in reserves.76

 

Roosevelt took steps to change the situation. He quickly started creating more forest reserves and enlarging 

Pinchot’s staff; by 1902, 179 people were working for Pinchot. Then in 1905- - in a landmark shift in 

bureaucratic organization- - Roosevelt transferred the 63 million acres of forest reserves from the Department 

of the Interior to the Department of Agriculture’s Bureau of Forestry.77 The bureau, under Gifford Pinchot’s 

leadership, became the U.S. Forest Service, and the forest reserves were re- christened national forests. By the 

time Roosevelt left office in 1909, the country had 151 million acres in national forests, an almost four- fold 

increase.78

The conservation movement was an integral component to the Progressive movement, which in turn was 

crucial in the development of the professional land management philosophy of the federal government. 

Conservation was “an effort on the part of leaders in science, technology, and government to bring about 

more efficient development of physical resources.” The proponents were so committed to the conservation 

ethic that it has been called the “gospel of efficiency.”79

 

73 White, 391. 

74 William Cronon, “Landscapes of Abundance and Scarcity,” in The Oxford History of the American West, Clyde A. Milner II, Carol A. O’Connor, and 

Martha A. Sandweiss (New York: Oxford University Press, 1994), 608. 

75 Cronon, 609. 

76 Abbott, 473. 

77 Cronon, 609. 

78 Abbott, 473. 

79 Abbott, 472, 473. 
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Pinchot posited the central goal of conservation as, “The greatest good for the greatest number for the longest 

time.”80 Translated to a practical application, Pinchot’s goal was “scientific management to ensure a sustained 

yield of timber as a lasting contributor to national growth and the stability of local economies.”81 Conversely, 

like other progressives, Pinchot and Roosevelt believed that the “greatest villain was the waste of resources. . . 

To waste resources, to use them inefficiently, was to steal from future generations.”82

Pinchot staffed the Forest Service with progressives who were committed to the “gospel of efficiency,” which 

was spread from the top down by dedicated professionals. Young men who hoped to become professional 

foresters often were educated at schools “more or less inspired by German traditions” such as Cornell, Ann 

Arbor, Biltmore and Yale. “Energized by an elite esprit de corps and a vision of . . . public service, the young 

foresters fanned out across the western landscape with a goal of managing public forests so that frontier 

abundance could be saved from scarcity and could last forever.”83

Neil Erickson- - veteran of the Apache campaign- - stepped into this progressive atmosphere in July 1903, 

when he began his career as a forest ranger.84 Since he was not educated as a professional forester, he didn’t 

fit into that category of employee. Instead, he earned his place in the Forest Service through his experience. 

An early employee in southeast Arizona pointed out 

the Forest Officers in the early days of the Land Office regime were a motley collection of humanity. 

It stood to reason that the Forest Reserves could not be administered in the field without the 

presence of at least some men who had an intimate knowledge of the country and were able to take 

care of themselves and their horses, could stand severe physical hardships, live under any conditions, 

prepare their own food, talk the language of the natives, and engage in combat when the occasion 

arose. In fact, these were men ‘with bark on,’ as Teddy Roosevelt was wont to describe them.85

Certainly Erickson’s experience in the army provided him with the very skills that were described. That era, 

until about 1916, has been described as the frontier or pioneer phase of the Forest Service in the Southwest. 

During that time, a small number of professionally trained foresters (mostly from the East) supervised a larger 

number of untrained and mostly uneducated forest staff, most of who had come from the West or Southwest.86

 

A staffer from that time later recalled, “It was period of tremendous crusading spirit . . . a lot of those fellows 

that had the crusading spirit didn’t know anything about Forestry. They were ex- cowboys and lumberjacks 

and all that sort of thing.”87 We can assume that Neil affirmed the goals and philosophy of the organization, 

since he worked for the Forest Service until his retirement 24 years later. 

 

80 Cronon, 610. 

81 Abbott, 473. 

82 Cronon, 610. 

83 Cronon, 610. 

84 Neil Erickson, Diary, FRC, series 2, folder 3. 

85 Edwin A. Tucker and George Fitzpatrick, Men Who Matched the Mountains: The Forest Service in the Southwest, (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department 

of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southwest Region, 1972), 3, 5 citing Fred Winn Collection, Museum of the Arizona Historical Society, Tucson. 

86 Baker, 157. In 1908, the Southwestern Region employed about 36 full- time professional staff (who administered the regional office and 17 national 

forests) and a field force of almost 200 rangers and assistant rangers. Baker, 168. 

87 Baker, 158 quoting Jesse Nelson. 
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A series of reserves were created in Arizona between 1902 and 1908; Chiricahua Forest Reserve was among the 

first, being established on July 30, 1902. Early in 1903, Charles T. McGlone, the first employee, came to the 

forest, in the position of forest supervisor; his headquarters were in Willcox. Several months later, one year 

after the forest’s establishment, Erickson started his new job as the reserve’s first ranger, on July 8, 1903.88

The position was ideal for his situation. Erickson had lamented the need to live so far from his family in order 

to earn additional income. In his new position, Erickson maintained his office at the ranch- - which was 

bordered on the north, east and south by the forest reserve- - although an old cabin at Barfoot Park was 

actually Ranger Headquarters. In addition, he earned a reliable $60 per month.89 On the negative side, 

Erickson had to be on the mountain range on a horse, away from the family ranch, for a month or six weeks at 

a time.90 However, the ranch was his home base to which he always returned. 

In general, a ranger’s duties at that time were to “protect the forests, enforce the regulations, settle disputes 

between local persons and interests, and generally be a good neighbor.”91 Neil’s specific activities as ranger at 

Chiricahua covered the gamut, including surveying and mapping, examining mining claims, fighting fires, and 

issuing grazing permits; timber sales and trail construction were two notable activities.92 For instance, he 

marked timber for a sawmill in the area, and had timber sales at Tex Canyon and at Cave Creek. Neil also put 

a trail down in the head of Rucker Canyon, which earned the name of Erickson Pass through rather ignoble 

means. As Ben Erickson later recalled, “The only place you could go through . . . had to go up between two 

bluffs, [and] right in the middle of this little pass there was a Pinyon tree. If you didn’t watch your old horse, 

he might get your knees. This old horse, this fellow from Washington was riding . . . the horse leaned over and 

scraped the hide off his knee. He said, ‘Well, this is Erickson Pass, nobody but a damn Swede would put a 

road through a place like this.’” The area went by that name for years, until the trail was re- routed. The pass 

name was then changed to Painted Rock.93 Neil's responsibilities also included being an official weather 

observer, with the rain gauge, thermometer and other instruments being installed at the ranch. When he was 

away, the family made regular observations for him.94

 

88 J.J. Wagoner, "History of the Cattle Industry in Southern Arizona, 1540- 1940," University of Arizona Bulletin: Social Science Bulletin no. 20, vol. 23, no. 

2 (April 1952), 75; Neil Erickson, diary, FRC, series 2, folder 3. 

89 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. Barfoot Park is southeast of present day 

Chiricahua National Monument. It was typical at the time to have the ranger headquarters where the ranger lived. Not until 1907- 09 did the Forest 

Service begin to build ranger stations. Robert D. Baker, Robert S. Maxwell, Victor H. Treat and Henry C. Dethloff, Timeless Heritage: A History of the 

Forest Service in the Southwest (College Station, Texas: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, 1988), 28. 

90 Ben Erickson, “Interview between Ben Erickson . . .,” 28 January 1970. Acc. 1455, WACC. 

91 Baker, 145. “Your principal duty will be regular patrol service, which consists of riding through the Reserve to protect it from fire and trespass, 

posting fire warnings and notices of Reserve boundary line . . .; you will also be expected to look after the needs and cases of free use of timber to be cut 

from Reserve lands . . . you are enjoined to be vigilant [regarding forest fires], use every means to prevent further destruction of the forest timber by this 

known enemy of the Forest.” Tucker, 9, quoting McGlone’s letter of instructions to the new employee Erickson. An aspect of carrying out those duties 

involved simply patrolling the forest, forest rangers were to ride horseback to patrol as much of their range as possible, and they were encouraged to 

make trips when they had “nothing in particular to do except see the country.” Baker, 162 quoting Stanley F. Wilson. 

92 FRC, series 8, box 20. 

93 Ben Erickson, “Interview between Ben Erickson . . .,” 28 January 1970. Acc. 1455, WACC. 

94 Forest Supervisor to Forester, September 29, 1908, FRC, series 8, folder 4- 13. Associated assignments included being assistant Fish and Game 

Commissioner for the counties of Cochise and Santa Cruz, a state special deputy game warden and a state deputy game warden. Certificates, FRC, 

series 12, folders 14, 16. These assignments came as a result of the official cooperation in game protection between the Forest Service and the State of 

Arizona. Baker, 152. 
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In spring 1909, Erickson had an assignment to survey Fort Bowie Military Reservation, a place he had 

frequented during his military tenure.95 This assignment presents us with an interesting image of two aspects 

of Erickson’s life with the federal government: a nineteenth- century soldier fighting Apaches, and a 

twentieth- century forest ranger mapping federal property. 

For all the miles that Erickson traveled for his job, he kept two horses: one to ride and one to pack. He paid 

for their feed from his salary. Neil was especially fond of the horse he called Old Tom; “They were known all 

over the range as Neil and Old Tom.” Over time, the horse’s health had diminished, and the day came when 

he was down and couldn’t get up. Knowing what had to be done, but unable to bear doing it himself, 

Erickson asked his neighbor Tom Stafford to shoot Old Tom. Neil “sat on the back porch with the tears 

streaming down his face after he heard the shot that ended Old Tom’s life.” 96

Erickson did not always agree with his supervisors, and as a result experienced a career crisis in 1907- 1908. 

After becoming extremely frustrated with his situation, Erickson wrote to Gifford Pinchot, complaining about 

management, and reporting on mismanagement of a forest fire in Horseshoe Canyon (where he had been 

ambushed by Apaches 25 years earlier). When asked for an explanation, Charles McGlone, the forest 

supervisor over Erickson responded to Pinchot in a measured but critical manner. Erickson, he explained, 

has always shown a disposition to court favors with Inspectors and Service Specialists in the field by 

boasting of “self” and what he hath wrought, but I have never heard of him saying a good word for any 

other member of the local force. . . . He is the only man of our local force who has complained to me of 

every other man on the force and as I do not believe all the others to be wrong and him right I prefer to 

accept his complaint against me rather than practice his ideas of management as he either tends to 

promote disorder or wants to reign supreme. . . . The tenor of his report on the fire which consists 

principally of “I sent,” “I instructed” and other self- important phrases. . . shows a disposition to be 

authoritative and self- important, of which, with seeming regret, his brother forest officers have 

mentioned to me. 

The forest supervisor continued to explain that he had received "many complaints from citizens of every 

locality in and near the forest expressing their dislike for Ranger Erickson and the boasting way and selfimportant manner in which he approaches them." The supervisor also offered his opinion that Erickson's 

propensity for “kicking” and fault- finding is possibly due to education which must result from the illchosen, questionable, political literature of his selection. . . . I feel that I have studied his eccentricities 

until I know them and feel that I can successfully use him in the Service if he will lay aside his unamerican spirit. 

However, he also added, "I have naught to say against Ranger Erickson's work. I regard him as a good 

efficient officer in many lines of duty."97

Not to take the charges sitting down, Neil pointedly defended himself, and wrote again to the Washington 

office. In response, Overton Price, the associate forester in Washington, pointed out that Erickson had 

 

95 Neil Erickson, “[Untitled: On Lynching],” November 1933, FRC, series 5, folder 14. 

96 Hildegarde Hutchison, “The Story of Old Tom [and other Reminiscences],” ca. 1950, FRC, series 4, folder 17. 

97 Charles McGlone, Forest Supervisor, to The Forester, September 27, 1907, FRC, series 8, folder 3. 
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previously been informed that "absolute harmony among Forest officers is essential . . . and since you are not 

inclined to act upon the suggestion of this office and Supervisor McGlone in this respect," Price requested that 

Erickson submit his resignation.98

Erickson refused to comply with this request, and instead asked that an inspector investigate his work. As a 

result, such an investigation was conducted. Associate Forester Price relayed the contents of the inspector's 

report to Erickson: "You have failed entirely to work in accord with your superior officer and have gone so far 

as to solicit complaints against his administration . . . Your attitude toward the public has been abrupt [and] 

officious" and that other actions have been inappropriate. Since Neil had refused to resign, "the only course 

open is to recommend your dismissal from the Forest Service." Price gave Neil 15 days to answer the charges 

and show why he should not be dismissed.99

Apparently, Erickson was able to answer the charges sufficiently, for he remained in the employment of the 

U.S. Forest Service. However, his supervisor's career took a turn. Less than a month after Neil received 

Price's recommendation for his dismissal, Erickson received a letter from his supervisor advising him that 

McGlone had resigned from the forest service. He explained that the inspector's report "was adverse to my 

actions in several cases" and that after "this matter was settled," McGlone had been instructed to transfer to a 

different forest. McGlone decided to resign instead. 

McGlone's departure did not create an entirely pleasant work environment for Erickson. His temporary 

supervisor repeatedly expressed dissatisfaction with Neil's work. For instance, his supervisor charged: "It is 

an utter impossibility to determine with any degree of certainty from your mining claim reports, which of the 

claims are located on our administrative site." In addition, "As you failed to show bearings and distances as 

well as sizes of witness trees or rocks for locating the Forest Service monuments it will be necessary for you to 

secure this information."100 Neil, in turn, claimed that the charges were manufactured against him.101

 

Apparently this administration also passed, and Erickson continued working for the forest service. 

As time passed, Erickson was not the only family member employed at the forest. Neil’s son, Ben, also worked 

with the Forest Service, beginning in the spring of 1909. He ran telephone line, worked as a fire lookout for 

one year, and was a packer for three or four years.102 In addition, Ed Riggs- - Neil’s future son- in- law- -

worked as a young man for a year or two with the U.S. Forest Service at Chiricahua National Forest.103

As part of an ongoing process of consolidation, in June 1917 the Chiricahua National Forest was added to the 

Coronado National Forest.104 At the same time- - and probably related to that reorganization- - Neil was 

transferred to Cochise Stronghold in the Dragoon Mountains (about forty miles west of the Erickson 

homestead, on the west side of the Sulphur Springs Valley). That area had been part of Chiricahua National 

 

98 Overton W. Price, Associate Forester, to Neil Erickson through Supervisor McGlone, December 4, 1907, FRC, series 8, folder 3. 

99 Overton W. Price, Associate Forester, to Neil Erickson through Supervisor McGlone, March 3, 1908, FRC, series 8, folder 3. 

100 Acting Forest Supervisor to Neil Erickson, June, 20, 1908, FRC, series 8, folders 4- 13. 

101 FRC, series 8, folders 23- 31. 

102 Ben Erickson, “Interview between Ben Erickson . . .,” 28 January 1970. Acc. 1455, WACC. 

103 Lillian Riggs, “Edward Murray Riggs,” ca. 1951, FRC, series 4, folder 19. 

104 Wagoner, 75. 
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Forest, so its name changed to Coronado National Forest during the merger. Neil had worked in the 

Chiricahua National Forest for 14 years based at his home. Emma moved with Neil to his new assignment. 

The Ericksons did not abandon their home when they moved; indeed, Neil seized an opportunity to enlarge 

his homestead through a new government homestead law. Westerners had demanded a vehicle through 

which they could acquire larger amounts of land. Much of the West was unsuitable for 160- acre homesteads, 

or even the 320- acre homesteads on nonirrigable lands that were allowed by the Enlarged Homestead Act of 

1909. Lands that were appropriate for these smaller tracts had mostly been claimed by the early twentieth 

century, and stock raisers needed a larger land base to survive and prosper. In response, Congress passed the 

Stock Raising Homestead Act in 1916, which allowed 640- acre units that had been designated by the U.S. 

Geological Survey as chiefly valuable for grazing and raising forage crops, contained no merchantable timber 

and was not susceptible to irrigation. In addition, people who had acquired land under the 1862 Homestead 

Act could make additional entries that could bring their total to 640 acres. Accordingly, in June 1917, Neil 

Erickson filed a petition for the designation of 240 acres north and northwest of his original homestead to be 

designated as stock- raising lands. However, funding deficiencies limited the government agencies from 

administering the act, and the first application wasn't accepted until November 1917, eleven months after the 

passage of the act. But in 1918, 45,000 applications were approved.105

Neil entered his claim on 240 acres on December 11, 1918, which would give him a total of 400 acres acquired 

from the federal government. During the five- year period from 1919 to 1924 he grazed about 10- 15 head of 

cattle on the 240 acres, being enclosed by about 1- 3/4 miles of 4- wire fence. At the same time he planted 

crops on about eight acres of his original homestead. Neil provided final proof on his stock- raising claim in 

March 1924, and the federal government transferred the title to him on November 18, 1924.106 

The younger generation also had associations with the federal government around that time. Both Ben 

Erickson and Ed Riggs (Neil's future son- in- law) served in the army during World War I.107 While this 

involvement with the federal government did not take place in the West, as Neil’s military career had, the war 

deeply affected the lives of Westerners. However, in spite of his time away, Ben was able to patent his own 

homestead claim, directly south and adjacent to Neil's original homestead. He utilized the enlarged 

Homestead Act of 1909, which allowed citizens to claim 320 acres of land that could not be easily irrigated. In 

addition, soldiers were permitted to deduct their active military duty from their residency requirements, 

which in 1912 had been reduced to three years.108 In 1919, a year after Ben returned from the army, the federal 

government transferred the land to him.109 He then claimed an additional 280 acres under the Stock Raising 

 

105 Experienced stockmen criticized the act, which they claimed cut up the open range in tracts that were too small, and would lead to untrained settlers 

damaging the range. By 1925 both the Department of the Interior and the Department of Agriculture advocated repealing the act and replacing it with 

some form of regulation of public rangelands. This movement eventually led to the passage of the Taylor Grazing Act of 1934. U.S., Public Land Law 

Review Commission, History of Public Land Law Development, by Paul Wallace Gates, (Washington, D.C.: 1968; reprint, Washington, D.C.: Zenger 

Publishing Co., 1968), 516- 519, 522. 

106 Neil Erickson Stock Raising Homestead Entry 035343 for Sections 21 and 27, T16S, R29E, patented November 18, 1924; Phoenix, Arizona; General 

Land Office; Records of the Bureau of Land Management, Record Group 49; National Archives, Washington, DC. Neil's land consisted of E1/2SE1/4 

Section 21, T16S R29E and N1/2S1/2 section 27, T16S R29E, Gila- Salt River Meridian. 

107 The U.S. involvement in the war spanned April 1917 to November 1918. Ed enlisted in the army in December 1917, became an engineering officer, and 

was in charge of repaired and salvaged damaged planes. He returned to the U.S. from France in May 1919. Ben's term in the army was short and came 

near the end of the war: from September to December 1918. David H. Wallace, Furnishings at Faraway: Historic Furnishings Report, Faraway Ranch, 

Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona (Harpers Ferry, West Virginia: Harpers Ferry Center, National Park Service, 1986), 20- 21, 25. 

108 Hone, 141, 143. 

109 Ben L. Erickson's land was in T16S R29E and consisted of NENE section 33, and W1/2NW, the SENW, the SWNE, the N1/2SW, and the NWSE of 

section 34. Bureau of Land Management, "Records of the General Land Office," <www.glorecords.blm.gov/PatentSearch>. 
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Homestead Act of 1916, which he patented in July 1921. At that time, Ben owned 600 acres of former public 

land, directly south of Neil's land.110 Hildegard was not so successful in her attempt to acquire land. Although 

she filed a homestead claim, she was so busy with the home and guest ranch that she couldn’t live on her 

claim. She was thus unable to acquire the property since the federal government requires residency on the 

homestead claim.111

 

Meanwhile, when the Neil and Emma arrived at Cochise Stronghold, they found the house unacceptable. Neil 

rebuilt the house and when the government would not provide a bathtub, Erickson made a cement bathtub. 

After successfully completing that task, the forest service sent him on a temporary assignment in New Mexico 

to build a six- room house for a forest ranger there. Neil also built five quarters for forest officers at Portal (on 

the east side of the Chiricahua Mountains) and a number of lookout towers on top of the mountain.112

After seven years at the Dragoons, Neil began his last phase of his federal employment by transferring to Cliffs 

Ranger Station ten miles from Flagstaff, where he was “in charge of the cliff dwellings” in what is now Walnut 

Canyon National Monument. Although Neil was the official ranger, Emma saw most of the visitors; in the 

summer of 1923 they had over 7,000 visitors.113

Although Neil "loved the work and would not leave it,"114 he did eventually retire in December 1927, at the age 

of 68 from the position of Assistant Forest Ranger of Coconino National Forest. At the end of his career, he 

had the second longest time in federal service in the Forest Service district, when combining his military and 

Forest Service employment. In addition, he was one of the few remaining men in the Forest Service who had 

come over from the Department of the Interior when the forests were transferred to the Department of 

Agriculture in 1905. The district forester noted that Neil had seen and "been a party to the development of the 

forest work in the Southwest from the very beginning."115 In 1932, the National Board on Geographic Names 

approved the recommendation of the U.S. Forest Service that a certain peak in the Chiricahua Division be 

named Erickson Peak in honor of Neil. This designation commemorated Neil's services to the federal 

government's work in that region as both a "pioneer soldier" and forest ranger; it was especially notable since 

the board typically did not approve naming a place in honor of a living person.116 When Neil died at the age of 

78 in October 1937, the U.S. Forest Service conducted the funeral ceremony, according to Neil's wishes. 

Forest Supervisor Fred Winn gave an address at the ceremony and his wife Ada sang a song at it. "Two 

buglers blew taps, one echoing the other."117

 

110 This land was in T16S R29E, section 34, and consisted of the E1/2E1/2, the SWSE, the NWNE, and the NENW. He thus owned almost all of section 34. 

Ben's last name was misspelled as Errickson on the patent document. Bureau of Land Management, "Records of the General Land Office," 

<www.glorecords.blm.gov/PatentSearch/>. 

111 Hildegard Hutchison , [ca. August- September 1931], FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. 

112 Emma Erickson to Jess Stanley Hutchison, June 1, 1943, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

113 Neil Erickson, [Untitled: Coming from Sweden, 1879], n.d., FRC, series 4, folder 3; and Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, 

August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. In 1923 Neil's salary was $130 per month. 

114 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

115 District Forester to Neil Erickson, November 28, 1927, and Forester to Neil Erickson, November 22, 1927, FRC, series 8, box 20. 

116 Frank Pooler, Regional Forester, to Neil Erickson, March 9, 1932, FRC, series 1, folder 293; and FRC, series 1, folder 101- 106. The peak is in Township 

19 South, Range 30 East. 

117 Leavengood, 14; and Lillian Riggs to Mr. and Mrs. Fred Winn, U.S. Forest Service, October 25, 1937, FRC, series 1, box 9. Ada Pierce Winn was an 

accomplished singer of widespread reputation who sang at many important occasions in the Southwest. 
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CHIRICAHUA NATIONAL MONUMENT 

The area later called the “Wonderland of Rocks” and Chiricahua National Monument was very close to the 

Erickson ranch, but its beauty escaped detection for many years. Undoubtedly the Chiricahua Apaches knew 

of the area since they had lived in the mountains of southeast Arizona. In 1890, two Indians- - possibly 

Apaches Massai and his wife- - took a route up Rhyolite Canyon to a canyon that branches to the left, now 

called Massai. Up that canyon, on top of the ridge is the huge boulder overlooking the canyon, behind which 

the couple camped.118 This route had gone through a part of the Wonderland- - then called merely Right Hand 

Canyon by white settlers. Tracking the couple were army troops and three local ranchers: Neil Erickson, 

Louis Prue and Ja Hu Stafford. It is believed that they were the “first white men ever to set foot in this strange 

garden.”119 However, as Neil’s daughter Lillian later described, “fear of what might have happened to [his wife 

Emma at the hands of Apaches] . . . blinded [Neil’s] eyes to all but the easiest path through the tangled 

undergrowth. Thus, this Wonderland of Rocks had escaped detection.”120 

As brushy and rocky as the Rhyolite/Right Hand Canon was, it got worse over the subsequent years. “Tough 

blackjack oak and gnarled madrone were laced together by poison ivy and Virginia creeper making a tangled 

mass through which no man on horseback could penetrate. Summer rains of cloudburst proportions filled 

the creeks with boulders among which no horse could find a footing. The canyon sides, precipitous as they 

were, might have afforded a way in. But rock slides at convenient distances blocked the way.” The area 

offered nothing for ranchers. “Cattle cannot eat rocks. And no cowboy ever walked where he could ride. So, 

as no horse could penetrate the first brushy barriers, the Wonderland was safe.”121

Ed Rigg’s first exposure to the Wonderland of Rocks came when he was 15, in about 1900. He and young Ben 

Erickson had climbed to the top of Sugarloaf Peak. Ed was so impressed with what they saw from the peak 

that when they returned from the hike, he told Lillian and others, “It was some of the most wonderful country 

he had ever seen, and he wanted to see more of it.”122 Ben, who was only about nine years old at the time, was 

less impressed. He reported that all they had seen was “Just rocks.” He did allow that there were “An awful 

lot of them and bigger ‘n houses. Little lanes between them.” However, even though the existence of the 

geological feature was then known, Neil Erickson was “too busy trying to make a living for his family in a new 

land to be especially concerned with rocks, even unusual ones.”123 It would be another 20 years until Ed Riggs 

got into the canyon to do any exploring. 

 

118 Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. For more information on the Massai journey, 

see the chapter on local and regional history. 

119 Lillian Riggs, [mislabeled as Neil Erickson], FRC, series 5 folder 13. 

120 Lillian Riggs, “The Wonderland of Rocks, Chiricahua National Monument: A Brief History,” n.d., FRC, series 5, folder 27. 

121 Lillian Riggs, “The Wonderland of Rocks, Chiricahua National Monument: A Brief History,” n.d., FRC, series 5, folder 27; see also draft mislabeled as 

Neil Erickson’s, FRC, series 5 folder 13. Lillian also stated that about the turn of the century, “Then came a man from the rocky coast of Scotland to 

mine in the adjacent hills. . . . This man did not need the horse. . . . This man wandered far and marveled much. To a few of his friends he spoke of 

what he had seen. He took pictures also. But what camera can depict a Niagara or do justice to a Grand Canyon?” At this time, it is not known to 

whom Lillian is referring. 

122 Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. See a similar version in Lillian Riggs, 

"Inquisitiveness, Vision and Energy Gave the World the Wonderland, Chiricahua National Monument," n.d., FRC, series 5, folder 22. 

123 Lillian Riggs, "Inquisitiveness, Vision and Energy Gave the World the Wonderland, Chiricahua National Monument," n.d., FRC, series 5, folder 22. 
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By the hunting season of 1921, Lillian Erickson was operating the Erickson home as a guest ranch named 

Faraway Ranch.124 She was romantically involved with Ed Riggs, who spent a great deal of time at the ranch. A 

party of hunters headed by Joe Sexton of Douglas was staying at the ranch, and with Ed Riggs they headed 

into the lower reaches of Right Hand Canyon.125 There, Sexton shot a deer, but only wounded it. He and his 

friend followed the wounded buck until dark then they had to return to Douglas. 

Riggs didn’t like to leave a wounded animal, so he decided to look for it the next morning. He asked Lillian if 

she wanted to go along, and she gladly accompanied him. Lillian later recalled: “We took our horses and rode 

as far as we could, which was only half a mile from the mouth of the canyon. Ed soon picked up the trail of 

the deer. It was marked by the blood from the wound. We followed it for a couple of miles, perhaps a little 

more. About noon we had reached a place opposite the Totem Pole, although it was not named that at the 

time.” They spotted the deer, but it ran away and they were not able to pick up the trail again. Lillian later 

recalled, “My husband asked me if I would like to go onto Sugarloaf and come down over the rocks as he had 

done when he had first seen the area so many years before. I was anxious to see what was in there too.”126

They continued upward, and went through the canyon that the Apache couple- - as well as Neil, Stafford and 

Prue- - had gone through decades earlier. From the side of that canyon they spied “a most unusual rock,” 

which was egg shaped but perfectly balanced on the small end. They continued the long hike around the base 

of Sugarloaf, and returned to the ranch after dark. 

“That was our first view of the country now known as Rhyolite Canyon, the area where Totem Pole, the 

Duck’s Head, the Cannon, and other outstanding features stand. . . . After seeing what this country had 

to offer in a scenic way, we decided that it should be opened up so that our guests could ride into it, 

and we could enjoy it. So, on the days when work was not very heavy at the ranch, Ed and I took our 

horses and our axes and lunch, and rode into the canyon. He, with his big axe, cut down the big trees, 

and I, with my little axe, cut down the small ones. Each day we worked as far as we could; then we 

returned to our horses and came home. The next day we rode our horses over the newly cut area and 

cut still farther. This way the horses made the trails after we had cut out the brush. In this way Ed and 

I opened up a trail as far as the Totem Pole.”127

While exploring and working on the trail, Lillian named the Wonderland of Rocks and gave many of the 

individual formations names.128

 

 

124 In more than one later reminiscence, Lillian placed the discovery of the Wonderland of Rocks in 1922 or 1923. Lillian Riggs, “The Wonderland of 

Rocks, Chiricahua National Monument: A Brief History,” n.d., FRC, series 5, folder 27; and Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National 

Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. However, the couple had already found the Wonderland of Rocks before the summer of 1922. Ed 

Riggs to Lillian Erickson, July 26 and 27, 1922, FRC, Series 1, folder 238- 242. 

125 During that season, Ed's role was to get up before dawn, feed the horses, milk the cows, make a gallon of coffee and a breakfast of ham and eggs, and 

bake the biscuits that Lillian had prepared the night before. He then guided the hunters into the forest, carrying the lunches that Lillian had prepared 

for them. Lillian, meanwhile, stayed at the ranch to care for the ladies of the party and prepare for the return of the hunters. Lillian Riggs, 

"Inquisitiveness, Vision and Energy Gave the World the Wonderland, Chiricahua National Monument," n.d., FRC, series 5, folder 22. 

126 Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. 

127 Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. A similar version of the couple's first 

excursion into the Wonderland of Rocks can be found in Lillian Riggs, “The Wonderland of Rocks, Chiricahua National Monument: A Brief History,” 

n.d., FRC, series 5, folder 27. 

128 Leavengood, 10. 
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53

An interesting aspect to Lillian’s explanation of the “discovery” of the Wonderland of Rocks, and the 

subsequent trail building, is that she does not mention that the land lay within Coronado National Forest, and 

that until a few years earlier Neil Erickson had been the a forest ranger for that area. It is curious to consider 

that Neil had jurisdiction over the future national monument for fourteen years, and apparently never 

investigated that particular area. At some point, the Riggses began discussing their trail building with the 

forest service, and gained permission to do so. Nevertheless, one wonders what the U.S. Forest Service 

thought about private citizens building trails in the national forest.129

Ed “always had a curiosity to see what lay beyond the hill,” so he explored more of the region. He began 

taking a camera with him and photographed many of the interesting features, and also asked an amateur 

photographer to take some panoramic pictures.130 Ed and Lillian set up four frames of photographs; they sent 

one to the county fair in Douglas, as well as one to each of the Chambers of Commerce in Bisbee, Douglas and 

Phoenix.131

The photographs at the Douglas fair caught the eye of Dr. J. J. P. Armstrong. Armstrong came to visit and 

became so enthusiastic that he came out “Sunday after Sunday” to explore, often bringing photographer M.E. 

Irwin with him. Armstrong and Riggs went into all the canyons, discovering Natural Bridge and Echo Canyon. 

Armstrong encouraged Ed to open trails to those areas, which he did. Lillian noted that “Ed was not a 

graduate engineer, but he had a very practical knowledge of engineering,” and the routes that he laid out 

continued to be used by the National Park Service in later years.132

Armstrong was quite impressed with the area, and took on the cause of promoting the area to the public. The 

Douglas American Legion Post adopted the goal to make the area a national monument, and to get Arizona 

Governor Hunt involved in the effort.133

In late July 1923 Dr. Armstrong called Ed and Lillian to inform them that before Governor George W. P. Hunt 

would decide if he would support the idea of a national monument, he wanted to visit the Wonderland of 

Rocks- - in less than two weeks. A state of mild panic came across the ranch. The trail was constructed only 

as far as the Totem Pole; there were 2- 1/2 miles of trail still to be built. The remaining area- - in what is now 

known as Upper Rhyolite Canyon- - was “some of the roughest country . . . that we had found yet.” Ed and 

Lillian called on Ben, on Ed’s relatives, and on their neighbors for help in finishing the trail, and the work 

began immediately. “It took real trail work- - pick and shovel work- - as well as the cutting of trees.” But 

 

129 “Faraway Ranch: The Gateway to the Wonderland of Rocks.” Hoofs and Horns, October 1934. “I am very glad to receive your sketch map and to 

learn you are getting ready to start work on the Cut- off Trail. I feel sure that the Forest Service will be ready to do its share of the work within a very 

short time.” Forest Supervisor [Hugh Calkins], Coronado National Forest, January 29, 1924, FRC, series 1, folder 293. Researching the U.S.F.S. records 

was beyond the scope of this project, but those records may prove to be interesting regarding the history of Chiricahua National Monument. 

130 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, July 26, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. Ed invited Mr. McCormick, a young man who worked for Douglas Drug, to 

take the photographs. "He takes wonderful pictures." Ed suggested sending them to Lillian while she was in Los Angeles, and having her get them 

enlarged. 

131 Lillian Riggs, "Early History of Chiricahua National Monument." FRC, series 4, folder 20. 

132 Lillian Riggs, “Edward Murray Riggs,” ca. 1951, FRC, series 4, folder 19; Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 

1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20; and Ervin Bond, Cochise County, Arizona: Past and Present (Douglas, Arizona: Ervin Bond, 1982), 47. Jas. J. P. Armstrong, 

a physician and surgeon, occupied an office in the Meguire Building in Douglas. He and his wife, Marie Louise, lived at the Gadsden Hotel, where the 

rate was $1.50 to $4.00 per day. 1920 Douglas City Directory, transcribed by Vynette Sage. Cochise Genealogical 

Society,<www.mycochise.com/dougctydir1920ab.html>. 

133 Leavengood, 11. 
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within a matter of days, one mile “of brush, slide rock” and bluffs had been molded into a trail. The 

remaining 1- 1/2 miles was at the top and could be ridden over without a trail.134

On the greatly anticipated day, August 5, Governor Hunt arrived by car with his party consisting of 

newspapermen and photographers, and businessmen from Douglas, Phoenix and Bisbee- - 60 people in all. 

Area ranchers provided horses, and the troop, including Hunt in his starched white linen suit, rode off into 

the Wonderland of Rocks. It rained intermittently for most of the day, and when the group returned to the 

ranch that afternoon, Ed observed that they were "a wet bunch I can tell you but well pleased with what they 

had seen. Lillian's good dinner and a good roaring fire soon put everyone back to better than normal."135 Gov. 

Hunt "promised to lend his influence to make the area a national monument."136 There were probably great 

cheers at the announcement, and a celebration among the participants. But it seems that Lillian saw a 

different side of the rainy day’s events. She noted that when the governor’s entourage rode into the canyon, 

“Mother Nature wept. Another of her sacred temples was hence forth to be desecrated by the feet of Man.”137 

“Her beloved Land of Wonder Rocks would never belong to her alone again. Her tears fell abundantly.”138

Governor Hunt’s support of the effort proved to be auspicious. On April 18, 1924, President Calvin Coolidge 

proclaimed the area to be a national monument. The proclamation noted, “certain natural formations, known 

as ‘The Pinnacles,’ within Coronado National Forest, in the state of Arizona, are of scientific interest.“139 

Stating that there was scientific interest allowed the president the authority to establish the monument, under 

the Antiquities Act of 1906.140

 

Chiricahua was one of eight national monuments that Coolidge created in 1924. This number tied Theodore 

Roosevelt's 1908 record for the most national monuments created in one year up to that time. The area 

remained in the jurisdiction of the managing agency, the U.S. Forest Service. The agency hired Ed to work 

with Andrew Clark to make a topographic map of the area and lay out trails. Because Ed was thoroughly 

familiar with the terrain in the new monument, he was superbly qualified for the tasks, and this experience 

served him in the future. 

The relationship between the Erickson/Riggs family thus entered a new phase. The only easy access to the 

new monument went through the Faraway Ranch, and for a while, the Riggses knew more about the resource 

than did government employees. In addition, since the ranch provided the only lodging and meals in the area, 

park managers- - and visitors- - depended on Faraway. And, of course, the guest ranch drew its customers 

 

134 Lillian Riggs, “Edward Murray Riggs,” ca. 1951, FRC, series 4, folder 19; Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 

1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20; and Ed Riggs to Emma and Neil Erickson, August 7- 20, 1923, FRC, series 1, folders 238- 242. 

135 Ed Riggs to Emma and Neil Erickson, August 7- 20, 1923, FRC, series 1, folders 238- 242. 

136 Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20; and Leavengood, 11. 

137 Lillian Riggs, “Edward Murray Riggs,” ca. 1951, FRC, series 4, folder 19. 

138 Lillian Riggs, “The Wonderland of Rocks, Chiricahua National Monument: A Brief History,” n.d., FRC, series 5, folder 27. 

139 FRC, series 22, folder 2. 

140 Although it was beyond the scope of this study, more research on the campaign to make the area a national monument could provide interesting 

information. For instance, did newspapers report about the fair in Douglas; the papers of the American Legion Post may provide information about 

how and why they took on the task; what did newspapers report about Hunt's visit; the papers of the governor may reveal why national monument 

status was proposed instead of state or national park status; and who did Hunt contact regarding the proposed monument (the congressional 

delegation or the president?). 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

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from the park visitors. Lillian later observed, "Without the park and our advertising it and ourselves, the 

ranch would be nowhere."141

The federal government initiated new management of the monument in 1933. In that year, President Franklin 

D. Roosevelt signed two executive orders that transferred all national monuments, national parks, national 

cemeteries and similar properties from the Departments of Agriculture and War to the Department of the 

Interior. As part of this reorganization, Chiricahua National Monument was transferred from the Forest 

Service to the National Park Service.142 There, the monument came under the jurisdiction of Frank "Boss" 

Pinkley, superintendent of Southwestern National Monuments. 

The construction of the Bonita Canyon Road spanned both administrations. While under forest service 

administration, construction began on the Bonita Canyon Road, as a Bureau of Public Roads project. 

Surveyors began in 1931, and utilized the facilities at Faraway Ranch while there. Construction was then 

completed on the first four miles- - from El Dorado School to Bonita Canyon- - under 11 small contracts. In 

1933, the next 2.7 miles, to Bonita Park, were constructed, and then the remaining 2.5 miles were completed 

the next year. The completion of the road called for a celebration, since the road was essential to providing 

visitor access to the monument (and Faraway). The National Park Service hosted well- attended dedication 

ceremonies on Sept 3, 1934 at Massai Point.143

In 1938, President Franklin Roosevelt expanded the boundaries of Chiricahua National Monument by over 

6,000 acres. The eastern boundary was extended about half a mile, to enclose Massai Point. The south and 

north boundaries were also pushed out about half a mile. The greatest difference occurred in the northwest 

part of the park, where five sections of land were added. The change resulted in the boundary of the 

monument adjoining the north side of the land that Neil had acquired in 1924; thus the mile and a half north 

of the Erickson property was national park land. In addition, the acreage that had been the Stafford 

homestead, which Lillian and Hildegard had acquired, was now within the boundaries of the monument. 

They now owned an inholding within Chiricahua National Monument, which would have ramifications for 

decades to come.144

 

141 Lillian Riggs to Hildegarde Hutchison, August 27, 1931, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

142 As early as 1906, the Chief Forester Gifford Pinchot had argued that the national parks should be transferred to the Forest Service. The agency had 

continued to argue for this transfer through the 1920s and into the 1930s. When Executive Order 6166 was issued, Department of Agriculture officials 

objected. Although the executive order became effective on August 10, 1933, the Agriculture Department's resistance delayed the actual transfer of 

jurisdiction of its 15 national monuments. Continued opposition affected the transition to NPS. Once transferred, the reorganization more than 

doubled the number of NPS units, from 67 to 137, and- - with the addition of dozens of historical areas- - greatly diversified the previous inventory of 

natural parks. Regarding the reorganization, historians have stated, "It is clear that no event in NPS history, save the passage of the Enabling Act itself, 

had a more profound impact on the National Park System and the agency that administers it." For more extensive information on the topic, see Harlan 

D. Unrau and G. Frank Williss, Administrative History: Expansion of the National Park Service in the 1930s, ([Denver: National Park Service], 1982). A 

more concise discussion can be found in [Barry Mackintosh], The National Parks: Shaping the System, (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of the 

Interior, 1991), 24- 43.

143 Superintendent Forrest Benson, Jr., Supervisory Park Ranger James A. Randall, and Jerry J. Brown, "Area History: Chiricahua National Monument," 

November 1956, Acc. 145, WACC. 

144 President, Proclamation. "Excluding certain lands from the Coronado National Forest and adding them to the Chiricahua National Monument, 

Arizona" June 10, 1938. 
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56

THE GREAT DEPRESSION 

Civilian Conservation Corps

When Franklin Delano Roosevelt took the oath of the office of president on March 4, 1933, the country was in 

the depths of the Great Depression. He dedicated himself to pulling the country out of the economic 

depression, and immediately initiated a variety of programs toward that goal. One of those initiatives involved 

the conservation of natural resources through the employment of young men. Five days after his 

inauguration, on March 9, Roosevelt held a meeting that included the secretaries of agriculture, interior and 

war, where he presented his ideas. 

President Roosevelt's primary goal for the program was to take unemployed youths out of the cities and build 

up their health and morale while contributing to the economic recovery of the country. Not only would they 

receive wages for their work, but money would also be sent to their dependents so that the program would 

provide benefits to the greatest number of people. The work was to restore the enrollees to physical health 

and increase their confidence in themselves and the nation. A secondary goal of the program was to effect 

needed conservation measures on forest, park, and farm lands. A related goal was to provide the nation with 

increased recreational opportunities.145

Roosevelt sketched out the framework for the program: the army would recruit 500,000 men and run 

conditioning camps for them; the men would then be transferred to the Departments of Agriculture or 

Interior, who would oversee the actual conservation work. The president asked that a draft bill be submitted 

to him by that evening; the outline of the bill was brought to him by 9 p.m. 

The bill was introduced in Congress on March 13, but was immediately withdrawn for modifications. The 

revised version "stipulated that the unemployed could work for the prevention of forest fires and for soil 

erosion, flood control, removal of undesirable plants, insect control, and construction or maintenance of 

paths, tracks, and fire lanes on public lands. In return, those enrolled in this program would be provided with 

appropriate clothing, daily subsistence, medical attention, hospitalization, and a cash allowance." It was 

introduced in Congress on March 21, and in ten days- - only 22 days after presenting his proposal- - Roosevelt 

signed the bill into law, on March 31, 1933. As the president signed the bill, "he commented that he would like 

to see the program begin in two weeks." He also set a goal of having 250,000 youths employed by July 1.146

The act officially called the program Emergency Conservation Work (ECW), however the press insisted on 

calling it the Civilian Conservation Corps. The popular label was used so extensively that the name was 

officially changed in 1937 to the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).147

The Departments of Agriculture, Interior, Labor and War hurriedly organized the program during the weeks 

after the 1933 bill's passage. Their ultimate roles remained much the same as Roosevelt originally planned. 

The Labor Department recruited the hundreds of thousands of young men, while the army conditioned the 

men, and operated and supervised the work camps. The U.S. Forest Service (in the Agriculture Department) 

and the National Park Service (in the Interior Department) were the primary administrators of the 

 

145 John Paige, The Civilian Conservation Corps and the National Park Service, 1933- 1942: An Administrative History, (n.p.: U.S. Department of the 

Interior, National Park Service, 1985), 126. 

146 Paige, 7, 8, 13. 

147 Paige, 11. 
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conservation work program. The Forest Service managed the work program in national, state and private 

forests, while the NPS managed the work in national and state parks. Although the departments did not meet 

the two- week deadline set by the president, the National Park Service did open its first three camps on May 

11, 1933, less than six weeks after the bill's enactment. The four departments did meet the July 1 goal of having 

250,000 recruits.148

After its initial burst of growth, the ECW program continued to expand; in March 1934 NPS had a total of 61 

camps in national parks and monuments, while in October 1934, there were 102 camps in NPS areas.149 It was 

during this summer of expansion that the ECW camp at Chiricahua National Monument was established.150 

The ECW program reached its peak in 1935, when Roosevelt issued a directive to employ 600,000 workers, 

doubling its size. The park service was given permission to employ up to 150,000 men in both national and 

state parks.151

Within the NPS, an organizational structure was established and additional personnel were hired. The 

Washington Office approved projects and provided quality control. These administrators carefully reviewed 

the proposed projects to determine if they were appropriate and met the standards that had been established. 

For instance, horse and hiking trails were not to be over 4 feet wide. Meanwhile, the park superintendent 

administered the overall ECW program within each park. He hired a person- - first called a camp 

superintendent and later called a project superintendent- - to coordinate projects, manage expenditures, and 

set up daily work schedules. A foreman in turn supervised daily work crews of 40 to 50 men. Other 

inspectors, technical advisors and skilled workers were also utilized as needed. To put this in perspective, 

prior to the ECW, the entire NPS staff amounted to 6,192 people. To help administer the ECW program, by 

June 1935, the NPS hired another 7,422 people- - exclusive of enrollees- - to simply administer the ECW 

program.152 Meanwhile, the army administered each camp, under a regular or reserve army officer called the 

camp commander. Assisted by army or civilian aides, he undertook the care and responsibility of the men 

while they were in the camp. This included providing meals, medical care, religious counseling and 

educational advising. 

Originally, all camps were to be located on NPS land near the work projects. However, later the camps could 

be located on private lands leased by the army. Requirements for the campsite selection included "their 

proximity to railway and highway, the attitude of the local populace, the availability of water for the campsite, 

and the availability of lumber and other building materials.153

 

For the Chiricahua ECW/CCC camp, the U.S. government selected and leased a site on private land. Ed & 

Lillian Riggs leased to the government about 10 acres of “more or less of partially cleared grazing and forest 

land” located in the SE1/4 of the S1/2 of sec 26, T16S R29E.154 This was the place where the Apache had stolen 

 

148 Paige, 15, 16. 

149 Paige, 19. 

150 Paige, 182. 

151 Paige, 21. 

152 Paige, 21. 

153 Paige, 70. 

154 FRC, series 18, folder 3. 
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a horse from Ja Hu Stafford on his homestead in 1890. Later, Lillian and Hildegard purchased this parcel, and 

then, in the 1950s, the Silver Spur Ranch would stand on the same location.155 The lease for Camp SP- 12- A 

(later called NM- 2- A) began on May 15, 1934, with annual renewals. Relations between the Riggses and the 

government were not always amiable regarding the camp. For instance, in an April 1937 letter, Ed protested, 

“The runoff from the septic tank has never been satisfactorily disposed of.” The overflow went into the creek, 

which was the water source for Faraway Ranch. “It is becoming dangerous to us who use the water here on 

the ranch," he complained. In addition, the government paid only $1 in rent each year, although the Riggses 

repeatedly asked for $100 per year.156

The recruits in the national program were primarily single men between the ages of 18 and 25, who were 

required to send $25 of their $30 wage check to their families. They were assigned to works camps, each with 

a quota of 200 men. Most men were "mustered out" after a year, although eventually enrollees were allowed 

to remain in the ECW for up to two years. The statistical composite of the average enrollee showed he was 

between 17 and 18 years old, and had been living in a six- room house with his parents and four brothers and 

sisters. The home had no running water, no indoor plumbing, and no telephone or electric refrigerator. The 

father typically had been out of work for six months of the previous two years, and the family was on the relief 

rolls. The enrollee had completed eight grades of schooling, and part of a ninth year, but it had taken him 

nearly eleven years to do it. Typically, he had worked for pay only a few months of his life. He had "a 

commendable belief that the CCC will teach him how to work and he likes the idea."157

Camp life was standardized: 

The enrollee's workday began at 6:00 a.m. with reveille. The youths then had half an hour to dress and 

prepare themselves for the day's work. This was followed by 15 minutes of calisthenics and a hearty 

breakfast of fruit, cereal, pancakes or ham and eggs, and coffee. After breakfast, the enrollees made 

beds, cleaned barracks, and policed the grounds. By 8:00 a.m. they were either at or on their way to 

work. They would work until noon, when the crews stopped for . . . lunch. The youths then worked 

until 4:00 p.m., when they were transported back to camp. . . . Between 5:00 and 5:30, the recruits 

changed into dress uniforms and presented themselves for the evening meal.158

In the evenings courses were taught that were "designed to assist the men in obtaining jobs after leaving the 

camps."159

In their free time, the enrollees at Chiricahua enjoyed baseball, softball, football, boxing and basketball. 

Baseball was especially favored, and the group formed a team that played teams from Willcox, Portal, Bowie, 

Douglas and other southeastern Arizona locales. Other, less structured, activities were also enjoyed. One 

enrollee amazed the group with his sword swallowing show, and another could walk up stairs on his hands. 

Even though gambling was not permitted, the young men managed to routinely play penny- ante poker. Since 

cash was hard to find, they would bet cigarettes, bandanas or small change. The CCCers also drove into the 

 

155 Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. 

156 FRC, series 18, folder 3. 

157 American Youth Commission of the American Council on Education, The Civilian Conservation Corps (n.p.: n.d.), 5; quoted in Paige, 79. 

158 Paige, 79- 81. 

159 Paige, 85. 
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nearby towns to dance and drink, and it wasn't unusual for some of them to be thrown into jail for becoming 

inebriated and/or causing a disturbance. Eventually overnight weekend trips were forbidden, primarily due to 

the high incidence of venereal diseases.160

At the end of the day, "Camp lights were shut off at 10:00 p.m., with taps blown 15 minutes later. At 11:00 p.m. 

the camp commander made a bed check to see that all enrollees were present."161

In addition to the typical enrollees, the NPS was also authorized to hire locally employed men (LEMs). This 

was a vehicle for hiring men skilled in conservation work; they served as foremen and skilled workers. The 

LEMs had to take a physical and be formally enrolled by the army, even though they worked for the park 

superintendents. They were allowed to return to their homes in the evenings. Each camp was permitted to 

have eight to 12 LEMs. 

Ed Riggs was employed as the trail foreman for a salary of $1800, probably in the category of a LEM. He was 

uniquely qualified for the position, having laid out and constructed most of the existing trails in the national 

monument. Riggs worked under Project Superintendent William Stevenson. In addition to trail work, Riggs 

helped as needed; for instance, Riggs, Rex Rice (postmaster at Douglas) and other local students assisted NPS 

staff “in securing specimens for study.”162 Ed also did most of the work to install a grounded circuit at Massai 

Point, which would be especially helpful during fire season.163 In addition, Riggs and son- in- law Hunter 

Stratton helped apprehend a hunter in the monument.164

 

In 1934, Riggs and his trail workers were assigned the task of constructing the Sugarloaf Mountain horse trail. 

They worked steadily on the project, completing the trail itself in January 1935; however, the crew worked for 

an additional three months doing landscaping, rock walling, etc. before calling the project complete.165

While that task was undoubtedly satisfying, Riggs believed he could build a trail through the narrow, 

treacherous Echo Canyon. “From the road on the top of the ridge down into the park, there was nothing but 

solid stone and sheer bluffs. It seemed an impossible undertaking. Several engineers came out and looked 

over the proposition and said that they did not see how a trail could ever be put through there. Ed felt that 

they could do it.”166 He approached Frank Pinkley, then Superintendent of Southwestern National 

Monuments, with the idea. Pinkley responded, “All right, you may have the job, but if you fail to put a trail 

through that area, just hand in your resignation. Don't wait for me to fire you!”167 Riggs took on the challenge, 

and carefully planned the route. When completed, the Echo Canyon trail would lead through Echo Park and 

tie into the Rhyolite Trail. The Echo Canyon trail was being surveyed, in preparation for construction, while 

the trail crew completed work on other trails. When released from those trails, Riggs’s trail crew took on 

 

160 Robert Iski, "Civilian Conservation Corps Report" Acc. 1687, WACC. 

161 Paige, 82. 

162 "Monthly Report of Supervisory and Facilitating Personnel", May 1936, Acc. 1709; and Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, June 1935. Acc. 1777, 

WACC. 

163 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, April 1938. Acc. 1777, WACC. 

164 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, June 1939. Acc. 1777, WACC. 

165 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, January and March 1935. Acc. 1777, WACC. 

166 Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. 

167 Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. 
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Echo Canyon. By June 1935, they had completed a total of 1,800 feet, and a year later they had constructed a 

total of 10,000 feet on the Echo Canyon trail.168

The most difficult portion to construct on the Echo Canyon Trail was only a quarter of a mile long, yet 

required eleven switchbacks on an average minus grade of 11 percent. This section, between the Echo parking 

area and Echo Park, had been 90 percent solid, and approximately 600 cubic yards of rock were taken from 

the cuts and utilized in walls and fills.169 The Regional Wildlife Technician reported in April 1936 that the trail 

work at Chiricahua deserved commendation. “The trails are being kept to a minimum width, and great care 

has been taken to avoid damage to vegetation and rock formations during blasting. Rock supporting walls 

have been carefully laid so as to give a natural appearance.”170

 

There was much anticipation of the completion of the trail; the superintendent expected that “when Mr. Riggs 

finishes the Echo Park trail, there will be more visitors walking along that trail than on all the other trails 

together.”171 Finally, the Echo Point- Rhyolite Trail connection was completed in November 1936; in turn this 

opened the Rhyolite- Massai Point- Echo Canyon Loop.172 The Echo Park Trail has been called "a masterpiece 

in trail engineering and a monument to its builders."173 Riggs was justifiably proud of his accomplishment, and 

considered it his greatest achievement. His wife later remarked, “Echo Canyon, considered the most beautiful 

in all the area, stands today as Ed often remarked he wished it might—his monument.” The inscription on his 

grave includes: “He engineered the construction of Echo Trail. He wished this to be his monument.”174

Meanwhile, the national ECW program continued expanding in size until the fall of 1935, when the president's 

goal became reducing the size of the corps and making it a permanent organization. Roosevelt instructed the 

ECW director to begin reducing the number of recruits to 300,000. Reductions continued when Congress cut 

funding in 1938. The NPS allotment was 77 camps for national park and monument areas. Although largescale camp reductions did not take place in 1939, NPS did continue to phase out some camps and relocated 

them to other areas. At Chiricahua National Monument, all CCC projects were completed and the camp was 

closed around June 1940.175 It appears that lease of the CCC campsite on the Riggs property ended June 30, 

1940.176 CCC projects in Chiricahua totaled $200,000 on the road and the trail system, and $100,000 on 

buildings, water, sewage and campground developments.177

 

168 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, March 1935 and June 1936. Acc. 1777, WACC.

169 "Echo Canyon- Massai Point Loop," Acc. 1709, WACC. 

170 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, April 1936. Acc. 1777, WACC.

171 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, June 1935. Acc. 1777, WACC.

172 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, November 1936. Acc. 1777, WACC. 

173 Superintendent Forrest Benson, Jr., Supervisory Park Ranger James A. Randall, and Jerry J. Brown, "Area History: Chiricahua National Monument," 

November 1956, Acc. 145, WACC. 

174 Lillian Riggs, “Edward Murray Riggs,” ca. 1951, FRC, series 4, folder 19. 

175 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, June 1940. Acc. 1777, WACC; and Paige, 21, 22, 26, 182. 

176 FRC, series 18, folder 3. 

177 Superintendent Forrest Benson, Jr., Supervisory Park Ranger James A. Randall, and Jerry J. Brown, "Area History: Chiricahua National Monument," 

November 1956, Acc. 145, WACC. 
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A difficult task for the NPS was inventorying and disposing of the camp equipment and buildings from these 

closed camps. Typically, a full inventory was made, and the items were transferred to the War Department. 

The NPS policy on camp buildings was that they were either to be used or torn down.178 However, there were 

some exceptions to these rules, such as at Chiricahua. Ed and Lillian Riggs had persistently requested $100 

per year for rent, instead of $1 per year. Since they couldn’t get more rent, the couple changed tactics and 

asked that at the end of the lease, that the improvements remain instead of being removed or destroyed. The 

government sought the opinion of the solicitor on the request; he acknowledged that leaving the 

improvements would be acceptable. The government followed the opinion of the solicitor, and transferred 

the facility to the Riggses.179 The family thus acquired, at no cost, 24 buildings, including five barracks, a mess 

hall/kitchen, an infirmary, generator houses, a blacksmith shop, a carpenter shop, etc.180

In 1940, the national defense program began drastically affecting the CCC program. After the fall of France in 

June 1940, President Roosevelt proclaimed a limited national emergency, which prepared the way for the 

establishment of CCC camps on military bases. CCC enrollment dropped as the higher paying defense jobs 

attracted young men. With the entry of the U.S. into the World War in December 1941, the NPS terminated all 

CCC projects that were not directly related to the war effort. 

The national CCC program—by its end in 1942- - had enrolled more than 2.5 million young men.181 In a public 

opinion poll taken shortly after the beginning of World War II, “the CCC was ranked as the third greatest 

accomplishment of the New Deal program."182 Even today, people appreciate the CCC as one of the successful 

and admirable New Deal programs. 

Land Sale Negotiations

While Ed was working for the CCC at Chiricahua, he and Lillian were involved in discussions with the NPS 

regarding development on the family's land, as well as a proposed sale of the old Stafford homestead. The 

Riggses had made an arrangement with their son- in- law Hunter Stratton so that the younger man would 

build a service and store on the Riggs property adjacent to the park's campground and bordering the Bonita 

canyon highway.183 They also planned to provide a camp cabin area at that locale. In June 1938, grading for 

the construction of the service station was about completed, and the materials were on the job.184 However, 

NPS Associate Director A. B. Demaray visited Chiricahua at about that time and was not entirely pleased with 

the proposed construction.185 The park service proposed that the Riggses turn the land over to the agency and 

that the NPS would construct buildings upon it for the care of the tourist trade. In return for the land, the 

NPS offered to give a 20- year lease on the improved property to the Riggs. The Riggses had the construction 

 

178 Paige, 36. 

179 FRC, series 18, folder 3. 

180 Lillian and Ed Riggs, October 10, 1940, FRC, series 8, folder 98. 

181 Paige, 79. 

182 Paige, 132. 

183 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, March 1938. Acc. 1777, WACC; and Hildegard Hutchison to Lillian and Ed Riggs, October, 1938, FRC, series 

1, folder 128- 153. 

184 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, June 1938. Acc. 1777, WACC. 

185 Arthur B. Demaray served as associate director from 1933 to 1940 under Director Arno Cammerer. Demaray became director in 1951. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

62

work stopped while they considered the offer. Meanwhile, Stratton was without work, though he later 

obtained employment at the monument. Ed and Lillian decided that they were not interested in the lease 

arrangement, and delivered a counter offer, suggesting that the NPS purchase the 80 upper acres of the old 

Stafford homestead outright and make it part of the monument. Furthermore, they did not want NPS to 

develop the land by the road; instead they proposed that Stratton would build in an area already developed, 

near the Faraway Ranch.186

It became clear that negotiating the land deal would be difficult with the key NPS personnel being in 

Washington; in addition, park officials told the couple that certain Congressional action would be necessary 

before negotiations could be concluded. The couple decided that it would be advantageous for Lillian to go 

to Washington to discuss the proposition, so in the spring of 1939, she traveled to the capital city.187

The Riggses offered to sell the upper 80 acres for $40,000. While in Washington, Lillian learned that NPS 

considered the price too high and the acreage too low. The agency wanted all 160 acres of the Stafford 

homestead, which the Riggses resisted. Lillian returned home, without a closed deal. However, the 

negotiations had preceded enough that the NPS director's office ordered that an appraisal be conducted. Ed 

confided in Lillian, "What we will get for the eighty all depends on the board of appraisers and I have no fear 

but what we will get more than enough to pay all our indebtedness so we can run clean and above the board 

for once." However, the resulting appraisal was based on all 160 acres, and did not break out the 80- acre 

parcel that the Riggses wanted to sell. The value was established at $7,000.188

While Ed and Lillian were not displaying the aforementioned western attitude regarding federal government 

of “get out and give us more money,”189 they did seem to be trying to get as much money from the government 

as they could. Their asking price per acre averaged more than ten times higher than the appraisal value. 

Nevertheless, Associate Director Demaray persisted in trying to acquire all 160 acres, and Superintendent 

Pinkley asked Lillian for the lowest figure she would accept. "It might be," he rationalized, "that you could 

realize enough from the sale of the 160 acres to clear up your indebtedness and put you in a better position to 

proceed with a guest ranch development outside monument boundaries."190 Lillian retorted that although 

selling the entire 160 acres might make sense to a lawyer in Washington, that on the ground in Cochise County 

it didn't make any sense. She wanted to sell only the upper 80 acres: 

The lower 80 acres of the Stafford place is an essential adjunct to the present operating unit known as 

Faraway Ranch. The garden plot, the orchard, two of our cottages, and most important of all, the 

spring that supplies the water for the use of Faraway are all located on this lower 80. It will be 

impossible for Faraway to function without these things. The dividing line of the two properties [i.e. the 

 

186 Ed and Lillian Riggs to A.F. Demaray, Washington, D.C., March 3, 1939, FRC, series 8, folder 66. 

187 Bisbee Chamber of Commerce to Senator Carl Hayden, March 30, 1939, FRC, series 1, folder 32- 39; Folsom Moore of the Bisbee Daily Review to 

Senator Carl Hayden, March 30, 1939, FRC, series 1, folder 32- 39; and Hildegard Hutchison to Lillian and Ed Riggs, April 2, 1939, FRC, series 1, folder 

128- 153. 

188 Ed Riggs to Lillian Riggs, April 23, 1939, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242; Lillian Riggs to Ed Riggs, April 25, 1939, FRC, series 1, box 9; A.E. Demaray, 

acting director NPS, [April 1939], transcribed in letter from Lillian Riggs to Ed Riggs, May 1, 1939, FRC, series 1, box 9; and May 24, 1939, FRC, series 8, 

box 28, fiche 111. Twenty years earlier Lillian and Hildegard had purchased the 160- acre lot for $5,200. 

189 Bernard DeVoto, “The West Against Itself,” Harper’s Magazine (January 1947), 8; quoted in Merrill, 458. 

190 Frank Pinkley, Superintendent Southwestern Monuments, July 31, 1939, FRC, series 8, box 28, fiche 111. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

63

lower 80 and Faraway] is not a hundred feet from Faraway's back door, which certainly would not be 

an agreeable situation from either our point or that of the Park Service.191

In addition, a line of hills made a barrier that partially separated the lower 80 from the monument. Although 

Lillian had originally asked for $40,000, she was willing to come down to $15,000 for the upper 80 acres for 

"an outright sale, half that if the park service wished to go ahead with the hotel development and will assure 

us of a long time lease."192 This price per acre was still more than four times higher than the appraised value. 

The NPS responded that no funds were available for the acquisition, but the director's office hoped that it 

would "not be too long before some method of purchasing the land" could be worked out." 193 Apparently, this 

detail was never worked out, since the Riggses did not sell the upper 80 acres to the NPS. Instead, they sold 

that parcel to a private party six years later for $20,000; the Silver Spur guest ranch was established on that 

land.194 Then in 1955 Lillian sold a portion of the remaining Stafford land to C. Theodore and Pauline Kraft; 

that land was subsequently sold to William F. and Mary Frances Stark in 1964. Lillian retained 53.96 acres of 

the Stafford property.195

Son- in- law Hunter Stratton (with his controversial service station proposal and subsequent employment at 

Chiricahua) was not the only member of the younger generation with connections to the National Park 

Service. In the mid 1950s, Hildegard's daughter, Emajoy, married Bob Barrel, a man she had met at Faraway. 

Barrel was a ranger at Chiricahua who would go on to enjoy a life- long career with NPS. Lillian observed that 

in talking with two NPS staff people about Emajoy and Bob being married: “They all seemed pleased, 

somehow, that the park service is definitely related to Faraway by marriage. Funny, but true. This is not the 

first time I’ve heard it.”196 In turn, NPS Assistant Director Hillory Tolson, told Barrel that Lillian was "one of 

the most interesting persons" he knew.197

This family connection with the NPS was both helpful and a hindrance to Lillian. In the late 1960s, 80- yearold Lillian researched her options regarding selling and passing on the land to the younger generation.198 

 

191 Lillian Riggs to Frank Pinckley, [August 1939?], FRC, series 8, box 28, fiche 111. 

192 Lillian Riggs to Frank Pinckley, [August 1939?], FRC, series 8, box 28, fiche 111. 

193 Frank Pinkley, Superintendent Southwestern Monuments, September 7, 1939, FRC, series 8, box 28, fiche 111. 

194 FRC, series 8, folder 98; and Dewey Livingston, A Pioneer Log Cabin in Bonita Canyon: The History of the Stafford Cabin, Faraway Ranch Historic 

District, Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona, Historic Resource Study (San Francisco: National Park Service, 1994), 55. 

195 Livingston, 55. 

196 Lillian Riggs, diary, April 17, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53. The young woman's name was often spelled Emmajoy. 

197 Emajoy Hutchison Barrel to Lillian Riggs, October 18, 1955, FRC, series 1, folder 41- 46. Tolson served under NPS Director Conrad Wirth. Bob Barrel, 

an interpreter/naturalist, continued his career in the park service at parks such as Yellowstone, Craters of the Moon, and Carlsbad. During the peak of 

Mission 66, a National Park Service effort to expand park facilities- - including building visitor centers with interpretive exhibits- - Barrel worked in the 

Washington office with John Dorr, the head naturalist. Barrel served as a consulting museum specialist at Craters of the Moon, then he consulted at 

Grand Teton, Dinosaur, Organ Pipe and Chaco Canyon on exhibits, doing story outline and label copy. He worked at San Mateo, California for a while 

before the couple moved to Hawaii National Park in September 1959, where he served as interpreter. From there they moved to the Southwest Regional 

Office in Santa Fe, then moved back to Hawaii in 1970, when Barrel became Pacific Area Director. In that position he supervised the administration of 

ten park units, including Hawaii Volcanoes NP, Haleakala NP, and the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial. He remained in that position until 1980, FRC, series 1, 

folder 41- 46; and "Historic Listing of National Park Officials," www.cr.nps.gov/history/history- map.htm. 

198 This was not the first time that the topic came up regarding naming an heir to the ranch. For instance, in 1947, Lillian wrote to her niece, "As for this 

place going out of the family: it will never do so except via your family. I am seeing to that in my will. . . . More than anything else, I want this place and 

the acreage adjoining it to remain in the family for generations. But I realize that every generation has it's own ideas. So I can only hope that whoever 

finally owns it will always love it (Very Very much). So I can only hope that whoever finally owns it will love it as Mother, Dad and I have." Neil and 

Lillian had wanted Faraway to go to Hildegard's son Stanley as the male heir, but he was not interested, so Lillian wrote to Evelyn, "I hope you will be 

the ultimate owner." Lillian Riggs to Evelyn Hutchison, August 11, 1947, FRC, series 1, box 9. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

64

When Lillian asked Hildegard's children if they were interested in inheriting the ranch, Emajoy responded she 

definitely was interested in inheriting Faraway, along with her siblings Stanley and Evelyn. "Faraway is dear 

and precious to both Bob and me, and we'd hate to have it go to anyone else!" But the parcel of the old 

Stafford property could not be part of the deal. Because the land had been defined as within the national 

monument, it was an inholding. "Bob said he'd have to quit the Park Service before he could be an inholder! 

And Bob will never quit the Park Service or do it any injustice whatsoever, so my advice to you is to sell it- -

right now- - to the Service. You can use the money, I know, and no matter what, on your death, it will become 

the federal government's anyway and there will be nothing [siblings] Stan, Ev, or I could do about it."199 The 

agency had already acquired the adjoining Silver Spur property on the upper 80 acres of the Stafford property 

in December 1967, and intended to pursue Lillian's remaining acreage, the boundary of which was just east of 

the main house at Faraway. Treading a careful footing between family member and park service employee, 

Bob interpreted the situation to Lillian. Chiricahua National Monument wanted to acquire inholdings, 

following a nationwide NPS policy.200 The agency was willing to buy Lillian's land, leaving her a life- tenancy 

interest in it. As proposed, she would retain the use of the water and of the Martha Stark, Alcor and Mizor 

cabins during her lifetime, but she would have to keep the cabins in the same condition. He predicted that if 

Lillian sold the land to a party who wanted to build on the land, the Service would try to acquire the land, and 

could use the power of condemnation to do that.201 Lillian resigned herself to the situation; a few weeks later 

she reached a tentative agreement with the NPS to sell about 48 acres of the old Stafford homestead, including 

the Stafford cabin; they finalized the agreement in October 1968, at a price of $43,000. 202 She sold her 

remaining few acres of the Stafford homestead to the National Park Service in October 1974.203

The Riggs and Ericksons were integral parts of the park service family. The connection began with Lillian and 

Ed coming upon the Wonderland of Rocks, and their decision to promote the region, sparking the movement 

to establish Chiricahua National Monument. Another layer of association was added when Ed was employed 

at the monument and his central involvement in the construction of the trail system. The relationship fused 

through the Faraway guest ranch, which for decades provided virtually the only guest facilities near the 

monument. The ranch served as a community center of sorts, and park staff would often visit the guest ranch 

to socialize. The superintendents’ monthly reports regularly reported on the Ericksons and Riggses, not only 

regarding the business aspect of the guest ranch, but on a personal level as well, including Lillian's eye 

treatments relating to the onset of her blindness, Neil and Emma’s 50th anniversary celebration, and Neil's 

hospitalization in Douglas. 

Ed and Lillian Riggs continued to be involved with the federal government even after their deaths. After Ed’s 

death in 1950, the federal government honored him by naming a peak in the monument above his home Ed 

 

199 Emajoy Barrel to Lillian Riggs, February 5, [1968], FRC, series 1, folder 41- 46. 

200 Other dude ranches had faced the same NPS acquisition policy. Between 1950 and 1980 NPS made numerous land purchases in areas around Rocky 

Mountain National Park, Grand Teton National Park and Glacier National Park. Rocky Mountain NP purchases were the highest in the 1950s, while 

Glacier and Grand Teton parks acquired more property in the 1970s. Dude ranches acquired by Rocky Mountain National Park included Stead's Ranch 

(which included Sprague's Ranch), McGraw Ranch, Phantom Valley Ranch, Green Mountain Ranch, and Holzwarth's Neversummer Ranch. Borne, 

194- 195. Dude ranches in the Grand Teton area had been acquired in large numbers by the Snake River Land Company, formed and funded by John D. 

Rockefeller, Jr. in 1927 to buy lands for the purpose of creating the national park. Dude ranches acquired by that company included the Elbo, the 

Danny Ranch, the Triangle X, Hogan's fox farm, the JY and the Bar BC. John Daugherty, A Place Called Jackson Hole: The Historic Resource Study of 

Grand teton National Park (Moose, Wyoming: Grand Teton National Park, National Park Service, 1999), 231. 

201 Bob Barrel to Lillian Riggs, [archivist marked as March 15, 1968, but probably February 4 or 5, 1968], FRC, series 1, folder 47. 

202 "Offer to Sell Real Property," FRC, series 1, folder 11 and 12. The land was in the S1/2 SW1/4 of section 26, Township 16 South, Range 29 East. 

203 Livingston, 55. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

65

Riggs Peak.204 After Lillian's death in February 1977, no one in the family wanted the ranch. Her brother Ben 

approached the National Park Service about buying the ranch. During the time before authorization was 

received, both Ben and his sister Hildegard died. Ben's widow, Ethel, finalized the details on the purchase. 

On November 10, 1978 Congress passed Public Law 95- 625 authorizing the expansion of Chiricahua National 

Monument to include Faraway Ranch. On June 6, 1979, the Park Service purchased the ranch. On August 27, 

1988, the restored ranch house opened to the public. 

The Erickson/Peterson/Riggs family lives were interwoven with the federal government throughout their 

residence in the West. They are an excellent demonstration of the impact that the federal government had on 

the lives of Westerners. It also provides a view of the many vehicles that carried the federal government 

throughout the West. The family members were involved in many of the key types of federal activities: 

fighting in the Indian Wars, homesteading, administering national forests, helping to create a national 

monument, benefiting economically from the presence of the monument, obtaining employment through a 

New Deal program, and eventually returning the land to the public domain. 

 

204 Lillian Riggs, “Edward Murray Riggs,” ca. 1951, FRC, series 4, folder 19. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Federal Presence in the West 

66

Illustration 6. Ed and Lillian Erickson Riggs with duded up guest, Faraway Guest Ranch. 

Illustration 7. Emma Erickson and her chickens. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Women of the West 

67

THEME III: WOMEN OF THE WEST AT FARAWAY RANCH 

"She was fearless, independent, and stubborn. . . . She may have looked small and frail, but she was steel." 

Sally Klump1

Until recently, the nineteenth- century western woman evoked one of three images: the prostitute, the 

schoolmarm, and the wife. The prostitute, so the story goes, was a fallen woman, a dance- hall bad girl, 

who nonetheless had a heart of gold: Miss Kitty, of television’s Gunsmoke, ever yearning for Matt Dillon, 

the “good man” who was always beyond her reach because of her tarnished reputation. The schoolmarm, 

on the other hand, was the civilizer, such as the single woman who had come West in Owen Wister’s The 

Virginian to find “a man who was a man.” Once she found (and corralled) that man she became the 

“courageous helpmate in the sunbonnet,” represented by Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Ma, “the supportive and 

enduring farm wife of the Little House books.” All of these women were, of course, white EuroAmericans who had originally come from the eastern United States. 2

Wrapped up in these archetypes were basic assumptions about women and their attributes. For 

generations, Americans believed that a “true” American woman was “a devoted mother, an unusually 

virtuous person who had to remain aloof from the corruption of politics, a domestic individual who 

labored most happily and productively within her own home.”3

 The western woman was viewed as “the 

frail, genteel lady damaged by the harshness and isolation of the frontier.”4

 These "weak- minded, 

physically inferior beings needed guidance from stronger and wiser people—men,”5

 who, in turn, 

embodied “masculine bravery, physical strength, and independence.”6

 Ironically, as different as these 

male- female stereotypes were, people tended to believe that women acted and reacted in much the same 

way as men. Thus, women could be grouped in men’s history, with no need to examine the experiences of 

women. All of these ideas limited how we could perceive of and understand women- - and men- - of the 

past, as well as the present. 

Given such one- dimensional images, women were not very interesting historical characters in the story of 

the American West. As a result, historians- - and popular culture- - persistently assigned to them very 

minor, supporting roles, while men were given the action- packed starring roles, such as Indian fighters, 

cowboys, marshals and gold seekers. 

However, there were many women who were uneasy about these stereotypes, and the limited role that 

women seemed to play in the West. Historians began using new methods to study women, and by the mid 

 

1

 Sally Klump, “A Tribute to Lillian Riggs,” newspaper title not indicated, [1977], Acc. 1726, Miscellaneous Faraway Information, Western 

Archeological and Conservation Center, Tucson. Cited hereafter as WACC. 

2

 John Mack Faragher, "Women in Western History," in The New Encyclopedia of the American West, ed. Howard R. Lamar, 1230, New Haven: Yale 

University Press, 1998; and Susan A. Hallgarth, "Women Settlers on the Frontier: Unwed, Unreluctant, Unrepentant," Women's Studies Quarterly

17, no. 3 & 4 (1989): 23. 

3

 Glenda Riley, Inventing the American Woman: A Perspective on Women’s History (Arlington Heights, Illinois: Harlan Davidson, Inc., 1987), 6. 

4

 Ruth B. Moynihan, Susan Armitage, and Christiane Fischer Dichamp, eds, So Much to be Done: Women Settlers on the Mining and Ranching 

Frontier (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1990), xi. 

5

 Riley, Inventing, 6. 

6

 Moynihan, xi. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Women of the West 

68

1970s, a profusion of conference papers, articles and books began to appear. These attempted to revise 

the images of western women and to, at last, “add women to the history of the West."7

Recent scholarship has steadily replaced the old stereotypes. What has appeared is a much more 

sophisticated and well- rounded understanding of women in the American West. Their history is 

remarkably diverse, reflecting the wide variety of women and their experiences. Women were single, 

married, divorced, and widowed (and each status affected their lives), and they belonged to all economic 

and social classes. They were Native American women, Spanish- speaking Mexican- American women, 

African- American women, as well as the many varieties of European and Asian immigrant women. They 

were entrepreneurs, farmers, homesteaders and ranchers, waitresses, mail- order brides and factory 

workers; they were active in local and regional politics. They ranged in age from childhood through 

senior years. And they lived not only in the nineteenth century, but also in the twentieth- century West. 

The studies have also found gender differences in men’s and women’s experiences. "Despite similarities 

of status or shared hardships . . . women necessarily developed their own specific methods of coping and 

adapting. . . . Women's personal and imaginative responses to the western environment differed from 

men's and significantly affected their own attitudes and behavior."8

Because of this diversity among women- - as well as the differences between men and women- - historians 

have learned that there “is no single, simple interpretation that can encompass all of western women's . . . 

experience of settlement.”9

 Women’s history reflects the complexity that the human race presents, and all 

of the variables should be considered to understand a historical situation. For instance, two major 

surveys of pioneer women reached opposite conclusions. Julie Roy Jeffrey, in Frontier Women, found 

“strong continuities between western attitudes and Victorian domesticity: many pioneer women brought 

eastern sex- role standards west with them and refused to modify their principles even when they proved 

a hindrance.”10 In contrast, Sandra Myres, in Westering Women, “discovered a predominant spirit of 

adventure, nonconformity, and adaptation in the women she studied."11 Myres cautioned that if scholars 

accepted “the premise that no woman could break free from nineteenth- century patriarchal ideas, they 

are bound to depict all pioneer women as 'reluctant' participants and frontier 'drudges.'"12 We can find 

examples of both types (and many other types) of women in the West, and in fact the same individual 

woman can demonstrate different tendencies. The same person can act differently at different times in 

their life, in different places, and under different circumstances. 

The women of the Peterson/Erickson/Riggs families present a classic study of flaws in the stereotypes of 

women. These individuals were independent, strong women who shaped their own lives and embraced 

the natural, active life of the Erickson/Faraway Ranch. 

 

7

 Glenda Riley, "Continuity and Change: Interpreting Women in Western History," Journal of the West 32, no. 3 (July 1993): 7. 

8

 Moynihan, xii. 

9

 Moynihan, xiii. 

10 Moynihan, xiii. See Julie Roy Jeffrey, Frontier Women: The Trans- Mississippi West, 1840- 1880 (New York: Hill and Wang, 1979). 

11 Moynihan, xiii. See Sandra Myres, Westering Women and the Frontier Experience, 1800- 1915 (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 

1982). 

12 Sandra Myers, "The Westering Women," Huntington Spectator (Winter 1980), quoted in Hallgarth, 23. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Women of the West 

69

EMMA PETERSON MOVES WEST 

While Emma Peterson was a teenager in Sweden, her teacher encouraged her to become a schoolteacher, 

as she was “very much fitted” for that occupation. Peterson was quite flattered with the attention and 

went home “all bubbling over with enthusiasm” about the idea of this career. She shared her excitement 

with her stepmother, who did not share her enthusiasm. Instead, she warned Peterson not to tell her 

father about such nonsense, because, as Emma later remembered, “she would not permit him to send me 

off to get the necessary training. So to myself I said ‘Well, what is mamma going to do about my 

schooling. Is she going to keep me home to take one of the servant’s place?’” Peterson feared a future 

that would keep her at home, so- - even though she knew no English- - she decided to move to the United 

States to join her sister, an earlier emigrant. In the company of a family, 18- year- old Emma moved to 

Chicago in 1873, where her sister lived. 

Single women in Sweden at the turn of the century faced few job opportunities other than domestic 

service or limited types of factory work. Higher education was generally too expensive for most young 

women with limited means. After hearing about opportunities in the United States and other countries, 

many young Swedish women emigrated. In the 1870s, the decade that Emma Peterson emigrated, single 

women comprised almost one- quarter of the Swedish emigrants to non- European countries. Many of 

them moved to locales where family members already lived. This connection in their new home was 

important, since most of these women could not speak English, and they would have had difficulty 

finding jobs alone.13 It is not surprising that Peterson's sister lived in Chicago, since in 1870, one- third of 

all Swedish- born residents in the United States were living in Illinois, and by 1900, Chicago was the 

second largest Swedish city in the world, second only to Stockholm.14

After arriving in Chicago, Peterson followed the course of so many immigrant girls, which was to earn a 

living as a servant. While this may seem to be contradictory for Peterson, given that she had left Sweden 

to avoid domestic status, the situation was probably an improvement for her. Domestic service was the 

most popular employment choice of single Swedish women immigrating to the United States at the turn of 

the century. Compared to Sweden, domestic positions in the United States provided several advantages. 

In the United States, domestics earned higher wages: while a servant in Sweden earned so little that she 

found it difficult to purchase clothing, Swedish servants in America were able to support themselves, and 

often had money to save or send home. Second, working conditions were better in the U.S.; job tasks 

were easier and working hours fewer, which provided opportunities for free time. Third, and possibly 

most important to Peterson, domestics in America possessed higher social status than in Sweden. The 

status came from both the mainstream American community as well as from the Swedish- American 

community. Domestics were treated with more respect in the United States than in Sweden, often had 

positive relations with their employers, and were even treated like family members in some instances. 

Swedish immigrants were generally well accepted by mainstream America; coming from a Protestant, 

northern European country, the Swedes were seen as desirable immigrants. There was a large demand for 

Swedish servants; in 1880 one out of every ten domestic workers in Chicago had come from Sweden. In 

addition, the Swedish community held a more positive attitude toward domestic work than did the 

American society. The Swedish- American press repeatedly expressed pride in Swedish women's 

 

13 Joy K. Lintelman, "'America is the Woman's Promised Land': Swedish Immigrant Women and American Domestic Service," Journal of American 

Ethnic History 8, no. 2 (1989): 11- 12. 

14 Stephan Thernstrom, ed., Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups (Cambridge, Massachusetts: The Belknap Press of Harvard 

University Press, 1980): 973, 974. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Women of the West 

70

employment as domestics. One contemporary author gushed, "We could not be other than proud of our 

serving sisters," and emphasized the "honor that these Swedish domestics bring to Swedes in America." 

Domestics contributed socially and economically to their Swedish community by coming under the 

beneficial influences by working with middle- and upper- class American families, and also by learning 

skills in cooking and providing a nice home. In addition, their steady income from their work provided 

them with a sound financial footing; when a Swedish- American enterprise needed financial backing they 

frequently first approached Swedish- American servant girls.15

Accordingly, Emma Peterson began her first job doing housework, and after a year changed jobs to spend 

five years as a “second girl.” A person in that position was a female house- servant who did the lighter 

work, such as chamber work, waiting on the table, taking care of the bedroom floors, and having charge 

of the linen; a second girl normally did not do cooking or washing. However, Emma believed that the 

Irish cook "had a picnic with a Swedish greenhorn" and soon Emma did the wash before breakfast; then 

prepared breakfast for the family; waited on the table; did the dishwashing; scrubbed the kitchen, laundry 

and pantry; and then prepared an evening meal. Peterson complained that meanwhile the Irish cook 

would have gone out for the day. The frustrated Swedish immigrant changed jobs to do dress making.16

Peterson’s move from the Midwest to the West began with a chance meeting with A.F. and Amelia 

Middaugh, who were in the city buying goods. He was a merchant in Del Norte, Colorado, where the 

couple lived with their three children and his mother. The Middaughs offered Peterson a servant's 

position, and so the 25- year- old immigrant moved from Chicago to a town of about 700 in the West. She 

worked for the couple for two years (probably beginning in 1880), and during that time they came to trust 

Peterson completely. At one point, the couple traveled back East for two months, leaving Peterson in 

charge of their children (aged 6, 4 and 2 in 1881); the children and their caregiver both had "a glorious 

time."17

But soon a new opportunity presented itself to the adventurous young woman, and in late 1882 she moved 

with another family to Colorado Springs, Colorado, population just over 4,000.18 Peterson's new position 

 

15 Lintelman, "'America is the Woman's Promised Land,'" 11, 14- 15; Rudolph J. Vecoli, contributing ed., Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, 

vol. 2 of 2, (New York: Gale Research, Inc., 1995): 1286; Thernstrom, 975; and Joy K. Lintelman, "'Our Serving Sisters': Swedish- American 

Domestic Servants and Their Ethnic Community," Social Science History 15, no. 3 (Fall 1991): 382- 383, 390- 392. 

16 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, Faraway Ranch Collection, Western Archeological and Conservation Center, 

Tucson, series 4, folder 2; and series 9, box 34, folder 4. Cited hereafter as FRC. Comparisons of Swedish domestics to those of other immigrant 

groups were common among Swedes and helped them establish themselves on the ethnic pecking order. One contemporary publication proudly 

stated that Swedish- American women were "more reliable and hardworking than Irish women" and thus were "more sought- after for domestic 

positions." Lintelman, "'Our Serving Sisters,'" 390. 

17 Peterson spelled the couple's name Middahy in her writings. Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, 

FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78; and Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. A.F. Middahy had 

been born in Pennsylvania, the same state where both his parents were born. In 1880, he was 39, and Amelia was 24 years old. She had been born 

in Missouri; both her parents were from Germany. A.F.'s mother, Mary, also lived with them; she had been born in 1815, and both of her parents 

had also been born in Pennsylvania. The children were Edna, Nettie and Hallett; Edna was born in New Mexico, while the two younger children 

were born in Colorado. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- Day Saints, FamilySearch, 1880 United States Census, <www.familysearch.org>. 

18 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78; and Colorado Department of Local 

Affairs, "Historical Census Population," <www.dola.colorado.gov/demog/history/allhist.cfm>. Years later Emma's daughter Lillian stated, "To the 

Colorado Army Posts, in the company of an officer's family, went Emma." Lillian Erickson Riggs, ca. 1936- 37, FRC, series 8, folder 4- 5. 

Middaugh was a merchant; although it is possible that Adams was an Army officer, Emma did not mention that in her records, so Lillian may have 

confused Emma's later Fort Craig experience with her Colorado period. Much later, Peterson's step- granddaughter recalled that Emma had said 

she had come West “with a young captain and his wife.” It is likely that Emma herself would have remembered Middaugh's merchant status more 

accurately. Her granddaughter may have confused the move West with Emma's later connections with the military. Eula Lee Murray Riggs, 

“Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. 
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71

was as a cook for the Adams household, where she remained for seven months. At that point she left the 

job, and her employer wrote a letter of recommendation for her, praising Peterson as "faithful, honest, 

good- tempered and neat and [I] consider her an excellent cook. She leaves me now only because I am 

breaking up housekeeping.”19

Meanwhile, a friend of Peterson's had moved to Fort Craig, New Mexico to work. Peterson’s connections 

in the network of servants soon paid off, when she received a telegram from her friend stating that Lt. 

Colonel Henry Martyn Lazelle, commander of the fort, wanted "a competent maid" for his family, which 

included his wife and two sons. Peterson accepted the position and moved to Fort Craig.20

At first, this move seems to be an amazing action for this single young woman. Life in Colorado in the 

early 1880s was a world away from that in the Southwest. At that time, Indian wars were being waged in 

New Mexico and Arizona territories. As a result, Euro- American women were not common in those 

areas. An early Arizona historian noted that in the 1870s "there were but few American women in the 

country those days, and these, as a rule, not from choice, it is safe to say. Usually they chanced here 

through military connections or some adverse fortune that diverted them from the California road."21

 

Single women were even rarer; in 1890, single women comprised only 23% of the female population aged 

15 and over in Arizona Territory. In comparison, California’s single women represented 32% of the 

women.22

Peterson's marital status may have been a factor in her decision. A study of women who traveled on the 

Overland Trail to California between 1840 and 1870 revealed marked differences between the attitudes of 

married women and unmarried or newly married women. In most cases, the married women had not 

initiated the idea to move, and in fact it was almost always their husbands who decided to move to the 

West. For these married women, the Oregon Trail “meant a major severing of ties . . . the loss of closely 

woven network of friendships.” For many married women, “the westward migration was felt to be a time 

not of new beginnings and hopeful aspirations but of tension and misgivings and backward glances.” The 

sense that the historian gleaned from these diaries was that “women endured the westward migration 

because of their commitment to maintaining the family, and because life offered them few choices.”23

Mimicking the same attitudes, the wives who followed their military husbands to Arizona posts did not 

seem to enjoy their experiences in the territory. Many of them had left comfortable homes and found the 

undeveloped environment trying. An army wife later recalled her experiences of the mid 1870s: "I 

concluded that my New England bringing up had been too serious, and wondered if I had made a 

dreadful mistake following my husband to Arizona. I debated the question with myself from all sides, and 

 

19 Catharine H. Adams. Colorado Springs, July 1, 1883. FRC, series 1, folder 29- 15. 

20 Emma Erickson to Jess Stanley Hutchison, June 1, 1943, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. In Emma's writings, she spells her employer's name as 

LaSalle; however, it appears that in fact it was spelled Lazelle. In 1882, Lazelle was 49, his wife Ann was 42, and their sons Jacob H.G. was 15 and 

Horace G. was 11. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter- Day Saints, FamilySearch, 1880 United States Census, <www.familysearch.org>. 

21 Robert H. Forbes, The Penningtons: Pioneers of Early Arizona (Arizona Archeological and Historical Society, 1919), 38- 39, quoted in Christiane 

Fischer, "A Profile of Women in Arizona in Frontier Days," Journal of the West 16, no. 3 (July 1977): 51. 

22 Fischer, 46. 

23 Lillian Schlissel, “Diaries of Frontier Women: On Learning to Read the Obscured Patterns,” in Woman’s Being, Woman’s Place: Female Identity 

and Vocation in American History, ed. Mary Kelley, 53- 66 (Boston: G.K. Hall & Co., 1979), 55- 57. 

 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Women of the West 

72

decided then and there that young army wives should stay at home with their mothers and fathers, and 

not go into such wild and uncouth places."24

In sharp contrast to these accounts are the Overland Trail diaries of “the new brides and young girls for 

whom the thousand- mile journey was sparked with excitement and bright hope. . . . Unmarried girls 

found that the journey provided opportunity to share with young men and boys a brief period of free 

companionship.” It is notable that opinions of the westward journey reflected the woman’s position in 

her life cycle more than whether she “possessed the spirit of adventure or enjoyed the excitement of the 

unknown.”25

Women like Peterson who decided themselves to make the move to the West frequently had very different 

attitudes than women who made the move simply to preserve their families. When women chose to make 

the trek, their reasons were similar to those of men who migrated- - “kinship ties, adventure, health, and 

economic opportunity. Some, like Sarah Schooley Randall, would heed the 'smoldering flames of 

adventure.' . . . Whatever their reasons, the desire for self- dependence always played a strong part."26

 

These women were not passive victims but rather active agents in the history of the West.27 We can 

assume, therefore, that the single 29- year- old Emma Peterson may have been looking for adventure, 

excitement and economic opportunity from her travels in the West. 

But in spite of seeking adventure and excitement, Peterson also positioned herself to enjoy all the 

experiences of the Southwest available to her, while being in a safeguarded situation. By working for a 

married couple- - he being a high- ranking officer in the army- - Emma Peterson protected herself in an 

otherwise potentially vulnerable situation. The Southwest in the 1880s could be a dangerous place- - both 

physically and socially- - to a single young woman traveling and living alone. However, by being in the 

employment of the officer, and living within the household, Peterson gained a safe haven. She probably 

felt especially comfortable working for the military officer, since her father was an officer in the Swedish 

Army, and her brother had studied to be an officer in the Swedish army.28 A military household would 

have been quite familiar to Emma. 

Nonetheless, Peterson's status as an employed single white woman set her apart from other women, 

especially those in the Southwest. In the latter part of the 1800s, a minority of women in the U.S. were in 

the labor force. In 1870, women represented only 14 percent of all workers in the labor force.29 Even so, 

being a Swedish immigrant, Peterson was more likely to be employed than a native- born white woman. 

In 1890, 20 percent of foreign- born white women held paying jobs in the U.S., while 15 percent of nativeborn white women worked outside the home.30 In Arizona, more than half the women who were 

 

24 Martha Summerhayes, Vanished Arizona: Recollections of my Army Life (Salem, Mass.: The Salem Press Co., 1911), 93, quoted in Fischer, 44. 

25 Lillian Schlissel, 57- 59. 

26 Sarah Schooley Randall, “My Trip West in 1861,” Collection of Nebraska Pioneer Reminiscences (Cedar Rapids, Iowa: The Torch Press, 1916), 74, 

quoted in Hallgarth, 25. 

27 Ruth Moynihan, et al noted that a striking factor in all of the accounts of the women that they studied was that “most of these women were in 

the West or were doing what they were doing of their own volition. They had chosen to go or to do that work." Moynihan, xvii. 

28 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 

29 Nancy Gabin, “Women and Work,” in Encyclopedia of American Social History, Mary Kupiec Cayton, Elliott J. Gorn, and Peter W. Williams, 

eds. Vol. 2 of 3. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1993), 1547. 

30 Compare those figures to the 40 percent of black women who were employed. Gabin in Cayton, 1546. 
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73

employed belonged to the foreign- born group, many of whom may have been Mexican- Americans.31 

However, fewer women in the West worked in paid positions compared to those across the nation,32 and 

women in Arizona worked even less than other women in the West. In that territory in 1880 only 5 

percent of the female population aged ten and over was gainfully employed; the figure rose slightly to 9 

percent in 1890.33 Another interesting aspect of employment of women in Arizona is the low proportion of 

single women among gainfully employed women; only 47 percent of the female work force were single 

women (compared to 69 percent in California).34 So Emma Peterson represented only about 2.5 percent 

of the women in the region. 

However, Peterson did follow the typical occupational route that employed women pursued. The types of 

occupations open to women in the West were extremely limited. In the 1880s and ‘90s, the great majority 

of working women in Arizona labored in one of four occupations: domestic servants, seamstresses, 

laundresses or teachers. These occupations enabled women to turn their “familiar domestic skills into 

profitable business ventures."35 In 1890, Arizona’s female labor force was distributed as follows: 37 

percent were domestic servants (half of whom were foreign- born, many of whom were MexicanAmerican, and could not speak English); 19 percent were seamstresses, 17 percent were laundresses, and 8 

percent were primary or secondary school teachers (most of whom were born in the U.S). Women did 

not teach at the university level. Women also operated lodging and boarding houses.36

Later, Peterson reminisced with her granddaughter, Lee Riggs, about accompanying a couple West “as a 

servant.” Riggs later commented, “I laughed when I saw the Erickson display at [Chiricahua National] 

monument, stating that [Emma Peterson] had come to Fort Bowie as a companion to General Crook’s 

wife. She would have [laughed], too, as she was never ashamed of having worked as a servant.” From this 

statement it would appear that the term “companion” was not the one that Emma would have used to 

describe her position.37

There was a great demand for women in the domestic service especially. An observer in the Southwest 

noted in the 1880s: “Female labor is scarce, difficult to be had, and commands a good price. In the towns 

and settlements Chinamen have taken the place of women, and nearly all domestic service is done by 

them. . . . The difficulty of obtaining female domestics is a constant source of annoyance to people 

throughout the Territory, and if a family is fortunate enough to secure one, she is sure to be taken in the 

matrimonial net in a short time.”38

 

31 Fischer, 48. 

32 In 1890, 13 percent of western women were in the labor force, as compared to 17 percent nationally. Riley, Inventing, 146. 

33 Fischer, 48. She calculated from the Tenth and Eleventh U.S. censuses. 

34 Fischer, 48. 

35 Hallgarth, 25. 

36 Fischer, 49. 

37 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. 

38 Patrick Hamilton, The Resources of Arizona (San Francisco: A. L. Bancroft Co., Printers, 1884), 405- 406 quoted in Fischer, 48- 49. 
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74

Indeed, it must have been difficult for a young single woman to avoid getting caught in that “matrimonial 

net” in the Southwest. In 1880, there were over two men for every woman in Arizona, and married 

women were more common than single women were in the territory.39 Add to this scenario the higher 

ratio of men to women specifically in the military setting, it is probable that many men would have liked 

to spend time with Emma Peterson. Clearly, this single young woman would have had her choice of 

eligible young men. Indeed, her daughter later spelled out, "Saying 'no' had by this time become a habit 

with this young attractive and charming woman who had had many offers of marriage during her sojourn 

in this land where women were few."40

The same friend who had arranged for Peterson’s job at Fort Craig (who had then married Sgt. Hyman) 

next arranged to introduce Emma to Sgt. Neil Erickson. Peterson later recalled that the next time she saw 

her friend, the matchmaker asked what she thought about “the nice Swedish boy.” Peterson responded, 

‘Why he is just an old Swedish farmer!’"41 While that comment may seem humorous to us today, especially 

knowing of their subsequent marriage, the statement is quite revealing about Peterson's acute awareness 

of class. In the future, whenever Peterson described Erickson, she typically began by explaining that he 

came from a poor background.42 And when describing herself, she always pointed out that she came from 

a higher class. Peterson was proud of her social position, and was very conscious of Erickson's lower 

status. While the well meaning Mrs. Hyman apparently thought that the two people would enjoy each 

other's company because they were both Swedish immigrants, Peterson clearly understood the 

complexities of class status. However, in spite of her disregard for the Swedish farmer, Peterson 

continued to meet him often since "the Hymans were very fond of Sergeant Erickson so they had him at 

all their gatherings."43 Over time, Peterson began to be attracted to Erickson, in spite of their class 

difference. 

During the time that Peterson and Erickson were getting to know each other, Peterson’s employer- -

Major John Kemp Mizner- - and his regiment were transferred to another fort. Mizner asked Peterson if 

she would also make the move. She was unsure what to do, so she asked for the advice of a “dear friend” 

of hers- - an officer’s wife.44 Her friend responded, “Why Emma, I think that’s a splendid opportunity. If 

I were you I would not miss that for anything. Of course the whole regiment is going, the officers right 

with the troops. But all the families and help are going- - just think of all the new country you would see. 

And so many new people you would see.”45 Her friend’s sense of adventure- - while assuring her of the 

safety of the endeavor- - convinced Peterson that moving was a great opportunity not to be missed. 

 

39 Women also got married earlier in the territory; in the 20- 24 age group, there were twice as many married women as single women in 1890, 

while in California, in the same age group, single women out- numbered married women by 3 to 2. Fischer, 45, 47. 

40 Lillian Erickson Riggs, ca. 1936- 37, FRC, series 8, folder 4- 5. 

41 Emma Erickson to Jess Stanley Hutchison, June 1, 1943, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

42 For example, "He was born in Sweden, but his people had always been poor." Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, 

August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. Also, writing to her grandson, "As you know, he was born in Sweden and, though his parents were 

poor, they were highly respected." Emma Erickson to Jess Stanley Hutchison, June 1, 1943, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

43 Emma Erickson to Jess Stanley Hutchison, June 1, 1943, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

44 It is notable that a domestic servant would have such a close friend in the person of an officer’s wife. The setting of an isolated frontier fort, 

with few women present, probably altered the boundaries that class distinctions normally would have dictated. 

45 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 
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75

The colonel was very accommodating to Peterson concerning the arrangements for her move. He 

provided his buggy and a fine horse for her travel. When he asked Peterson whom she wanted to drive 

for her, she responded either Sgt. Erickson or Sgt. Hagerdy. Shortly thereafter, Major Mizner told 

Peterson that when he had asked Erickson’s force commander about Erickson being the driver, the officer 

responded that he wanted Erickson for another duty. Peterson later recalled her response. “I looked up 

at him quite scornfully. I said, ‘Well, I thought you were the commanding officer and then you go and ask 

the captain if one of the men can do the service that you wish him to do.’ Of course that hurt his pride.” 

Peterson’s response apparently had its desired effect, since Mizner quickly arranged for Sgt. Erickson to 

do the driving.46 Peterson’s reaction to the news is quite revealing about both her personality, and the 

relationship that this housekeeper had with the officer. Considering that she was simply a domestic 

servant, Mizner’s “kid- glove treatment” seems rather unusual. However, given the situation of Peterson 

being a rare commodity, a domestic servant who spoke English, in the territory of Arizona in the mid 

1880s, with other potential employers waiting in line, Mizner undoubtedly wanted to make Peterson 

content. Perhaps it was Peterson’s value as a domestic that enabled her to chastise her employer.47

 

Another indication of the colonel’s concern about making her happy was the transportation he provided. 

“I had the nicest outfit in the whole caravan,” Peterson later recalled. “Most of the officers’ families had 

just buckboards in which they were riding. And I had that lovely buggy and beautiful horse.” People in 

the caravan routinely assumed that Peterson was the colonel’s daughter.48 Sgt. Erickson was also quite 

intent in providing Peterson with the best experience possible. When camp was set up each night, 

Erickson guaranteed that Peterson’s tent, bed and belongings were the first that were put in order. "I sat 

in my buggy until the bed was carried in and the rugs, stand and chairs put in and my bedding 

unstrapped, then I walked out of the buggy and into my tent. Neil had charge of it all," Peterson 

remembered later.49

The couple spent many hours together on their trip of almost 400 miles to the fort in Arizona. They 

became close during that trip, and Erickson asked the young woman to be his wife. Her response again 

brings into focus her keen awareness of class: she told him that she would not marry a soldier, but that 

she would consider marriage if he became an officer.50 Peterson thus very specifically stated that class and 

status were quite important to her, and that she had no intention of marrying below her status. It has 

been observed that in places where the ratio of men to women was so high, women must have 

experienced a sense of freedom that encouraged them to choose “both compatibility and a shared 

partnership type of marriage,” creating a “trend away from the traditional patriarchal relationship."51

 

Peterson clearly understood that she had control of the situation. Being the daughter of an army officer, 

as well as the employee of one, Peterson undoubtedly had learned of the clear delineation of status in the 

military. She had no intention of marrying below her status, and made her feelings clear to her suitor. By 

 

46 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. Her notes do not indicate who Sgt. Hagerdy was, 

nor why she assumed that Mizner would know that she really preferred Erickson over Hagerdy. 

47 In addition, Mizner may have looked at her as an equal since she was the daughter of an army officer, or he may have felt a father- daughter 

relation with her. 

48 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 

49 Emma Erickson to Jess Stanley Hutchison, June 1, 1943, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

50 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2; and Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne 

Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

51 Blaine T. Williams, "The Frontier Family: Demographic Fact and Historical Myth," in Essays on the American West, Harold M. Hollingsworth 

and Sandra L. Myres, eds. (Austin: University of Texas Press, 1969), 64, quoted in Hallgarth, 27. 
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76

the end of the journey, they had also arrived at a new stage of their relationship: the offer of marriage was 

on the table, but it had not been accepted. Erickson was thus supposed to become an officer to prove that 

he was worthy of the proud woman. 

Peterson’s employer, Major Mizner, commanded Fort Huachuca until September 1884. At that point, 

Erickson's commanding officer offered employment to Peterson, but apparently she rejected the idea, and 

by December 1885 the independent woman was operating a boarding house at Fort Bowie.52 Although 

Erickson began his studies for an officer’s commission, he eventually gave up on that goal. True to her 

word, the couple did not become engaged until after Erickson was discharged from the Army. They were 

married in January 1887, in the Cosmopolitan Hotel in Tucson, when she was 32 and he was 27. 

During the short time between his military discharge and their wedding, Erickson had started a restaurant 

in the mining camp Volcano City, New Mexico. Emma moved to the locale after their wedding, and 

learned that Neil didn’t have the experience or knowledge to operate the business. He had allowed many 

down- in- the- luck miners eat without paying, if they would promise to pay when they could. In addition, 

she discovered that his employee, "a Chinaman," embezzled money. Emma took charge of the situation, 

"told the hangers- on to look for a new boarding place, discharged the Chinaman, and went into the 

kitchen and did the work." 53 Subsequently, the couple decided to move to the Sulphur Springs Valley. 

This decision to move to the country was not a new one for the Ericksons. 

HOMESTEADING 

Prior to their wedding, Emma had decided she wanted to establish a homestead. As she later recalled, 

Emma had purchased a "little house with improvements in beautiful Bonita Canyon, and my plan was to 

move there, raise cattle, horses, chickens and plant an orchard.”54 She also traveled to the General Land 

Office in Tucson to file a claim on a 160- acre homestead. A woman- - and single at that- - making these 

plans may seem unusual to some. 

At the heart of the seeming paradox is the historically held belief that originated partly with people who 

divided the world by gender: “autonomous men farmed, hunted or earned wages, while maternal women 

cooked, cleaned, and produced goods at home." And thus a "concomitant belief developed: aggressive 

men sallied forth into the world of nature; passive women stayed indoors."55

In reality, many women enjoyed being physically active outdoors. "Nor did these women creep into 

nature reluctantly, hiding behind the backs of men. They frequently led the way, ready to meet and 

embrace nature. Women . . . exulted in the physical splendor of the West, rhapsodizing over 'flowers up 

to your neck' and calling a region a 'paradise in the Wilderness.'"56 Peterson exhibited this very attitude 

when she later recalled her first visit to Bonita canyon: “It proved to be the most gorgeous place that any 

one could desire. It was immense big trees all around the place and the grass was knee high. Besides, 

 

52 Fort Huachuca, http://usaic.hua.army.mil/history; and Neil Erickson to Emma Peterson, August 4, 1884. Acc. 1776, WACC 

53 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2; and Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne 

Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, 

54 Emma Peterson to Browne Landone, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78.. 

55 Glenda Riley, Women and Nature: Saving the "Wild" West (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1999): 9- 10. 

56 Riley, Nature, 11. 
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there was a creek with running water in it. Well, I simply fell in love with that place right there and then 

so I decided I would purchase it.57

Buying a cabin outright, and planning to claim a 160- acre homestead- - while not unheard of- - was in fact 

a bold plan for Peterson, and demonstrates her strength of character. While there were numerous single 

women homesteaders in the West, they did comprise a small minority of claimants. Between 1887 and 

1908 in areas in Colorado and Wyoming, 11.9 percent of the homestead filers were women. However, 

these women had staying power: 42.4 percent of the women proved up, while only 36 percent of the men 

did so.58 Studies of single homesteading women have demonstrated that “many females were enthusiastic 

about pioneering and increasingly interested in opportunities for self- dependence. Their records also 

challenge traditional concepts of marriage and work roles and provide new ways of understanding 

western independence."59 Records of people who utilized the Homestead Act document only a selection 

of women who worked directly on the land. Other examples include 

Indian women who farmed, women who hired out as farm laborers, former wives who continued 

to run family farms and ranches after divorce or the death of a spouse, and Mormon women who 

managed family farms while their husbands lived with other families or went on missions. . . . Such 

women feared neither hard work nor nature. . . . these women killed snakes, hunted wild game, 

built their own claim shacks, plowed their own fields, and harvested their own crops . . . women 

homesteaders learned how to drive wagons and plows and to care for a variety of stock.60

The homesteaders’ success—along with those of other frontier women- - came from their own 

“productive responsibilities. Women's vital role in western settlement was marked by . . . a desire to reap 

the profits, personal or social, that the frontier might yield to entrepreneurial talent. In short, most 

women were eager and willing to work."61 It appears that this statement defined Emma Peterson: she was 

eager to earn the profits, but also eager to take on the work. 

However, on the day that Peterson arrived at Tucson to file on her homestead, she learned that only one 

family member could file a claim. In spite of being such an independent, adventurous woman, she was 

aware of the roles of men and women and was sensitive to her fiancé’s dignity. She decided to wait and 

let her husband- to- be file instead. She later explained that she thought it would be embarrassing to Neil 

to live on her homestead.62

Neil Erickson did file on the homestead, but over a year and a half would pass before the Ericksons 

moved to Bonita Canyon. During that entrepreneurial restaurant/boarding house phase of their marriage 

 

57 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. Lillian Riggs later wrote that prior to their marriage, 

Erickson, in the company of soldiers, and Peterson, “in company with officer’s families,” had both seen the Bonita Canyon area, “and both 

decided that they wanted it for their home even before they knew they were going to have a home together.” No document written by Neil 

Erickson has yet been found that supports the idea that he had seen the canyon before Peterson's purchase. Lillian Riggs, “Early History of 

Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. 

58 Sherryl Patterson- Black, Western Women in History and Literature (Crawford, NE: Cottonwood Press, 1978): 6, cited by Hallgarth, 25. 

59 Hallgarth, 24. 

60 Riley, Nature, 11. 

61 Moynihan, xvi. 

62 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 
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the couple began their family. Early in 1888, 34- year- old Emma Peterson Erickson had traveled to 

nearby Fort Bowie to deliver her first child, Lillian Sophia.63 When the baby was five months old, the 

family moved to their homestead.64

Emma took to the ranch immediately, and loved living there, in spite of the hard work and primitive 

situation. Many women settlers did not express such pleasure at homesteading. Alienation, separation 

and loneliness are themes that run through women settler’s diaries, and "hard work without stop was the 

lot of the majority.”65 In a typical diary, the writer "tells the harrowing story of the struggle they had to 

fight, in which sickness, death, problems with the cattle, insecurity, material difficulties, contacts with 

unpleasant travelers who stopped for meals marked the rhythm of life."66

To survive in such a situation, women had to be “self- possessed and self- reliant."67 One theory posits that 

Women's adaptations to the conditions in Arizona depended on the kind of education they had 

received and the kind of life they had known before coming to the Territory. Those who had been 

brought up on farms were familiar with the kind of work that had to be performed, and generally 

endured it without any complaints. But those who had experienced a more refined life had 

problems adjusting: they despised their small mud houses, were rebuked by the daily chores and 

were often depressed by the lack of mental stimulation.68

In one sense, Emma Peterson Erickson seems to contradict that theory. Raised in a family with a 

housekeeper, two maids and three man servants, her background hardly seems one to prepare her for the 

hard work of running a ranch.69 However, in her memoirs Emma was pleased to note that the Chicago 

family that she worked for couldn’t hire another woman to do as much work as Emma had. “I had been 

working hard all my life,” she noted.70 It has been observed, “Whether they went to the frontier or settled 

in urban areas, non- American- born women frequently modified their attitudes and behaviors as a result 

of the new environment. As they adapted to the language, lifestyles, and values they encountered in 

America, they began to revise their own ways of thinking and acting."71 Certainly Emma demonstrated no 

fear of hard work during her years of toil in Chicago, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona. 

Indeed, Emma seems to have had the character necessary for success on a homestead. One woman 

described the demands placed on women settlers: 

 

63 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 

64 Neil Erickson, “Our First Night in Bonita Canyon,” 1931, FRC, series 4, folder 9. 

65 Fischer, 43, 45 

66 Fischer, 43. 

67 Fischer, 43. 

68 Fischer, 44. 

69 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 

70 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 

71 Riley, Inventing, 147. 
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I had lived on a homestead long enough to learn some fundamental things: that while a woman had 

more independence here than in any part of the world, she was expected to contribute as much as a 

man- - not in the same way, it is true, but to the same degree: that people who fought the frontier 

had to be prepared to meet any emergency: that the person who wasn’t willing to try anything once 

wasn’t equipped to be a settler.72

Although the Bonita Canyon location may have seemed idyllic to Emma when she chose the site- - and in 

spite of the Ericksons’ hard work on the homestead- - the ranch was not an economic success. In order to 

bring in cash to support the family, Neil frequently had to work at outside jobs, and he finally moved to 

Bisbee to work, where he spent most of his time for about four years. During that time the couple’s 

second child, Lewis Benton was born in 1891, and their third child, Helen Hildegard was born in spring 

1895. At the time of Hildegard’s birth, Neil sold his Bisbee house and moved back to ranch. However, by 

1900 the need for money forced Neil to return to Bisbee. During all of Neil’s Bisbee years, Emma lived on 

the ranch, first with young Lillian and Ben, and then with Hildegard added to the family. While Neil was 

unhappy with the situation and wanted to sell the ranch, Emma refused. In July 1903, Neil began his 

career as a forest ranger. Although this position allowed him to be at home more often, he frequently had 

to spend time away from the ranch for a month or six weeks at a time.73 Again, Emma stayed home with 

the three children and managed the homestead while Neil was gone. "Contrary to nineteenth- century 

notions about feminine helplessness and passivity, pioneer women took decisive action to manage their 

own lives and maintain their hopes."74

While the Ericksons’ situation was difficult for them, it was not unique. Separation was a recurring theme 

in writings by women in the West, and it was sometimes accompanied by a feeling of solitude.75

 

It was common practice for nineteenth- century men to leave their wives for months or even years 

at a time for the sake of their work: there were businessmen in city boarding houses whose families 

lived in the country or in small towns elsewhere, engineers on mining or railroad expeditions, 

politicians in distant legislatures . . . . The majority of gold rushers made their expeditions to the 

mines in just such single fashion.76

During the absence of the husbands, the wives “were expected to maintain their household as an 

independent unit; there was no thought that the household would be absorbed or merged with any 

parental or extended family branch.” A study of diaries of women in this situation revealed the 

interesting aspect that the diaries uniformly did not provide information about how the women ran the 

households. They recorded “moments of weakness, moments of despair, but not of strength and 

independence.”77

 

72 Riley, Inventing, 140. 

73 Ben Erickson, “Interview between Ben Erickson . . .,” 28 January 1970. Acc. 1455, WACC. 

74 Moynihan, xvii. 

75 Fischer, 45. 

76 Moynihan, xviii. 

77 Schlissel, 62- 63. 
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Emma followed this pattern, and left us little information about the details of her life while she operated 

the ranch. We know that she worked hard at the ranch, doing chores such as mending fences, plowing, 

gathering firewood, and tending a large garden.78

We also know that she taught her three children to read, write and count, so when she sent them to 

school when they were past 7 years old, they were advanced for their ages. After the children got older 

and went to school in the East, she noted, “I was kept very busy with my chickens and cows.” She also 

preserved a large quantity- - over 700 quarts- - of preserves, jam and jelly, fruits and vegetables “in fact all 

kinds of good things to eat.”79

In addition, Emma developed a close network of friends in the vicinity of the homestead. This support 

network may have mitigated effects of loneliness and isolation that so many other settler women 

experienced. It has been noted that settler women "were the cement which kept their own families 

together and often considered the community as a larger family which required similar efforts on their 

part."80 When the Ericksons moved to their ranch, their neighbors Ja Hu and Pauline Stafford lived 

almost within site of their new home. They became close friends. When Pauline died in childbirth, Ja Hu 

raised their children with the help of Emma.81

Women also depended on each other during childbirth. Emma had planned to go to Bisbee to deliver her 

second child, but it became apparent that she would deliver early. She immediately sent a telegram to 

Neil, who was working in Bisbee at the time. While hurrying home from Bisbee, Neil passed the 

neighboring Fife Ranch, where he learned, to his relief, of the birth of his son. Mrs. Fife, a midwife, had 

delivered the baby.82

Emma also contributed to the community. When she learned that the neighbors- - especially the 

children- - had never seen a Christmas tree, Emma decided that the children needed such a wonderful 

treat. She decorated a tree in the Erickson home, and invited the neighbors to their house for a Christmas 

party. The party became an annual event at the Ericksons’ though eventually the group got too large for 

their house, so they moved it to the schoolhouse. However, Emma continued to organize the event, and 

gave a small gift to each individual at the schoolhouse- - at one point her gifts numbered 150. Emma 

believed that these parties were an important donation that she had made to the community. She also 

believed that she had made another important contribution: Emma convinced the women in the 

neighborhood to preserve their fruit. Noting these two legacies, she added, “And now thank goodness 

everyone has a tree and also canned preserved fruit.”83 Western women’s “spirit of cooperation explains 

 

78 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, March 23 and March 24, 1893, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

79 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 

80 Fischer, 50. 

81 “Col.” Jay Hu Stafford Collection, Acc. 1700, WACC. 

82 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. William N. Fife received a land patent in 1892, about 

7 miles southwest of the Ericksons, in section 13 and 14, Township 17 South, Range 28 East. Bureau of Land Management, "Records of the General 

Land Office," <www.glorecords.blm.gov/patentsearch>. 

83 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. Introduced in Sweden from Germany, the Christmas 

tree had been a part of Christmas in Sweden since the 1700s. In the United States, the custom didn't become well known until the late 1800s; by 

the turn of the twentieth century only about 20% of the families in America had Christmas trees. 
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the particular meaning independence held for them. . . . Settlers- - male and female- - survived not by 

going it alone, but by joining together. . . . cooperation meant protection and encouragement as well as 

shared labor."84

EDUCATION 

After Emma taught her three children at home, one by one the children began their formal education. 

First, they attended the El Dorado School, the local elementary school, a couple of miles from their home. 

At that time- - the turn of the century- - local schools only went up to eighth grade. This situation was 

common in the country, and suited most families, since very few children continued on to high school. In 

the last decade of the nineteenth century, less than 10 percent of the secondary- school- age population 

attended high school, and the graduation rate was about 3 percent. “Nearly all the rest were working, 

most of them with their families on farms.”85

However, the Ericksons valued education, and wanted their children to attend high school. This decision 

may have been influenced by the excellent educational system that Emma and Neil had experienced in 

Sweden. Literacy was extremely high among Swedish immigrants to the U.S. In the period 1899- 1910, 

over 99 percent of adult immigrants from Scandinavia declared themselves able to read and write, 

compared to three- quarters of all immigrants.86 It may have also been affected by Emma’s reasons for 

leaving Sweden. When Emma’s stepmother told her that she would not allow Emma to leave home to 

receive the education necessary to become a teacher, Emma bristled. She equated the lack of education 

with becoming a servant, and she left the country as a result. Ironically, Emma was never able to continue 

her education, and instead made her living as a servant. 

With this background, Emma and Neil examined the options for their children’s education. They decided 

to send the children to live with Emma's brother Charles in Galesburg, Illinois, to attend high school 

there. With a seven- year span in the children's ages, this commitment impacted the family's life for over a 

decade. 

Being committed to their children's education was not unusual among mothers at the time. Women 

tended to be initiators and backers of having grammar schools built. In quite a few cases, women who 

lived on ranches left to spend the school months in the nearest town so that their children could get an 

education. For instance, every fall for 15 years pioneer Jane Fourr and her children "moved from their 

ranch to Tombstone, where she rented an empty house 'in which they half lived, half camped during the 

school year.' . . . Such separations were not unusual in families."87

However, being so committed to secondary level education (compared to grammar school) was unusual; 

in addition, having the children attend school so far away does indicate the strength of the Erickson's 

devotion to education. It has been said that their neighbors were quite impressed by this arrangement, 

 

84 Hallgarth, 29. 

85 Gerald W. Bracey, “What Happened to America’s Public Schools?” American Heritage (November 1997), 39 and 40; and Thomas Hine, “The 

Rise and Decline of the Teenager,” American Heritage (September 1999), 75. 

86 B. Lindsay Lowell, “The Scandinavians,” in Cayton, Mary Kupiec, Elliott J. Gorn, and Peter W. Williams. Encyclopedia of American Social 

History. Vol. 2 (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1993), 707. 

87 Fischer, 45. It is interesting to note that although Jane Fourr's neighbors described her as "a submissive woman who devotedly catered to her 

husband's needs," she organized her life around her children's education, in spite of her husband's opposition to their children attending school. 
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and they assumed that the Ericksons were quite comfortable financially. Indeed, the family would have 

been better off financially than many of their neighbors, since it was not unusual for ranching and farming 

families in southern Arizona to live at a subsistence level. Neil’s steady income from the Forest Service 

would have raised their standard of living. Relatively speaking then, the Ericksons would have had a life 

that seemed laced with luxuries such as high school educations gained in a distant state. It should be 

remembered, however, that the Ericksons strongly valued education, and were probably economically 

able to maneuver providing their children’s education by having them live with a relative. In addition, 

some arrangement regarding the tuition must have been made, since Lillian noted that when Ben and 

Hildegard went to Galesburg, they did not have to pay tuition.88

Lillian, the oldest at 13, moved to Galesburg, Illinois, to attend eighth grade in 1901; after a two- year break 

she returned for high school in 1904. Lillian was dedicated to her studies. Emma recalled, “When she 

went to high school she put her whole mind and soul into her studies so she finished her high school 

studies in two years. . . . That was considered quite a wonder.” Lillian was known in the Galesburg 

community, and Emma received many compliments about Lillian’s abilities while she was in that city.89

 

After Lillian returned to the homestead in Arizona, Emma moved with Ben and Hildegard to Galesburg.90

ENTERING THE WORK FORCE 

After finishing high school in 1906, Lillian returned home to teach at an area grammar school. We don't 

know exactly when or how Lillian first decided to work outside the home or how she chose her career; 

however we do know some aspects of the environment in which she made the choice. 

The financial situation in the Erickson family would have set the stage for her decision. Since the 

Erickson ranch couldn't support the family, Neil consistently had to work in a wage- earning job. 

Although his position at the U.S. Forest Service, which he started in 1903, improved the situation, the 

family probably had a somewhat meager lifestyle. Across the country, it was common for multiple 

members of a family to work to support the entire family. "The American working- class family formed a 

wage- earning unit because the wages paid adult men were wholly inadequate to support a family. . . . 

more than one wage earner [was] absolutely necessary to the survival of the working- class family in the 

Gilded Age and the Progressive Era.”91 Lillian's stepdaughter later noted that the financial condition in 

the family was better after Lillian began teaching, and that "much of her money went into remodeling the 

old house.”92

During the twenty- some years since Emma had entered the work force, women's role and participation in 

the work place had changed. Many more women were employed: in 1880, 16 percent of all U.S. women 

were in the labor force; by the turn of the century, the figure was 21 percent; and by 1910, the number had 

 

88 Lillian Erickson, Diary, August 1908, FRC, series 2, folder 45, fiche 64. 

89 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2; Betty Leavengood, Faraway Ranch: Chiricahua 

National Monument (Tucson, Arizona: Southwest Parks and Monuments Association, 1995), 7; and Diploma, FRC, series 12, folder 13. 

90 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2; and Hildegard Hutchison, “[Reminiscences],” n.d., 

FRC, series 4, folder 17. In 1904, the city's population was over 23,000. City of Galesburg, "City Of Galesburg Census Information," 

<www.ci.galesburg.il.us/www/communitydevelopment/census/main.htm>. 

91 Gabin in Cayton, 1547. 

92 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. 
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grown to 25 percent. In addition, the choices of careers open to women had shifted. In 1870, three of 

every five employed women in the United States were domestic servants, as Emma had been. By 1910, 

however, only one woman in four was employed in that position.93

Other aspects that were important at that time of Lillian's life were both the restrictions and the 

opportunities in occupations. Middle- class women were restricted in their choice of occupation; most 

male professions such as law, religion and medicine resisted the entrance of women. In addition, 

parameters were established regarding their employment. It was regarded incompatible, for example, for 

a woman to be both married and have a vocation. These restrictions were not simply informal norms. 

One Supreme Court ruling demonstrates the state regulation of female employment and illuminates 

attitudes toward gender, work, and politics. In Illinois, Myra Bradwell had been excluded from the state 

bar; Bradwell appealed to the Illinois Supreme Court, but in 1869 the court rejected the appeal and 

moreover, "declared that the ‘hot strife of the bar, in the presence of the public,’ would destroy her 

femininity. The United States Supreme Court upheld the lower court ruling in 1873, agreeing that the 

timidity and delicacy of the female sex made it ‘unfit it for many of the occupations of civil life.’ Bradwell

v. Illinois was widely used thereafter to defend the exclusion of women from professional careers.”94

In reaction to such social and legal restrictions, the so- called women's professions developed: teaching, 

nursing, library work, and social work. These occupations were based on traditional concepts of women's 

roles in society, such as caring for the young, sick, or poor, or serving as guardians of culture. They were 

defined as the helping professions and were shaped by the fact that at the time women were rarely given 

authority over anyone but children. Usually these professions were practiced in places that were 

homelike: hospitals, schoolrooms, libraries, and settlement houses.95

Unfortunately, the development of the women's professions did not allow women to achieve the status or 

earnings of the men's professions. In fact, as men's professions such as teaching became dominated by 

women, the occupations had the wages lowered, "declined in status and lost much of their earlier public 

recognition as professions."96 Women professionals, therefore, received less pay, had limited upward 

occupational mobility, and their work was accorded less prestige than that of men professionals.97

Teaching was an older profession, but women had come into it in large numbers only in the latter part of 

the nineteenth century. In 1860, only 25 percent of all teachers were women, while women made up 60 

percent of the profession in 1880. Boards of education took advantage of gender notions of appropriate 

wages, and consistently paid women teachers one- third to one- half less than men.98 Even so, teaching 

provided a major employment opportunity for young women since only a high school education was 

 

93 Gabin in Cayton, 1546, 1547. 

94 Gabin in Cayton, 1549. 

95 Samuel Haber, “The Professions,” in Encyclopedia of American Social History, Mary Kupiec Cayton, Elliott J. Gorn, and Peter W. Williams, eds. 

Vol. 2 of 3. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1993), 1573; and Gabin in Cayton, 1549. 

96 Haber in Cayton, 1573. 

97 Gabin in Cayton, 1549. 

98 Gabin in Cayton, 1546. 
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required to qualify one to teach elementary school. As a result, in the latter part of the nineteenth century 

young women made up the majority of the high school student population.99

During the time that Lillian attended high school, it is likely that she was surrounded by other young 

women who planned to teach. If Lillian did not have the inclination to follow that career path before 

going to Galesburg, her schoolmates' intentions could have influenced her. Two other factors could have 

influenced Lillian. Teaching was one vocation that she could pursue while living in the relative isolation 

of the Erickson homestead. And many years earlier, Emma had left her home in Sweden because of her 

vision of becoming a teacher. 

After five years of teaching elementary school, Lillian decided to return to school to earn a college 

degree.100 Lillian again moved to Galesburg, Illinois, this time to attend Knox College, beginning in 1911, 

and graduating in the class of 1915. As unusual as completing secondary school had been (with a 

graduation rate of only 10 percent in 1910), earning a college degree was even more rare, especially for 

women.101 In 1911, less than three percent of the 18- 24- year- old population attended college. Less than a 

third of the students earning undergraduate degrees in 1915 were women.102 Even so, college- educated 

women dominated the ranks of professional women in this period.103 At one point Lillian didn't seem to 

be dedicated to the concept. She observed, "It’s hard when one’s whole life and study and training have 

been toward one end—homemaking—to be compelled to find a place in the busy jostling world where 

one has little inclination to be. But if such is to be I’ll at least try to make it a little better and easier for 

other girls.104 After Lillian’s graduation, she again returned to Arizona, this time to teach at Bowie, north 

of the ranch. 

ENTREPRENEURIAL SPIRIT 

The year 1917 marked a turning point for the Erickson family. While Lillian had been attending school 

and teaching, other members of the Erickson family had been pursuing their lives. Hildegard had 

followed in Lillian's path of going to Illinois for high school, and then had also attended Knox College.105

 

In 1917, she was living at the ranch, at the age of 22. That year, her father had been transferred to Cochise 

 

99 Hine, 75. Not everyone supported the idea of women being educated and teaching school. James McKeen Cattell, psychology chairman at 

Columbia University, raged against the concepts. In 1909 Cattell declared: “Girls are injured more than boys by school life; they take it more 

seriously, and at certain times and at a certain age are far more subject to harm. It is probably not an exaggeration to say that to the average cost 

of each girl’s education through high school must be added one unborn child.” Cattell was even more strident against women becoming teachers: 

“When spinsters can support themselves with more physical comforts and larger leisure than they would as wives; when married women may 

prefer the money they can earn and the excitement they can find in outside employment to the bearing and raising of children; when they can 

conveniently leave their husbands should it so suit their fancy- - the conditions are clearly unfavorable to marriage and family. . . . There are in the 

United States about 400,000 women employed as teachers. . . . This vast horde of female teachers in the United States tends to subvert both the 

school and the family. James McKeen Cattell, “The School and the Family,” Popular Science Monthly 74 (January 1909), 91, 92, quoted in 

Rosalind Rosenberg, Beyond Separate Spheres: Intellectual Roots of Modern Feminism (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1982), 89. 

100 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d. Acc. # 1721, Western Archeological and 

Conservation Center, Tucson. 

101 Bracey, 41. 

102 U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Historical Statistics of the United States, part 1, (Washington, D.C.: GPO, 1975), 383, 386. 

103 Gabin in Cayton, 1549. 

104 Lillian Erickson, diary, March 24, 1913, FRC, series 2, folder 48. 

105 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 
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Stronghold, forty miles west. Emma chose to move with Neil, and they left the next generation of 

Ericksons in charge of the family ranch. Having been raised on the homestead, the three would have been 

familiar with the various chores and probably easily shifted to taking full responsibility. At that time 

Lillian, 29, was teaching in Bowie, but she returned to the ranch on the weekends.106 In the fall of 1918, 

Ben entered the army during World War I. After Ben left, Lillian and Hildegard continued doing the 

ranch work including riding during round- ups, working the cattle, branding, castrating, fencing, etc.107

Just before Neil and Emma left the ranch, Hildegard was lamenting her boring situation. Craving some 

non- ranching activity (and probably also wanting some social contacts and income), she devised a 

business proposition: she would cook meals for customers on Sunday afternoons. Initiating the plan, she 

sent letters to school principals in Douglas and Bisbee (over 60 and 70 miles away, respectively) offering 

home- cooked meals. Three weekends later, Hildegard’s first customers appeared. She quickly prepared 

and served them a delicious meal, complete with homemade cake. The customers were delighted with the 

meal and the locale, and spread the word among their friends. From then on, every Sunday brought 

guests to enjoy the setting and the meals.108

Hildegard’s entrepreneurial initiative demonstrates her participation in both the societal opportunities 

and restrictions of her time. By the mid 1910s, various groups and types of American women had 

undergone 

significant changes in roles, lifestyles, values, and expectations. They now participated in the public 

world in large numbers. Many were well- educated and achievement- oriented. . . . As a consequence 

of their involvement in reform crusades, the campaign for woman suffrage and other feminist causes, 

the women's club movement, women's education, the industrial and agrarian work force, and the 

development of all sectors of the economy and regions of the country, women could no longer be 

characterized as passive, dependent, and easily relegated to a private, domestic sphere. More than 

any other time, women of the Progressive Era asserted themselves as willing, able and rightful 

participants of the world.109

However, the enlargement of women's roles was based on the traditional concept of women’s roles. 

Society allowed women’s involvement in the so- called women’s professions and other public activities 

because this conduct was closely tied to the accepted conservative perception of women’s character and 

virtues. According to that concept, 

women played a very special role in society because of their female morality, virtue, and ability to 

'keep house,' whether at home or in the community, the office, or politics. Although women's 

'sphere' had definitely expanded by 1914, it was still a bounded space. Thus, it continued to be 

segregated and limited in many ways. How to resolve this separation of female and male, private 

and public, and domestic and political would prove to be an ongoing debate for many Americans 

during the years of the First World War.110

 

106 April 9, 1917, FRC, series 9, folder 1- 2. 

107 John Burnham, “[Untitled: On Lillian Riggs],” 31 May 1961, FRC, series 5, folder 9. 

108 Hildegard Hutchison, “Remembrances of Hildegard Hutchison," FRC, Series 4, folder 17. 

109 Riley, Inventing, 176- 177. 

110 Riley, Inventing, 177. 
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Hildegard’s business plan fit within this social construct by being both traditional and progressive 

simultaneously. Her activities were based on traditional roles for women: she prepared meals, and played 

the part of hostess, both traditional women’s tasks. The activities all occurred within her home, a 

traditional location for a woman’s focus. She carefully selected whom to invite to her home: school 

principals, who were respected members of society. And she served meals on Sundays, the most formal 

and traditional meal of the week. It is also interesting to note the strong link to operating a restaurant and 

boarding house, an occupation that was open to women in Emma’s generation, and one in which Emma 

took part when she lived at Fort Bowie. At the same time, however, Hildegard demonstrated her ability to 

devise a business concept, develop the plan to fit her needs, and take charge of the business. She 

identified with the new world of opportunities available to women and eagerly took her place in the 

entrepreneurial world. 

Hildegard gradually expanded the business, by boarding deer hunters at the ranch during hunting season, 

and she appealed to Lillian for assistance. Lillian was not sold on Hildegard’s guest ranch idea. She felt 

that people would look down on them.111 “The idea of charging for meals and rooms first embarrassed 

Lillian and offended her sense of hospitality.”112 Lillian apparently had trouble reconciling the concept of 

putting a price on activities that women traditionally offered at no cost. But she did help during deer 

season when hunters boarded at the ranch, and she considered her options. While teaching at Bowie, 

Lillian’s hearing had degenerated, which she attributed to a small pox vaccination she received in Illinois, 

which became infected.113 It posed difficulties in her teaching activities. With Hildegard’s new business 

taking her time, the ranch needed another hand. Eventually, Lillian decided to quit her teaching position 

and become Hildegard’s partner at the ranch.114 She also christened the guest ranch with a new name: 

Faraway Ranch. 

The women quickly decided that they needed additional guest lodging, so they purchased the nearby 

Stafford cabin in the spring of 1918.115 Together they operated the guest business, and probablt with Ben’s 

assistance they ran the ranch as well.116 They worked together until the fall of 1920, when Hildegard 

married and moved away from the ranch. At that point, Lillian took on the management of the ranch and 

 

111 Hildegard Hutchison, “[Reminiscences],” n.d., FRC, series 4, folder 17. 

112 Leavengood, 7. 

113 Richard Murray, “Richard Murray’s Visit with Mrs. Lillian E. Riggs,” 23 April 1965, Acc. 655, WACC. Medical information today indicates that 

is extremely unlikely that a small pox vaccination could have caused her hearing loss. 

114 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d. Acc. 1721, WACC; and John Burnham, “[Untitled: 

On Lillian Riggs],” 31 May 1961, FRC, series 5, folder 9. 

115 The first payment on "Stafford’s Place" was made April, 22, 1918, and the last was made February 27, 1928, a total principal of $5,200. 

"Computation of Payments and Interest on Stafford Place," n.d., FRC, series 15, folder 4. 

116 It is interesting to note that while these two women were running their ranch, the Department of Labor finally recognized the potential of 

female farm labor during World War I and began to register women for possible agricultural employment in February 1918. In that same month, 

several national organizations founded the Woman's Land Army (WLA). "Recruits were guaranteed training and a minimum wage in return for a 

promise of at least two months of service. The women worked in squads in dairying, livestock, and poultry care, fruit picking, planting, weeding, 

hoeing, mowing, and the operation of farm equipment. The demand for women farm laborers soon outstripped the supply.” By January 1920, 

when the WLA disbanded, “it had overcome the skepticism of farmers, opened new employment opportunities to women in agriculture, and 

demonstrated women's capacity for demanding physical labor." Riley, Inventing, 187- 188. 
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guest business by herself. She occasionally hired short- term help- - both men and women- - to assist her 

at the ranch and guest ranch, but most often did the work herself, possibly with Ben’s assistance.117

About that time, Lillian had apparently taken the initiative to rekindle an old relationship with Ed Riggs. 

He and Lillian had both grown up in the area, and had both attended El Dorado School. Lillian later 

described him as her “childhood sweetheart.” However, they had chosen different paths, and Riggs had 

married another woman. At that time, 19- year- old Lillian had observed, “Edd and Gaye are to be 

married next Sunday. So ends one little episode of my life. I don’t care, for I could never love Edd even if 

Mr. T.J. Riggs did want me for his daughter- in- law.”118 After Ed's wife died in 1917, Riggs had joined the 

army. Upon his return from the war, Lillian became a frequent visitor to his home in Douglas. In the 

summer of 1921 Ed began going to Faraway fairly often.119

Meanwhile, Lillian had been cultivating her writing, and in connection with that, she moved to Los 

Angeles for the summer of 1922 to take course work in writing. Riggs had wanted to go with her, but 

Lillian wouldn’t hear of it, because he would distract her instead of help her. Instead, he stayed in 

Arizona, spending much time at Faraway with his children and their aunt. In the many letters that he 

wrote to her, Riggs repeatedly expressed support of Erickson's efforts. First, he thought it was important 

for her to find a good place to live, “the very kind of place and location you like. You know, for your 

work’s sake you should have the right kind of environment.” Then he continually encouraged her: “I 

know, dearest girl, you will be very successful in your work,” and “I know you will pass the exam with a 

high score.” He also challenged her statements, and enjoyed her intelligence: "So you think schoolmarms 

are brainless, others of the fair sex too, just because we men like you that way. Do I impress you that way? 

I hope not for I love your ability as a part of the attractive you." But at the same time Riggs warned her 

not to work too hard: “What good will all the success in the world do you if you break your health in 

attaining it? . . . You know you went out there partly to rest."120

While in Los Angeles, perhaps Erickson explored the possibilities of being published; it is possible she had 

an agent who tried to sell her material. Lillian did not succeed in getting a book published, although she 

continued to write for most of her life. She later authored a manuscript about her family, written in novel 

format and titled Westward into the Sun, but she was unsuccessful in having it published. She considered 

having it published by paying a “vanity press” to print it but decided against that step.121

Ed's letters to Lillian that summer were not all work related; he wrote wonderfully romantic passages that 

expressed his love for her and their future together: “If I ever get you in my arms again I shall certainly 

never never let you go until you are my wife and methinks not then. Will you marry me dearest girl just as 

soon as possible? So we can begin making our dear home and happiness in it.”122 By the end of September 

1922, Lillian had decided to return home from California. Ed's daughter later recalled, "I think my dad 

 

117 FRC, Series 9, folder 8; and Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. 

118 Lillian Erickson, diary, January 9, 1908, FRC, series 2, folder 45. At that time, Lillian had been distracted by her unrequited love for her minister 

in Galesburg. 

119 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. 

120 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, July 26, July 14, July 31, August 8, and September 12, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 

121 [Pageant Press materials], 1960, FRC, series 14, folders 8 and 9. 

122 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, July 27, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 
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spent most of his time at Faraway from then until their marriage at the end of February (in that day and 

age, as you might imagine, creating much local gossip)."123 It is interesting to note that the woman who 

had been embarrassed by charging people for meals apparently did not have such qualms about this social 

indiscretion. 

TAKING THE GUEST RANCH TO A NEW LEVEL 

Two weeks after her 35th birthday, Lillian married 37- year- old Ed Riggs. As Lillian later recalled, "I had 

the ranch, a business, a home, though it was my parents'. Ed did not want to continue city life. He was 

not altogether satisfied with the way his children were living. We talked it over. . . . He said that he 

wanted a ranch life and would like the guest ranch business."124 Lillian seemingly had it all, while Ed 

didn’t have much of anything- - so he joined her at her business. After their marriage, Lillian and Ed 

worked together to make the guest ranch successful. While Lillian and Hildegard had catered to a small 

number of guests, Lillian and Ed apparently decided to take the business to a new level. Lillian wrote 

brochures and sent advertisements to newspapers around the country promoting their ranch, which 

brought in more guests. 

Lillian was not the only woman who promoted the dude/guest ranch business. Mary Roberts Rinehart 

wrote extensively about the West, including ranch life and dude ranches, thus providing a great amount of 

publicity for dude ranches. In many popular- periodical articles and in several books “she broadcast her 

message to thousands of readers” in the period from 1916 through 1931. "Implicit in all these articles was 

the obvious concept that women could and should visit the West. . . She emphasized that the wilderness 

of America would not survive long, and people who wanted to see the West should do so soon. . . . But 

above all Mary Roberts Rinehart extolled dude ranches and [pioneer dude ranch operator] Howard 

Eaton.” Her clear message was: “see the Old West before it is gone; enjoy the relaxation and hospitality of 

ranch life; refresh and renew yourselves in the beauty of the mountains; ride, fish, hunt, and hike. Above 

all, come to the West."125

This concept of women visiting the West was a critical turning point in the perception of the region. "The 

western tourist industry in general wooed women travelers. American entrepreneurs quickly perceived 

the benefit of encouraging female tourism. From railroad companies to such investors as Fred Harvey to 

dude ranches, entrepreneurs modified tourism- - and the western landscape- - to fit women's wants and 

needs."126 In addition, women writers, travelers, tourists and guest- ranch operators typically promoted 

such travel, and thus helped “feminize the West.” They assured other women that “they faced little 

danger and that western travel would bring them great adventures, incomparable experiences, and 

improved health. Rather than being dangerous, western travel would free women, who could tour on 

 

123 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. Hildegard later recalled, "In Ed's 

courtship prior to their marriage he was parked almost permanently at the ranch, until the talk became so common that the Erickson family 

blushed to hear it." Hildegarde Hutchison, [ca. August- September 1931], FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153, fiche 55. 

124 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

125 Lawrence R. Borne, Dude Ranching : A Complete History (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1983), 88- 89. Borne noted, “Many 

people who know of Mary Roberts Rinehart are aware of her mystery stories. But she was a woman of much broader background and depth than 

some of these stories might indicate. She was a nurse, a war correspondent during World War I, and a very active outdoorswoman, and she was 

certainly an excellent writer." She journeyed extensively through the West and Mexico and ranked as a “true traveler, not a mere tourist.” Her 

writings on dude ranches were so influential that she “even rivaled the importance of [the extensive] railroad publicity [for dude ranches] since 

some of it predated their activities.” 

126 Riley, Nature, 148. 
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their own, modify customary clothing to some degree, and take home daring tales that would make their 

friends swoon with envy."127 "These women helped authenticate the West as a real and often glorious 

place, encouraged hundreds of others to follow their westward footsteps, helped identify the West with 

improved health, and assured a growing number of feminists that western travel would offer them certain 

freedoms unknown at home."128

Women played an important role within the dude/guest ranch industry. 

Both as guests and as managers or owners, women were consistently active in the operation of 

dude ranches. While men were, not unexpectedly, mentioned more frequently as dude ranchers, 

there was no doubt in the minds of people familiar with the industry that women were an integral 

and indispensable part of dude or guest ranch success. And, after dude ranching began to grow, 

women were just as frequent guests as men on the ranches.129

"In such controlled and supervised settings, couples and families could enjoy a 'wilderness' vacation 

together. . . . Dude ranch advertising leaflets indicate that these venues provided the most freeing travel 

experience to women. The evolution of the opportunities that dude ranching offered proceeded 

rapidly."130

Struthers Burt, pioneer dude rancher and author at Jackson Hole, Wyoming agreed with women’s 

importance. “Women can make or break a ranch,” he declared. In addition, he advised those 

considering staying at a dude ranch to try to find out what the wife was like.131

In a 1947 farming publication, reporter Agnes Spring interviewed women who owned dude ranches with 

their husbands. Their descriptions demonstrated that even on a dude ranch women’s roles frequently 

followed traditional patterns. But there were also many non- traditional activities that these women 

enjoyed. The author advised the reader, "There's everything in a day's work for a dude ranch wife from 

greeting guests, pinch- hitting for the cook and planting a vegetable garden to being chief checker in a 

scavenger hunt. . . . These women are highly intelligent, gracious, fun loving, industrious business 

partners, as well as wives, of dude ranchers." However, she added, 

In addition to keeping the dudes comfortable and well- fed, the ranch wife also is responsible for 

keeping the help well- housed and happy. . . . Because the dude ranch wife is usually “on hand,” she 

is called upon continuously to give the history of near- by sites of Indian battles or ghost towns, the 

names of flowers, birds and animals. . . . To her come the tired bodies, aching muscles, legs chafed 

from riding, or knees trembling from hours in the saddle. She literally carries a bottle of methiolate 

in one hand and adhesive tape in the other. 

 

127 Riley, Nature, 135. 

128 Riley, Nature, 153. 

129 Borne, 6- 7. 

130 Riley, Nature, 150. 

131 Agnes W. Spring, "Women on a Dude Ranch," Western Farm Life Annual Livestock Review (1947): 14. 
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Mrs. Deane Glessner, a dude ranch wife, described her responsibilities to the reporter: "I took over the 

furnishing of the cabins, buying linens and bedding, overseeing the care of the cabins and planning of 

meals. As hostess, too, I plan entertainment and help to entertain." Spring explained, 

For the most part, the matter of assigning horses, planning trail trips and things of that sort are 

handled by the men of the ranch. On some ranches, however, the women help, too. Nell Leake . . . 

is one of the wives who plans horseback rides, car rides and picnics as part of her entertainment 

schedule. Of course she also manages the kitchen, dining room, laundry, correspondence, including 

reservations, is cashier and chief arranger of transportation to and from the railway station some 45 

miles away. 

Marie Carroll Salisbury also reported on being a dude ranch wife: 

She must be able to tell the new cook how to cook; the laundress how to launder; the maids how to 

wait on tables and make beds; the hired man how and what to plant in the garden. Also she knows 

how to keep drains open in bathrooms and sinks; how to keep the kerosene refrigerator running and 

is expected to know what to do in any emergency that arises. Also she plans meals to satisfy 

everyone; answers questions of the dudes about the flora and fauna of the country, as well as what to 

do about laundry, train reservations, bus schedules, plane schedules, telegrams, mail and so forth- -

not to speak of pinch- hitting for the departing cook, maid, laundress or ranch hand. Too, she must 

plan picnics and steak fries, stay up nights and play cards, and go to country dances. In my case, add 

to the above the bearing and rearing of four children, who are all now an important part of the 

organization.132

It can be assumed that Lillian Riggs took on similar responsibilities at Faraway Ranch. 

Women who visited guest ranches also influenced the industry. As reported in a popular periodical, 

“Pardner,” said a cow- puncher guide to me last summer, “I'd rather take out a bunch of dude gals 

ten times over than the same number of dude fellows. They're less trouble. They don't squawk 

about inconveniences as much. They don't want to fog away to the big hotels and the dance 

orchestras the minute we get within a shoutin' of a Yellowstone inn. They'd rather stay around 

camp, an' listen to stories about the outdoors or learn how to take of 'emselves in a pinch, or the 

fine points of a hoss. They're shore encouragin' to a cow- punch”.133

The influence of the industry on women was also observed. Horace Albright, director of the National 

Park Service, noted, 

If the dude ranch has done nothing else, it has formed a proving ground for a new type of woman, 

the kind who can go on her own; who is learning, even more rapidly than the man, the secrets of 

woodcraft, and of self- preservation; who can ride as well or better than the average male and shoot 

with equal accuracy, all because of the fact that the incentive to know these things is greater.134

 

132 Spring, 14, 150- 151, 154- 155. 

133 Courtney Ryley Cooper, "Dude, Howdy!" Ladies' Home Journal 48 (August 1931), 41. 

134 Cooper, 41. 
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 While Lillian Riggs- - and her fellow dude ranch wives-- hosted women at their ranches, they also served 

as role models for the women guests. 

When Lillian had married Ed in 1923, she became not only Ed’s wife but also the mother of two children: 

11- year- old Eula Lee, and 9- year- old Murray. The newlyweds discussed having more children. But 

Lillian later related, "One cannot manage a guest ranch, work on a cattle ranch and raise a family. I 

realized that a family of my own would limit everything for Ed's children. So we decided to make Lee and 

Murray suffice for our family." 135 As with the previous generation, education was important. Eula Lee 

(known as simply Lee as she grew older) had been educated at Douglas, Arizona up to the 6th grade, then 

attended the El Dorado School for grades 7 through 10. She was thus the third generation in her family to 

attend the small rural school. For 11th grade she was tutored at Faraway, probably by her stepmother 

Lillian, who was well suited for the role since she was a former teacher. Following in Lillian’s and 

Hildegard’s footsteps, Lee attended Knox College in Illinois from 1928- 32, where she earned her 

bachelor's degree. She decided to teach, and once again followed in Lillian’s footsteps by teaching at 

nearby El Dorado School during the 1932- 33 school year.136

We do not know why Lee chose to teach, or why she taught at the small country school. However, we 

must wonder what opportunities she saw for herself. "For women, the years between 1917 and 1929 

seemed to offer unparalleled opportunities. The war itself drew women out of their homes in 

unprecedented numbers; the postwar years witnessed the final successful push for woman suffrage; and 

the spirit of the 1920s encouraged women to express themselves as independent, sexual, and political 

individuals." However, while that era seemed to be "one of tremendous liberation for women, many of 

the changes were only superficial ones. Although American women fought on many levels against the 

stereotypes and traditional images that circumscribed their lives, they once again learned that reform 

comes with excruciating and exasperating slowness."137

Women continued to be viewed as “illegitimate competitors in the labor market” and this concept was 

stressed in campaigns throughout the depression years of the 1930s in attempts to eliminate married 

women from the work force. Federal, state and municipal governments “pressed married women to leave 

civil- service jobs,” beginning in 1930. “Three- quarters of the school systems in the United States refused 

to hire married women as teachers during the 1930s; half the systems fired female teachers who 

married.”138 In 1933, Lee left her teaching job and worked at Faraway Ranch for the next year. In October 

1935 she married Hunter Stratton. 

 

135 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

136 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. Lee paid for her senior year at 

college. FRC, series 21, folder 4. 

137 Riley, Inventing, 183. One example occurred in the Forest Service in the area. In 1917, Anita Kellogg began working for the Forest Service as a 

clerk in the Southwest; at the time the presence of a woman was unusual in the agency. Kellogg decided that she wanted to pursue a position as a 

ranger; she took the necessary examination and passed it in 1921. However, the regional office refused to approve her appoinment as a ranger 

because she was “an unattached female.” Kellogg then transferred to the Coronado National Forest, which was in the vicinity of Faraway Ranch. 

There she worked as chief clerk; she was also designated special deputy fiscal agent to pay firefighters on the Coronado, as well as firefighters on a 

fire in the Gila National Forest. Fred Winn, supervisor of the Gila at the time, objected to the assignment because Kellogg was still “an 

unattached female.” (Winn later became supervisor of Coronado, and a friend of the Erickson and Riggs families.) Nevertheless, Kellogg did 

receive a commendation from the district forester for her work on the fire as “an unattached female” and she also received an increase in pay. 

Edwin A. Tucker and George Fitzpatrick, Men Who Matched the Mountains: The Forest Service in the Southwest, (Washington, D.C.: U.S. 

Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Southwest Region, 1972), 142- 43. 

138 Gabin in Cayton, 1551. 
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Lee and Hunter were not the first- - or the last- - couple to nurture their love in the setting of Faraway 

Ranch. In fact, it happened so frequently that Lillian often commented on the phenomenon. “Romance 

and Faraway seem to be forever linked. It is indefinable, yet I think I dimly sense what it is. Faraway was 

founded and nurtured by the love of our parents. First for each other and their new home. Then by the 

love for their children. Later by the love that their children bore toward them. Still later by the love of 

those children for their mates, and by the romances that began here. Faraway, so to speak, has been 

steeped in love. This love emanates from the very canyon walls and touches those who come within its 

lingering shadows. Those who are responsive to its spell love it as no other place on earth." 139

DEALING WITH OBSTACLES 

National Park Service curator David Wallace has astutely observed, "There were at least three Lillians- -

the one who impressed her guests with her graciousness and poise; the one who fought almost constantly 

with her mother and sister and ruled her menfolk and employees with an iron hand; and the one who 

struggled within herself to cope with the frustrated ambition, the early death of her husband, and the 

devastating loss of both sight and hearing."140 As her life progressed, each of these facets of her character 

seemed to become more pronounced. 

Ed and Lillian's marriage was not idyllic, though it was probably not because Lillian didn't love her 

husband. Instead, her domineering manner- - which she used with everyone- - seemed to be the heart of 

the problem. Ed reportedly confided to their cook, "Lillian thinks I'm a little dog or something, the way 

she tries to tell me what to do and what not to do." The cook observed, "They didn't get along for nothin' 

. . . Ed didn't have much to say at all and Lillian was the whole ruler of everything."141 Ed's frustration with 

the situation apparently came to a head in 1937 when he asked Lillian for a divorce. Seemingly, the couple 

was able to resolve their issues since they continued in their marriage. 

However, at about that same time, Lillian's life began to take a turn that she couldn't control. Already 

coping with limited hearing, she began having problems with her eyes in the late 1930s, when she was 

about 50 years old. The vision in one eye became blurred, which doctors diagnosed as a cataract. 

Although they operated, Lillian lost the sight in her eye. When the vision in her other eye began to cloud, 

an x- ray revealed that there had been a dislocation in Lillian's neck. She thus staunchly blamed her 

failing eyesight on a fall from a horse that had occurred in 1923- - twenty years earlier. Lillian later 

reported that the doctors allowed that a pinched nerve in her neck might have contributed to her loss of 

sight.142 Her mother, while sympathetic, dismissed the doctors' serious diagnosis: "I am very sorry that 

your eyes trouble you so much, but I do not believe it is nearly as bad as the doctor is trying to make you 

believe." Apparently Emma based her opinion on her own experience; she had refused an eye operation 

12 years earlier, and now she stated, "I am seeing wonderfully well as it is now for a person my age and 

with only one eye. I cannot get glasses that do me any good but with the magnifying glass I can read 

 

139 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 1958, FRC, series 2, folder 56. Other couples that found love at Faraway included: Clair Cooke, custodian of 

Chiricahua National Monument and Eleanor Worthington, a guest; Ben Erickson and guest Ethel Keller, Hildegard's daughter Emajoy and Bob 

Barrel, ranger at the monument, and Hildegard's son Stanley and Cherry Kline, Lillian's secretary. 

140 David H. Wallace, Furnishings at Faraway: Historic Furnishings Report, Faraway Ranch, Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona (Harpers 

Ferry, West Virginia: Harpers Ferry Center, National Park Service, 1986), 14. 

141 Wallace, 23, citing Jessie Martin Washington interview, 1984. 

142 A.T. Steele, "The Lady Boss of Faraway Ranch," Saturday Evening Post, March 15, 1958. 
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anything, and I can see distinctly everything in the house and quite a distance out of doors."143 

Unfortunately for Lillian, her mother's opinion was off target, and by 1942 Lillian became blind at the age 

of 54. Although her doctors tended to attribute the loss of sight to cataracts, glaucoma or infection, 

Lillian stuck by her claim that the bucking horse caused her blindness.144 If she really believed this to be 

true, or if she told the story simply to create a persona for her ranch guests- - or to support her own selfimage of being tough- - is unknown. 

Lillian’s family provided emotional support for her during this time. Emma obtained prayers on behalf of 

Lillian’s sight from the Unity School of Christianity, a mail order religious group.145 When Lee's husband, 

Hunter, acquired a job in Flagstaff in the spring of 1942, Ed asked Lee to stay at Faraway for four months 

because Lillian had to leave for eye treatments. Lee later recalled, “Lillian had always refused to leave the 

ranch, even when they had good help, unless Hunter and I would come stay at the ranch; so we were used 

to taking over. I stayed on mainly because it was the only thing my father ever asked me to do for him. . . . 

It was during this time that she lost her sight. . . . It was a very difficult time for all of us.”146

Over 25 years earlier, a gentleman friend had visited Lillian at the ranch. After his departure, he wrote to 

her about his impressions: “Every bare rock and tree and anything of nature I saw just looked beautiful to 

me and I am certainly glad that I was able to see God’s handiwork for what it is and you are the one that 

opened my eyes to that, Lillian. . . . I just seem to keep discovering the most wonderful things all of which 

the windows were opened to me through you. . . . If nothing else ever comes of my knowing you I hope 

that it will be some consolation to you to know that you have opened the eyes of one man.”147

Being a woman who enjoyed seeing the beauty in every aspect of nature, blindness struck Lillian hard. 

"Life seemed hardly worth living," she later recalled. However, Lillian recognized that "my mother and 

my husband needed me, or I fear I should have lost the courage to carry on. Somehow I did."148 Soon 

after she lost her sight, she began writing- - with the assistance of a secretary- - a romanticized novel based 

on her childhood. Always one to spin images, Lillian's novel, "Westward into the Sun," presents a happy 

childhood, charming situations, and delightful stories. Perhaps during this time of crisis, Lillian found 

comfort in remembering scenes in her mind's eye, and dwelling in another (imagined) time. 

In time, however, Lillian determined to continue living her life in the same way, as much as possible. To 

do so, she had to make some changes. "Readjustment was terribly hard. I tried learning Braille, but my 

fingers were not sensitive enough. I had done so much rough work in my time." She did, however, learn 

enough to able to continue playing Scrabble, her favorite game, by using a Braille edition. "I decided I 

must learn typing and after a while I managed it." She thus was able to continue producing most of her 

 

143 Emma Erickson to Lillian Riggs, April 2, 1938, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. Emma had lost the sight in her left eye in 1899. Emma Erickson to 

Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

144 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, February 1942, Acc. 1777, WACC; Lillian Riggs to "Classmates and Friends," [1965?], FRC, series 1, box 

9. Hildegard said later, "They never really knew the cause," but that "Dr. Collins said it was glaucoma." Hildegard Hutchison, “[Reminiscences],” 

n.d., FRC, series 4, folder 17. 

145 FRC, series 1, folder 284- 287. 

146 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. 

147 Paul H. Vair[?] to Lillian Erickson, December 26, 1916, FRC, series 1, folder 300- 304. 

148 Lillian Riggs, "Summary of Westward into the Sun," [ca. April 1960], FRC, series 1, box 9. Emma, who had been widowed, was living at Faraway 

at the time. 
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correspondence, and later she typed her diary entries. "I used to be a fast walker. Now I had to learn to 

walk slowly, and I hated it."149 Lillian applied for a Seeing Eye dog, but did not acquire one. She inquired 

about occupational fields open to the blind, and used Talking Books (recorded books available through a 

Library of Congress program).150 "I was thankful to be able to continue my riding," she remembered. The 

blind woman rode horseback by holding onto a guide rope from a companion's saddle. Lillian was very 

comfortable with her horse "Britches" and often called him her "seeing- eye- horse." She also continued 

to run the business affairs of the ranch. She instructed the bank to fold money in such a way that she 

could determine the denomination of bills. When doing business with a person for the first time, she 

intentionally gave them too much money, to learn if she could trust them.151

In spite of making many valiant attempts to live her life normally, Lillian understood that she had 

limitations. For instance, she recognized that she could not look after her mother, who had returned to 

Faraway some time after Neil's death. In the late 1940s, they hired Patricia (Pat) MacDonald to serve as 

an aid to Emma. By this time, the elderly woman had become hard of hearing, and the sight in her eye 

diminished. Lillian observed, "This is Mother's home. It will remain so for as long as she lives. She is not 

as well as she was a few years ago. Then she could see, hear, and enjoy the guests. Now she cannot and 

does not. They only worry her and confuse her. She is entitled to all the peace, quiet, and services we can 

give her for the rest of her life. Which may not be long."152 MacDonald quickly became like a part of the 

family. Lillian noted, “Pat is perfectly wonderful. And she also helps me and looks after and keeps the 

house. She does too much, but that is how it is.”153

Lillian had her new routine well established when her life took another dramatic shift. In 1950, her 

husband Ed passed away. Ed had been not only her beloved “sweetheart” and spouse of 27 years, but also 

her business partner and the person who had done much of the work at the ranch. In addition, he had 

helped her in countless ways after she had lost her sight. His death struck a blow to Lillian. The widow 

may have felt disbelief, denial, numbness, anger or powerlessness, all common reactions to a spouse's 

death. 

Pat MacDonald valiantly tried to fill Ed's place as much as possible for both Lillian and Emma. She 

became a companion to Lillian in addition to Emma. Lillian later thought back, "Especially for her great 

goodness to Mother, I will always love her. She learned to drive our car, so that we did not have to stay at 

home. She read to us. Indeed, for months before Ed's passing, she read aloud to us and made our 

evenings happy. To Mother, she was kindness itself. Mother depended upon her and loved her."154 "She 

was so good and kind and considerate of Mother for so many years. She was absolutely unselfish. She 

made the last years of Mother’s life happy.”155 Lillian herself took special care of her mother, and Emma 

 

149 A.T. Steele, "The Lady Boss of Faraway Ranch," Saturday Evening Post, March 15, 1958; and "The Pioneer Spirit of Lillian Riggs," August 15, 1982, 

Acc. 1686, WACC. A master at creating images, although Lillian blamed rough work for her difficulty in learning Braille, she actually had 

inflammatory rheumatism in her hands, which made her fingers less sensitive. FRC, series 8, folder 8. She enrolled in a correspondence course 

on Braille, with the Hadlery School for the Blind in 1958, FRC, series 1, folder 119- 125. 

150 She applied for a Seeing Eye dog from the Hazel Hurst Foundation for the Blind, Inc. in 1944. FRC, series 8, folder 8. 

151 Leavengood, 14. 

152 Lillian Riggs to Evelyn Hutchison, August 11, 1947, FRC, series 1, box 9; Lillian Riggs, [1946 or 47], FRC, series 8, folder 26. 

153 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

154 Lillian Riggs, [November 1952], FRC, series 8, folder 4- 5. 

155 Lillian Riggs to Aunt Henrika and Victoria, March 24, 1956, FRC, series 1, box 9. 
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especially noted her “beloved daughter . . . who, since I have become a cripple, has given me the most 

loving and tender care and has done everything in her power to make my life pleasant and harmonious."156

In spite of the care she received, Emma's heath deteriorated; she suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and 

lapsed into a coma. During the weeks that she was in the hospital, Lillian spent most of her time by her 

mother's side. Lee again provided support for Lillian by leaving her own daughter with the child’s 

paternal grandparents so that Lee could divide her time between the Faraway ranch and the hospital. 

Only five months after Ed's death, Emma passed away at the age of 96. Her death touched her relatives 

and her many friends. Neighbors wrote to Lillian, “Your dear mother radiated sweetness, and love and 

everyone felt her sweetness. Dear Aunt Ida said that your dear Mother always stood as a wonderful 

example of refinement, because she loved art, poetry, education, and all the wonderful refined things of 

life.”157 Another correspondent proclaimed that Emma was "one of the outstanding figures of my entire 

life. I had never met anyone like her before, and, actually there aren't many like her, anywhere. When I 

think of the courage and patience and determination she displayed throughout her life, it is an 

inspiration, and I feel that it's actually a feather in my cap to have found and been able to know such a 

grand lady. . . . [she] made a genuine and most valuable impact on my life and character- - added 

something to it that would have been missing if I had never met her."158 And Lillian herself observed, "One 

word at which she scoffed was 'tired.' Many times she must have been so weary. But she would never say 

so. I was able to keep her from toil for many years. But before that, how rough and callused those dear 

hands were."159

With the loss of a spouse, psychologists expect that while the acute phase of grief can usually last up to 

two months, the grieving process typically takes at least a year, and usually up to two years. If the 

survivors allow themselves to grieve, and give their emotional wounds the time and attention that they 

deserve, then it can be anticipated that they will go through certain stages of grief. Lillian was especially 

susceptible to unresolved grief since she had been married to Ed for a long time, and had come to rely on 

him due to her blindness. But, in addition, Lillian had also suffered the loss of her mother. Combined 

with the challenges that she faced due to being blind and virtually deaf (especially the feeling of isolation), 

Lillian could not resolve her grief; she sunk into a depression that lasted for most of nine years.160

During the first year of grieving, a survivor can expect to feel despair, apathy, depression, guilt, 

hopelessness and self- doubt. They may socially isolate themselves and be irritable, and feel a loss of 

energy. There is evidence that Lillian experienced many of those feelings. "Even now, a year and four 

months later, [after Ed's death] I can hardly take it," Lillian confided in her diary. "Since then, much 

 

156 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Will],” n.d., FRC, series 16, folder 4. 

157 Emilia and Aida Berry to Lillian, Hildegard and Ben, December 19, 1950, FRC, series 1, folder 32- 39. 

158 [Margaret Smith?] to Lillian Riggs, December 14, 1950, FRC, series 1, folder 258- 264. 

159 Lillian Riggs, [November 1952], FRC, series 8, box 26, folder 4- 5. Emma's brother, Lillian's uncle Charley, with whom Lillian had lived in 

Galesburg, had also passed away at age of 88 on December 1, the same month that Emma died. Lillian Riggs, diary, September 14, 1959, FRC, 

series 2, folder 57. 

160 Information on grief and depression from U.S. National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health, Medline Plus, "Depression," 

<www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003213.htm>; John Hopkins Depression Resource Center, "When Does Grief Become Depression?" 

<www.hopkinsafter50.com/html/silos/depression/wpARTICLE_grief.html>; Pat Staten, "Stages of Grieving," 

<http://members.tripod.com/PatStaten/grief.html>; Debra Moore, "The Stages of Grieving," 

<www.planetpsych.com/zPsychology_101/stages_of_grieving.htm>. 
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sorrow is hidden in my heart." And although she knew that her family and friends had been kind to her, 

"I strive to carry on the best I may. . . . Peace is only a will of the wisp."161

However, most people are able to progress from that point, into a phase in which they begin looking to 

the future by making positive and realistic plans, returning to normal routines, laughing again, planning 

more leisure activities, and are less lonely and more involved. While they continue to think about their 

loved one, it happens less often and with less intensity; the wound heals, and the person changes. 

Eventually, the typical survivor would no longer be obsessed by loss, and would feel renewed hope and 

optimism; they would have been able to overcome the strong feelings associated with loss, and reach 

acceptance. This progress frequently is not sequential and is usually inconsistent; people often find that 

they feel fine one day and unhappy the next. However, Lillian did not successfully ease into that next 

phase after a year of grieving. She continued to express feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, dejection, 

and emptiness. For instance, during the first year of grieving, holidays and special dates are typically 

particularly painful in a normal grieving process, but after the first year the anniversaries usually become 

easier each year, while for Lillian they continued to be difficult for many years. She noted in her diary, 

“Ed was dying in Douglas Hospital four years ago today. Wish I could have gone then, too.” Almost five 

years after Ed's death, Lillian noted that it was February: “The month of my birthday and wedding. How 

many more will I see. Not many, I hope. Unless I can manage not to be so lonely and CAN manage to be 

of more use." The widow spent five Christmases elsewhere (probably at Hildegard's) before she could 

face spending the holiday at Faraway without Ed and Emma. Once past the event, she did acknowledge, 

"We had a nice Christmas in spite of my dreading it." Nonetheless, she admitted, “I shed a few tears 

during the day. Tears of loneliness, futility and hopelessness.” At that point, she noted that she had not 

been keeping up her diary entries, and remembered that a hired helper “used to say that the entries were 

for posterity. Why they, the posterity, should be interested in the works of the departed, since they have 

little interest in the living, I do not know. Perhaps [the subsequent generation] may find something here 

of interest some thirty or forty years hence. Otherwise it is best consigned to the flames.”162

In 1954, Riggs considered retiring from the ranch and moving to California. But instead of planning to 

live independently, she thought it would be better to live in a facility. Accordingly, she wrote letters of 

inquiry to a number of rest homes, retirement homes and sanitariums in California. But Lillian vacillated 

on her plan, having difficulty making a decision. Some homes replied that they did not have facilities for 

blind people, while others were encouraging.163 But by that time Riggs believed she didn't want to live in 

such a facility: "I’d really rather die first.”164 Her comment was not an indication that she was choosing an 

independent life, but rather that she hoped that she would die before she had to go to that situation. 

“What next. I really would like to call it quits. Blind and deaf. What does life hold?” she asked herself 

dejectedly.165 When times were difficult, she would reconsider her decision. On one such occasion, she 

reflected, "That is why a Home seems desirable. Once I get established there, there need be no more 

 

161 Lillian Riggs, [November 1952], FRC, series 8, folder 4- 5. 

162 Lillian Riggs, diary, June 28, 1954, February 28, 1955, December 26, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 52- 53. 

163 Lillian Riggs, diary, June 20, 1954, FRC, series 2, folder 52; Lillian Riggs to [?], Claremont, California, July 20, 1954, FRC, series 1, box 9; 

responses came from La Mesa, Tomora, Martinez, South Pasadena, La Jolla and Claremont, FRC, series 1, folders 50- 56, 171- 176; Braille Institute 

of America, Inc. to Lillian Riggs, July 7, 1954, FRC, series 1, folder 32- 39. 

164 Diary, Lillian Riggs, July 15, 1954, FRC, series 2, folder 52. 165 Lillian Riggs, diary, July 29, 1954, FRC, series 2, folder 52. 
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change till Death. Sincerely and earnestly, do I pray for that as soon as my work here is done. Not to 

linger on and on. To me, it seems that that time has about arrived.166

During these years, Lillian seemed to lead a double life. In her diary entries she confided about her loss of 

Ed and Emma and her frustration with her disabilities. But she continued her ranch work, and to the 

outside world she scorned “any suggestion that she lead a life different from others despite complete 

blindness and almost complete deafness.”167 She stoutly informed a visitor, “I had to laugh a little about 

you saying your 1953 Buick would be comfortable for me. Had you seen me pounding along in a 

Chevrolet pick- up over rough roads or none at all, starting at four a.m. yesterday and finishing around 

seven in the evening you would not be so much concerned about my comfort. But it was very nice of you 

to think of it and mention it to me. Incidentally, after a twenty- mile truck ride each way, I did about 

twenty miles on horse back, behind a bunch of cattle that we were moving from one range to another.”168

Nonetheless, her depression continued to express itself in the form of loneliness, helplessness, frustration 

and lack of direction. “O why do I have to be sightless in this lovely world? Sometimes it is almost more 

than I can bear. And then Pat tells me I look horrible- - when I do not even feel cross. Why, why, why.”169

 

The following year her trusted companion Pat decided to leave Faraway. “So I must learn once more to 

live without someone on whom I have come to depend and whom I love," Lillian disclosed. "It is like 

losing my eyes all over again.”170 Although Pat continued to help her friend, her absence was felt 

strongly.171 On one occasion, Ben had come from his home to help with the cattle for a few days. When he 

left: “I feel so terribly alone, even though Clara [her helper] is here with me. . . . God knows best. I wish I 

could read the reasons.”172

During these difficult years, her hired help- - whom she depended on more than a sighted person would- -

frequently did not live up to her expectations. Lillian had always ruled with an iron hand, but while Ed 

was alive, he was able to mitigate her autocratic style. In his absence, Lillian continually had trouble 

keeping good help. But in mid 1956 Riggs finally enjoyed some optimism when she brought on two new 

hired hands, Adeline (Del) Lemas and Donna Kramer. Lillian held great hopes for them successfully 

managing the ranch and household chores. A year after hiring them, she even acknowledged, “All of last 

year, after the girls [Lemas and Kramer] came, went far better than usual since Mother and Ed passed 

on."173 But the optimism appeared only sporadically, the situation with the women soured, and the 

optimism faded away.174

 

166 Lillian Riggs, diary, January 2, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 52. 

167 John Burnham, “[Untitled: On Lillian Riggs],” 31 May 1961, FRC, series 5, folder 9. 

168 Lillian Riggs to Wayne T. Walbridge, August 25, 1954, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

169 Lillian Riggs, diary, August 19, 1954, FRC, series 2, folder 52. 

170 Lillian Riggs, diary, January 2, 1955, January 18, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 52- 53. 

171 Lillian Riggs, diary, February 4, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53. 

172 Lillian Riggs, diary, November 3, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53. 

173 Lillian Riggs, diary, March 23, 1957, FRC, series 2, folder 55. 

174 The two women made interesting hired hands. Lillian observed, “It is purely personal and none of my business that Del should not take her 

husband’s name nor give his father’s name to her child. That Donna should ‘forgetting all others should cleave to Del—it would seem ‘till death 

do them part.’” Lillian Riggs, diary, September 16, 1958, FRC, series 2, folder 56. Lillian's allusion is to the statement found several places in the 

Bible, "Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh." Genesis 2:24. Marriage 
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It was during that time that a journalist from the Saturday Evening Post stayed at the ranch for several 

days, to write a story about Riggs, the blind woman who ran a cattle ranch. Anticipating his visit, Lillian 

revealed, “I am not excited as Del and Donna are. . . . I only hope the article will be good. Really good. It 

may be the turning point for me. And believe me, the long lane I have been travelling for seven lonely 

years has been pretty bumpy.”175 The article ultimately appeared in the magazine a year later and put a 

spin on her story that must have suited Lillian. It touted how independent Riggs was, how she was in 

control of everything, and how troubles rolled off her back; it dubbed her the "Lady Boss" of Faraway. 

Her only troubles, according to the article, related to the drought that resulted in poor grass for the cattle. 

The author stated, “Lillian was certainly a unique person and she ran that ranch, make no mistake about 

it, and she knew what was going on at all times. . . . I found it hard to believe she could not see, so at home 

was she in these surroundings.176 The upbeat and even inspirational tone of the article is ironic given that 

during the time the reporter visited, Riggs was dejected about the situation with Lemas and Kramer (and 

hired helpers in general), felt helpless in managing the ranch, and was depressed about her situation in 

general. 

An extra twist of irony is revealed when we look at a particular day during the reporter's visit. Lemas and 

Kramer had gone to the rodeo for the day; perhaps the reporter joined them since he was not at the 

ranch. Riggs spent the day at home, alone. Kramer, the cook, had not left anything on hand for Riggs to 

eat. “Being hungry at noon, was rather discouraged," Lillian noted. The situation stymied the blind 

woman, since she wasn't confident in her ability to maneuver around the kitchen preparing food. Finally, 

she was able to put together hot chocolate with bread and butter: "Did not try to make toast.” For those 

with sight, for those watching Riggs ride the range, making toast may seem a simple task, but for Lillian in 

her sightless world, the feat proved unattainable. That evening, she faced the same problem: “At six, no 

one was home. I did not know what to fix for supper.” She delayed for a while. Again, the challenge 

brought her to a standstill. Finally, Ben arrived and made dinner.177 It is particularly poignant to imagine 

Lillian on that day, sitting in the kitchen, by herself, in the dark, hungry, helpless in the face of trying to 

feed herself. 

Her depression continued, and loneliness hounded her: “Alone. Alone. How I hate these evenings all 

alone in the house. Why should I have to endure it?” 178 Yet in a seemingly contradictory twist, in spite of 

feeling lonely, she also felt resentment about being dependent on others. “If only I could take Britches 

[her horse] and go alone out into the hills where I have not been for years and years- - it might make life 

worth living again. But I cannot go anywhere alone any more.”179 She did go to visit Hildegard, but travel 

was difficult for her. One year, when trying to decide to take a train or plane to get home from her 

 

ceremonies traditionally reference the concept: ". . . for better or for worse, and to cleave only to her so long as you both shall live?" For more 

information on the couple see the chapter on ranching. 

175 Lillian Riggs, diary, March 23, 1957, FRC, series 2, folder 55. 

176 A.T. Steele, "The Lady Boss of Faraway Ranch," Saturday Evening Post, March 15, 1958, 132. 

177 Lillian Riggs, diary, March 30, 1957, FRC, series 2, folder 55. 

178 Lillian Riggs, diary, May [20?], 1957, FRC, series 2, folder 55. 

179 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 22, 1958, FRC, series 2, folder 56. 
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sister's, she expressed her frustration, "There really is no place on earth for a blind person. Or if there is, 

where is it?”180

Eventually, by the late 1950s, Riggs began seeing some hope to her situation. One highlight was her trip to 

Albuquerque to attend Oral Roberts' evangelistic meetings. She observed, "I did not receive complete 

healing though that may come later. My hearing is markedly improved and so is my whole outlook. But it 

is so hard to study and believe all alone when I cannot read. . . All meetings, except the last, which was 

given over to mass healings, were both soul winning and healing. Both succeeded. Many converts every 

night and many, many healed. If I could go again and again, I would receive both sight and hearing. I 

KNOW. As it is, our financial betterment began at the time of the meetings. Our rains, too. Oral Roberts 

believes that God intends us to be prosperous and well.”181

But her emotional improvement came sporadically. In the ninth year after Ed's and Emma's deaths, her 

mood was healthier, but Lillian still questioned her situation: “How I survived the loss of all dearest to me 

in six short months, God alone knows—and why.”182 However, that year at Thanksgiving, her diary entry, 

though mixed, did contain a ray of hope: "I have much to be thankful for- - but O for sight and hearing. 

To see and talk to little children! To be something other than a dog on a leash.” Ultimately, Lillian 

summed up 1959 as “One of the best years I have had, perhaps, since Ed and Mother went away. May 

1960 be even better.” For her to recognize that the previous year had been an improvement, and to admit 

to hope more from the next year indicates that Lillian finally was emerging from her long depression.183

Lillian's newfound optimism for 1960 may have been sparked by an event the previous autumn. One day 

in November, 1959, when Riggs was 71 years old, she received something special in the mail. “A surprise 

letter from Andy. J.P. Anderson. He so wants to come back to Faraway, forever, so he says. Wish I were 

clairvoyant. Could he be the answer to my final adjustment to life? I doubt it.”184 Riggs was indeed being 

clairvoyant when she speculated that Anderson could be "the answer." 

Andy Anderson had worked briefly for Ed and Lillian in the 1940s; he rejoined Lillian's staff in March 

1960. Anderson performed general outdoor work, as well as helping inside if it was needed. Only a few 

months after hiring Andy, Lillian enjoyed a vacation to Hawaii with Hildegard.185 Anderson wrote to 

Riggs- - daily- - while she was on her trip, describing his standard ranch work. He also revealed that he 

had taken care of some additional tasks: he cleared the family grave of weeds and bought a small bouquet 

in town for Emma's birthday, which he put on her grave; he also arranged for flowers for all the graves on 

Memorial Day. Personal, thoughtful actions like this surely pleased Lillian.186

Riggs came to depend on Anderson, and they enjoyed each other's company. Finally, she had found a 

person who worked as she liked, whom she could trust, and whose company she enjoyed. Anderson's 

 

180 Lillian Riggs, diary, January 18, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53. 

181 Lillian Riggs, diary, March 23, 1957, FRC, series 2, folder 55. 

182 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 14, 1959, FRC, series 2, folder 57. 

183 Lillian Riggs, diary, November 25, 1959, January 20, 1960, FRC, series 2, folder 57- 58. 

184 Lillian Riggs, diary, November 20, 1959, FRC, series 2, folder 57. 

185 They visited Hildegard's daughter, Emajoy, whose husband Bob Barrel was serving there as an interpreter for the National Park Service. 

186 Andy Anderson to Lillian Riggs, May- June, 1960. FRC, series 1, folders 17- 20. 
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reciprocal feelings seemed to be similar. References about each other in the correspondence between the 

pair, and in Lillian's diary and correspondence grew increasingly fond and personal. While she 

vacationed in Hawaii, (less than three months after Anderson had started work), he affectionately teased 

Riggs, “Must say I am looking forward to June 21 when the ‘Ram- Rod’ will be back on the job and things 

will be perking up again.” In 1964, Riggs wrote to Anderson while visiting Hildegard, "I miss you very 

much. Every so often I catch myself thinking, 'Andy will do that.' Only to remember you will not be in 

soon and are half a thousand miles away." Two years later, she again spent Christmas with Hildegard, and 

wrote to Andy, "You see by this that I am thinking of you- - and missing you. Since yesterday- - Monday- -

was a holiday there will be no letter from you till Thursday, if then. You may call tonight. . . . I miss you, 

and need you and want you."187 They continued their close relationship for many years. 

Over the years, Lillian's hearing had periodically benefited from medical advances. In the mid 1950s she 

noted that her deafness had been getting worse for some time. So on Hildegard's recommendation, 

Lillian flew to San Francisco to consult with Dr. Robert Chamberlain McNaught, whom Hildegard had 

heard had performed successful ear operations that often restored hearing. McNaught attributed Lillian's 

hearing loss to otosclerosis, which is the abnormal growth of bone of the middle ear. Although the doctor 

wasn't sure that an operation would help, she was anxious to proceed with it. In January 1956, he 

performed the first operation, which Riggs explained “is a new one and very few know how to perform it. 

It was not a serious operation at all." The second operation, a week later, was more severe. To Lillian's 

delight, they "helped me greatly." However, her family, friends and doctor were "quite disappointed" that 

Lillian's condition did not improve more. Riggs, for once, was more optimistic: "I know the results are 

not perfect . . . But it was so much better than the noisy incoherent world I had been living in." "I am glad 

for every little bit of additional hearing I have received. The doctor is a very wonderful man.”188

Five years later, McNaught recommended that he operate on Riggs using a new technique, considered no 

more serious than the type of operation that she'd previously had. He had attended a symposium on 

otosclerosis, and he thought there was a reasonable chance that more could be done for Riggs.189 Lillian 

readily agreed, and in February 1961, she traveled to San Francisco for the operation.190 Soon after the 

procedure, she reported, "It really has helped. I cannot discard my hearing aids but do hear so much 

better. It is like getting a new lease on life to be able to hear as much better as I do.” Anderson told her 

that the $460 for the operation was "the best money I ever spent." However, the improvement seemed to 

be inconsistent. "It helped tremendously at first. Now, three months later, the help is doubtful. Some 

days it is much better. At other times my hearing is very weak. I still use the hearing aid. Andy says the 

 

187 Andy Anderson to Lillian Riggs, May 22, 1960, FRC, series 1, folder 17- 20; Lillian Riggs to Andy Anderson, December 29, 1964, FRC, series 1, 

older 243- 253; and Lillian Riggs to Andy Anderson, December 28, 1966, FRC, series 1, folder 243- 253. 

188 Lillian Riggs, diary, March 15, 1956, FRC, series 2, folder 54; and Lillian Riggs to Aunt Henrika and Victoria, March 24, 1956, FRC, series 1, box 

9. 

189 Dr. Robert Chamberlain McNaught to Lillian Riggs, November 14, 1960, FRC, series 8, folder 55. 

190 McNaught “replaced a bone in the middle ear with a plastice." Lillian believed that the stapes was the bone that was replaced, which is 

consistent with treatment for otosclerosis. Lillian Riggs, diary, May 26, 1961, FRC, series 2, folder 59. The stapes is one of the three bones in the 

middle ear; it transmits sound to the inner ear. In otosclerosis it becomes fixed and does not transmit sound as efficiently. One treatment 

involves removing a portion of this bone and placing a prosthesis to transmit the sound. The disease is frequently found in young women, as 

Lillian was when she first recognized her hearing problem. Otosclerosis was once very common, but with fluoridation of drinking water the 

incidence of the disease has been dramatically reduced. Kevin Kavanagh, MD, FACS, "Ear Nose & Throat- U.S.A.," 

<www.entusa.com/stapedectomy.htm>. It is interesting to note that the public water supply of the city of Galesburg, Illinois, where Lillian lived 

prior to becoming deaf, contained naturally occurring fluoride at 2.2 ppm., notably higher than usual. American Dental Association, "Fluoride and 

Fluoridation," <www.ada.org/public/topics/fluoride/facts- benefit.html>. 
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improvement is there, but I am not sure except at times. And when and if my hearing finally goes, what 

then?"191 And, indeed, her hearing again deteriorated. By the late 1960s Riggs described herself as being 

"very deaf." Based on information in her letters, Dr. McNaught believed that her nerve had deteriorated, 

and that nothing could be done to improve the situation. She wore the best hearing aid that she could 

find, which helped, but did not give her good hearing. She reported that the condition was both very 

disheartening and annoying to her and to her associates.192

Around that time Anderson left Faraway suddenly, due to some financial and legal matters, and the 

prospect was that he wouldn't return. He wrote to Lillian, "You will never know how I miss you. 

Through our close work together you had just become a part of my life, and it seems every day I am 

reminded of this fact . . . I am grateful to you for at least seven wonderful years. It sure would be nice to 

just sit down again just one evening and visit with you."193

 

But he did, indeed, return to Lillian's side; this must have been a great relief to the blind woman, since 

Anderson had become indispensable to her: "To some extent I have gotten around my lack of sight with 

the help of Andy and my other understanding friends. Andy, Mr. Anderson, has been with me for so long 

[ten years at that point] that his help is invaluable. . . . Andy and I have done everything by ourselves. We 

plan the meals together. I do some of the preparations and he does the stove work. Friends say I see with 

my fingers. As fingers and stoves do not always work well together Andy must do a lot of the actual 

cooking. He's most excellent and willing. He does considerable of the cleaning, as I cannot see all that 

needs to be done. I make beds, do some cleaning and wash dishes. But I am slow and this is most nerve 

wracking," she observed.194

Her notes to Anderson became more personal over time, revealing that their relationship became closer. 

In a birthday note she wrote: "You must know, Andy Dear, how very much you mean and have meant to 

me for the past eleven years. You know also, I believe, how much I would like to give you something on 

your birthday to remember me by when I am no longer with you. You tell me that I mean much to you. It 

comforts me when things go wrong, to know that you do care. . . . And please, dear, remember that my 

love goes with [the gift]."195 A short while later, she wrote, "I want to thank you for the countless things 

you have done for me without stint. For the kind man that you are- - one of the kindest that God has ever 

made- - I wish for you every happiness that the world can bestow upon you, and that His richest blessings 

may go with you always. I love you and pray that you may have a good life and a happy one."196 Their 

loving relationship was apparent to others as well. A friend had tried to persuade Lillian to marry 

 

191 Lillian Riggs, diary, March 9, 1961, May 26, 1961, FRC, series 2, folder 59. 

192 Robert C. McNaught, M.D. to Lillian Riggs, May 12, 1969, FRC, series 1, folder 184- 191. "Some voices come to me clearly. Others do not. . . 

.Some people think that loud speaking is the answer. It is not. It is only confusing. It is necessary that the person speaking come close and raise 

the voice somewhat. Not too loud and not too fast. Enunciation must be clear." Lillian Riggs to Ida Mae Campbell, Frederica, Delaware, [June 

1969], FRC, series 8, folder 26. The diagnosis of nerve damage is consistent with otosclerosis; the disease can involve abnormal new bony growth 

in the inner ear, which causes damage to the hearing nerve. It is not unusual to have otosclerosis involving both the stapes bone and the inner 

ear, resulting in both a conductive hearing loss and a nerve hearing loss. Midwest Ear Institute, "Otosclerosis," 

<www.midwestear.com/educatq.htm>. 

193 Andy Anderson to Lillian Riggs, May 5, 1967. What is the series and folder number?? 

194 "Since I do not see I must have things where I know exactly where they are. . . . I must be able to find things in the dark, as my mother used to 

say." Lillian Riggs to Ida Mae Campbell, Frederica, Delaware, [June 1969], FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 26. 

195 Lillian Riggs to Andy Anderson, [1971?], FRC, Series 1, box 9, folder 243- 253. 

196 Lillian Riggs to Andy Anderson, December 17, 1972, FRC, Series 1, folder 243- 253. 
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Anderson. And Hildegard asked Lillian and Andy if they were already married. The couple scoffed at the 

idea, but Hildegard still wondered if they were telling the truth.197

In 1970, when she was 82, Riggs finally closed the remnants of her guest ranch, but she continued to 

maintain management of her cattle operation. "Though not a rancher originally, Andy helps me and we 

do most of the work of looking after our stock and water. We have help with branding, etc." A friend 

noted, “You were mistaken if you ever tried to tell her about the grass [on the range]. She knew what it 

looked like because she got down on her hands and knees and felt it, and she would tell you whether it 

was ample cow feed or not.”198 An observer noted that she knew each individual cow. “At shipping time, 

when each cow is run into the chute, she personally feels over the body and ‘mouths’ it to determine the 

condition of the teeth and age of the animal. She makes the final decision on which animals to keep and 

which to sell.199

In addition to still enjoying riding her horse on roundups, in her early 80s Riggs still performed 

household duties. A visitor in 1971 was impressed that Riggs made the coffee, brought it out on a serving 

tray, gave each of the guest a cup, and took her place at the head of the table. Riggs also proudly 

explained, "I can make my bed, sweep the floors, iron my own clothes, and I can get a bucket of water 

from the well near the kitchen door." She also enjoyed attending the Cowbelles' meetings, where she 

chatted with longtime residents. She asked her visitor if he "thought it was a beautiful drive up the 

canyon from her house; she said she could see it each day from memories."200

Besides staying physically active, "She kept herself well informed through the difficult task of having 

everything read to her. She had a keen mind and was highly articulate, and she carried on extensive 

correspondence.”201 A friend said of her, "Lillian Riggs was a timeless person. She was fearless, 

independent, and stubborn. And what an asset that trait can be to someone with her handicaps. She may 

have looked small and frail, but she was steel. There were times when some might have thought her 

demanding, but she never expected more of others than she did of herself."202

But this indomitable woman was not immortal; Lillian suffered a heart attack that left her incapacitated. 

Her remaining years were spent in the hospital or a nursing home, until her death at the age of 89, on 

 

197 Hildegard Hutchison to Ben and Ethel Erickson, October 21, 1994 [1974?], FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. "I may not live to find out if you are 

married to Lillian or not. I never have known why the secrecy." Hildegard Hutchison to Andy Anderson, August 9, 1976, FRC, series 1, folder 128-

153. 

198 Sally Klump, “A Tribute to Lillian Riggs,” newspaper title not indicated, [1977], Acc. 1726, Miscellaneous Faraway Information, WACC. 

199 John Burnham, “[Untitled: On Lillian Riggs],” 31 May 1961, FRC, series 5, folder 9. 

200 Ervin Bond, Cochise County, Arizona: Past and Present (Douglas, Arizona: Ervin Bond, 1982), 46. In 1939, fourteen cattlemen's wives met at the 

Cowan Ranch in Douglas, Arizona, with the idea of forming an organization for women associated with the beef industry. "The stated purpose of 

this group was purely a social one. The women wanted to build friendships and simply have a place to talk with other women with common 

experiences." The group named itself The Cowbelles; in 1947, the Arizona State Cowbelles was officially formed. Despite the stated purpose, The 

Cowbelles grew to be a bigger, more influential group than ever envisioned. In 1952, the organization became national with the formation of the 

American National CowBelles. What began as a social circle, developed into a political, economic, and active group of goal- orientated women. 

Jessica Nierad, "Making a Living & Building a Life: Ranchwomen in Early Arizona History," <www.u.arizona.edu/ic/mcbride/ws200/nierhist.htm>; and Texas CattleWomen, "History Of The Cattlewomen's Organization," <www.texascattlewomen.org/procedurespage4.htm>. 

201 Richard Y. Murray, “Lady Boss of Faraway Ranch,” newspaper title not indicated, [1977], Acc. # 1726, Miscellaneous Faraway Information, 

Western Archeological and Conservation Center, Tucson. 

202 Sally Klump, “A Tribute to Lillian Riggs,” newspaper title not indicated, [1977], Acc. 1726, Miscellaneous Faraway Information, WACC. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Women of the West 

103

April 26, 1977.203 The family allowed Anderson to stay on at Faraway as a caretaker. But Lillian's beloved 

Andy died suddenly of a massive hemorrhage only eight months later, on Christmas Eve.204

 

203 Leavengood, 15. 

204 Wallace, 40. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Women of the West 

104

Illustration 8. Guest at Faraway Ranch, 1920s. 

Illustration 9. Dudes arriving at Faraway Guest ranch, 1920s. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

105 

THEME IV: TOURISM AND GUEST RANCHING 

"The old West is almost gone. Now is the time to see it- - not from a train window; not, if you can help it, from an 

automobile, but afoot or on horseback, leisurely, thoroughly." 

Mary Roberts Rinehart, 1916 

BACKGROUND: TOURISM IN THE WEST 

Faraway Guest Ranch arose during a time of developing tourism in the West, and was a product of its time 

and place. However, even tourism the West in the 1910s did not suddenly emerge, for it had its own 

precedents. In order to understand the Faraway Guest Ranch, it is helpful to understand the history of 

tourism in the West, and indeed the nature of tourism itself. 

Anthropologist Victor Turner suggested, “tourism falls within a spectrum of human activities, present in 

almost all cultures, which consist of ritualized encounters with the ‘Other.’”1

 Turner argued that these 

deliberate encounters allow individuals to experience what it means to be of “this place” and “these people.” 

The “Other” in the ritual might be nature, or people or even the past. “Within a modern, industrialized EuroAmerican market economy, we call these encounters ‘tourism.’”2

Tourism can also be viewed as a "social ritual that renews meaning and person through a structured, periodic 

break from everyday life."3

 “Like other rituals, tourism involves a 'structured break from ordinary reality,' a 

movement away from the world of home, work, and compulsory activity to an 'extraordinary world' away 

from home where leisure and voluntary activity are the stuff of experience.”4

Tourism on a sizable scale can only be sustained if four preconditions are met: 

• “First, tourism requires the existence of a population with a combination of disposable income and 

leisure time. 

• Second, an adequate transportation system must be in place. 

• Third, travelers must be assured that upon reaching their destinations they can find relatively safe and 

comfortable accommodations. 

• Fourth, enough information must be available to excite imagination and encourage people to leave home 

for sites unknown."5

These four preconditions are key to understanding the development- - and the impact- - of tourism in the 

West; they will be referred to repeatedly in this text. “By the late 1820s these requirements had been met in 

the United States, at least at a very basic level, and Americans as well as visitors from foreign countries set out 

in search of adventure, education, and amusement.”6

 But the preconditions did not exist in the region that 

would become the western U.S., and would not for decades to come. 

 

1

 Susan Rhoades Neel, “Tourism and the American West: New Departures,” Pacific Northwest Review 65, no. 4 (November 1996): 521. 

2

 Neel, 522. 

3

 David M. Hummon, "Tourist Worlds: Tourist Advertising, Ritual, and American Culture," Sociological Quarterly 29, no. 2 (1988): 179. 

4

 Hummon, 181. 

5

 Patricia Mooney- Melvin, "Harnessing the Romance of the Past: Preservation, Tourism, and History; Historic Sites as Tourist Attractions," The Public 

Historian 13, no. 2 (Spring 1991): 36. 

6

 Mooney- Melvin, 36. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

106 

TOURISM IN THE WEST: PRE- 1870s 

“First, tourism requires . . . disposable income and leisure time." 

The distribution of wealth in the United State during the nineteenth century limited the availability of 

disposable income and leisure time to a selected elite class. While this class did travel for pleasure, the elite 

generally chose to travel to Europe and other “civilized” areas where lavish resorts catered to their desires. 

Members of other economic classes did not tend to travel, due to a lack of disposable income and leisure time. 

"Second, an adequate transportation system must be in place": 

Travel in the West, until the 1870s, was difficult, and so tourism in the West was extremely limited. 

Transportation was limited to rather simple and physically trying modes, such as stages, horseback and 

walking. People who did travel to the region for pleasure were primarily hardy individuals who wished to 

experience an adventure, and frequently were hunters or sportsmen. 

"Third, travelers must be assured that upon reaching their destinations they can find relatively safe and 

comfortable accommodations": 

Fear of the unknown conditions of the West deterred many travelers. Concerns about Indian violence 

comprised a major reason for not choosing the West as a pleasure destination. In addition, limited services 

awaited the traveler if they did travel to the West. Travelers also perceived strange landscapes, inhospitable 

climate, a lack of familiar foods, and a generally rugged lifestyle as blocks to a desirable touring experience. 

"Fourth, enough information must be available to excite imagination and encourage people to leave home for 

sites unknown": 

Many early visitors to the West learned to “scorn the land and its human heritage. It was the epitome of 

ugliness and emptiness.”7

 This notion had to be swept aside by promoters of the region, as they tried to 

convince Easterners that the West was just as modern, safe and comfortable as the East. They stressed the 

economic advantages of the new lands, and emphasized the financial rewards of living and investing in the 

West. However, in general, the promoters did not try to convince tourists to come to the West- - they needed 

settlers and investors, not tourists. As a result, there was a dearth of information available to wealthy 

Easterners that would convince them that the West would be a desirable tourist destination. 

TOURISM IN THE WEST: CA 1870 – 1890s 

"First, tourism requires . . . disposable income and leisure time": 

In the 1870s and 80s, the touring public continued to consist primarily of a small elite class. These affluent 

tourists could afford to be absent from their business and home concerns during the month or more that they 

traveled; in addition, they could afford the sumptuous accommodations that became available to them during 

the era.8

 European travel continued to exceed the U.S., especially for women. “But for men, or rather for 

sportsmen,” wrote an English visitor, “America offers an unrivalled field.” While hunters and sportsmen had 

traveled through the West in the era before the railroad, the new transportation mode provided more 

opportunities for them to explore the region.9

 

7

 Earl Pomeroy, In Search of the Golden West: The Tourist in Western America (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1957), 158. 

8

 Marguerite S. Shaffer, “’See America First’: Re- Envisioning Nation and Region through Western Tourism,” Pacific Northwest Review 65, no. 4 

(November 1996): 569. 

9

 Pomeroy, 73. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

107 

Another category of traveler came to the West in the era: those seeking health. The clean dry air of the West 

attracted the tubercular, and mineral springs attracted others with promises of well being at their sites.10

 

Sufferers who could afford it came to the resorts that sprang up around resources deemed to be the source of 

good health. 

"Second, an adequate transportation system must be in place": 

Railroad companies were the keystones that enabled tourism to truly begin in the West. During the era, four 

major railroad lines advanced across the West, providing improved access to the region. Travel became more 

reasonable in time, cost and in creature comfort. However, since costs were still high, and distribution of 

wealth restricted, the railroads catered to the upper class, which easily paid for the elegance of Pullman palace 

cars.11

"Third, . . . relatively safe and comfortable accommodations:" 

The rail companies did not limit their influence simply to providing transportation. They also realized that 

travelers must have comfortable accommodations at their destinations, since the tourist of this era generally 

wanted the West to provide accommodations and transportation that conformed closely to those of the East. 

Thus the railroad companies built lavish resorts at desirable locations, often using architectural styles 

patterned after European or eastern- - rather than western- - models. Hence, leisure travel became more 

comfortable in the West.12

In Arizona, promoters recognized that many aspects of its reputation- - including its wild nature, strange 

landscape, exotic character, and desert environment- - frightened or repelled potential visitors. From the 

early 1870s, they sought to encourage visitors to Arizona by working to "undermine existing fear- soaked 

stereotypes, particularly of Indian violence.” They assured Easterners that they could rely on Arizona being a 

safe and familiar place.13

"Fourth, enough information must be available to excite imagination and encourage people to leave home for 

sites unknown": 

This fourth necessary precondition was critical to the success of nascent tourism in the West, and once again, 

the railroad companies played a large role. Realizing that there was a need for destinations that tourists 

would want to visit, railroad companies took it upon themselves to extensively publicize “the wonders of the 

Western landscape.”14 The companies created numerous travel guides and packaged tours to educate 

Americans, promote travel in the West, and thus encourage railroad passenger traffic. The Northern Pacific 

Railroad inaugurated its ‘Wonderland’ series in 1883, lauding the breathtaking scenery of Yellowstone 

National Park and other attractions; and the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad advertised itself as the ‘Scenic 

Line of America’ with its ‘Around the Circle’ tours. The Southern Pacific Railroad, which traversed Arizona, 

launched a promotional campaign through its publication of Sunset magazine.15

 

10 Pomeroy, 118. 

11 Shaffer, 569. 

12 Anne F. Hyde, "Tourist Travel," in The New Encyclopedia of the American West, ed. Howard R. Lamar (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1998), 1118. 

13 Marienka J. Sokol, "From Wasteland to Oasis: Promotional Images of Arizona, 1870- 1912," Journal of Arizona History 34, no. 4 (Winter 1993): 358, 387. 

14 William Cronon, “Landscapes of Abundance and Scarcity,” in The Oxford History of the American West, Clyde A. Milner II, Carol A. O’Connor, and 

Martha A. Sandweiss, (New York: Oxford University Press, 1994), 629. 

15 Shaffer, 564. 
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108 

The advertisements that the railroads began are classic examples of tourist advertising; the format continues 

to the present time throughout the travel industry. Assuming that tourism is a ritual of personal renewal 

through a break from everyday life, tourist advertising can then be viewed as the vehicle that “symbolically 

transforms ordinary places and times into extraordinary tourist worlds." Tourist advertising presents "tourist 

worlds as places of plentitude, nature, leisure, history, and paradise, thus transcending the earnest reality of 

urban, everyday life."16 The residents are often presented as "interesting, unusual, yet typical people- - the kind 

who help you get to know their" place better. These places, "rich in history, are places for a journey into the 

past, discovering the romance of a special moment when times were better."17 These interpretations of places 

are critical since they enable the traveler to perceive the meaning of the place. As historian Hal Rothman has 

noted, “Without a vision of its cultural meaning . . . the Grand Canyon would remain no more than a remote 

geologic oddity.”18

Resident boosters also promoted Arizona during this era, although instead of promoting tourism, they tended 

to emphasize the territory as a place in which to invest or reside. They stressed the region’s “agricultural and 

business potential, as well as its similarities to other, more 'civilized' regions of the United States." They 

constructed an image of “a place where opportunity and prosperity- - and even a little adventure- - awaited all 

who came."19

TOURISM IN THE WEST: 1890 - 1904 

This era marked a significant shift in tourism in the West: travelers changed, transportation improved, the 

message being delivered about the West shifted, and the West changed in the process. It was during this era 

that tourism finally occurred in such substantial size that concerns about the preconditions for tourism 

subsided; preconditions for tourism became less relevant in subsequent eras. 

"First, . . . disposable income and leisure time": 

In the 1890s, tourism in the West began shifting from the wealthy or influential few to more numerous groups. 

Conventions and exhibitions became important in the 1890s, and these activities drew greater numbers of 

visitors, many of whom were not of the elite class. As the nineteenth century closed, tourism grew closer to a 

mass phenomenon, as people came to have more income and more leisure time; even so, the elite still 

dominated the activity. The new travelers also demonstrated an enjoyment of outdoor activities.20

In addition, unhealthy travelers became fewer in number as “chambers of commerce were solicitously 

seconding the advice of physicians who warned against undertaking the trials of a journey westward when 

seriously ill." However, mineral springs were still popular sites for health seekers.21

 

16 Hummon, 179. 

17 Hummon, 200. 

18 Hal K. Rothman, “Selling the Meaning of Place: Entrepreneurship, Tourism, and Community Transformation in the Twentieth- Century American 

West,” Pacific Northwest Review 65, no. 4 (November 1996): 526. 

19 Sokol, 358, 387. 

20 Mooney- Melvin, 36; and Pomeroy, 136, 139, 145. 

21 Pomeroy, 119. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

109 

"Second, an adequate transportation system": 

Western scenery became more accessible in the 1890s, with the construction of scenic railroad lines, 

shortlines, and branches. These lines branched out from the main lines, forming a network of veins across 

the West. Railroad travel became more comfortable for more people, as well. During this time the railroads 

utilized an improved tourist Pullman sleeping car, “symbol of a new era in tourism” because it was neither 

luxurious, nor exclusive.22

Railroad rates also improved during this period, as a result of rate wars in 1886- 87. When the prices dropped 

for the year, the railroads drew “settlers, speculators, and adventurers”- - not tourists exactly, but travelers 

nonetheless. As a result, the railroads began discovering the profitability of selling Western travel on a large 

scale.23

"Third, . . . relatively safe and comfortable accommodations:" 

By the 1890s, the West became “less formidable to American eyes,” because the region “had changed with the 

rest of the nation and because the eyes that looked at it had changed. . . the West was no longer physically 

dangerous, nor was it psychologically so disturbing as it had been; it was on its way to becoming civilized 

enough so that Westerners need not insist on the point.”24

"Fourth, enough information must be available to excite imagination and encourage people to leave home for 

sites unknown": 

The most dramatic aspect regarding the marketing of the West in this era involved the changing attitudes 

towards the region’s history and its natural scenery. By the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the 

nation became “more self- assured, less conscious of inferiority to the Old World.”25 Hence, Americans 

attempted to define “a cultural heritage for themselves apart from the European legacy that they had long 

revered and sought to emulate.”26 Tourism of the era was motivated not only as a diversion “but also more 

importantly by a need 'to define America as a place' and 'take pride in its special features.'”27 This heritage 

combined both the unique human history and the spectacular natural wonders of the West. 

Nowhere was this shift more apparent than in the Southwest. While the desert climate and aesthetics had 

been dismissed previously, now Easterners- - and even Europeans- - discovered that the region possessed “the 

most authentic claim to aesthetic merit in all of the United States.”28 They tried to justify their earlier 

misconceptions regarding the desert’s bad reputation, by claiming it was “‘chiefly founded upon the hasty 

observations and reports of dusty transcontinental travelers, car- weary for three or four days, the edge of 

their interest quite blunted with longing for the green wonders and soft sunshine of California.’”29

 

22 Shaffer, 569; and Pomeroy, 123. 

23 Pomeroy, 122. 

24 Pomeroy, 139. 

25 Pomeroy, 139. 

26 Rothman, 526 

27 Mooney- Melvin, 37 citing Sears, 4- 5, 211- 13. 

28 Pomeroy, 159. 

29 Pomeroy, 161- 162 citing Ray Stannard Baker, “The Great Southwest,” Century Magazine 64 (May- June 1902). 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

110 

Indeed, a major shift occurred in which the characteristics of Arizona that had previously been “ignored or 

derided” now became the center of their promotional efforts. Image- makers- - including railroads, 

commercial clubs, chambers of commerce, hotels, and touring businesses- - spotlighted Arizona's unique 

qualities, rather than downplaying them as had previously been done. Promoters praised the territory's 

“exotic climate, adventurous lifestyle, natural landscape, and even its Native American population.” So 

successful were promoters in their efforts that, “ironically, by the early 1900s, visitors traveled west to see for 

themselves the very things that had once frightened or repelled them."30 Indeed, Americans developed but “a 

sentimental attachment to the remnants of a cruder West that persisted.” As Americans became more 

urbanized and modernized, they “groped for links to the past."31

However, this sweeping trend towards interest in the heritage of the West brought along some problems. In 

an effort to make the West all the more appealing, liberties were taken with the facts, and images were 

embellished. Dime novels, Wild West shows, and other forms of popular culture presented exaggerated 

versions of life in the West. “The Western resident himself . . . showed the Easterner what he wanted the 

Easterner to see as well as what the Easterner himself wanted to see, and often the two images were not much 

different.” The cowboy became one icon in the new imagery. Introduced to the populace through writings 

such as Owen Wister’s The Virginian, the cowboy of popular fiction personified “the rising mood of resistance 

to engulfing civilization." Before long, “a maze of mythology” developed that made the frontier seem “wilder 

than it was when it was wildest. The legend of nineteenth- century Western barbarism and violence may have 

been in large part the work of twentieth- century promoters and escapists.”32

In a classic example of life imitating art, the West has been shaped by tourism. Within tourism, “cultural, 

social, economic, and environmental forces [are] at work in transforming the West. . . .Tourism has long been 

important to the western economy, but ‘equally significantly’ it has been central to the reshaping of western 

culture.”33 For the tourist “never simply tours through the West; he changes the West when he looks at it, . . . 

because Westerners change the West into what they think he wants it to be, or, with less commercial intent, 

even change themselves into what they think he is.”34

TOURISM IN THE WEST: 1905- 1909, SEE AMERICA FIRST 

Although great strides had been made regarding tourism around the turn of the century, there were still 

improvements to be made. It wasn’t until 1901 that a spur line was completed to the rim of the Grand Canyon; 

the El Tovar Hotel there wasn’t completed until another four years had passed. In 1905, access to scenic 

national parks such as Yellowstone and Yosemite remained difficult. Even with the new developments, 

western travel remained expensive. Touring Europe and frequenting eastern resorts continued to be more 

accessible and less demanding than travel in the West. A periodical at the time noted these conditions when it 

stated that travel in America was “’costly and takes strength of purpose.’” The editorial also observed that it 

was “very easy for the average tourist to travel in Europe and ‘rather difficult to travel in our own West.’” In 

sum, the West “offered little to the average tourist unless he was an avid hunter or had some business 

 

30 Sokol, 358. 

31 Pomeroy, 109. 

32 Pomeroy, 72, 109, 71. 

33 Neel, 517. 

34 Pomeroy, vii. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

111 

prospect to occupy his time and attention.”35 Many American tourists agreed, and continued to make Europe 

the destination of their travels. 

In 1905, Fisher Sanford Harris, the manager of a luxury hotel in Salt Lake City, conceived of an idea to counter 

that trend by drawing tourists to the West. He rallied together political and civic leaders to cooperatively 

promote travel to the West for the benefit of the nation. Their slogan “See America First” identified the 

“‘gigantic advertising scheme for the Western country,’” which became a massive effort in the West. Between 

1905 and 1909, the campaign advertised “‘the beauties and resources of the western states through a campaign 

of education’”36

The movement was two- pronged: economic and educational. Backers stressed that the country was “annually 

drained of an immense sum of money spent in foreign travel.” They also believed that the West possessed 

“scenic attractions surpassing those of any other portion of the world;” however, they also believed that 

American tourists travelling to Europe were in “’comparative ignorance of the scenic, climatic and industrial 

advantages’” of the West. The promoters- - who included railroad agents, hotel managers, authors and 

newspapers- - dedicated themselves to advance the West by bringing the region to the attention of the East. 

Campaign supporters continued the intellectual tradition that had begun in an earlier era, assuring anxious 

Americans that our “landscape with its natural resources and magnificent scenery” surpassed the Old World’s 

resources. Natural wonders were celebrated as “America’s alternatives to the castles, cathedrals, and ruins of 

Europe.”37

Harper’s Weekly supported the campaign; however, the periodical advised that “the success of See America 

First depended on whether traveling in the west could be made ‘easier and less expensive, and certainly 

entertaining.’”38 The campaign organizers agreed that developing the infrastructure was crucial and 

encouraged the building of hotels, rest rooms and resorts.39

The means for accomplishing their economic and educational goals was “’a propaganda of patriotism;’” 

pooling their resources, they adopted the business and promotional techniques of the day. Writers who 

supported the campaign employed the images of the West as they suited their needs: the mythology of the old 

West nestled alongside the booster portrayals of progress. They juxtaposed “fictional tales about old- time 

cowboys and Indians with stories that touted the success of water reclamation and new, technologically 

advanced mining practices.”40

Boosters of See America First saw the touring experience as the means by which Americans could “escape 

from modern living and from commercial and urban corruption into a world where virtue was assured by God 

and nature and where patriotism could flourish.” Fisher Sanford Harris observed, “’The number of jaded, 

overworked men and women of the crowded cities, who feel in their hearts the irresistible ‘call of the wild,’ is 

 

35 Shaffer, 567, 568, and 569 quoting Harper’s Weekly, vol 49 (December 2, 1905), 1731. 

36 Shaffer, 563. 

37 Shaffer, 565, 566, 571. 

38 Shaffer, 568 quoting Harper’s Weekly, vol 49 (December 2, 1905), 1731. 

39 Shaffer, 571. 

40 Shaffer, 565, 571, 574. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

112 

greatly increasing.’”41 Apparently the supporters of the movement didn’t see the irony in their promoting and 

utilizing commercial development while proclaiming that the West’s pristine natural wonders would provide a 

“therapeutic escape from the ills of urban- industrial society.” Tourism seemed to “embody the best of both 

worlds: the virtues of nature combined with the benefits of commerce.”42

TOURISM IN THE WEST: 1910’s 

See America First continued to be a rallying cry in the 1910s, although not under the direction of a specific 

organization, and not directed specifically at the West. However, in the later teens, when the turbulence in 

Europe made travel there difficult or impossible, the term took on a new emphasis. As travelers turned their 

sites away from Europe, many of them visited western locales. At the same time, the continuing rise of the 

middle class- - which resulted in the wider distribution of disposable income and leisure time- - created a new 

group of vacationers. Serving this mass of people became more important to the tourist industry than catering 

to a small group of elite. Large profits “came not from serving squab to the few but from selling gasoline, 

hamburger sandwiches, and postcards to the many."43

The 1910s saw the pairing of two other important trends. Tourists pursued outdoor activities, not only seeking 

the comforts of resorts as earlier travelers had done. In addition, people expressed a concern that our natural 

resources and old lifeways in the West were slipping away. Influential author Mary Roberts Rinehart 

recognized these feelings, and encouraged people to experience the West. "'The old West is almost gone,' she 

urged. 'Now is the time to see it- - not from a train window; not, if you can help it, from an automobile, but 

afoot or on horseback, leisurely, thoroughly.'"44 National parks became perfect locations for combining 

outdoor pursuits with the assurance of enjoying a piece of the West. The parks provided opportunities for 

outdoor pursuits in spectacular natural settings, where tourists could camp, or stay in cabins or floored tents 

provided by concessionaires. 

During the 1910- 1920s, railroads experienced their peak years of passenger train travel. The Southern Pacific 

Railroad advertised its fashionable “Sunset Limited” trains, which stopped at Willcox, a rising cattle and later 

guest ranch center. Similarly, the Rock Island- El Paso & Southwestern railroads promoted the “Golden State 

Limited,” which ran from Chicago to Los Angeles. The luxury passenger trains stopped at Douglas. Douglas 

and Willcox were the jump off points for Faraway Ranch.45

FARAWAY BEGINS BUSINESS, 1917- 1922 

The Erickson family of southeastern Arizona entered the tourism industry in 1917. Up until that year, the 

family had marginal involvement with tourism. The children and Emma had traveled to Galesburg, Illinois, 

but the goal of those trips was to deliver the children to school rather than simply taking a break from their 

ordinary lives. They had also taken some side trips, such as a trip to Chicago on the way home from school, 

which would have taken on the character of a vacation, but those episodes were limited. And although Neil 

 

41 Shaffer, 576, 578. 

42 Shaffer, 580, 581. 

43 Pomeroy, 113. 

44 Pomeroy, 154 citing Mary Roberts Rinehart, Through Glacier Park: Seeing America First with Howard Eaton (Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1916). 

45 Richard Orsi, Sunset Limited: The Southern Pacific railroad and the development of the American West, 1850- 1930 (Berkeley: University of California 

Press, 2004), passim.
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

113 

may have encountered tourists in his role as forest ranger, his responsibilities at Chiricahua National Forest 

had been focused on resource management rather than tourist interface. The family’s income had not been 

generated from tourism; instead, it came primarily from ranching and Neil’s employment with both the forest 

service and with the mining company in Bisbee. However, things began shifting in 1917, when Hildegard came 

up with a rather innovative idea. 

After the sociable Lillian returned home from Galesburg in the mid 1910s, she enjoyed entertaining friends at 

the Erickson home. During that time, she taught school in nearby towns over the winters. Meanwhile, Neil 

enlarged the Erickson house with the help of a carpenter, and Hildegard remained at home helping on the 

ranch and assisting in remodeling the house by doing all the inside decorating.46 Lillian thought that the 

completion of the newly remodeled home provided an excellent opportunity for a celebration, and scheduled 

a house party. Hildegard rushed to complete the remodeling before the party. The party ranked as a success, 

and “After that there were crowds nearly every weekend.” The trend continued: "The summers were spent 

with a house full of guests and camping parties and dances the diversion,” Hildegard later remembered. She 

also pointedly recalled, “Dad footed the bills.” Lillian did contribute to the expenses when she could, “but 

wages were not high” and Hildegard opined that Lillian “spent a lot of what she was making.”47

At that point, Hildegard came up with the idea to offer “the ranch for weekend parties” to paying customers. 

Later, she explained that the move was “in Dad's defense” against the cost of all of Lillian’s parties.48

 

However, at another time, she reported a different slant: after the remodeling of the house was completed, she 

was alone with her father and mother; “Hildegard was bored!”49 Regardless of her motivation, Hildegard 

decided to write to the school principals in Douglas and Bisbee, describing the availability of the ranch on 

weekends. No one came on the first two weekends. On the third weekend, Neil and Emma were at their new 

home at Cochise Stronghold (Neil having just been transferred there), and Hildegard went on a Sunday outing 

with her friend, Alec Thompson. When Hildegard and her friend returned in the afternoon, they found a car 

parked at the house, and waiting patiently were the occupants: Dr. Collins and four women from Douglas. 

Since Hildegard had earlier butchered some chickens and made a cake, she and her friend were able to 

quickly serve a “big, delicious meal.” The meal and the hospitality met the guests' approval; “The first Sunday 

visitors left- - promising to return the following weekend. So began the first stages of Faraway being a guest 

ranch.”50 The business that summer progressed slowly, but in the eight weeks following July 14, Hildegard 

brought in $250; her expenses of $53.70 (including towels, linens, and beds) resulted in a profit of $196.30.51

 

Business was underway.52

 

46 Hildegard Hutchison (with co- signers Emma and Neil Erickson) to Lillian Riggs, August 21, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153.

47 Hildegard Hutchison , [ca. August- September 1931], FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153, fiche 55.. 

48 Hildegard Hutchison , [ca. August- September 1931], FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. 

49 Hildegard Hutchison, “Remembrances of Hildegard Hutchison," FRC, series 4, folder 17. 

50 Hildegard Hutchison, “Remembrances of Hildegard Hutchison," FRC, series 4, folder 17. 

51 Hildegard Hutchison (with co- signers Emma and Neil Erickson) to Lillian Riggs, August 21, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153, fiche 55. 

52 Faraway Ranch ledgers, FRC, series 9, folders 8, 9, 10, 11 and series 8 folder 89. Some retrospective accounts of the beginning of the guest business 

place it in 1918; see for instance "Employer's Status Report," April 4, 1944, FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 26. However, the ledger fixes the date clearly: 

”Statement of account of summer boarders, July 14 to Sept. 8, 1917.” Retrospective accounts that place the founding in 1917 include Hildegard 

Hutchison, [ca. August- September 1931], FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153, fiche 55. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

114 

Although Emma and Neil weren’t present at the first visit by paying customers, they did participate in the 

boarder enterprise. Hildegard later remembered, "Mother and I started the [guest] ranch,” and that the 

mother- daughter pair “did all our own work- - with the help of the guests- - and believe me they did help. Of 

course, we had only weekend business and we didn't want to be bothered with help around the rest of the 

time."53 Apparently Emma came home from Cochise Stronghold on weekends to help Hildegard. Lillian later 

acknowledged, "When Mamma and Hildegard kept boarders at the start of the guest ranch business, Dad paid 

the grocery bills out of his checks from the government.”54 Brother Ben had filed on his own homestead claim 

(just south of the Erickson place) at least a year earlier, so it is likely that he was living on his claim by the time 

the guest business started; he doesn’t seem to have taken part in that business at any time during its existence. 

Hildegard had started the boarder business “much against Lillian's wishes.”55 Apparently "the idea of charging 

for meals and rooms first embarrassed Lillian and offended her sense of hospitality;” she felt that “people 

would look down on them.”56 One also has to wonder if she resented the fact that her social life was suddenly 

restricted since it would be difficult to host weekend parties at the family home. Nonetheless, she did help 

Hildegard, especially during deer hunting season that fall. Soon Lillian came around on her attitude about the 

boarding business. Lillian acknowledged that “We must find another source of income,” aside from the small 

cattle ranch; the boarder business seemed to be that source: business was good with Sunday and weekend 

guests coming frequently during the fall of 1917.57 Lillian must have decided that the income they could earn in 

the boarding business could be greater than her income as a teacher; she quit her job teaching and came home 

to assume management of the enterprise.58 “I felt that if Hildegard and I could carry on with the home place 

and let Dad go on with his forestry work, it would work out all right,” she remembered. "So in the days when 

I was footloose and fancy free, I felt that my greatest duty lay in helping out at home and that we would all 

advance farther and faster if I did so.”59

Lillian decided a new name for the ranch was in order. “We were forty miles from the nearest town and 

seventy from the two largest ones. Nothing but dirt roads, and poor at that, lay between us and the towns.” 

In addition, “the country [was] undeveloped.” 60 She decided to name the guest ranch Faraway. 

During the fall of 1917, the new venture gradually grew into a more sizeable business. Several reasons account 

for this success; one was customer service. On the day of that first visit, Dr. Collins’ only complaint was that 

he had to open and close too many wire cattle gates. Hildegard quickly remedied that by discussing the 

problem with neighbor William Riggs- - and almost immediately the wire gates were replaced by cattle guards, 

enabling the visitors to drive through unimpeded.61 Another reason was that deer hunters found that the 

 

53 Hildegard Hutchison to Lillian Riggs, February 3, 1950, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. 

54 Lillian Riggs, [ca. August- September 1931], FRC, series 1, box 9. 

55 Hildegard Hutchison, [ca. August- September 1931], FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153, fiche 55. 

56 Leavengood, 7; and Hildegard Hutchison, “Remembrances of Hildegard Hutchison," FRC, series 4, folder 17. 

57 Lillian Riggs to "Classmates and Friends," [1965?], FRC, series 1, box 9. 

58 Hildegard Hutchison, [ca. August- September 1931], FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153, fiche 55. 

59 Lillian Riggs to Neil Erickson, November 23, 1930, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

60 Lillian Riggs to "Classmates and Friends," [1965?], FRC, series 1, box 9; and “Faraway Ranch: The Gateway to the Wonderland of Rocks,” Hoofs and 

Horns, October 1934. 

61 Hildegard Hutchison, “Remembrances of Hildegard Hutchison," FRC, series 4, folder 17. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

115 

situation met their needs: the ranch provided housing and meals in a rustic setting that placed the hunters 

close to the game in the national forest. There were other reasons as well: "Our home had a beautiful setting 

in the mountains at the edge of a lovely valley. Game was plentiful. My sister was beautiful with a pleasing 

personality. We had many friends in the surrounding towns."62 Indeed, area residents were the Erickson's 

first customers, and word of mouth was important. Guests who were satisfied became repeat customers, and 

spread the word to their friends.63 And Hildegard's timing was perfect, for as Lillian later recalled, “Guest 

ranching was taking hold of the imagination of City people.”64

ORIGINS OF DUDE RANCHING 

Dude ranching began to experience a large wave of popularity in the early 1920s, but the industry had 

originated over three decades earlier. In 1881, the Eaton brothers opened the first dude ranch, near presentday Medora, North Dakota; their process of starting the business established a pattern that would repeat 

many times across the West. Hildegard and Lillian's own pattern for beginning Faraway guest ranch was 

strikingly similar. The brothers, recently arrived in North Dakota from Pennsylvania, enjoyed their ranch so 

much that they invited their friends to share their pleasure with them. Friends- - and more friends- - came to 

stay for lengthy visits. However, with the increased number of visitors, it became difficult for the hosts to 

handle the associated expenses and logistics. The brothers eventually accepted several guests’ suggestion: that 

the ranchers accept compensation for their services. The ranch developed into a commercial enterprise that 

catered to travelers.65 As the decades passed, many ranchers eased into dude ranching in a similar fashion. 

Contrary to the era’s pattern of lavish resorts that provided a European- style vacation, the Eaton ranch 

offered a rustic, truly Western style of accommodations. Affluent easterners- - especially sportsmen and those 

interested in experiencing the life of a cattle rancher- - found that type of establishment appealing. The idea 

spread among other ranches in the northern states. It was an easy transition for many to make, since 

providing temporary accommodations for travelers had been a common courtesy for years; few other 

temporary lodging options existed in the West, and distances between settlements were great. Some ranchers 

had already set the precedent for charging guests for services, even before the Eatons began their dude ranch. 

During the summers of the 1870s, health seekers rented cottages on Colorado ranches, where the ranchers 

often provided meals. In addition, ranchers and farmers in Minnesota, Dakota, and Wyoming had advertised 

in English newspapers offering agricultural training to boarders or unpaid apprentices, which attracted young 

Englishmen.66 Hence the Eaton dude ranch holds a place as a benchmark along the continuum of the 

custom.67

 

62 Lillian Riggs to "Classmates and Friends," [1965?], FRC, series 1, box 9. 

63 “Some of those who became regulars and who encouraged others to come were: the Hawleys, from Douglas; the Williamsons and the Whiteleys from 

Bisbee.” Hildegard Hutchison, “Remembrances of Hildegard Hutchison," FRC, series 4, folder 17. 

64 Lillian Riggs to "Classmates and Friends," [1965?], FRC, series 1, box 9. 

65 Frank Blaine Norris, “The Southern Arizona Guest Ranch as a Symbol of the West” (M.A. thesis, University of Arizona, 1976), 34. 

66 Pomeroy, 167. 

67 “Theodore Roosevelt, a dude and subsequently a ranch owner himself, was perhaps the most articulate and influential advocate of the joys of ranch 

life. . . . The dude ranch tried to recapture the atmosphere Roosevelt revered.” Jerome L. Rodnitzky, “Recapturing the West: The Dude Ranch in 

American Life,” Arizona and the West 10, no. 2 (Summer 1968): 119. 
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116 

During the next decades, the dude ranch industry grew primarily in the northern Rocky Mountains, until by 

the early 1920s about 25 ranches took part in the well- established industry. The ranches were located 

primarily near Rocky Mountain National Park and Yellowstone National Park (including the area that would 

later become Grand Teton National Park). This pattern of placement of dude ranches near national parks 

remained consistent over time; travelers found their beautiful setting appealing, and the ranches were able to 

utilize the parks for trail rides, fishing and camping. Those early dude ranches made no real attempt to attract 

general tourists. The dude "before the first World War duplicated many facets of truly pioneer living; the 

patron did not want a particularly genteel existence, nor did he get it."68

ORIGINS OF ARIZONA GUEST RANCHING 

Around the late teens and early 1920s, ranches open to guests began appearing in Arizona. Like the ranches in 

the northern Rockies, these early Arizona guest ranches “began accepting guests in a very modest, almost 

secretive fashion.”69 An expert on the topic later observed, “Pinpointing a more exact date [than the early 

1920s] or location for the first ranch is difficult to discern. . . . There are two reasons for this difficulty. First, 

the informality and small scale with which the industry began played a part. Second, there was little 

consistent criteria, in the earliest years, as to what exactly made a genuine ranch.”70 It is clear, however, that 

the Faraway Ranch was certainly among the earliest of these guest ranches in Arizona, since it started in 1917.71

 

We do not know exactly where Hildegard Erickson obtained her inspiration for choosing her business, 

whether she knew other ranchers in the state who had taken such a step, or whether she had read about 

northern dude ranches.72 The chance that Hildegard originated the idea herself is possible, but not likely, 

given the existence of the industry. 

The Arizona industry grew quite slowly. Many cattle ranchers were uncomfortable with the idea of becoming 

managers of boarding houses. As a result, those who did open their ranches to guests did so in a “modest, 

rather experimental fashion; in other cases, the ranches operated informally before allowing guests on a 

regular, commercial basis.” This observation on the beginning of guest ranches in Arizona fits Hildegard’s 

business precisely. Her first step into the business was to invite selected, reputable guests to the ranch for the 

Sunday meal. Only after that proved to be successful did the Faraway business expand. These earliest guest 

ranches in Arizona (unlike many dude ranches that had developed in the northern region by this time) were 

“the paragon of down- home, unadorned simplicity.”73

It was at the birth of the industry in the 1880s at the Eatons’ ranch that the term ‘dude ranch’ was first 

applied.74 The 1891 Dictionary of Slang defined dude as a “swell or a fop;”75 however, the term dude ranch 

 

68 Norris, 33, 35, 67. 

69 Norris, 39. 

70 Norris, 38. 

71 One of earliest was the Brill Ranch, near Wickenburg. In 1912 or '13, the owners renamed it the Garden of Allah Resort and provided horseback riding 

and meals to guests; it was later re- named the Circle Flying W Ranch. Lawrence R. Borne, Dude Ranching: A Complete History (Albuquerque: 

University of New Mexico Press, 1983), 53. For discussion of other early guest ranches see also John P. Wilson, Islands in the Desert: A History of the 

Uplands of Southeastern Arizona (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1995), 198; and Philip W. Jones, "And I learned about Ranching from 

'Im," Progressive Arizona and the Great Southwest, 8 (March 1929), 24. 

72 The Arizona Range News reported on March 19, 1915 that a company had been formed to exploit the possibilities of establishing resorts in the 

Chiricahua Mountains. Louis Torres and Mark Baumler, Historic Structure Report, Historical and Archeological Data Sections: A History of the Buildings 

and Structures of Faraway Ranch, Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona. (Denver: National Park Service, Denver Service Center, 1984), n. 75. 

73 Norris, 40, 42. 
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117 

historically meant “an establishment which is basically engaged in livestock growing, but has installed facilities 

for guests.” In the 1920s and ‘30s, the term dude grew out of favor with the general public76 (and one can 

imagine especially with the guests who didn’t appreciate being referred to as a swell or a fop). In Arizona, 

where recreational ranches started becoming well known in the 1920s and early 1930s, the term '‘dude ranch’ 

is seldom used.77 Lillian found the term dude disagreeable: "It signified to our ears a namby- pamby individual 

with soft white hands and a big hat trying to emulate the real Westerner and one whom the cowboys delighted 

to make dance by shooting at his new boot heels."78 "I much prefer the word guest to dude. ‘Guest ranch’ 

invites a different and better class of people than does 'Dude ranch.'79 And it is understandable that in 

opening her home to strangers, Lillian would want to attract a “better class of people.” In Arizona, the terms 

have evolved into different uses: “‘guest ranch’ or ‘ranch’ is the label given almost exclusively for a [name of a] 

particular ranch . . ., while ‘dude ranch’ or ‘guest ranch’ have been used interchangeably when describing the 

industry or any one ranch in more general terms.80 Indeed, Lillian observed that “a good many people use 

them interchangeably."81

Over the decades, the definition of the term dude has softened to become less derogatory. In 1953, a Montana 

dude rancher assured the public (and potential paying guests) that “the term dude was reserved for ‘regular 

fellows’ and never indicated disdain.” And the Webster’s New International Dictionary presented the 1960 

definition as, “An Easterner or city- bred person. . . .,”82 a definition that most dude ranchers (and dudes) 

prefer. The term is still used when speaking of working ranches in those areas where dude ranching became 

initially popular: Wyoming, Montana and northern Colorado. However, the newer industry in Arizona 

resolutely adheres to the more modern- - and polite- - term of guest ranch. 

PURCHASING THE STAFFORD HOMESTEAD 

In the spring of 1918, about nine months after Faraway Ranch had hosted its first boarders, the business came 

to a crossroads. The neighboring Stafford property with its orchard and log cabin- - and boundary very close 

to the Erickson house- - came up for sale. The Erickson sisters were afraid that the property might fall into 

someone else’s hands,83 so, as Lillian noted, “With far more nerve than judgment we contracted to buy the 

adjoining fruit ranch.” And contrary to Hildegard’s charges that Lillian had frittered away her teaching salary 

on parties, Lillian had saved enough for a down payment.84 This decision tells us several things about the 

situation at the time. One was that the guest business was successful enough that the women decided to 

 

74 Norris, 34. 

75 Rodnitzky, 111. A swell indicated a pompous or fashionable air, a person dressed in the height of fashion, or a person of high social position, while fop 

denoted a foolish or silly person, or a person especially devoted to his appearance. 

76 Norris, 26, 27. 

77 Norris, 28. 

78 [Lillian Riggs,] "Inquisitiveness, Vision and Energy Gave the World the Wonderland, Chiricahua National Monument," n.d., FRC, series 5, folder 22. 

79 Lillian Riggs to Evelyn Hutchison, August 11, 1947, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

80 Norris, 27. 

81 Lillian Riggs to Evelyn Hutchison, August 11, 1947, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

82 Rodnitzky, 112. 

83 Lillian Riggs to Neil Erickson, November 23, 1930, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

84 Lillian Riggs to "Classmates and Friends," [1965?], FRC, series 1, box 9. 
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118 

continue the operation. The purchase price of $5,200 was an appreciable amount for two young women (the 

first payment was made on Hildegard’s 23rd birthday) whose only sources of income were the new guest ranch 

and their animals on the small ranch- - and the fruit orchard after its purchase. Their commitment to acquire 

the property put them at financial risk; if the guest/cattle/fruit business didn’t prove to be profitable, they 

would still be obligated to make the payments on the Stafford property. Family reminiscences regarding the 

purchase of the Stafford property note it as a benchmark in their lives.85

 

Together, Hildegard and Lillian took on the added responsibilities of the orchard and Stafford property, and 

continued to operate the ranch and guest business. They pruned the fruit trees, cultivated and irrigated them. 

The pair also “milked cows and made butter, raised chickens, cooked meals, and welcomed and entertained 

guests.” The sisters took their boarders "on horseback rides and guided them on quail and rabbit hunts.” 

And they made the payments on the Stafford place.86 Meanwhile, Ben was not interested in the guest business, 

so chose to work on his own nearby ranch instead. 

Over the first years of their guest ranch business, revenues tended to increase. During the last six months of 

1918, the sisters hosted 22 parties of boarders (an average of fewer than four parties per month) and from them 

took in total revenues of $488 (a monthly average of about $81).87 This monthly average was down from the 

$125 average that Hildegard had earned in her first two months in business. The charges to the 1918 boarders 

ranged from $1.25 (probably for a meal) to $75 (for a longer stay with meals). The next year’s records covered 

the entire year; in 1919 they served about 56 parties (an average of under five parties per month) for $1337 total 

revenue- - a monthly average of about $111 (more than in 1918, but still less than in 1917).88 A few of those 

guests paid for "camping privileges;" in addition, several names repeated through the year so it is likely that 

the Ericksons continued to serve area residents. The year 1920 saw a rather dramatic increase in business: 104 

parties (an average of just under 9 parties per month- - twice the rate of 1918) who brought in total revenues of 

$2658 for a monthly average of about $221- - considerably higher than their revenue in previous years. Again, 

many boarders returned repeatedly through the year, and many came for meals only.89 The marked growth in 

revenues is attributed to the rise in the number of boarders, more than to an increase in prices or a shift from 

meals to lodging; each party in 1918 paid an average of $22.18 while those in 1920 paid $25.55, only slightly 

more. Indeed, the sisters were so busy in 1920 that they hired two women, the first on their records; it is likely 

that the women worked for the guest ranch business rather the cattle ranch, based on subsequent employment 

practices at Faraway.90

A SHIFT IN FARAWAY MANAGEMENT 

 

85 Although the family referred to both sisters buying the property, only Lillian's name was on the legal agreement. April 22, 1918, FRC, series 15, folder 

4. 

86 Lillian Riggs to "Classmates and Friends," [1965?], FRC, series 1, box 9. 

87 Revenue is the total amount received for goods and services. Net profit is calculated by subtracting expenses from revenue. 

88 It is possible that the Spanish influenza pandemic affected their business. For instance, on October 7, 1918, the Phoenix city council closed all schools, 

churches, theaters, dance halls, pool halls and public meeting places to prevent the spread of the virus. "Special police prevented crowds from 

gathering. . . . Anyone who went out in the street had to wear a mask over their mouth and nose." By mid November, 88 people had died in Phoenix; 

however, by early spring 1919 the outbreak had ended. Melanie I. Sturgeon, "The Spanish Influenza Epidemic of 1918- 1919," TheCopperDome.com: 

Arizona State Employee's Newspaper, www.thecopperdome.com/features_july_connectinaz.html>, July 2002. Even so, no evidence was found in the 

Faraway papers that indicated the business was affected. 

89 Faraway Ranch ledgers, FRC, series 9, folders 8, 9, 10, 11; and FRC, series 8, folder 89. 

90 FRC, series 9, folder 8. 
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119 

Lillian and Hildegard worked together until the fall of 1920, when Hildegard married Stan Hutchison and 

moved away from the ranch. Lillian didn't respond warmly to that move. From her point of view, Hildegard 

had left her “with the obligation of paying out the rest" of the money due on the Stafford place, since they'd 

had an agreement that if one of the sisters left, the other would take over payments and eventual ownership. 

In addition, Lillian also "fell heir"91 to the guest ranch business. Lillian evaluated her situation: Neil and Emma 

lived elsewhere, with Neil working for the forest service, Hildegard newly married and lived elsewhere, Ben 

nearby but on his own ranch. The small cattle ranch could not provide a living income, so an additional 

income such as the boarder business was necessary. Ben never would have taken over the home ranch “for 

the simple reason that he hates the resort business, and a living could be made no other way." Lillian herself 

“tied up with notes and the determination to pay out the Stafford place, there seemed nothing else to do but 

to stick or die. It didn't even occur to me to go away and desert the home. But carrying on was an almost 

impossibility.”92 Lillian considered the guest ranch "more of a liability at that time than an asset, as I had to do 

everything myself, both indoors and outdoors."93 Lillian did take on the management of the ranch and guest 

business. And, indeed, she did have trouble making payments on the Stafford property, missing four annual 

payments.94 Lillian didn’t do all the work herself at the ranch: in 1921 Faraway again employed hands for 

short- term work for a total of $552, similar to the pattern the sisters had established in the previous years. 

However, in 1921, most of the employees were women, and they tended to repeat through the year; they were 

apparently hired on an as- needed basis for the guest ranch business, when guests were plentiful.95

The year 1921 also marked the first time that records were kept regarding the length of stay of the guests. Of 

the 48 parties who stayed there that year, the median stay was three nights, but most parties (18) stayed one 

night. However, it was not unusual to stay longer: 15 stayed 2 weeks or longer, including 3 parties that stayed 

about 4 months each. The total revenue from the business was $1589.96 Compared to the 104 parties that they 

hosted in the previous year, the number of boarders had plummeted to less than half. The only notable 

change that we can discern was that Hildegard had left. As Lillian had noted: “My sister was beautiful with a 

pleasing personality.”97 Could the local guests have stopped coming because Hildegard had left? However, 

the amount that each party spent had risen sharply, from $25.55 to $33.10. It is possible that the change was 

simply due to Lillian’s recording methodology; perhaps she stopped listing the guests who came for meals 

only. 

As Lillian had noted, life at Faraway was difficult after Hildegard left. Although the newly acquired Stafford 

orchard had produced fruit in 1918 and 1919, it didn’t produce consistently, as they had expected: “Late frost 

killed the fruit . . . In the spring they were beautiful with their pink and white blossoms but the frosts hit year 

 

91 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

92 Lillian Riggs to Neil Erickson, November 23, 1930, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

93 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

94 Dewey Livingston, A Pioneer Log Cabin in Bonita Canyon: The History of the Stafford Cabin, Faraway Ranch Historic District, Chiricahua National 

Monument, Arizona, Historic Resource Study (San Francisco: National Park Service, 1994), 41. Since Lillian had not been making payments, the 

agreement was changed in February 19, 1923, a week before Lillian married Ed Riggs. Agreement, February 19, 1923, FRC, series 15, folder 4. The last 

payment was made February 27, 1928, a total principal of $5,200. "Computation of Payments and Interest on Stafford Place," n.d., FRC, series 15, folder 

4. 

95 FRC, series 9, folder 8. 

96 Faraway Ranch ledgers, FRC, series 9, folders 8, 9, 10, 11 and series 8 folder 89. 

97 Lillian Riggs to "Classmates and Friends," [1965?], FRC, series 1, box 9. 
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120 

after year.”98 In 1921 Lillian noted that the orchard produced “Absolutely nothing!” and she echoed that same 

thing the next year too.99 In addition, cattle prices had dropped significantly. When Lillian and Hildegard 

had taken over the ranch in 1917, cattle prices were quite high, due to the large market in Europe related to the 

war. However, after the war the country went into a recession, and in 1921 and ’22 prices plummeted. In 

addition, southern Arizona experienced a drought in 1920- 21. However, a bright aspect of her life during 

those years was the rekindling of a romance with previous schoolmate Ed Riggs. After he returned from the 

war, the couple began seeing each other, and by 1921 they had become quite close. 

After having worked at Faraway nonstop for several years, Lillian wanted to take a sabbatical from the ranch; 

in addition, it would help her decide where to go in her life. She decided to spend the summer of 1922 in Los 

Angeles. To enable her to go, Riggs arranged with his sister- in- law, Maye Fokes, to operate the boarder 

business, with the aid of her daughter and son- in- law. Fokes' only remuneration consisted of what she could 

earn from that business.100

Riggs visited the ranch frequently that summer to help on the ranch and with the guest ranch. Through the 

season, he seemed to identify with the place more and more. He and others worked on the “swimmin’ hole 

taking those big rocks out and building up the wall on the south side where it was so low.” On another day, 

he went for a walk “all over those hills around the upper garden. Went up to the Indian Cave and had a nap. . 

. . I did feel that you were with me and planning with me for our home up here in the canyon. The upper 

garden is a dandy place for our large house to take care of the tourist trade. I hadn’t looked at it with that in 

view before but I can see it now. It is ideal, such a wonderful view and such a pretty setting there among the 

trees.” 101

By August, the Fokes family spent a lot of time in town. Ed observed, “I know they are getting tired of ranch 

life.” Mrs. Fokes got headaches, which she thought were due to elevation and hard work.102 She decided to 

leave in mid September. Apparently, the boarder business wasn’t good that summer since “she didn’t even 

make her expenses.”103 Back in Los Angeles, Lillian made up her mind: she would return to Faraway to marry 

Riggs, and together they could operate the Faraway cattle and guest ranch. The couple married that winter, 

and Faraway Ranch entered a new era. 

ARIZONA INDUSTRY GAINS A FIRM FOOTING 

The dude ranch industry as a whole was also entering a new era in the early 1920s, and Arizona took a step 

forward into an important participant in this new industry. The economic boom that the country had 

experienced during World War I ended as abruptly as the war did. The recession reached into all parts of the 

economy; in Arizona, for instance, copper mines closed, agricultural production slumped, and more than half 

the banks in the state failed.104

 

98 Lillian Riggs to "Classmates and Friends," [1965?], FRC, series 1, box 9. 

99 Faraway Ranch ledgers, July 14, 1917- December 31, 1923, FRC, series 9, folder 8 and 9. 

100 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, Western Archeological and Conservation 

Center, Tucson. Cited hereafter as WACC. 

101 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, July 14, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 

102 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, August 3, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 

103 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. 
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121 

Ranchers felt the effect through a sharp drop in prices for cattle. In southern Arizona, a drought during 1920-

21 confounded the problem. Arizona ranchers- - like ranchers across the West- - sought relief from their 

desperate financial situation, so developed supplemental sources of income to avoid bankruptcy. At some 

ranches, the stockmen began opening their homes to paying guests; "they did so out of pure economic 

necessity. . . . The influence of the economics of cattle- raising upon the early days of dude ranching was 

heavy."105 An observer later noted that "the paying dudes did not begin coming to Arizona until . . . the 

bankrupting drouth of 1921."106 Although some ranchers had previously hosted guests, they typically were 

"reluctant to admit that it was more than a side line or a kindness to friends." It was during the devastating 

economic conditions of the early 1920s, "when many a Westerner made on dudes what he lost on cattle, that 

the West generally awoke to realize that it had a new industry."107 A converted dude rancher in Wyoming 

testified, "Vacationists seeking scenery and recreation were more profitable and more easily handled than 

cattle." And a stockman in a dude ranching center in Texas observed, "You can run more dudes to the acre in 

these hills than you can cattle.”108 "The dude symbolizes a very important part of western history- - the 

infusion of outside capital to stimulate growth . . . .The economic effects of dude ranching percolated through 

the entire economy as dude ranchers helped make the Rocky Mountain West well known throughout the rest 

of the country."109

Thus the dude ranch industry spread throughout the West in the early 1920s- - an important shift in the 

character and popularity of the ranches. Southern Arizona was a prime location for the development of guest 

ranching, even beyond the ranchers' need for it economically. First, a winter- resort tradition already existed 

in southern Arizona. The elite had discovered years earlier that the region offered a welcome respite from 

cold Eastern winters. Well- heeled visitors began arriving in Tucson in October, and typically spent the season 

in either the Congress Hotel or the Santa Rita Hotel.110

In addition, the region had been the focus of a huge promotional effort since before the turn of the century. 

Advocates had publicized the Southwest as an exotic area with spectacular scenery, fascinating indigenous 

peoples, and a true Western lifestyle. Traveling to the Southwest became in vogue as the effort gathered 

momentum in the 1920s (and reached “spectacular dimensions in the thirties and thereafter”). Across the 

state, railroads, chambers of commerce, and booster clubs, began promoting resort and tourist areas.111

But Tucson, about 90 miles west of Faraway Ranch, became the leading light in local promotions. As in other 

places in the country, the city was experiencing economic stagnation as result of the World War I recession. 

In an effort to revitalize the economy, the boosters decided to promote the locale to the winter tourist market. 

For over 50 years, the Tucson area had been known as a haven for the health seekers. By the early 1920s, a 

visiting editorial writer reported that the city was "filled from core to circumference with tourists and health 

 

104 Howard R. Lamar, ed., The New Encyclopedia of the American West (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1998), 46. 

105 Norris, 39. 

106 Norris, 40, quoting Ian Frazier, “From Cows to Dudes,” Magazine Tucson 5 (October 1952): 19- 22. 

107 Pomeroy, 168. 

108 Rodnitzky, 114. 

109 Borne, 6. 

110 Wilson, 198. 

111 Lamar, 46 and Pomeroy, 158. 
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seekers. Six hospitals and one tented village are taxed to capacity."112 However, during the Tucson 

promotional 1920s campaign civic boosters actively endeavored to change Tucson’s popular image to one of "a 

healthy place for people, sick or well, to live."113

 

At the time of their decision to promote Tucson as a winter destination, it was unusual for municipalities to 

promote tourism; only cities in southern California and southern Florida did so. In early 1922, the Tucson 

Chamber of Commerce took the lead in promoting the city as a winter tourist attraction. The group 

"advertised in national periodicals and distributed feature articles to magazines and travel journals.” 

Meanwhile, the Tucson Sunshine- Climate Club organized a parallel effort to "publicize the city as a winter 

vacation spot.” The Tucson club modeled itself after the San Diego California Club, the first municipal 

advertising organization of its type; the Tucson group became the second. "The club hired the same 

advertising agency that coordinated advertising for San Diego, conducted marketing surveys and also 

advertised heavily in national periodicals." The campaign proved to be so successful that by the end of the 

decade, "tourism had become a mainstay of the Tucson economy.”114

The nascent dude ranch industry in the Tucson region benefited from the Tucson promotional campaign. 

Soon, southeast Arizona blossomed into a center of dude ranches. With Tucson at the western edge, the area 

extended approximately 85 miles in diameter.115 One directory of southern Arizona dude ranches listed five 

ranches in 1923, which increased to 12 in 1925, and 36 in 1930.116 The new industry thrived and expanded 

during its first decade. 

THE PRIME OF FARAWAY GUEST RANCH, 1923- 1939; 

ED RIGGS JOINS THE MANAGEMENT TEAM 

Seventeen years after Hildegard started the boarder business, Lillian wrote a promotional newspaper article 

about the beginning of that enterprise. As Lillian tended to do in that style of writing, she romanticized the 

situation, blurred the facts, and rearranged the chronology to suit her needs. “About that time," she wrote, 

"the people in the cities and towns became conscious of the joy and healthfulness of real ranch life and 

were asking for accommodations on many of the ranches. Because it was one of the most attractive and 

historic places in southern Arizona, Faraway was besieged with people wanting room and board. The 

price of cattle was then very low and the Ericksons did the same as many other rancher- - opening their 

ranch to paying guests.117

 

112 Alex Jay Kimmelman, “Luring the Tourist to Tucson,” Journal of Arizona History 28, no. 2 (Summer 1987): 136, citing Walter L. Burns, Indianapolis 

Star. 

113 Kimmelman, 136. 

114 Kimmelman, 135, 136, 138, 151. 

115 See Norris, 38- 39 for a discussion of several of the earliest guest ranches, which began in the mid 1920s and earlier. Ranches discussed include the 3-

N Ranch in Oracle, the Carlink Ranch in Redington, the Cordes Ranch near Cordes, the Garden of Allah near Wickenburg, the Hacienda de la Osa near 

Sasabe, the Kay- El- Bar near Wickenburg, Molly Butler’s Guest Ranch near Greer, Rancho Linda Vista near Oracle, the Seven Dash Ranch near 

Dragoon, and the Triangle T Ranch near Dragoon. Additional dude ranches in southern Arizona in the 1920s included the Bar O Ranch near 

Tombstone, the Circle Z Ranch southwest of Patagonia, Donee’s Dude Ranch near Oracle, and the Y- Lightning Ranch (aka YW Guest Ranch) near 

Hereford, and the Tanque Verde near Tucson. Wilson, 198; and Borne, 54- 55. 

116 Norris, 41. 

117 [Lillian Riggs], "Faraway Ranch: The Gateway to the Wonderland of Rocks," Hoofs and Horns, October 1934. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

123 

Given the purpose of her article, we should be kind to Lillian regarding the liberties that she took. However, 

her paragraph does reveal a great deal about her feelings about the situation, and indicates that she still was 

doing penance for charging guests for her hospitality. First, she placed the city residents in the active role; 

they are the ones who discovered (seemingly on their own) about the wonderful life waiting for them on a 

ranch. Next, those city dwellers came knocking on ranchers' doors, pleading for an opportunity to spend 

some time at the stockmen's homes. And of course, because everyone somehow knew- - on their own- - that 

Faraway possessed both a fascinating history and pleasing scenery, then a flood of visitors almost knocked 

down the doors. A clever anachronism is the insertion regarding the low price of cattle- - certainly a condition 

that people in rural Arizona could understand. However, when Hildegard started the boarder business in 

1917, the cattle prices were actually quite high since the country enjoyed the boom prices that World War I 

generated. And finally Lillian inserted the kicker- - that the Ericksons were only doing what other ranchers 

were doing. Out of economic necessity beyond their control, the sisters had to open their ranch to the 

throngs of people pounding on their door, just like their neighbors did. Lillian’s defensiveness is 

understandable; “professional cattlemen never considered dude ranching an integral part of their business.”118

 

To suit her needs, Lillian mixed the Erickson sisters' enterprise with the Riggs version of the guest ranch. The 

situation she described- - in which ranch life became popular to city dwellers, and cattle prices were low, so 

many ranchers opened their homes to paying guests- - occurred in the early 1920s, when Lillian and Ed started 

their joint management of Faraway Ranch. 

When Ed and Lillian married they decided to continue the guest ranch business. Since the Erickson sisters 

had operated the boarder business for almost six years, the newlyweds were years ahead of new entries into 

the industry. However, the couple apparently objectively evaluated their business and recognized that some 

changes were in order. We don't know how they came to the conclusion; certainly the business environment 

must have influenced them. However, given that Lillian had run the business in much the same way for years, 

and the changes were instituted after Ed entered the management team, we have to assume that Ed had a big 

role to play in the suggestions. 

The couple instituted three major changes at Faraway Ranch during the early to mid 1920s. First, they 

provided for the physical comforts of their guests; next, they recognized that they possessed a key feature that 

differentiated them from their competitors, and last, they stepped up their advertising to include a national 

market. 

INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENTS 

Lillian and Ed must have realized that although guests wanted to experience a break from their normal 

routine in the city life and enjoy the rural qualities of a ranch, the visitors didn't want to rough it too much. 

While dude ranch guests in earlier years had expected and enjoyed an authentic ranch life, including the 

rather primitive amenities, “the Arizona guest ranch represented a clear break from these early days. The . . . 

Arizona ranch patron did not really want such an uncivilized lifestyle.” The minimum comforts that guests 

demanded included such features as flush toilets, baths, dependable lighting, and nicely served meals. To 

keep up with market expectations, ranchers installed these amenities. “Indeed, an owner’s acceptance of 

guests to his ranch proved a civilizing influence. For rarely was the proper guest ranch without basic 

comforts; though few early ranches had telephones, the guest demanded- - and got- - running water and 

electricity, at a time when these services were not standard throughout much of the rural west.”119

 

118 “In The Cattleman, a magazine serving the ranching industry, not one article on dude ranching appeared between 1923 and 1966.” Rodnitzky, 119. 

119 Norris, 66, 67. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

124 

When Ed and Lillian married, Faraway had few of those amenities. But they recognized that to compete for 

customers, they needed to provide those basic comforts. Thus, the couple put in many hours of hard work 

installing running water, two bathrooms, an electric light plant, the dining room, and the Garfield fireplace 

(made from the stones of the collapsing Garfield monument). They enclosed a porch to become a guest 

dining room and completed a small swimming pool. They also detached what had been an addition to the 

Stafford cabin, and moved it closer to the Faraway ranch house. That building was used as a schoolhouse in 

1927- 1929, then was named Mizar and used as a rental cottage. They later added another cabin, named Alcor, 

and a connecting bedroom between the two cabins, called Space. However, years passed before they 

remodeled the Stafford log cabin, so they usually used that for hunting parties and male guests who didn't 

mind a rougher lifestyle.120

WONDERLAND AS A MARKETING HOOK 

When a business competes in a crowded market, it proves to be advantageous to have a unique appeal that 

sets the business apart from its competitors. Lillian and Ed found themselves in that situation in 1923, when 

they married. The number of guest ranches in southeast Arizona increased each year, so Faraway needed an 

edge over the other enterprises. As it turned out, the couple already knew about the unique feature when they 

married. 

Ed Riggs first saw the region that would become known as the Wonderland of Rocks- - and then Chiricahua 

National Monument- - in about 1900, when he viewed it from the top of Sugarloaf Peak.121 Although he wanted 

to see more of the amazing rock formations, it wasn't until 1921 that he managed to get into the rough country. 

While tracking a wounded deer, Ed and Lillian viewed upon the area that Lillian would subsequently name 

the Wonderland of Rocks. They ate lunch near their first view of the Totem Pole. 

It is one of the most marvelous formations in the park, in a very beautiful area, as well as being an 

outstanding rock of itself. We could not get close to it, but we said to each other that with this area as 

wonderful as it was, we would open up a trail and get in, so that our guests at Faraway Ranch could 

enjoy the scenery too.122

Thus their first thoughts regarding the use and enjoyment of the fantastic new place they had uncovered were 

directed towards their business; that is, they recognized that their paying guests would enjoy this scenery. By 

providing access to the locale from their property, they would hold a virtual monopoly on the spectacular 

scenery. They began the difficult task of building a trail through the tangled district. While working on the 

trail, Lillian bestowed the name Wonderland of Rocks to the area, and assigned whimsical and appealing 

 

120 Livingston, 47, 49; and Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d. Acc. # 1721, WACC; and Torres, 

54- 58. Torres refers to the Mizar- Space- Alcor structure as the bunkhouse. Mizar and Alcor are a famed pair of stars in the handle of the Big Dipper. 

Mizar is the fourth brightest star in the constellation, and appears as the second star in from the end of the dipper’s handle. Its nearby visual 

companion, Alcor, is dimmer and appears only a fifth of a degree from Mizar. The two stars, termed the "horse and rider" by the Arabians, are a good 

test of vision. 

121 Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. 

122 Lillian Riggs, “Early History of Chiricahua National Monument,” 28 July 1953, FRC, series 4, folder 20. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

125 

names to many individual formations. During the summer of 1922, while Lillian stayed in Los Angeles, Ed 

continued to explore the region, and also took photographs of the features.123

Lillian and Ed knew that they wanted to spread the word about their “discovery.” Whom should they 

contact? If you found an area of fascinating rock formations, unlike anything in that region, whom would you 

contact? Ed and Lillian chose to contact the chambers of commerce in the nearby cities: Douglas, Bisbee, 

Tucson and Phoenix. This choice reveals much about the Riggses and the time and place in which they lived. 

Typically, chambers of commerce promote economic development. Their members are usually business 

people whose own interests correlate to the chambers’; that is, they want to improve their businesses’ profits. 

For the Riggses to choose the chambers as their vehicle for distributing information about the Wonderland of 

Rocks indicates that their core purpose was to gain more income from their business. Given the business 

environment of the day, this choice was logical; nearby Tucson was in the midst of a huge promotional 

campaign to improve business conditions. The country was in the depths of a recession after the war. Cattle 

prices were down. More guest ranches were opening, competing with the Riggs for customers. Ed and Lillian 

saw the Wonderland of Rocks as their financial lifesaver. Not being entirely selfish about the business 

opportunities represented by the geological curiosities, they recognized that the entire region could benefit 

from tourists traveling to see the formations. And a combined effort of boosters across the region would 

produce more awareness among the public than if only Lillian and Ed advertised their find. 

As one might have predicted, news of the formations did cause quite a commotion. After viewing Ed’s 

photographic display at a Douglas fair, Dr. J.J.P. Armstrong became quite enamored with the area. Since the 

rocky region was already part of the national forest, it already was open to the public. But Armstrong wanted 

more; apparently he originated the idea to promote the locale for a higher level of recognition. In turn, the 

Douglas American Legion Post adopted the goal of gaining national monument status for the region, and 

appealed to the Arizona governor to join in the effort.124

Wishing to see the region before he committed himself to the campaign, Governor Hunt arrived for a 

whirlwind visit in August 1923- - almost two years after Ed and Lillian had entered the Wonderland of Rocks. 

Accompanying the governor were 60 newspapermen, photographers- - and businessmen. Again, the theme of 

improving business continued to run through the effort. There was no mention of conservationists or 

geologists being involved in the governor's caravan, nor in the promotional effort. The endeavor was seen as 

an economic development scheme, not a conservation movement.125 The governor took on the task, and the 

following spring, President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed the area to be a national monument. 

The focus on economic development in relation to the preservation of the natural resource of the 

Wonderland of Rocks is not an isolated case. Many parks were originally promoted in terms of local 

economic development.126 Railroad companies, for instance, had been promoters of national parks from the 

creation of the first park, at Yellowstone, in 1872. These companies recognized that with attractive 

 

123 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, July 27, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 

124 Leavengood, 11. 

125 After the governor's visit, Ed forecast what they expected in the future: The National Geographic had promised to send men out as soon as the area 

was "assured of being made into a Park. The El Paso & Southwestern Railroad Company [with a connection to the Santa Fe RR and going into Douglas] 

will begin an extensive advertising campaign all over the east. The Chambers of Commerce and the American legion will all be boasting as will the 

Automobile Clubs, to draw tourists over the southern routes to see the new park. Roads will be built up in the park, trails also." Ed Riggs to Emma and 

Neil Erickson, August 7- 20, 1923, FRC, series 1, folders 238- 242. 

126 Carl Abbott, “The Federal Presence,” in The Oxford History of the American West, Clyde A. Milner II, Carol A. O’Connor, and Martha A. Sandweiss 

(New York: Oxford University Press, 1994), 473. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

126 

destinations, more tourists would travel- - on trains- - which would result in improvements to the companies’ 

bottom lines. J. Horace McFarland, an outspoken preservationist, president of the American Civic 

Association, and successful businessman opposed- - on an economic basis- - the destruction of the falls at 

Niagara (as a result of hydroelectric development). He successfully won his campaign by calculating the 

tourist dollars that would be lost if the falls were diverted. Subsequently, in 1909 he linked the preservation of 

scenery with productivity; he argued to Gifford Pinchot that agreeable surroundings would regenerate the 

spirit of man, and make him more productive. Perhaps he felt that “Until Americans at large accepted 

preservation for its own sake, economic persuasion was better insurance for the movement than unilateral 

appeals for a spiritual and emotional understanding of landscapes.” Many saw the development of hotels, 

restaurants and other tourist facilities at national parks as the key to economic stimulation. National parks 

came hand- in- hand with tourism, which in turn provided a “solid economic justification” for a park’s 

existence. Richard B. Watrous, secretary of the American Civic Association, urged preservationists to 

publicize “the direct material returns that will accrue to the railroads, to the concessionaires, and to various 

sections of the country that will benefit by increased travel” to national parks. Debates regarding the 

establishment of Glacier National Park in 1910 dwelled at length on the “need to market American scenery.” 

Echoing the philosophy of the “See America First” campaign, Senator Thomas H. Carter expressed dismay 

that Americans spent $200 million annually to visit Europe, when the scenery in the U.S. equaled that 

anywhere. Five years later, the amount Americans spent in Europe had climbed to $500 million, and in debate 

over the creation of Rocky Mountain National Park, Representative Edward T. Taylor claimed, “The 

American people have never yet capitalized our scenery and climate, as we should. It is one of our most 

valuable assets, and these great assets should be realized upon to the fullest extent.”127

Promoting the economic benefits of national parks was not the sole jurisdiction of those outside the national 

parks. Stephen Mather, first director of the National Park Service, “equated the national parks with the 

country’s economic health.”128 Mather- - who had made a personal fortune in business- - along with Horace 

Albright, his assistant director, “sought out allies in business by portraying national parks as good 

opportunities for private enterprise and especially for the tourist business.” Mather realized that the creation 

of parks prevented some industries, such as agriculture, timber and power, from exploiting the protected 

resources. His rejoinder was that designating national parks did not “remove them from economic 

development so much as dictate a particular course of economic development, namely leisure travel and 

recreation.” 129 Assistant Director Albright appeared before many chambers of commerce, presenting his 

speech “Parks are Good Business.”And Mather’s friend, Robert Sterling Yard, founder of the National Parks 

Association, authored an article in Nation’s Business entitled “Making a Business of Scenery.” Thus the 

economic lens with which the Riggses and the regional community viewed the Wonderland of Rocks meshed 

with the values of the day.130 

 

127 Runte, 83, 87, 89, 92, 93. 

128 Runte, 103. 

129 Mather’s pro- tourism stance was not purely based on economic good of the country- - he was also aware of the need for park supporters to assure 

the continued existence of the park agency, and for visitors to generate more income. “Tourism offered a means of expanding the agency’s hegemony, 

of ensuring that the agency and its administrative units would survive the political struggles of the decade. Like a rolling snowball, increasing tourism 

in the national parks would demand more administrative services, greater budgets, greater agency responsibilities and prestige, and justify more parks 

which would in turn generate still more tourism. Mather led a massive publicity campaign to promote tourist travel to the parks and monuments." 

Kerwin L. Klein, “Frontier Products: Tourism, Consumerism, and the Southwestern Public Lands, 1890- 1990,” Pacific Historical Review 62, no. 1 

(February 1993): 47. The tourist industry, in turn, recognized the importance of national parks in the local economy. The Dude Ranching Association 

made the director of the National Park Service an honorary member. Borne, 82. 

130 “In 1969, Stewart Udall believed 'the nation to be in the midst of a revolutionary transition . . . The new values emphasize preservation rather than 

exploitation . . . spirituality rather than crass commercialism.'" Klein, 60, quoting Udall, “Towards a Humane Habitat for man," Arizona Review XVIII 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

127 

The designation of Chiricahua National Monument launched a symbiotic relationship between the park and 

Faraway Ranch. Strategically located at the only entrance to the park, every visitor to the monument would 

have to pass by the ranch. And being adjacent to the park, the ranch would be the ideal staging area for 

travelers who wanted to visit the formations. With no other lodging available in the immediate vicinity, the 

guest ranch held a virtual monopoly on restaurant and overnight facilities. Suddenly, Faraway Ranch didn’t 

seem so “far away” any more- - it was at the center of the new national tourist attraction. Ed and Lillian didn't 

waste an opportunity to promote that very niche. Every promotional piece they turned out reminded the 

reader of the ranch's proximity to the natural wonder. In one typical advertisement, the heading proclaimed: 

“Faraway Ranch: The only guest ranch bordering upon Wonderland of Rocks, Chiricahua National 

Monument."131

But the relationship was not one- sided. Because the park staff wanted convenient lodging nearby for their 

visitors (both vacationing and on park business), they had more than a casual interest in the success of the 

guest ranch.132 And the Riggses' promotion of the park wrapped up with the ranch promotions increased 

visitation at the park. Although Faraway was a private business outside of the park, the 

custodian/superintendent frequently included information about the ranch in his regular in- house reports on 

the national monument. Over time it became apparent that Faraway “owed its success to the establishment of 

Chiricahua National Monument.”133 As Lillian observed, "Without the park and our advertising it and 

ourselves, the ranch would be nowhere."134 When the national monument was created, Lillian and Ed must 

have felt that they had found the pot at the end of the rainbow. 

NATIONAL MARKET 

When Hildegard started her boarder business in 1917, she relied exclusively on reputable, local area 

customers. However, as time passed, the business environment changed, and Faraway had to change with it. 

As more and more guest ranches opened in southeastern Arizona, too many businesses competed for the 

limited number of local customers. In addition, the people across the nation became more aware of dude 

ranches as the industry grew, and they became likely prospects for customers. 

Dude and guest ranches across the West began appealing to a national market. “The early guest ranches 

attracted a fascinating, often peculiar lot of patrons. Though it is difficult to categorize them easily, the greater 

 

(April 1969), 7- 10. “Visitor brochures at Grand Canyon National Park in 1955 definitively stated that land within the park system ‘is retained inviolate 

from commercial exploitation,’ . . . This description of the commercial innocence of Arizona’s parks . . . concealed their market value as consumer 

commodities. As visitors to the Grand Canyon read the literature asserting the ‘inviolate’ purity of the park, the Arizona Highways Department (with 

the cooperation of the NPS) counted and interviewed them, and reported their cash value to the state of Arizona. The . . . quantified . . . market value of 

Grand Canyon National Park [in 1954]: . . . [visitors] spent an estimated $117,000,000 on the trips that included the Park in their itineraries. They spent 

approximately $18,950,000 in the State of Arizona. . . . Despite the spiritual rhetoric, the value of Grand Canyon National Park as a consumer 

commodity could be . . . quantitatively measured. . . . If former Secretary of the Interior Stewart Udall declined to assign a monetary value to the 

‘spiritual exhilaration of the wilderness,’ boosters, business researchers, and thousands of migrating Americans proved less fastidious." Klein, 61, 62, 

64. 

131 Ad in Hoofs and Horns, January 1936, page 11. Faraway was not the only guest/dude ranch that capitalized on nearby national parklands. In the mid 

1930s, 25 dude ranches were located near Glacier National Park, 96 were close to the entrances of Yellowstone and Grand Teton national parks, and 

ten were near the entrances to Rocky Mountain National Park. Borne, 157. 

132 Chiricahua staff was not alone in NPS in having an interest in dude ranches. When Horace Albright was superintendent of Yellowstone National 

Park, he actively participated in the founding meeting of the Dude Ranch Association in 1926, and he continued a relationship with the organization for 

years. Borne, 147. 

133 Wilson, 198. 

134 Lillian Riggs to Hildegard Hutchison, August 27, 1931, FRC, series 1, box 9. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

128 

proportion of them were big- city easterners; they were normally rather social, substantially wealthy, 

somewhat adventurous, and probably more than a trifle romantic.”135 As has been discussed, the elite formed 

the majority of tourists in general, and their presence was always desired at tourist attractions. Since living the 

ranching life appealed to them- - especially those in the East- - they formed the customer base in the early 

years of the 1920s. Dude ranch advertising was heaviest in ‘quality’ publications, such as Country Life, Town 

and Country, Vogue and the Junior League Magazine. Then, as now, word of mouth is an extremely effective 

form of advertising; when the guests returned home and recommended the ranch to their friends, an 

interconnected group of customers began fraternizing at each dude ranch.136

Advertising campaigns conducted by railroads became a standard in the national marketing of dude ranches. 

The railroad companies’ tradition of publicizing recreational locales in the West had started soon after the 

first tracks were laid. It made good financial sense to offer a “carrot” so people would have a reason to ride 

the train, so the transportation companies sought out enchanting vistas, interesting peoples, and fascinating 

destinations to draw more passengers.137 In the mid 1920s, the Southern Pacific recognized the collection of 

guest ranches in southern Arizona, and the industry became the focus of a multi- decade campaign. The 

railroad distributed brochures nationally that typically featured exquisite cover art that captured the romantic 

essence of dude ranching.138 The text described what to expect, activities, what to wear, the delightful climate, 

and of course how easy it was to get there, along with an annotated list of guest ranches in the area. The Rock 

Island railroad also published promotional literature, though it wasn’t as elaborate as the Southern Pacific's. 

Their Golden State Route promoted guest ranches, including Faraway. These railroad brochures contributed 

significantly to the national awareness of the southern guest ranches, and growth of the regionally industry 

grew accordingly.139

This connection between the railroad companies and dude ranches came naturally, since in the early days of 

the Arizona industry, the great majority of guests arrived by the railroad (in spite of the coming automobile 

popularity). In Ed and Lillian’s promotional literature, they routinely described their service (and rates) for 

meeting guests at rail points and delivering them back again; the three cities that they typically cited were 

Willcox ($5, $2.50 extra for a trunk), Douglas and Bisbee ($10 each, with an extra $5 for trunks).140

Another significant trend that affected the dude ranch market began in the 1910s and blossomed in the 1920s: 

the use of automobiles for vacationing. Admittedly, the average tourist was still "more prosperous than the 

 

135 Norris, 56. 

136 Pomeroy, 169. 

137 “By 1886, the Northern Pacific Railroad began promoting tours to see Yellowstone National Park where they had built a luxury resort. Soon the 

Southern Pacific Railroad followed suit and began its promotion for touring Yosemite National Park as its trademark destination. Before long, 17 

different railroad companies had developed advertising campaigns for touring the national parks. For the railroads, national park development and 

preservation made good business sense. So the barons of the railroad become natural allies with those who wanted to add more public lands to the 

national park system.” Utah Center for Rural Life, <utahreach.usu.edu/ucrl/cd305a.htm>. 

138 The cover art was beautifully rendered, and typical of the era; in the early years it followed the stylized Art Deco of the era that was typical of the 

railroad literature, and by the 1950s the art shifted to the simplified sleek art of that period. 

139 See, for instance, Norris, 35 and Rodnitzky, 116. Southern Pacific and Rock Island were not the only railroads to promote the popular new form of 

entertainment. Northern Pacific Railroad, for instance, promoted the northern dude ranch industry, found along the northern rail route. One 

Northern Pacific brochure intoned, “Deep- rooted in the heart of every man, woman and child is a strong desire to be a part of the healthy, free, 

interesting life of a western ranch.” Glenda Riley, Women and Nature: Saving the "Wild" West. (Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1999), 150. The 

Burlington and Union Pacific lines also became heavily involved in promoting the dude ranch industry. Borne, 55. 

140 “Faraway Ranch: The Last Frontier.” ca. 1932- 1947. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

129 

American who stayed at home, but the automobile represented a new democratization of vacation travel."141 

The railroad- - still thriving at that time- - had brought many Americans to the outdoors but the automobile's 

impact was far greater; it has been a significant factor in altering tourists' activities and interests. A writer at 

the time observed, "The automobile has revolutionized the average American's vacation, it has brought about 

a renaissance of the outdoors."142 NPS Director Stephen Mather earnestly supported auto tourism as a means 

to increasing park visitation. This belief proved to be accurate: visitors to national parks in 1910 numbered 

199,000; after the national parks were opened to automobiles in 1913, visitors dramatically increased to 

920,000 in 1920 and to 2,775,000 in 1930.143

Virtually simultaneously with the Riggs’ realization that they had to step up to a national market, the 

Wonderland of Rocks became the focus of a local promotional campaign. The timing was fortuitous, for it 

gave the Riggses the key that they had needed to differentiate Faraway from other guest ranches. The 

geological wonder provided the extra value that would entice travelers to stay at Faraway, while they visited 

the adjacent national monument. The Riggses definitely recognized that value, and exploited it in all of their 

promotional literature. For the duration of the guest ranch business, the name Faraway was forever linked to 

Wonderland of Rocks or Chiricahua National Monument. 

Lillian wrote brochures and sent advertising material to newspapers and other media, spending over $580 in 

advertising in 1925, ‘26, ‘27 and ‘29 "to put Faraway on the map." Over $390 of that expenditure was in 1929.144

 

She titled a typical advertising brochure “Faraway Ranch: The Last Frontier” and also proclaimed on the 

cover: "The Gateway to the Wonderland of Rocks: Chiricahua National Monument." The text discussed the 

closeness of Faraway to Chiricahua National Monument: “Chiricahua is a beautiful spectacle. Trails lead 

from Faraway directly into the Park through canyons covered with pines and filled with the most wonderfully 

picturesque rock- spires like a mighty forest.”145 An entry she provided for a local paper noted, "Many people 

are coming to see the Wonderland of Rocks every day, and everyone remarks about the beautiful scenery and 

the marvelous formations.”146

Lillian typically used the “glowing terminology common to advertising prose of the period" in her 

promotional pieces:147

Visitors came to Faraway and, arrayed in riding clothes or dungarees, learned the joys of the saddle 

and of ranch life- - they followed the canyon and mountain trails- - marveled at the beauty which each 

new trail opened up- - joined in the everyday fun of ranch life- - hunted or lazied [sic] the day through 

as choice preferred. And the pure, bracing air gave a new zest to appetite, a newer meaning to restful 

sleep- - and Faraway Ranch with its delicious meals and comfortable beds answered both needs. 

 

141 Pomeroy, 127, 129- 130 

142 Pomeroy, 146, citing Frank E. Brummer, "Autocamping: The Fastest Growing Sport," Outlook 137 (July 16, 1924): 437. 

143 Hyde, 1119. 

144 Lillian Riggs to Neil Erickson, November 23, 1930, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

145 "Faraway Ranch: The Last Frontier." [ca. 1932- 1947]. 

146 “Faraway Ranch,” Hoofs and Horns, November 1934. 

147 Warren McArthur, Jr. and David H. Hoober, "'Camping Deluxe:' A Tour through Arizona in 1924," Journal of Arizona History 21, no. 2 (Summer 

1980): 172. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

130 

A new conception of a real vacation was presented to the tired of mind- - or to those who sought 

newer ways of living. And then the Wonderland of Rocks was discovered. Today, Faraway Ranch 

still offers all these comforts to the outer and inner man or woman . . . It offers something new- - the 

opportunity of combining an unusual vacation with a visit to the wonders which have brought fame 

to Chiricahua Mountains.148

Their promotional material included regular entries in the local newspapers, in which they created an image 

for the guest ranch. One aspect that they promoted was the national (and international) origins of their 

guests: “During the past few weeks we have had guests from New Mexico, California, New York, New Jersey, 

Washington, D.C., and Old Mexico as well as a very large number from our own state.”149 They did, however, 

still rely on local customers: "Visitors are coming from all over and this past month we have seen an increase 

of interest in the Monument. We have had many guests from Tucson, Douglas, Bisbee, and other neighboring 

towns. Out- of- state guests have been mainly from California and New York.”150 Also on a local level, Lillian 

decorated the window of the Chamber of Commerce at Tucson, with hopes that it would bring business to 

Faraway.151 An indication in the shift in their customer base and marketing approach is the fact that for the 

first 12 years of business, the operators of Faraway Ranch called their customers “boarders.” In 1929, they first 

began calling them “guests.”152

 

In addition to word- of- mouth recommendations, railroad promotions, and individual advertisements, other 

vehicles promoted dude ranching in the 1920s and 30s. Dude ranch bureaus existed in a few large eastern 

cities and would link potential customers with ranches; in addition, large eastern newspapers published 

descriptive articles written in their travel sections. Organizations such as the Arizona Automobile Association 

also promoted guest ranches. Their travel directory described the ranches under the heading Spirit of the Old 

West: “Arizona offers a unique field of recreation in its many fascinating guest ranches. . . [they] are among 

the surviving institutions of the early days of the West and retain practically all of the original splendors that 

make Arizona historically interesting. The guest coming to Arizona who extends his stay on a guest ranch 

becomes acquainted with the thrilling aspects of typical western ranch life and at the same time enjoys every 

metropolitan comfort provided for his well- being and continued satisfaction.”153

The simultaneous shift to national advertising combined with a new awareness of the value of the 

Wonderland of Rocks resulted in a significant change in who the Lillian and Ed targeted as customers, and 

who came to Faraway as guests. This shift created a new character at the ranch; instead of local customers, 

the guests more and more came from distant places, and their primary reason for coming to Faraway- - at least 

for their first visit- - was its location next to Chiricahua National Monument. 

THE SUCCESS OF DUDE RANCHES 

 

148 "Faraway Ranch: The Last Frontier." ca. 1932- 1947 

149 “Faraway Ranch,” Hoofs and Horns, October 1934. 

150 “Faraway Ranch,” Hoofs and Horns, November 1934. 

151 Emma Erickson to Lillian Riggs, September 8, 1938, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

152 Faraway Ranch ledgers, FRC, series 9, folders 8, 9, 10, 11 and series 8 folder 89. 

153 Faraway did not have an ad in this publication, nor was it listed in the “official AAA appointments in Arizona”- - but then only 7 guest ranches were 

listed for the state. Arizona Automobile Association, Travel Directory of Arizona (Phoenix: Rocky Mountain Motorists, Inc., 1931). Box 53, series 30, 

folder 6. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

131 

The 1920s and '30s might be called the golden era of dude ranches in the West. Several factors contributed to 

the great success of dude ranches in the 1920s and subsequent years. Struthers Burt, longtime Wyoming dude 

rancher and author, felt that the dude ranch succeeded “because it supplied a growing need.” He proposed 

what might be called a “simple” theory: “in our increasingly complex and noisy life there should be places 

where people could actually be simple . . .” “The dude ranch atmosphere,” he explained, “fostered a less 

complicated life, for its major characteristic was informality.”154 In addition, what might be called a ”cocoon” 

theory suggests that the ranch provided the “kind of home environment where the [customers’] physical and 

social needs were taken care of.” Also, “the ranch setting provided an opportunity to adopt a new lifestyle to 

become involved in; the lifestyle of the western rancher.”155

However, changing attitudes and the symbolism of the West must also be considered in the success of the 

dude ranch phenomena. The popularity of dude ranches continued a trend that had begun decades earlier. 

As has been discussed, easterners were shifting their attitudes about the West, largely due to promotions 

created by westerners. Features that once were scorned or feared became attractions, as an increasingly 

urban America sought meaning in the rural past, and heroic myths grew to answer those needs. 

“Perhaps the most characteristic institutionalization of the new era . . . was the dude ranch. Nothing else 

symbolized so well the changed attitude of twentieth- century Americans toward the idea of the West, and 

toward Western life.” The dude ranch represented “the shift in the interests of the well- to- do tourists . . . 

who now seemed to seek out the kind of Western life . . . that once they had taken great pains to avoid.”156

 

That western life included stronger, more virtuous traits based on the romanticized cowboy and his western 

landscape as a symbol of the American frontier.157 Dude ranching was a “fundamentally American institution, 

and resembled nothing else. The spirit and uniqueness of the Old West was there, along with some of its 

adventure.”158 Dude ranches “provided an ideal setting for a true western experience. These ranches were the 

physical manifestations of patrons' perceptions of western ideals.” While at the ranches, the guests could 

“search for a part of the old western lifestyle” and “were able to imagine themselves as part of their own 

virtuous western dreams.”159 “It is thus a mirror of the realities of [western and] Arizona life, as well as the 

attitudes that vacationers hold toward that life.”160 For most customers “it was something more than a casual 

vacation . . . It was a trip through history, back through the life of the nation.”161 Simply put, patrons 

experienced both a physical and a mental vacation during their stay at a guest ranch.162

Many of the factors that contributed to the success of the dude ranch industry related to the increasingly 

urban nature of the American lifestyle as compared to the rural atmosphere available at a dude ranch. And 

 

154 Rodnitzky, 121, citing Struthers Burt, “Dude Rancher” Outlook CXLVI: 114. 

155 Kumble, 103. This also fits well with anthropologist Victor Turner’s suggestion that tourism consists of “ritualized encounters with the ‘Other’” that 

allows travelers to “experience what it means to be of ‘this place’ and ‘these people.’” Neel, 521, 522. 

156 Pomeroy, 167, 171. 

157 Kumble, 103; and 106 citing Roosevelt 1911. 

158 Rodnitzky, 123. 

159 Kumble, 106; and 196 citing Roosevelt 1911; Rodnitzky 1968; and Norris 1976. 

160 Norris, 2. 

161 Rodnitzky, 124. 

162 Kumble, 106. 
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although it may have seemed to the eastern city dwellers that the dude ranch where they vacationed was the 

epitome of western rural life, in fact the guests were affecting the dude ranch itself. “One striking example of 

traditional western institution shifting from a rural to urban orientation was the dude ranch; throughout the 

West, marginal grazing operations increasingly turn to wealthy tourists as their chief source of income.163

As the dude ranches proved more and more lucrative, and the popular media picked up on the movement. 

“The market for ‘Western’ clothing extended; Westerners began buying what they had imported to sell to the 

tourists, and wore it after the tourists had left; in the years after the Second World War, when cowboy 

costumes for preschool children reached an unprecedented popularity, the fashion seemed to filter . . . into 

the older generation as well. ‘There are more cowboy clothes worn in Arizona now than during the peak of 

the cowboy days,’ observed a Phoenix reporter.”164

President Calvin Coolidge’s 1927 vacation in South Dakota exemplified the popularity of going to the West for 

vacation. With the media photographers fully represented, the diminutive man delighted in sporting a huge 

ten- gallon hat and cowboy boots. “The press reported that the West had taught the president how to play 

and how to enjoy the wide- open spaces. . . . It was a new setting for presidential relaxation. . . . “If the little 

Vermonter looked ridiculous in his hat and boots, and a far cry from the young rancher . . . he represented a 

far more numerous type, one that was becoming more numerous;” that is, urban dwellers who enjoyed 

experiencing an outdoors western lifestyle during their vacations. “It was news to have the president 

recognize and share the common taste, but it was already common.”165

The guest ranching industry affected the West- - more specifically Arizona- - in another way. 

Arizona has one of the most well- known of state images . . . an attractive fusion of Western and 

Southwestern elements. . . . Several factors have been responsible for the formation and success of this 

image. Chief among them, however, has been the guest ranch . . . The Southern Arizona guest ranch . . . 

was a primary determinant of the character of Arizona, the image of which is essentially intact today. It 

has succeeded at this in two ways: first, it was the most popular way for tourists to see Arizona in the 

years when the state was first becoming well- known to the rest of America; and second, it proved a 

foundation from which other advertisers of the state could build. Thus, the importance in the history of 

the state can hardly be overemphasized.166

 

WHAT GUEST RANCHES WERE LIKE 

It is sometimes difficult to precisely define the characteristics of a traditional dude or guest ranch. However, 

the following characteristics can be considered the most important features: 

"1) It was generally the year- round home of the owner where the visitor was considered a guest; 

2) it was located in western North America . . .; 

3) it offered food, lodging, and horseback riding, most often at one price (i.e. the American Plan); 

4) in location or in its outdoor activities it was remote from crowded areas; 

 

163 William Cronon, “Landscapes of Abundance and Scarcity,” in The Oxford History of the American West, Clyde A. Milner II, Carol A. O’Connor, and 

Martha A. Sandweiss (New York: Oxford University Press, 1994), 630. 

164 Pomeroy, 178- 179 citing Deb Myers, “Arizona,” Holiday 13 (January 1953): 28. 

165 Pomeroy, 181- 183. 

166 Norris, 1- 2. 
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5) its main activities have been horseback riding, fishing, hiking, hunting, sightseeing, and ranch 

work, although few of these activities were regimented and none mandatory; simple relaxation was 

always an option for the dude; 

6) reservations were required, and transient trade was refused or formed little of the ranch's business; 

7) atmosphere was the key ingredient; it was informal in manners and dress, people were on a firstname basis, hospitality was genuine, and guests did things together as part of a ranch family."167

Faraway Ranch fit this definition precisely. 

LOCATION 

The location of most early Arizona guest ranches followed a certain pattern. First, they were located in the 

southeastern part of the state. And because they tended to be working ranches, they also tended to be both 

isolated from large towns, as well as functionally located. Thus they tended towards lower- elevation (3000 to 

5000 foot) ranching areas in the state, “among the grasslands and mixed chaparral- grassland vegetation zones 

(termed the ‘woody grasslands’ or ‘plains and desert grassland’) of the state.”168 More specifically, most early 

guest ranches tended to be positioned at “the interface between an alluvial slope and the adjacent, more 

precipitous mountain backdrop.” For guests, this proved to be a valuable asset, since it provided “a variety of 

riding country (vegetationally and scenically)” and also presented a scenic backdrop.169

The altitude of these ranches made year- round entertainment possible, for their elevations protected them 

from the intense summer heat that is found at lower desert elevations.170 Even so, their unique mild, sunny 

warmth in the winters made the difference between these southern Arizona ranches and those in the 

mountain valleys of the northern Rockies. And although other southern areas offered wintertime guest 

ranching “it is desert Arizona which has been the most generally equated with wintertime guest ranching by 

the American public.” 171

Frequently, the success of these ranches “depended upon access to nearby National Forest lands,” which 

provided the opportunity for trail rides, pack trips, hunting expeditions, and other outdoor recreation.172

 

Those ranches were usually situated along the base of the mountain ranges. “A Coronado National Forest 

Recreation Plan compiled in 1930 included fourteen dude ranches situated outside of the forest and five 

similar resorts on private lands within the forest.”173

 

167 Borne, 4. 

168 Norris, 47. 

169 Norris, 49 citing Rodnitzky, 119. 

170 “The early ranches varied . . . somewhat in the length of their seasons. Some of the ranches- - particularly the isolated working ranches- - were open 

for guests all year long, but most were open only for the extended winter season. The maximum length of the winter season was about October 1 to 

June 1 . . . . Regardless of the exact dates of operation, however, the majority of guest ranch revenue was realized during the winter and early spring, 

particularly in the months of December (especially around Christmas time), February, March, and early April.” Norris, 44. 

171 Norris, 24. By the mid- 1920’s, dude ranches could be found in each of the eleven states which then constituted the western United States- - and was 

beginning to be felt in several non- Western states as well. Rodnitzky, 115- 117. “The dude ranches that sprang up in the Southwest differed widely. In 

general, Texas did little more than take in summer boarders . . . in California, winter ranches sprang up in the Palm Springs area, and in the summer 

guests flocked to cool mountain ranches in the western foothills of the Sierras. By comparison, Nevada, Utah, Oregon and Washington had very few 

dude ranches.” Rodnitzky, 116. 

172 Wilson, 201- 202. 

173 Wilson, 199 citing Harrison Burrall, "Forest Recreation Plan" (Tucson: Coronado National Forest, 1930.) 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

134 

Faraway Ranch follows that pattern of location faithfully. It did start as a working ranch; however, it would 

be difficult to credit Emma Peterson Erickson with selecting the site using functional criteria. Instead, she fell 

in love with the area because “it proved to be the most gorgeous place that any one could desire.”174 It was, 

however, along the base of the Chiricahua Mountains, at just over 5000 feet in elevation, and had direct access 

to national forest lands, which provided a range of recreational opportunities. Although Arizona was typically 

cast as a winter market, the elevation of Faraway- - along with its tree- covered, creekside location- - enabled it 

to be a year- round resort. The natural beauty, assisted by plantings, also created an appealing atmosphere. 

One spring, Neil observed, “The little ditch by the side of the road is running a clear stream into the tank 

below. The robins are pulling worms from the soft earth. The Fly Catchers are gathering material for their 

nest under the eave. The lawn is green, the Tiger Lilies are holding the heads toward the setting sun. Rose 

bushes and all trees are in full fledge except the live oaks. They are shedding the old shroud for a new, green 

one and have turned yellow. The Grandifloras and Cherry trees are white with blossoms. The Almond trees 

have long since shed their flora and are green.” 175

Aside from those earlier ranches, newer ranches started developing in southern Arizona through the 1920s. 

The dude ranch industry moved to the market, locating where there was good climate and captivating scenery. 

Arizona provided winter opportunities, and by 1928 even the Eaton brothers, founders of the industry in 

North Dakota, had acquired a ranch in the state for winter operations.176 And a new concept gained 

momentum in the latter half of the decade: guest ranches that weren’t operational cattle ranches. This new 

type of guest ranch didn’t need to acquire property that could support stock; to feed their small number of 

guest ranch stock, they could haul in fodder. These non- working guest ranches tended to cluster around 

towns; by the early 1930s, this clustering had occurred around Wickenburg, Rimrock, Phoenix and Tucson.177 

The concept was so successful the new ranches began to “compete seriously with the hotels of Florida and 

California” for winter guests.178

The new style of dude ranch was not popular with everyone, however. Dude ranchers across the West had 

gained enough self- awareness by 1924 that they organized The Dude Ranchers’ Association, headquartered in 

Montana. Officially, it provided a professional approach to dude ranching, coordinated activities of its 

members, provided a vehicle through which dude ranchers could define their function, and advertised the 

industry.179 Unofficially, it asserted “the dominance of the traditional working guest ranch.” The artificial 

romantic frills that some of the newer ranches provided were not considered to be appropriate for true dude 

ranches.180

 

174 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 

175 Neil Erickson, “Our First Night in Bonita Canyon,” 19 April 1931, FRC, Series 4, folder 9. 

176 Pomeroy, 171. They owned the Rimrock Ranch, north of Camp Verde, near Montezuma Castle National Monument. Other duel- location ranches 

included the Elkhorn Ranch, operated in Montana and south of Tucson, as well as the Lazy K Bar, also located in both Montana as well as in the 

mountains near Tucson. Borne, 55. 

177 Norris, 44. 

178 Pomeroy, 171. 

179 Rodnitzky, 115 

180 Norris, 37. 
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VISITING A GUEST RANCH 

Visiting a traditional dude ranch during the 1920s or early ‘30s in many ways resembled visiting good friends 

at their cozy home. “The typical guest ranch was as homey and comfortable inside as it was rough and rustic 

on the outside. . . . This warm, pleasant atmosphere, expressed both physically and interpersonally, was one 

of the principal attractions of almost all of the early Arizona guest ranches.” 181 Visitors were guests of the host 

(as opposed to being a customer at a hotel), and as such they were able to relax and enjoy their break from 

their daily routines. In addition, about 10 to 35 other guests were present,182 and inevitably they proved to be 

interesting new acquaintances, and some became long- term friends. “The warmth generated by the mutual 

familiarity of the clientele helped make the atmosphere of the ranch pleasant and comfortable. In some ways, 

this warmth was reminiscent of a large, amiable home environment, and has consistently been one of the 

cardinal virtues of the guest ranch vacation.”183 Everyone came to the ranch with the idea of having a good 

time, and so a pleasant social atmosphere typically prevailed. 

The traditional guest ranches were working cattle ranches, and so usually presented the appearance of such. 

A large ranch house or lodge typically took center stage, acting as a social center and a dining area. Corrals, 

outbuildings and individual cabins for the guests clustered around the ranch house.184 The acreage 

surrounding the headquarters of the ranch sometimes were owned by the ranch,185 and sometimes were public 

lands, such as national forests. 

The activities that were available at a guest ranch set the place apart from other vacations. Horseback riding, 

the activity most commonly associated with guest ranches- - as well as the most popular- - prevailed. Most 

guests loved riding, and found every excuse to take part. Riding the range attracted most riders, and often 

they rode to take part in a ranch chore, but usually they simply rode everywhere because they enjoyed it, using 

horses "much as a modern vacationist might use his car.”186 The ranch owner usually gave the guest a horse 

during his stay, so his mount was always available to him or her. Sometimes activities were arranged that 

involved riding, such as pack trips, hunting, picnics, cookouts, or riding trips to local points of interest. 

Ranches also offered dudes the opportunity to take part in the ranch chores. Activities included rounding up 

the cattle, haying, branding, calf roping, riding the fences, and rounding up strays. While the guests were 

encouraged to participate in any activities that interested them, guests typically did not participate in ranch 

work to a very large degree. While the idea seemed romantic, on a practical level the guest usually found the 

work “took a considerable amount of skill” not to mention that it was “dirty, sweaty, and hard- - something to 

try a few times, and then reflect upon, rather than something in which to consistently participate.”187 The 

 

181 Norris, 37. 

182 Norris, 16, 42. 

183 Norris, 68. 

184 Wilson, 198. 

185 “The working ranches were quite expansive. The majority of them ranged in size from 25,000 to 60,000 acres. Though thus large by Eastern 

standards, they were representative of most Arizona ranches. They included neither the largest nor the smallest ranches; the largest ranches showed no 

desire to adopt guest ranching, and the smallest could not offer the expansive riding land desired by most patrons.” Norris, 43. 

186 Norris, 51. 

187 Norris, 54. 
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ranch crew was thus left to perform the chores, but the guests found that observing the cowboys satisfied their 

hankering for a ranching experience. 

A guest need not be interested in horses or cattle to enjoy themselves at a guest ranch. Other activities could 

always be found around the main ranch house. Cards were available for a game of bridge or poker; reading 

material could be picked up from the bookshelves; and hiking trails offered opportunities for exercise and 

enjoying the scenery. Arizona guest ranches, however, offered a special commodity: the winter sun. “The 

warmth of the sun easily induced an atmosphere of restfulness, and to this end, techniques of creative 

relaxation were perfected to quite a high degree. In fact, people occasionally spent the entire day in abject, 

utter non- activity, sunning themselves or otherwise ‘loafing.’"188 Of course, all of these pastimes did not just 

happen; the dude ranch owners busily set the stage for the activities, while making it appear effortless. For a 

discussion of some of these responsibilities, see the topic in the chapter on women. 

ACTIVITIES AND ENVIRONMENT AT FARAWAY 

At Faraway Ranch, the activities fell in step with the typical guest ranch, but with Lillian and Ed’s own 

personal flare. The family home served as the center of activity and provided rooms for the guests. Guests 

also stayed in simple cabins near the house.189 Rides and hikes into the Wonderland of Rocks were of course 

the featured activity, which differentiated Faraway from other guest ranches. In addition, guests were 

welcome to join the ranch hands in checking on cattle, and rounding up the stock to move them to other 

pastures. At one point Lillian reported, “Everyone has been very busy lately working on our roundup. We 

have just finished driving a bunch of steers to Willcox and shipping them to California. We are going to have 

another roundup again in a week or so and look forward to having quite a few guests to join in the fun."190 Ed 

took out parties of guests, picnicked with them, climbed with them, and showed them the sights.191 “Dressed 

in jodhpurs for the trail, Lillian accompanied many rides, impressing guests with her horsemanship and 

knowledge of the area.”192 Hunters also enjoyed coming to Faraway, as they had from the guest ranch's 

inception. And back at the ranch, "Lillian enthralled them with stories of her parents and frontier days. She 

played the piano in the evenings and led sing- alongs. . . .On summer evenings, visitors gathered on the lawn 

and ate popcorn while Ed projected slides on the wall of the house. On Sunday afternoons Ed served his 

legendary homemade ice cream."193

A brochure for Faraway boasted of 

indoor showers and an out- door swimming pool- - in fact, practically all of the urban improvements 

transferred to the Arizona Mountains. . . . Although life at Faraway Ranch is a thing apart from the 

hurry of city life it keeps in touch with the world’s doings by means of the radio and current 

 

188 Norris, 56. 

189 By the early 1930s up to 32 guests could stay at Faraway, though this number was rarely reached at one time. Guests could stay in the ranch house (up 

to 13 guests, when necessary), the Stafford log cabin (6 guests); three other cabins (total of 11) and the upper porch of the house (2). David H. Wallace, 

Furnishings at Faraway: Historic Furnishings Report, Faraway Ranch, Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona (Harpers Ferry, West Virginia: Harpers 

Ferry Center, National Park Service, 1986), 41. 

190 “Faraway Ranch,” Hoofs and Horns, November 1934. 

191 Lillian Riggs to J.P. Anderson, Kansas City, MO, [March? 1947], FRC, series 8, box 28, folder 63- 65, fiche 119. 

192 Leavengood, 11. 

193 Leavengood, 11. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

137 

periodicals . . .walks about the orchard and gardens surrounding the ranch, “assuring a supply of 

fresh vegetables.” Swimming pool with fresh water from mountains, mile high altitude “tempers 

Arizona’s summer heat and summer days as a consequence are never hot.” Faraway’s winter climate 

is as ideal as the summer . . . make Faraway an all year round resort. . . . There is every kind of horse 

available at Faraway from the spirited animal for the seasoned riders to the gentle one for the novice. 

Their everyday use is a regular part of Ranch life. . . . Whether you come to Faraway Ranch merely as 

a transient guest . . . or your visit is to be a month long vacation you will find the Ranch ready, every 

day in the year, to offer you its comforts. . . . 194

In spite of the all- American appeal, however, not everyone was welcome at guest ranches. Whether due to 

concerns about communicable diseases or because of ethnic, religious or racial prejudice, some guest ranches 

placed restrictions on whom they welcomed to their ranches. In Arizona, particularly, ranch hosts worried 

about guests arriving with tuberculosis. The state's image as a haven for those seeking a healthy climate ran 

counter to guest ranchers' goals for their own facilities. As a result, these owners typically did not accept 

tuberculars or asthmatics as guests. The ranchers usually stated their policy clearly, both to inform people 

with health problems that their ranch was not a facility that could accommodate their needs, and at the same 

time to communicate to healthy potential clients that they could expect to find only healthy fellow guests. 

Some of the early ranches were so serious about the issue- - and wanted to communicate that to their guests- -

that they required medical examinations prior to a guest's visit.195 Faraway Ranch followed the Arizona 

pattern regarding the health issue, and stated in their advertising literature that they were "compelled to 

exclude persons with communicable diseases."196

Racial and religious discrimination was displayed at a different geographical center, with eastern dude 

ranches seemingly being the locus of such attitudes. During the 1930s one- third to one- half of the Eastern 

ranches advertised themselves as ‘restricted,’ that is, restricted to white Christians, thus excluding AfricanAmericans and Jews. Very few Western dude- ranch advertisements said a ranch was ‘restricted,’ however, it 

is not clear if the ranches did in fact restrict their clientele.197 Faraway Ranch, for instance, did not include any 

information regarding racial or religious restrictions in its own promotional literature. However, when 

prompted with a question regarding its practice, Lillian responded, in the 1930s, "No Hebrews taken." And in 

the 1950s, she limited her customers to "people of the white race . . . we do not object to Jewish people, but 

other guests sometimes might." She went on to explain that her clientele included people of "reasonable 

culture and refinement, who enjoy nature and simple living, not frequenters of bars and cocktail lounges.198

 

Lillian retained specific ideas about whom she allowed in her home. 

Although not welcome as guests, some of the employees at Faraway were African Americans, though 

apparently neither Lillian nor Ed left any record of this. All references to their race were noted by others. For 

instance, Neil noted in his diary that Lillian, Ed and Emma returned from Douglas “with a colored girl 

 

194 "Faraway Ranch: The Last Frontier." ca. 1932- 1947. 

195 Norris, 60. 

196 "Faraway Ranch: The Last Frontier" [brochure]. ca. 1932- 1945. 

197 Rodnitzky, 121 

198 American Express Hotel, Resort, Camp and Ranch Register," post June 22, 1931, FRC, series 8, folder 63- 65; Rock Island Lines questionnaire form, 

August 28, 1956, FRC, series 1, folder 50- 56. The fact that two different national questionnaires specifically asked about such restrictions indicates the 

prevalence of its practice. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

138 

(Sara).”199 Later, he noticed, “Dean[?] Williams and wife Gemima have gone, and other colored people are 

expected to come.”200 A few days later, Beulah Erickson observed, ”Don’t think our cook will be a success- -

has to be shown over & over. . . Colored boy doing fine- - very ambitious.”201 While they looked for an 

assistant for Emma, who was almost crippled at that time, the elderly woman offered the opinion, “I hope it 

will be good help and white folk.”202 Later, a friend of Emma’s asked, “Do you have your colored girls with 

you that was there when I visited you and are you still keeping boarders?”203 It’s difficult to draw many 

conclusions about the experiences of these Black Americans; however, since Lillian and Ed hired the staff, and 

neither of them left a reference to race, it might be inferred that the couple didn’t see the situation as 

remarkable, while Neil and Emma did find it notable enough to write about it.204

Not all guests came for vacation. As has been noted, the governor of Arizona, and a crowd of people 

accompanying him, stayed at Faraway when evaluating the Wonderland of Rocks. Just about any National 

Park Service staff person who came to Chiricahua on business stayed at Faraway. And in 1927, cowboy star 

Rex Bell and a 40- person crew stayed at Faraway while they filmed the movie Wild West Romance at 

Chiricahua. The dog Mutt costarred, but if is not known if he also stayed at the ranch.205

When Neil Erickson retired in December 1927, he and Emma moved back home. However, their home now 

operated as a guest ranch, with troops of guests streaming through. The situation was not altogether 

unknown to them, however, since they had frequently returned to Faraway to live during the winter months.206

 

In addition, they were used to working with tourists after their experience at Walnut Canyon, so they 

apparently took the guest ranch in stride. A letter from a guest to Neil indicates how thoroughly the older 

gentleman incorporated himself into the activities of the guest ranch, and also gives us some insight into the 

daily activities: "With raising and lowering the flag each day at sunrise and sundown, . . . fitting doors, going 

after chickens and wood, riding horses and a dozen and one other things I am sure you have no use for Indian 

clubs [club- shaped implements used in gymnastic exercise]. After discussing the turkeys that woke her in the 

mornings, the guest continued: 

“We certainly had a very pleasant month on your ranch, Mr. Erickson. There is such a homelike 

atmosphere which means so much. . . Thank you for all you did to make it interesting for us from the 

first night when you lit the gas heater for us to carrying down our suitcases on the day we left. We 

enjoyed your stories of Indians and early days and the rides you gave us in your car.”207

 

199 Neil Erickson, diary, January 29, 1930, FRC, series 2, folder 33. 

200 Neil Erickson, diary, May 1, 1937, FRC, series 2, folder 38. 

201 Beulah Erickson to Lillian Riggs and Neil Erickson, May 5, 1937, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

202 Emma Erickson to Neil Erickson, April 15, 1937, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

203 Mattie Pierce to Emma Erickson, April 2, 1944, FRC, series 1, folder 226. 

204 During World war II, Lillian wrote a letter to radio announcers criticizing their racist attitudes regarding Japanese- Americans. Lillian Erickson, 

January 1945, FRC, series 8, folder 4- 5. 

205 Newspaper clipping and notation, Acc. 80, Stratton donation, WACC; and Wallace, 41. 

206 Neil Erickson Stock Raising Homestead Entry 035343 for Sections 21 and 27, T16S, R29E, patented November 18, 1924; Phoenix, Arizona; General 

Land Office; Records of the Bureau of Land Management, Record Group 49; National Archives, Washington, DC. 

207 Marjorie A. Anderson to Neil Erickson, March 30, 1929. FRC, series 1, folder 9- 15. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

139 

THE DEPRESSION 

The 1930s were in the midst of the heyday of dude ranching. During '30s and '40s "the industry was growing, 

and influential in many of the local tourist economies of low- elevation Arizona deserts.”208 The Great 

Depression did little to halt the spread and popularity of dude ranches, so the industry "came through the 

Depression years handsomely.”209 The New York Times noted in 1932 that "even in the midst of the economic 

recession dude ranchers were enjoying a thriving business in traffic and earnings.”210 Travel bureaus estimated 

that 20,000 persons spent vacations at summer dude ranches during the 1937 season.211 Many of these 

travelers were members of the upper class, which was logical at that particular point in time. When a person 

is out of work or under employed due to the depression, vacation is not their highest priority. However, many 

members of the upper class were buffered from the economic extremes; thus the elite were able to travel when 

the middle class could not afford to do so. Lillian Riggs frequently took the opportunity to reveal the social 

status of her guests. In one newspaper entry, for instance, she reported on a recent camping trip with their 

guest, the American Consul at Nogales: “Pine boughs for beds (don’t tell [forest supervisor] Fred Winn.) A 

star- spangled sky for a roof; winds from a dozen valleys to fan our cheeks; camp- fires- - with plenty of 

smoke- - by which to cook our meals and spin our yarns. We found deer grazing with our saddle horses.”212

 

But the dude ranch industry could not claim to be the only tourist attraction that succeeded in the depression. 

Tourism in general, had become rather significant industry by the end of the 1920s, persisted in growing 

steadily during the 1930s, in spite of the financial situation in the Great Depression. A 1937 examination of 

economic aspects of recreation, found “’nothing is more striking . . . than the increase in travel for pleasure 

during the last twenty- five years.’” Consumer spending for vacation travel rose from “$465 million in 1909 to 

$2,331 million by 1935 when Americans spent over 50 percent of the total estimated expenditures devoted to 

recreational activities . . . for vacations away from home."213 “More tourists were pouring into parks and 

national monuments and national forests; more tourists were going to Mount McKinley during the bad times 

of the 1930’s than had gone to Yosemite in the good times of the 1870’s.”214

Dude ranching did enjoy prosperity during the depression, and by 1935 the industry entered an especially 

successful phase. Western railroads continued to promote dude ranches, and acted as clearinghouses of 

information for interested travelers. The industry had become established and reputable enough that the 

University of Wyoming began offering a four- year degree in Recreational Ranching to teach students “‘how to 

entertain paying guests on Wyoming’s dude ranches.’”215 During this time, Wickenburg, Arizona began calling 

itself the "Dude Ranching Capital of the World" due to the more than thirty guest ranches in the vicinity.216

 

208 Norris, 11. 

209 Wilson, 202. 

210 Rodnitzky, 115, citing New York Times, August 7, 1932. 

211 Rodnitzky, 118 citing New York Times, July 24, 1938. 

212 “From the Faraway Ranch,” Hoofs and Horns, October 1935, p. 8. 

213 Mooney- Melvin, 37 citing Julius Weinberger, "Economic Aspects of Recreation," Harvard Business Review 15 (Summer 1937): 455- 61. 

214 Pomeroy, 214, 215. 

215 Rodnitzky, 116. 

216 Joel H. Bernstein, Families That Take In Friends: An Informal History of Dude Ranching (Stevensville, Montana: Stoneydale Press, 1982), 139. Although 

the locale's enthusiasm over its industry can be understood, Arizona is actually believed to have ranked third in number of dude/guest ranches in 1936. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

140 

The Arizona industry also evolved into a new phase in the mid 1930s. Many tourists had became enchanted 

with the idea of a western vacation, but the idea of roughing it on an isolated, rustic cattle ranch didn’t appeal 

to them all. Savvy Arizona businessmen recognized that there was a market waiting to be served, and the dude 

ranch industry diversified to please tourists’ varying demands. The major shift resulted in guest ranches that 

did not include cattle ranching. 

Once cattle were removed from the dude ranch equation, the location of the ranches shifted. Since the owner 

didn’t need to be concerned about good grazing land for stock, the property could be anywhere that tourists 

found appealing. The new non- working guest ranches learned that in addition to a ranching atmosphere, 

accessibility and convenience ranked high, as did attractions in towns, so they located near Tucson and 

Phoenix. Since these new locations were not truly ranches, they could not offer a true ranch environment; 

instead they emphasized symbols of the West. Activities at non- working guest ranches thus seemed western, 

but would have never been found on a working cattle ranch, including chuck wagon rides, hay rides, breakfast 

rides, western sing- a- longs around a campfire, and similar endeavors.217 These new pursuits also called for 

less exertion on the part of the client. As Arizona attracted more tourists due to advertising the state's warm 

winter climate, activities more related to the climate (rather than the West) became important; swimming and 

sunbathing were two activities that the Arizona ranches offered to these new tourists. What these new dude 

ranches tendered “was less a genuine rural way of life than a carefully crafted fantasy for leisure- class 

consumers- - dude ranching was hardly ‘traditional’ life on the land.”218 Nevertheless, adapting to the new 

interests of tourists, the Western- oriented guest ranch (as opposed to the genuine or traditional guest ranch) 

eventually became the most popular guest ranch form. 

FARAWAY IN THE 1930s 

Thirty years after the Depression (when Lillian was trying to sell the guest ranch) she remembered Faraway's 

early decades with a golden glow. “People came to our small and inadequate guest ranch to view the marvels 

of our Wonderland, to study its flora and fauna, to ride the cool wooded canyons, to escape the rigors of 

northern climes and to escape the heat of lowland valleys which stretch away on all sides. It became the 

dream of our lives to establish an attractive and adequate lodge in such a setting as Bonita Canyon to care for 

the nature lovers who came from distant parts. . . . To have the sort of place we dreamed of would take time 

and money. We were on the way- - and happily so. The Park Service took over. They were constructing 

better trails and building roads, headquarters, residences and a camp ground. We were biding our time in 

building the lodge. A constantly increasing number of travelers were coming. No question of our success."219

In spite of Lillian's picturesque image of Faraway's success, the Depression and the development of the 

southern Arizona guest ranch industry- - as well as other influences- - did affect Faraway in the 1930s. While 

the industry as a whole thrived during the decade, Faraway eked out an existence. Although publicly Lillian 

insisted that the business was successful, their revenue ledgers revealed another side to the story. During the 

Depression the amount of annual revenues that the guest ranch produced was comparable to the amount they 

 

Of an estimated 356 dude ranches that year, Montana and Wyoming were ranked the highest, with 114 and 95, respectively. Next came Arizona with 65, 

then New Mexico with 26, and 25 in Colorado. These five states accounted for over 90% of the dude ranches at that time. Borne, 61. 

217 Norris, 222. 

218 Cronon in Milner, 630. 

219 Lillian Riggs to Walter Broadfoot, administrative assistant of Holiday Inns of America, Inc., May 24, 1967, FRC, series 8, folder 36. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

141 

took in during the mid 1920s.220 While the figure is good in that the Riggses were indeed bringing in yearly 

revenues, and bringing it in at the same level that they had during those earlier years, they weren't doing as 

well as they had during the intervening years of the late 1920s.221 What isn't precisely known is how much 

profit the couple made from their revenues. It is clear from their observations that they weren't thriving. It is 

possible that their business acumen was partly to blame for the situation. For instance, during the pre- war 

years, two of their highest revenue years were 1931 and '32, which should have resulted in high profits.222

 

However, the couple noted in their records that the high figure was due to the presence of surveyors and 

other Bureau of Public Roads crew, which resulted in a "large total but so many were fed that there was very 

little profit."223 One has to wonder why a large number of customers resulted in small profits; it would seem 

that if their services and goods were priced appropriately, then their profits would have risen. 

Questions such as these also occurred to Neil, Emma and Hildegard. As is more fully discussed in the chapter 

in ranching, in the early 1930s, a family feud pitted Lillian and Ed against their relatives. In addition to the 

threesome’s concerns about the management of the cattle ranch, they especially criticized the Riggses for their 

management of the guest ranch. Hildegard pointed out to Lillian and Ed that they hadn’t started from 

scratch, but rather that Neil, Emma, Ben and Hildegard "spent a good many years making the place what it 

was when you took it over.” She believed that Lillian and Ed’s financial problems were due at least partly to 

the low prices and high overhead. "You put out a pamphlet for the ranch with rates so absurdly cheap that all 

but a tramp would laugh at it. Why respectable camp cottages alone in both Arizona and California cost 

nearly as much as you charge for room, eats, horses, swims and everything." (Compared to the Wetherill and 

Colville guest ranches, Hildegard was correct, though direct comparisons are difficult.)224 She believed, "It can 

be done if we work together and cut out much overhead expense and we ourselves do as we did when we 

started mama and I - - and you and I."225 However, she apparently didn’t consider a salary for the family 

members if she thought they would save money by not hiring help. Furthermore, she wasn’t pleased with the 

Riggses suggestion that they sell some property to a hotel “for a big price,” chastising that “if that is done and 

developments made, it will greatly detract from the value of the home place and likely ruin the water 

entirely."226 (Ben was also thinking of selling his land to the hotel company, for a golf course and landing 

field.) 227

 

220 From 1923 (the year they married) through 1926, the guest ranch revenues equaled a median amount of $2,138 per year, while in the period 1934 

through 1939 they took in a median of $2,224 each year. 

221 During 1927 through 1930 they brought in an annual median of $3,758. 

222 Their highest pre- war year was 1931, with revenues of $6,343, almost five times more than what they brought in during 1923, the year of their 

marriage. In 1932 they took in $4,634, the third highest intake in a two- decade period. 

223 Faraway Ranch ledgers, FRC, series 9, folders 8, 9, 10, 11; and FRC, series 8 folder 89. 

224 Hildegard Hutchison to Lillian Riggs, September 2, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. One comparison she may have made was with John Wetherill 

and Colville guest ranches at La Osa, Arizona and Kayenta, Arizona who offered a single room with bath and horse for $65/week. Neil had obtained 

this information in 1928. FRC, series 1, folder 305- 311. However, one secondary source indicates that in the 1930s and '40s, the most elegant of the 

Arizona guest ranches on the American Plan charged between $25 and $50 per week, which included room, board, horse and saddle, and the use of all 

other facilities. Bernstein, 139. In comparison, rates at Faraway in the early 1930s for a single room with access to a bath, and a horse for $6 per day [$42 

per week]. Since Faraway was on the American Plan, the price included all lodging, meals, and participation in organized activities. "American Express 

Hotel, Resort, Camp and Ranch Register," post June 22, 1931, FRC, series 8, folder 63- 65. In 1935 the couple advertised their rates as $37.50 per week, 

including use of saddle horse. “Guest Ranch Accommodations in Southern Arizona,” Tucson, 8, no. 10 (October 1935). series 37, folder 70. 

225 Hildegard Hutchison (with co- signers Emma and Neil Erickson) to Lillian Riggs, August 21, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153.

226 Hildegard Hutchison (with co- signers Emma and Neil Erickson) to Lillian Riggs, August 21, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153.

227 [Lillian Riggs, ca. August- September 1931], FRC, series 1, box 9. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

142 

Neil also expressed concern about the economic viability of the guest ranch business. “As near as I can tell 

from your own statement, you have run the place at a loss, and you have had to use money derived from your 

cattle to run the guest ranch. . . . if such be the case . . . you should have given up the place long ago, for your 

own good.” Since Neil, Emma and Hildegard all had a financial stake in the property (since the elder couple 

owned the land and Hildegard would inherit one- third of it) the threesome decided “to change the 

management, at least in part or in the whole, as you think best. If the place cannot be made to pay as a guest 

ranch, we will not try to maintain it as such. And on the other hand if it can be made to pay we will with all 

share alike."228

Lillian and Ed defended themselves by pointing out that they were putting value into the ranch in an indirect 

way, so Ben and Hildegard would gain. "Our work in developing and advertising the park, getting the road in, 

and putting Bonita Canyon on the map, adds directly and immensely to the increase of value of the property 

in which we all know they have an equal share." (This defense underlines the integral relationship that the 

guest ranch had with the national monument: advertising the park increased the value of their own property.) 

She also defended the denouncement of not being profitable: “Ed and I have built up a successful- - (at last) 

business for ourselves.”229 More specifically she recounted, "During the two years that Mr. Souers' school was 

here, the [guest] ranch paid its way all the time. The two years following the opening of the park, it did also, 

and a little more.” What wasn't said was the converse of that data: that out of almost nine years of running 

the guest ranch together, the couple apparently had earned a profit in only four of them. She did admit, 

“there has never yet been a year that the cattle did not have to help out on the improvements and expenses of 

the [guest] ranch."230

Lillian and Ed were apparently not interested in working together with the other family members, and in 

reaction to Neil’s proposal that they move out by January 1932, the couple devised several alternative 

scenarios. These ideas included turning over guest ranch and ranch to Hildegard and her husband Jess; 

turning over the home ranch but keeping the name and guest business of Faraway Ranch; selling part of their 

own ranch and cattle, etc.231 The couple explored the idea of moving their guest ranch business to their own 

property, and asked one of their repeating guests to finance the construction. His response was encouraging, 

but given that the request came during the heart of the Great Depression, he was not able to comply.232

In some way, however, the family agreed upon a resolution for the situation. No apparent changes happened 

at Faraway Ranch. For a while Lillian and Ed tried to reduce overhead expenses by not hiring helpers. This 

 

228 Neil and Emma Erickson to Lillian Riggs, September 9, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 101- 106. 

229 Lillian Riggs to Hildegard Hutchison, August 27, 1931, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

230 Lillian Riggs to Neil Erickson, November 23, 1930, FRC, series 1, box 9. Ed Souers was superintendent of schools in Bisbee and Douglas; a boys' 

school was held at the ranch in 1927- 29. Wallace, 33; and Livingston, 47. 

231 Ed Riggs to Mr. Cooper, [ca. August- September 1931], FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242; and [Lillian Riggs, ca. August- September 1931], FRC, series 1, box 

9. 

232 “I am sure you are doing the right thing in developing the guest ranch idea as I agree with you that the guest traffic in Arizona will increase year after year, and 

from my own experience, I know that one couldn’t find a better spot than your ranch.” Even so, he had to turn down Ed’s request to finance building a new 

ranch farther up the canyon, due to “the severe decline in security prices which makes my present financial position a little uncomfortable, to say the least.” He 

reported that he planned to return often to Faraway; he had received a long letter from fellow guests, again indicating the interconnected network of guests at 

dude ranches. Duncan J. McNabb (president, Guardian Detroit Company) to Ed M. Riggs, 11 January 1932, Acc. 1726, Miscellaneous Faraway Information, 

WACC. McNabb's comment about his financial position being " a little uncomfortable" was indeed an understatement. His company was key in the banking 

crisis during the depression. The Guardian Detroit Union Group, backed by Henry Ford, owned banks in sixteen Michigan cities. Its overextended banks lent 

heavily to real estate, and also lent money to its own officers and employees to buy Guardian stock, sparking a panic. As a result, the governor of Michigan 

closed the state's banks in February 1933, which in turn led to President Franklin Roosevelt calling a national bank holiday a month later. Norman Gall, 

"Depression Talk," Fernand Braudel Institute of World Economics, May 1987, <www.normangall.com/arquivosdoc/net.rtf>. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

143 

experiment failed. "I have a woman from Iowa to do the cooking. . . . I thought I might get along without 

anyone but I simply could not. When [daughter] Lee and I had all the kitchen work to do there was no time at 

all for the other things. If there were not people coming all the time it would be different. But I don't think 

there has been a day in the past ten that there haven't been from two to six extra. I can't do all the extra 

working for crowds and keep up with the letters, chickens, vegetables, cattle and everything."233 However, the 

family dropped the profitability and mismanagement issues, and didn't record any additional dissension. The 

guest ranch continued to bring in a rather stable amount of revenue throughout the remainder of the 

Depression. 

While new Western- oriented (rather than ranch- oriented) southern Arizona guest ranches opened, 

competing for business, the Riggses continued to focus on its unique situation: being situated at the boundary 

of Chiricahua National Monument. A 1934 event pointed out the close relationship between the guest ranch 

and the national monument: the completion of the road into the park. The road went right through the 

Erickson property at Faraway Ranch; some property owners may have objected to this construction with the 

promised extra traffic. And, indeed, the Riggses had mixed feelings about the road. During the early planning 

stages, when both Pinery Canyon and Bonita Canyon were discussed as a proposed location for the road, Ed 

observed, "It really makes no great difference to us. In fact, we would rather not have a public highway up our 

canyon, our exclusiveness would then be a thing of the past. We will always be able to pull all the trade we 

can handle from the more desirable and worthwhile people."234 Nonetheless, the couple recognized the 

importance of having a road to the monument, and supported the construction of the road, even though it 

divided their land. Now that the monument road was connected to the nearby county road, which connected 

to the nearby state highway, access to the ranch and the monument was much easier for vacationers and day 

travelers in automobiles.235 The completion of the project prompted a grand opening celebration, held at 

Massai Point. Approximately 7,000 people attended the dedication, and of course they had to drive right by 

Faraway Ranch buildings. To Ed and Lillian, some of the more important visitors that day were the reporters. 

Seizing the sales opportunity, the couple had invited several western newspaper reporters to stay at Faraway. 

As a result of the couple's perceptive planning, the reporters published articles in Los Angeles, San Francisco 

and Denver newspapers, publicizing not only Chiricahua but also Faraway Ranch. 236

Another business connection with the park came about when Ed and the Chiricahua staff became interested 

in a horseback riding business in the park. With the help of son Murray Riggs and son- in- law Hunter 

Stratton,237 Ed began by testing the market in 1938 to see if a saddle stock permit would pay its way. The 

Chiricahua superintendent supported the idea: "We will naturally do all we can to make it a success because 

so many visitors come unprepared for walking or are unable to walk and thus miss some of the finest 

formations. Chiricahua is an ideal horseback monument and the visitor can enjoy from an hour or two to a 

full day in the saddle.”238

 

233 Lillian Riggs to Emma and Neil Erickson, November 1, 1933, FRC, series 1, box 9. 234 Ed Riggs to Neil and Emma Erickson, August 7, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 

235 Even before the road was completed, numerous people visited the site. Over 28,000 visitors came to the monument in 1933. “Southwestern 

Monuments Monthly Report,” April 1934, Acc. 1777, WACC. The new road, Bonita Canyon Highway, connected to current State Highway 181, which 

connected to current U.S. Highway 191. Access to other towns in the region thus became much easier than earlier. The U.S. Bureau of Public Roads 

and the Arizona Highway Department administered the public works project. 

236 Leavengood, 12 

237 His daughter Eula Lee had married Hunter Stratton in October 1935. Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family 

History,” n.d. Acc. # 1721, WACC. 

238 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, January, February and June 1938, Acc. 1777, WACC. 
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144 

NPS issued special use permit to the Riggses to operate a saddle horse business in Chiricahua National 

Monument during the calendar year of 1941, and that year the horse business in the park brought a net profit 

of $208.63. The permits continued to be issued for most of the 1940s.239 In December 1943, the superintendent 

noted, “Of the 96 visitors this month, 86 came in 16 cars, the other 10 made the trip on horseback in three 

parties from the Faraway Ranch.”240 A few years later, Lillian noted, "We run the horses for the sight- seeing 

trips into the Monument. We have twelve riding horses at present and sometimes these go out three times a 

week. Sometimes not at all."241 Whether the patronage was three parties a month or three times a week, 

customers were not stampeding to ride horses into the park. During the time that Faraway operated as a guest 

ranch, the cost to keep twelve horses would have to be carried by the guest business. 

Two other examples of the symbiotic relationship between the national monument and the Riggs' ranch came 

about when a Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) crew was stationed at Chiricahua National Monument. The 

CCC hired Ed as a trail foreman for a salary of $1,800 a year. This added considerably to the family's income-

- his personal income was greater in 1935 and '37 than the guest ranch's revenues (and this was before the 

guest ranch's expenses were deducted to determine profit). Having a steady reliable cash income took the 

edge off of running the guest ranch (as well as the cattle ranch). It paralleled Neil's taking a Forest Service job 

three decades earlier in order to be able to live at the ranch. 

 

Another aspect of the CCC that affected the guest ranch was the establishment of the enrollee's camp on the 

Riggs' property.242 From 1934 to 1940, the guests at the ranch were quite close to the camp where up to 200 

young men spent their evenings and weekends. This ironic juxtaposition placed young men who needed 

employment next to more well- to- do tourists who had enough disposable income to take a relaxing vacation 

during the Depression. 

TRANSFORMING THE CCC CAMP INTO CAMP FARAWAY/FARAWAY LODGE, 1940- 1945 

At the end of the government's use of the CCC camp, the Riggses hoped to sell eighty acres of land, including 

the CCC camp, to the government. That transaction was not completed, but the couple was able to negotiate 

a deal in which the NPS left the improvements on the Riggs land. As a result, the couple "inherited" 24 

buildings, including 5 barracks, a mess hall/kitchen, an infirmary, generator houses, a blacksmith shop, and a 

carpenter shop.243 Lillian and Ed decided a good use for the property was a 'roughing it' camp for groups, 

providing dormitory- style accommodations with cots for up to 100 people. They dubbed it "Camp Faraway." 

The couple envisioned that such "inexpensive but comfortable camping quarters" (complete with running 

water and electricity) would be popular with children's and young people's organizations. In addition to the 

dorms, the camp included a building known as Camp Faraway Lodge "with partitioned rooms, comfortable 

beds and modern conveniences" that accommodated about 20 people. Several cottages were also available at 

low rates. Also available at Camp Faraway were a well- equipped kitchen that served two dining rooms, and a 

recreation building "furnished with table tennis courts, card tables, writing desks and a floor for dancing." 

 

239 FRC, series 8, folders 16- 21. 

240 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, December 1943, Acc. 1777, WACC. 

241 Lillian Riggs, [1946 or 47], FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 26. 

242 Although the Riggses leased the property to the government, they earned only $1 a year- - surely not enough to make a difference in the family's 

budget! 

243 Lillian and Ed Riggs, October 10, 1940, FRC, series 8, folder 98. 
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145 

Rather than operate the Camp Faraway themselves, Lillian and Ed leased the facility to Mr. and Mrs. Warren 

D. Schreurs (whose home was in Tucson) for $190 per month plus a portion of the camp's gross income. The 

ranch and camp cooperated in planning "interesting trips and recreational activities. Horses of all types 

[were] available and there [were] guided hikes, cowboy dances, campfire stunts nights, and the like."244

Camp Faraway and Camp Faraway Lodge opened in the summer of 1940, when the facility operated for three 

months. The Schreurs advertised the new camp by telling the public about its connection with the Faraway 

Ranch, and that it was located at the "Gateway to Chiricahua National Monument, offers a low cost vacation 

in one of nature's beauty spots. . . . Come spend a week or two with us. Your vacation budget will go much 

farther."245 However, business wasn't up to the Schreurs' expectations; as a result, Mr. and Mrs. Schurers 

abandoned their attempt to operate Camp Faraway and Camp Faraway Lodge in mid summer.246

Next, the Riggses leased the camping facility to William Sprague of New York. In early 1942, Lillian agreed to 

pay Mr. Sprague "25% of gross income from Camp Lodgings as a trial plan for the summer in return for his 

advertising and promotion efforts and looking after the camp as host." She also agreed to provide his meals 

and lodging at no cost.247 Apparently they decided to drop the name Faraway Camp, and named the entire 

facility Faraway Lodge. 

The hosts were optimistic for the 1942 summer season. Frank Fish, the custodian at Chiricahua National 

Monument reported, “It is believed the use of the [Faraway Lodge] facilities by the public will have more 

success this summer than last as many local people will take advantage of the increased recreational 

advantages at the reasonable rates offered.” 248 Indeed, by the time the operation opened in May, they had 

reservations for more groups than they had had for the entire 1941 season.249

However, the war effort impacted the business at the lodge, as it impacted the entire dude ranch industry and 

tourism in general. Especially relevant was rationing of automobile tires and gasoline, but other restrictions 

included civilian train and airplane travel, in addition to a shortage of workers.250 By June 1942, “Many groups 

that had planned on utilizing Faraway Lodge [had] canceled their reservations on account of transportation 

difficulties.”251 That season, only four large groups used the camp, for 1 to seven days each.252 By December 

1942, gasoline rationing had been started, affecting travel everywhere. “Visitors become a thing one reads 

about,” Chiricahua's Custodian Fish observed.253

 

244 Newspaper clipping, no date, no newspaper title, FRC, series 8, folder 98; and "Income from Camp Faraway," 1940, FRC, series 8, folder 98. An 

alternate spelling for the lessees' name was Schurer. 

245 Flyer, no date, FRC, series 8, folder 98. 

246 In the early summer of 1941 a YWCA group stayed at the camp, as well as several family groups, but income from Camp Faraway for 1941 came 

primarily from two small groups at the lodge. "Girl Reserve Camp" May 25- June 1, 1941 through YWCA, at Camp Faraway. FRC, series 8, folder 98; 

"Income from Camp Faraway," 1942, FRC, series 8, folder 98; and Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, July 1941, Acc. 1777, WACC.

247 March 25, 1942, FRC, series 8, folder 98. Alternate spellings of his name in the family's papers include Spragge and Spragg. 

248 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, March 1942, Acc. 1777, WACC. 

249 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, April 1942, Acc. 1777, WACC. 

250 Borne, 174. 

251 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, June 1942, Acc. 1777, WACC. 

252 "Income from Camp Faraway," 1942, FRC, series 8, folder 98. 
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146 

The business at Faraway Ranch shifted to weekends and meals. The park superintendent reported, “Travel 

continues to be a Sunday business; in fact, of the 301 visitors, only 25 visited the area on days other than 

Sunday. . . . The present tendency in visitor changes appears to be an increase in horseback riding, mainly by 

members of the armed forces; the Faraway had 41 horseback days’ use into the monument for the month. 

Most of the people using the horses arrive at the Faraway late Saturday evening and leave Sunday evening.254

For these day and weekend guests, Faraway Ranch served meals family style at the following prices: breakfast, 

50 cents, lunch 60 cents and dinner 85 cents. A typical breakfast menu consisted of sliced oranges, cereal with 

cream, bacon and eggs, toast, coffee or milk. A common lunch offering included bean soup, crackers, potato 

cakes, buttered beets, fresh radishes, cakes, tea or milk. A representative dinner was composed of steak with 

country gravy, baked potatoes, asparagus, beans, grapefruit and avocado salad, apricots with whipped cream, 

cookies, tea or milk; all meals were served with bread and butter.255

ON- AGAIN, OFF- AGAIN: FARAWAY RANCH, 1945- 1972; 

SELLING THE FARAWAY GUEST RANCH BUSINESS 

By the summer of 1945, Lillian and Ed Riggs considered getting out of the guest ranch business. By that point, 

the couple had jointly operated the business for 22 years- - and Lillian had managed it for an additional six 

years- - and had hosted guests "from all states of the union, from Canada, Alaska, and Mexico; from Europe, 

Asia and far distant islands.”256 However, the activities necessary to run a guest ranch were extensive. When 

Hildegard's nineteen- year- old daughter Evelyn expressed an interest in managing the Faraway someday, 

Lillian outlined some of the things involved in such an operation: 

Can you write letters that will bring desirable guests who have never seen or heard directly of your 

place? Have you enough tact to let the undesirables go quickly, once they have come? And let them 

still feeling kindly toward you and that yours is a fine place even though not for them? Can you take 

an ordinary good cook, who is more than apt to be at the same time ignorant of calories, food 

combinations, and attractive serving and get her to serve the kind of meals you want without 

antagonizing her and having her quit when there are thirty hungry guests to be fed? Will you be able 

to keep and make into good help only mediocre people and keep them loyal? . . . What will you do in . 

. . emergencies. Remember you are not in town where you can call a plumber, an electrician, a 

carpenter, a mechanic, or a blacksmith, whenever you need one. Also remember that in these days 

any one man who can do all of these things is an almost impossible find. . . . When the water pipes 

freeze on the coldest night in forty years? When the drains from the main house refuse to function? 

When the horses need to be shod and the saddles repaired? . . . It is a very cold night and the butane 

tank fails to deliver gas. What do you do? Since you have fireplaces, where and how do you get the 

wood? How and where are you going to get your milk and fresh vegetables? Who keeps your 

refrigerator plant in operation? You can do the marketing and plan the meals. Take care of the 

laundry. . . . Who will take care of your cars and trucks? Who will keep your books? Pay sales taxes, 

income taxes, and unemployment compensation tax?257

 

253 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, December 1942, Acc. 1777, WACC. 

254 Southwest Monuments Monthly Report, March 1943, Acc. 1777, WACC. 

255 Ed Riggs to Office of Price Administration, April 20, 1943, FRC, series 8, box 28, folder 55. 

256 [1945?], FRC, series 1, Box 9. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

147 

Lillian and Ed both took their responsibilities seriously, and each pulled more than their weight in the 

management of the business. It is certainly understandable that after so many years of work, the couple was 

tired of shouldering the responsibilities; they lost interest in operating Faraway Guest Ranch. 

Certainly a factor in their change of heart concerned Lillian's loss of eyesight: "Just as our dreams were about 

to take shape, total blindness overtook me in 1942, and our dreams vanished with my sight.258 Lillian had been 

the key force in running the guest ranch, and she understood the difficulties that she experienced trying to 

host guests and run the business. In addition, the couple considered their main business as "cattle with guest 

ranch as sideline."259 Another factor may have been Emma's health. The elderly woman had continued to live 

primarily at her home at Faraway since her husband had died in 1937. Although generally in good health most 

of that time, she had begun to decline. Both her hearing and eyesight were failing, so she no longer enjoyed 

the guests.260

Lillian and Ed discussed selling their guest ranch business. Their plan was to sell a portion of the Stafford 

place, which contained the converted CCC camp, to William Sprague, the Faraway Lodge operator. Sprague 

wanted to open a guest ranch on the property, but he didn't want to compete with the long- established 

Faraway Ranch. The plan was for the Riggs to agree to close their guest ranch. 

Hildegard tried to discourage Lillian from going forward with the sale. "I really do think you are making a 

mistake if you sign any papers saying you will not operate as a guest ranch. I think you have done that for so 

long now that if you quit you will be completely lost and very unhappy, and you will be at a loss as what to 

do." Besides the general concept, Hildegard also had reservations about Sprague. "Of course I don't trust 

Spragg [sic] and I think it is just a trick to get the whole place sooner or later." Although she seemed to resist 

the idea, she also acknowledged that selling all of the property together would be a good move at some point. 

"I know Mother [the owner of the original Erickson homestead, the site of Faraway Ranch] won't consider 

selling now but it might as well all go at once if you are going to tie up that place just as a home."261

In the end, Lillian and Ed rejected Hildegard's advice, and sold the upper ranch property, the CCC 

camp/Faraway Lodge, and the guest ranch business to Sprague and his business partners for $20,000.262 The 

couple agreed to stop operating their guest ranch for ten years, though they were able to rent cottages to a 

limited number of people, and they were allowed to continue running their horse rental business. This 

agreement went into effect in September 1945.263 Ironically, the first three- quarters of the year had brought in 

more revenues than any full year at Faraway.264 The couple continued to live at their home at Faraway Ranch, 

rent horses, and operate their cattle ranching business. Sprague and his partners soon opened their new 

business under the name "Silver Spur Guest Ranch." Apparently the Riggses vicariously enjoyed the benefits 

of having a guest ranch as they associated with the guests at the Spur. But they remained true to the spirit of 

 

257 Lillian Riggs to Evelyn Hutchison, August 11, 1947, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

258 Summary of Westward into the Sun, by Lillian E. Riggs, page 2, [April 1960?] FRC, series 1, box 9, folders 243- 253

259 "Employer's Status Report," April 4, 1944, FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 26. 

260 Lillian Riggs to Evelyn Hutchison, August 11, 1947, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

261 Hildegard Hutchison to Lillian Riggs, et al, Faraway Ranch, March 14, 1945, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. 

262 [1945?], FRC, series 8, folder 98. 

263 Lillian Riggs to Wayne T. Walbridge, April or August 25, 1954, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

264 It isn't clear why this could be the case, since gasoline rationing was in force until August 16, 1945. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

148 

the agreement: "Ed and I both consistently tried to turn all inquirers for meals and other accommodations to 

the Spur. We speak a good word for it on every occasion . . ."265

Within two years, however, the new Silver Spur had run into financial problems and temporarily closed in 

September 1947. William Johndrew had provided financial backing for the venture, and he was quite 

frustrated at the turn of events. He wanted his future son- in- law to become the new manager at the ranch, 

and believed he could "make the most money from the people who will come to the Spur for the 'party life' 

instead of people who come for the beautiful country." But he also recognized how valuable the Riggses were 

in the business. He found himself in a conundrum in which the neighboring Riggses were the draw for his 

own business. The Spur guests liked both Lillian and Ed; they apparently felt that Ed had "the most unusual 

personality they had ever seen" and they thought that Lillian was "so unusual because of her keen mind and 

progressiveness." Johndrew himself felt that he needed Ed's "wonderful personality" and that he could use 

Lillian's "keen business ability to an advantage." And he believed that Lillian's "handicap was a real factor 

since" it made her "the tops for a guest ranch." Johndrew acknowledged that the Silver Spur "could never be a 

real success without [Lillian, Ed] and Faraway." Even though Ed had stated that they were too old for the 

business (Ed being 62 and Lillian 59), and they had agreed not to operate a guest ranch, Johndrew worried 

that the couple may try to operate a guest ranch again. He realized that he couldn't afford to enforce the 

agreement because without the couple "the real success of the Spur could never be reached."266

Chiricahua National Monument was put into uncomfortable circumstances by the closing of the Silver Spur in 

September 1947. When people came to the monument wanting meals and lodging, the park had to "send them 

on" since no services were available; the closest restaurant was forty miles away.267 Clair Cooke, the park 

custodian, discussed feeding and lodging necessary visitors, such as National Park officials, with Ed and 

Lillian, who agreed "to take care of a few people who really needed to get meals and lodging. However they 

stated they did not wish to get into the dude ranch business or to stretch their contract with the Silver Spur in 

any way." Cooke then had to write to Johndrew to gain permission for the Riggses to provide the service. He 

also pointed out the difficult situation for the park. "It seems adverse advertising for the Silver Spur and the 

Monument to have these accommodations completely unavailable. For this reason I hope you will excuse my 

suggesting that your company allow the Riggses to feed and lodge necessary visitors until the Silver Spur is 

again open for business. At present all we can tell anyone is that we believe the Spur will be open again before 

too long, under much better management."268

The Spur did, in fact, re- open in November 1947, under new management. But that situation lasted only 

through the winter, and the business changed management again in May 1948.269 And during that time, Lillian 

did warm up to the idea of opening up a guest ranch once again. One aspect that she regretted about giving 

up the guest ranch business was having to "forgo making the acquaintance of so many interesting people."270

 

For several years, the dicey situation at the Silver Spur caused Lillian and Ed to envision plans under varying 

scenarios, riding along on a roller coaster as their hopes repeatedly rose then were dashed again and again. 

 

265 Lillian Riggs to [owners of Silver Spur], July 21, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

266 Andy Anderson to [Lillian and Ed Riggs], September 10, 1947, FRC, series 1, folder 17- 20. 

267 Superintendent's Monthly Narrative Report, March 28, 1951, Acc. 362, WACC. 

268 Clair V. Cooke, custodian, Chiricahua N.M. to William Johndrew, Buffalo, September 12, 1947, FRC, series 8, box 30, folder 80.

269 Superintendent's Monthly Narrative Report, November 28, 1947; April 26, 1948, Acc. 362, WACC. 

270 Lillian Riggs, April 6, 1948, FRC, series 8, box 31, folder 102. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

149 

Early on, the Riggses had believed that if the Spur closed for even a short time, that they would automatically 

get the right to build rental cottages. However, that didn't seem to happen. During the changes, the Spragues 

pulled out of the partnership at the Spur, so the Riggses wondered if they would be able to get the permission 

to build cottages for rental purposes. They also considered buying back a part interest in the Spur itself, if the 

management changed.271 And then they began to consider buying the entire Spur back, together with 

Hildegard's daughter Evelyn. They were optimistic that they could make a success of the business. "The guest 

ranch possibilities for Bonita Canyon are, as they have always been, just as large and far reaching as the people 

who operate it have imagination, perseverance and ability to make it." The proposition to purchase the Silver 

Spur and operate it was "so big and far reaching on account of the Wonderland, that the plans for expansion 

must be great. While much that has been done at the Spur must be undone, it will bring in money and real 

money- - from the start."272

While evaluating the option of buying the Spur, instead of opening Faraway again, Lillian honestly and 

objectively described the situation at Faraway Ranch: 

There is not near enough room here at present, even with the cottages. That was always our trouble. 

People do not want rooms in a private house with common bathrooms, where the sounds from one 

room carry to all the others. They will put up with it if they have enough in other ways to make up for 

it. They want private rooms and private baths, which Faraway never has been able to offer. And 

which it cannot offer without much additional expenses. People want privacy for their leisure hours 

as well. Privacy for writing letters, for reading- - for a quiet card game, for private conversations. 

Faraway could offer but little of that. The dining room is not large enough. Not even for the people 

we have had many times, to say nothing of what we would have to plan for in the future. The 

swimming pool is the best we could afford at the time. But it is wholly inadequate for the needs of a 

real guest ranch. In short, Faraway is what it has always been planned for. A very nice?- - with some 

much needed renovations- - home. But nothing more.273

Lillian deduced that it would be a better business proposition to buy the Silver Spur and add to that, as time 

and money allowed, rather than putting the same money into Faraway. However, if they decided against 

buying the Spur, Lillian doubted if the old restrictive contract would still be in force if anyone else bought that 

business. Then the Riggses, or anyone in their family, could use the Faraway property as they wished. 

Their thoughts of buying the Spur did not come to fruition. By the spring of 1949 apparently Lillian and Ed 

had dropped the idea. Instead, they purchased the house that had belonged to Ed's aunt, Martha Stark, and 

had it moved to Faraway, to use as a rental property.274 Lillian and Ed also continued running their horseback 

riding business. They conducted guided sight- seeing trips into the monument for "the tourists who wish to 

 

271 Lillian Riggs to Ben Erickson, [194?], FRC, series 1, box 9. 

272 Lillian Riggs to Evelyn Hutchison, August 11, 1947, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

273 Lillian Riggs to Evelyn Hutchison, August 11, 1947, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

274 Richard Murray, “Richard Murray’s visit with Mrs. Lillian E. Riggs,” 23 April 1965, Acc. 655, WACC; and Hildegard Hutchison to Emma Erickson et 

al, May 4, 1949, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. Before buying the Martha Stark cottage, Lillian had asked and received permission from the Silver Spur 

owners to rent it. Lillian Riggs to [owners of Silver Spur], July 21, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

150 

see our region from the trails."275 And Lillian, seemingly re- energized, hoped to build the horseback business 

"into something really big.276

That summer, the Spur again closed for two months; during that time, the Faraway Ranch again provided 

meals and lodging in emergency situations.277 But then the new owner- - and a new era- - came on the scene; 

businessman Ray Kent purchased the ranch, and moved to the Silver Spur with his family. They found the 

right combination of business tactics, and successfully operated the Silver Spur for 18 years.278

Now that the Spur had stable management, Lillian and Ed shifted their focus to other areas. They decided 

that they needed assistance running the cattle ranch, and also had some ideas about expanding their tourist 

business. They appealed to Ed's son Murray and his wife Anne to move to Faraway to help. Lillian once again 

had stars in her eyes regarding the potential for successful business ventures at Faraway: 

 While we cannot build more rental cottages for five more years, we can improve those we have and 

keep them tenanted. We can realize a good income from them. The horse business has fallen to 

almost nothing in the past two years. We again have the horse concession for the Monument. But it 

has to be built up . . . . It could bring in twelve to fifteen hundred dollars a year with a little 

promoting. Much more, as time goes on. . . . A gasoline station, store, and curio shop would bring in 

good revenue. And when time comes to put in more cottages for rent, we could really make big 

money on that.279

During the twenty years since 1923 for which we have data, Lillian and Ed's median revenue from horse rentals 

was $562 per year- - a far reach from the $1200 to $1500 that Lillian envisioned. Only one of those years had 

brought in at least $1200. Regarding the "big money" that Lillian planned to make on cottage rentals, during 

the previous five years, when Lillian and Ed pursued the cottage rental business, their median revenue was 

$579 per year. During that time, they rented facilities that they called the log cabin, the Martha Stark house, 

Mizar, Alcore, and the Space (a communicating room that could be added to the Alcore or Mizar).280

Murray and Anne decided to join Ed and Lillian at the ranch, and moved there in May 1950; the next month 

Ed suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and died, at the age of 64. Lillian was devastated; although she was only 

62, she felt that her own life had ended. When Emma died later the same year, Lillian was plunged into a 

lengthy period of grieving. She stumbled along for some time, then recognized "I can't go on alone as I have 

 

275 Lillian Riggs to Raymond Sangren, March 11, 1948, FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 26. 

276 Lillian Riggs to J.P. Anderson, Kansas City, MO, [March? 1947], FRC, series 8, box 28, folder 63- 65; and [Between May 1946 and May 1947], FRC, 

series 8, box 27, folder 26. 

277 Superintendent's Monthly Narrative Report, July 26, 1949; September 25, 1949, Acc. 362, WACC. 

278 The NPS eventually purchased the property; the area is now called the Silver Spur Meadow. The Kent family's trip from St. Louis to the Spur was 

covered in Life, October 10, 1949. 

279 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

280 The log cabin consisted of a bedroom with a double bed, a sitting room with fireplace, kitchen, and shower; the Martha Stark had two bedrooms 

(one with a double bed, one with twin beds), sitting room, kitchen and bath; Alcore consisted of a bedroom with twin beds, kitchen and bath; Mizar 

had a bedroom with a double bed, kitchen and shower; the Space was comprised of a bedroom with double bed, and lavatory. “Faraway Ranch 

Cottages” brochure; n.d. [ca after 1947]. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

151 

been going. The mental strain is too great." She asked Ed's daughter Lee and her husband Hunter to move to 

Faraway to join in the work.281 They did so, but did not stay long. 

By 1954, Lillian was again at a stage where she felt a decision was necessary in her life. On the one hand she 

felt like she couldn't go on living at Faraway, running the ranch with unreliable hired help. But within the 

year, her restrictions on operating a guest ranch would lapse and she could once again gain an income in that 

manner. Throughout this time, she operated in a fog of loneliness, and still grieved for her husband and 

mother. She alternated between feeling hopeless and simply being mildly encouraged about her future. 

That year she seriously considered retiring from the ranch and cottage businesses, and moving to a facility 

that accommodated blind people. She wrote to numerous retirement homes in California asking about their 

facilities. One typical letter described her situation: "I am seeking to find out what I can do when the time 

comes to make a change. That time may come very soon or may be delayed a couple of years or so. . . . I have 

a nice home with guest cottages in one of the most beautiful localities in Arizona with pleasant year- round 

climate. I wish I might use it to benefit those like myself who must find a refuge for their declining years. But 

to do that requires a management which I cannot provide." 282

And yet simultaneously, she pondered going back into the guest ranch business. "Two things are holding me 

back from opening again. First and foremost: the difficulties involved in such an operation for one without 

sight. Second: I am not really sure I wish to go back into the business. I loved having the guests. I met so 

many charming, cultured, and wonderful people. They are among my best friends today, though scattered 

from Maine to California and from Canada to the Gulf. If it were somehow possible, I should like to be able 

to accommodate elderly people who are lonely . . . but that undertaking seems even more difficult for me than 

a guest ranch."283

Lillian was concerned about the condition of the ranch: "I love it and it breaks my heart to see it so neglected. 

And just a little planned work and interest would make SUCH a vast difference. (I was out and around alone 

yesterday and came in just sick at the careless neglect.)" Lillian offered a proposal to Hildegard's daughter 

Evelyn and her husband Herb in which they would take over and operate the guest ranch cabins, dining room, 

and horses and maintain the facility. "It is one of the few still remaining unspoiled spots in the west and I 

would want it to remain so. Lovely, unspoiled but productive."284 The young couple declined the offer. 

BUSINESS STARTS AGAIN, 1955 

Despite her hesitation, by 1955, Lillian decided to move back into the guest ranch business. In the ten years 

that Faraway had been closed, however, the guest ranch industry- - and tourism in general- - had experienced 

some notable changes. "A combination of delayed wartime consumerism, increased leisure time, and highway 

improvements after World War II" increased tourism dramatically. By 1949, 62 percent of all Americans went 

on vacations.285

 

281 Lillian Riggs to Hildegard and Jess Hutchison, July 4, 1951, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

282 Lillian Riggs to Claremont, California, July 20, 1954, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

283 Lillian Riggs to Wayne T. Walbridge, April or August 25, 1954, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

284 Lillian Riggs to [Herb and Evelyn Robards], [ca. 1955], FRC, series 1, box 9. 

285 Mooney- Melvin, 37. 
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152 

And during this post- war period, when Faraway was closed, the guest ranch industry enjoyed its peak of 

popularity. However, traditional guest ranches were no longer the focus of tourists' attention. Traditional 

guest ranches in Arizona (like Faraway) had begun as working cattle ranches, which travelers had found 

attractive mainly for their simple lifestyle and ranch atmosphere. As travelers tired of that experience, a 

second phase evolved: the ‘non- working guest ranch’ (also known as the Western- oriented guest ranch). 

Started in the late 1920s, the non- working ranch became popular through the 1930s, and had grown to 

become the dominant form in the Arizona guest ranch industry between about 1940 and 1955. This type of 

guest ranch resembled the working ranch in many ways; it featured horseback riding and operated on the 

American Plan; however, it was not located on an actual ranch, and the primary source of income was the 

guests themselves. Activities that symbolically represented Western life dominated the non- working ranch.286

In the midst of the era of non- working guest ranch popularity, Lillian re- opened Faraway Guest Ranch. It 

doesn't seem, however, that she tried to recreate the traditional guest ranch experience, in spite of the fact 

that the setting was Lillian's cattle ranch, which was her main source of income. Even so, there is no 

indication that she offered cattle- oriented activities, nor organized activities of any kind; it appears that she 

simply rented rooms. In addition to six cottages287 she opened four guestrooms in the main building;288 each 

room rented for $6 to $8 per day (meals were extra). She accepted a maximum of 20 to 25 guests at a time, 

and was open year round. Although in the mid 1950s the automobile was the vehicle of choice for most 

Americans, Lillian still offered pick- up service for guests who arrived by rail at the closest stations of the 

Southern Pacific Railroad at Douglas (68 miles) and Willcox (36 miles).289 Lillian's hired couple, Rusty and 

Patricia Greenwood, looked after the rental cottages.290

Lillian also re- opened Faraway's dining facility, which was greeting with pleasure by NPS, as well as by 

guests.291 All three meals were served family style in the dining room, which seated 30; dinners were $1.50 

each. To Lillian these meals must have been special oases in her daily life, for she had always enjoyed good 

conversation with interesting guests. She later observed, "Our guest ranch has kept me in touch with the 

outside world, and many hundreds of interesting people I have met made up in part for the city environment I 

have missed."292 To help ensure such a congenial atmosphere, Lillian still had specific ideas about whom she 

allowed in her home; she preferred customers of "reasonable culture and refinement, who enjoy nature and 

simple living." 293 Her hired cook, Mrs. Stansberry (Patricia Greenwood's mother), did all the menu planning, 

grocery shopping and cooking, as well as taking care of the house. It was a great relief to Lillian not to have to 

do those tasks; she was impressed and pleased with the cook. On Christmas Day of 1955, Mrs. Stansberry 

 

286 Norris, xii, 29, 222. 

287 Five cottages each had a private bath. She described the main house as "Adobe, plastered inside and out; frame, painted. Located in a beautiful 

canyon setting amid trees and shrubbery. Well and comfortably furnished with good beds." 

288 One room came with a private bath including a tub, and three rooms did without a private bath, though two of those did have running hot and cold 

water. 

289 Rock Island Lines questionnaire form, August 28, 1956, FRC, series 1, folder 50- 56. 

290 Patricia also handled Lillian's most important correspondence (Lillian did the rest), and Rusty took care of the cattle and horses. The couple had 

two children, who took up much of Patricia's time. Lillian Riggs to Aunt Henrika and Victoria, March 24, 1956, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

291 “The Park Service is very happy that Faraway is again serving meals.” Diary, Lillian Riggs, April 17, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53. 

292 Lillian Riggs, "Summary of Westward into the Sun," [ca. April 1960], FRC, series 1, box 9. 

293 American Express Hotel, Resort, Camp and Ranch Register," post June 22, 1931, FRC, series 8, folder 63- 65; Rock Island Lines questionnaire form, 

August 28, 1956, FRC, series 1, folder 50- 56. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

153 

served 19 guests. Lillian observed, "She handled it with her usual aplomb. . . . everything was perfect- - except 

the coffee. That was terrible. All else was simply delicious.”294

The following year Faraway again hosted a special meal. Lillian noted that Thanksgiving 1956 was "the first 

we have really tried to celebrate since Mother and Ed passed away” six years earlier. She invited family and 

friends. By that time she had a new hired couple: “Donna [Kramer] had a lovely table. Both she and Del 

[Lemas] did everything they could to make it a success.” The next day, when Lillian and Del returned from 

the pasture, Faraway was humming. Donna "had served fourteen lunches and had to get dinner for twentytwo, counting home folks. But she handled it wonderfully well. All but two stayed all night and were here for 

breakfast.”295 Meanwhile, Lillian dubbed Del "Dude Wrangler, supreme” for her ability to entertain and guide 

the guests.296

But in spite of the new activity, Lillian remained disconsolate. “Business sure is picking up. . . . I wish I could 

get enthusiastic over good business as I used to do. Now I only want good companionship. I am lonely.”297 

Business was irregular298 and she vacillated about her decision to go back into the guest ranch business.299 At 

one point, Lillian was thankful for a guest who was rooming and boarding with her while installing a pump at 

the monument. “Often he stays downstairs in the evenings and we visit. It dispels loneliness.”300 Her financial 

situation also frustrated her: “We took in over five hundred dollars on cabins and horses in May. But there is 

just never enough to go around. Had to pay [Del and Donna, the hired help] three hundred and eighty for 

May. They get most of what I make- - or take in. And besides that Donna takes all the dining room income. 

Don’t know if I can stick it out till fall even. But I don’t know how to better myself.”301

Lillian did begin to enjoy some isolated sparks of joy in her life. For instance, she enjoyed the busyness of the 

monument's Visitors’ Day in 1957: “And this day is just one of the reasons I love and cannot leave Faraway”- -

one of the first really positive things she has written in years.302 That same year, Lillian's brother began 

spending more time at the home ranch, which she enjoyed. He took on the responsibility of the cattle ranch 

work, with the assistance of a hired man, but he wanted "no part of 'dude wrangling' as he puts it," Lillian 

observed. "I think Ben would not object too much to seeing that the guests were mounted properly, but there 

his responsibility would cease."303 And another seed of happiness was planted in spring 1957. At that time, 

 

294 Diary, Lillian Riggs, December 26, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53. 

295 Diary, Lillian Riggs, November 26, 1956, FRC, series 2, folder 54. Donna's responsibilities shifted as she worked at Faraway. She first took care of the 

cottages and all of Lillian's secretarial work. She then took over the kitchen, and also assumed the care of the house, which included cooking, washing, 

and ironing. In addition, as operator of the kitchen, she fed and cared for the approximately thirty chickens; she got all the eggs and sold whatever they 

did not use. She also supplied the grain for the milk cow or cows, utilizing the pasturage that Lillian provided. Diary, Lillian Riggs, August 29, 1956, 

FRC, series 2, folder 54; and Lillian Riggs to Mr. and Mrs. Blakeney, September 2, 1957, FRC, series 8, box 29, folder 63- 65. 

296 In the West, wrangling meant to drive or direct. “Horses were wrangled, cattle were punched or hazed. A horse wrangler cared for the ranch string 

of ponies, seeing that they had rest, water and pasturage. By evolution, a ‘dude wrangler’ performed the same tasks for dudes.” Rodnitzky, 112. 

297 Diary, Lillian Riggs, March 1, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53. 

298 "Cabin and horseback business is about nil so far this month". Lillian Riggs, diary, June 17, 1956, FRC, series 2, folder 54. 

299 “Just now, it looks as if the smart thing to do would be to subdivide and sell homesites.” Lillian Riggs, diary, October 10, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53. 

300 Lillian Riggs, diary, March 23, 1957, FRC, series 2, folder 55. 

301 Lillian Riggs, diary, May 14, 1957, FRC, series 2, folder 55. 

302 Lillian Riggs, diary, April 18, 1957, FRC, series 2, folder 55. 

303 Lillian Riggs to Mr. and Mrs. Blakeney, September 2, 1957, FRC, series 8, box 29, folder 63- 65. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

154 

Lillian put her one and only ad in Audubon magazine: “Just a few short lines saying that Faraway was ‘A bird 

wonderland for bird lovers.’” Lillian gained only one guest from the ad, Ethel Keller from Pennsylvania, but 

during her stay, Keller met Lillian's brother Ben. The pair fell in love, and married a year later, much to 

Lillian's delight.304 Her spirits seemed to lift after this union; Ben was often around Faraway (and he himself 

was in better spirits), and Lillian became more active. 

Lillian's mood improved her outlook on her life. “Business has been good. This is partly due to the story in 

the March issue of the Saturday Evening Post. . . . And of course I am a sort of a ‘museum piece.’ And when 

[guests] find that the ‘curiosity’ has some brains and can talk of the country and things that interest them, they 

like it and send others. Since I like people generally, it all helps the business. And if I can serve good meals 

attractively, the fight is two- thirds won.” Lillian was pleased that as a big group was sitting down to dinner, 

one guest remarked, “This is as close to Heaven as I ever expect to get.”305

LEASING THE BUSINESS, 1959- 1965 

But in the world surrounding Faraway, both tourism and the guest ranch industry were continuing to evolve. 

The character of the guest ranches had continued to shift, as the character of the American tourist shifted. 

Many tourists "just weren't as rugged as the visitors of early decades." They also wanted to be entertained 

"more than they wanted to participate in vigorous activities."306 Horseback riding at guest ranches thus shifted 

emphasis from overnight pack rides to short rides of an hour or two. The booming economy of the '50s also 

enabled tourist, in general, across the West to take advantage of places with private baths, wall- to- wall 

carpeting, swimming pools, restaurants and cocktail lounges. Many guest ranches changed to meet those 

desires. 

The broader world of tourism had also shifted. Western tourism had begun to take on "corporate and 

institutional characteristics." As tourism became more lucrative, corporations replaced the individual 

entrepreneurs who had previously operated tourism businesses.307

Transportation is key to understanding the shift in tourism. The booming post- war economy led to larger, 

more powerful and easily available automobiles. Travel by car was a bargain, thereby enabling even more 

people of a variety of economic groups to take to the roads for vacation. Simultaneously, roads were 

constantly being improved, reducing travel time. Ironically, this didn't alter "the incessant desire to move 

about. . . . people wanted to see as much as possible in as short a time as they could."308 Many vacationers in 

the West took road trips, in which they continually drove, with short stops at appealing attractions. With the 

construction of interstate highways, travel routes shifted, some places gained increased access, while others 

 

304 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 14, 1959, FRC, series 2, folder 57. Earlier, Lillian had observed: “Faraway seems really to be a matrimonial market . . . 

Someday I will try to count up the matches that have culminated at Faraway. Wonder if it is in the atmosphere of love that Dad and Mother left in the 

canyon. Their Beloved Canyon. And mine. Where young people, there is love. But to many, they seem to come to love at Faraway.” Diary, Lillian 

Riggs, July 25, 1954, FRC, series 2, folder 52. 

305 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 22, 1958, FRC, series 2, folder 56. 

306 Borne, 189, 190. Evelyn Egbert, a friend of Lillian's, had informed another woman friend, "There was nothing so nice in this world as 'Faraway 

Ranch' and nobody so darling as the people who run it." But Egbert observed that the friend was "sort of sissy and might miss her movies!" so the 

woman probably went to visit Tucson instead. Evelyn P. Egbert to Lillian Riggs, January 29, 1940, FRC, series 1, box 3, folder 67- 71. 

307 Rothman, 556. 

308 Borne, 191. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

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were bypassed.309 The driving tourists demanded motels and tourist lodges conveniently located along 

highways, so no time would be lost getting to a place to spend the night. This attitude affected even those 

travelers who chose guest ranch vacations. This "irresistible urge to move" caused guests to stay a much 

shorter time at the ranches. While guests who had come by train typically stayed for the length of time they 

had planned (usually three weeks or more), motorists often left sooner than planned. "They had itchy feet."310

In Arizona, additional changes further differentiated the state's guest ranches from their counterparts in the 

northern Rockies. The climate in the Southwest promised warm sunny days, so tourists were attracted to that 

locale if they enjoyed recreational activities such as golfing, swimming, tennis, polo, and simply enjoying the 

sun. Many guest ranches- - typically near urban areas- - accommodated the market by emphasizing those 

activities, rather than ranching and horseback riding. Thus not only had guest ranches lost their rural 

ranching character, they had shifted their emphasis away from their Western- oriented character. They 

became resorts, and in terms of activities offered, very much like resorts that could be found across the 

country. Arizona (and California) guest ranches “raised dude ranching to its most sophisticated level," 

providing elegant living quarters and an ambiance of a country club. This new type of ranch also tended to be 

larger than traditional working guest ranches, with a medium- sized facility hosting 50 to 100 guests, and large 

resorts offering accommodations for up to 200. The popularity of these resort- oriented guest ranches- - or 

resort ranches- - skyrocketed after the war. At the beginning of World War II, about ten ranches clustered in 

the Tucson area; by 1960 about 75 resort ranches in the city's vicinity welcomed guests. Resort ranches have 

dominated the state's guest ranch industry since the mid- 1950’s.311

This shift to a niche market enabled the Arizona resort ranches to sustain their popularity a little longer than 

traditional dude ranches. While the number of traditional dude ranches in the West leveled off in the 1950s,312

and declined thereafter, the number of resort ranches clustered around Tucson peaked around 1960.313

 

However, since that time there has been a continuous decline in their popularity, until in the mid- 1970’s, less 

than a quarter of the guest ranches that once existed still operated.314 Ultimately, post- war changes in 

American society "gradually shoved dude ranches into the background of the burgeoning vacation and 

recreation business."315

But in summer 1959, the Tucson area resort ranch industry was booming, and tourists were coming in droves 

to these elegant sunny playgrounds. At Faraway Ranch, Lillian was 71 and had decided that running the guest 

ranch, even on the small scale that she operated it, was more than she wanted to handle. Again, she was faced 

 

309 Rothman, 556. 

310 Borne, 171. 

311 Borne, 184, 19; Norris, xi, 27, 30; and Rodnitzky, 118. 

312 In 1936 the Dude Ranchers’ Association had reported approximately one hundred ‘bona fide’ ranches in the eleven Western states; in 1958 the 

number was the same.” Rodnitzky, 117- 118 citing New York Times, July 24, 1938 and June 8, 1958. Membership in this organization should be taken only 

as an indicator, not as a census of the number of dude and guest ranches. In 1940, for instance, approximately 350 dude ranches operated in the U.S. 

and Canada, but only 106 of them belonged to the DRA. In addition, the association membership was "north- heavy," with a greater number of 

members in the northern Rockies than in the south. In 1931, for instance, of the 74 ranches that were official members, 67 were in Montana and 

Wyoming, and the only Arizona guest ranch member was the Eaton's ranch. By the late 1970s membership in the Dude Ranching Association had 

declined to about seventy. Bernstein, 96, 97, 93, 148. 

313 Borne, 184 

314 Norris, 223. 

315 Borne, 8. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

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with a decision. Closing the business altogether was an option, but she would miss both the income and the 

social interaction. Instead, she devised a plan that would release her from much of the work, while still 

providing her with some income and some opportunities to enjoy conversations with people. Her solution 

was to lease the cottage- rental and horse- rental businesses to a manager, Myrtle Westbrook.316 The 

agreement did not include any rooms in the main house, so Lillian continued to host occasional guests, and 

she also continued to provide meals for the guests. This setup provided social opportunities for Lillian to 

converse with guests at meals, yet she had a minimum of tasks that she had to do herself, since she utilized a 

cook and a manager for room and horse rentals. For most of a year this situation worked well, although 

Lillian's attitude exhibited a mixture of satisfaction and melancholy. 

She was pleased that Faraway was "running true to form as in old . . . " In one episode she noted that her ten 

dinner guests represented seven states and one foreign country while at another dinner the guests were from 

six states and two foreign countries. "Why people enjoy it when I can take over I do not know. Blind and 

deaf- - terribly so. Yet when I am on the ball, everyone seems to have a better time. All the guests show it and 

want to come for more." But on a downward note, she commented, "Also, true to form, the household help 

seem to resent my interference. Oh what should I really do?”317 Likewise, she enjoyed the fact that at 

Thanksgiving 22 people feasted at Faraway, yet she noted, “Not one of them a member of my family nor a 

friend of more than a year at most . . . 18 paid guests.”318 After a busy day, Lillian noted “Faraway, as usual. 

‘The only monotonous thing about it is the variety."319

However, a high point, indeed the beginning of a new era, in Lillian's life came in the spring of 1960, when J.P. 

(Andy) Anderson returned to work for her, after an absence of 13 years. He had worked at Faraway only a 

short time in 1947, but Lillian was clearly delighted that he returned. She quickly came to trust and rely on 

him. 

Not all aspects of Lillian life were on the upswing at that time. By the spring of 1960, disagreements about the 

terms of the lease arose between Lillian and Myrtle Westbrook. Heated words passed between them, and 

Westbrook's attacks struck at the business's weak points: "I have since learned that the only way to make you 

do anything is to threaten you: The Board of Health threatened to close Faraway if you did not put in septic 

tanks, etc.; the REA [Rural Electrification Agency] threatened to shut off your power if you did not rewire; 

other instances are merely rumor, these I know for facts. . . Furthermore, I have taken in precious little money. 

This is through no fault of mine, but directly resulting from the reputation of filth, decay, and disrepute which 

Faraway has in many quarters, in addition to the widespread belief that it was closed." Although Lillian 

denied that she was threatened by the health department and the REA, Westbrook's comments highlighted 

problems at Faraway, nonetheless.320

 

316 Lillian's hired man referred to Westbrook as "some dude woman with money from New York." Westbrook took over the dude string of about 15 

head of horses that Lillian had at the time. Larry S. Cannon, "Working for the Lady Boss," Cochise Quarterly 19, no. 1 (Spring 1989): 32, 33. 

317 Lillian Riggs, diary, [March- April?] 1960, FRC, series 2, folder 58. 

318 Lillian Riggs, diary, November 26, 1959, FRC, series 2, folder 57. 

319 Lillian Riggs, diary, November 12, 1959, FRC, series 2, folder 57. 

320 Myrtle Westbrook to Whom it may concern, April 25, 1960, FRC, series 8, folder 61- 62; Lillian Riggs to Myrtle Westbrook, May 27, 1960, FRC, series 

8, folder 63- 65; Myrtle Westbrook to Lillian Riggs, June 2, 1960, FRC, series 8, folder 61- 62; and Lillian Riggs to Myrtle Westbrook, June 12, 1960, FRC, 

series 8, folder 63- 65. 
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In the midst of the dispute, Lillian took a vacation in Hawaii with Hildegard to visit Hildegard's daughter 

Emajoy and her husband Bob Barrel. Andy Anderson kept her up- to- date with frequent letters; they told of 

sparse business activities: a handful of guests, a handful of meals served, and a handful of horseback riders. 

Anderson also reported that Westbrook was a poor business manager, and that he thought she had lost as 

much as $200- $300 since he had been there. He suggested that Lillian would be happier if she severed her 

relationship with Westbrook; he believed that together Lillian and Anderson could handle the cabins better. 

While Lillian was on vacation, the cook and the hired hand also turned in their resignation notices and left 

before she returned. But in his reassurances to Lillian, Anderson also revealed some of the problems that she 

faced: “Don’t worry about getting a cook or other help as it is not near so hard if people are told the truth 

about you and Faraway. You must remember that many lies have been put in circulation about Faraway. 

With you taking active management of the place it will be no trouble to get the help you want or need.” As the 

spring warmed, the warmth of Anderson's relationship with Lillian also became more apparent. He had quit 

having fires in the evening (though he had one when a certain ailing guest came). “Would have enjoyed one 

other nights if it did not make me get lonely. It seemed that the fire brought out the emptiness of the house.” 

He assured Lillian that he hoped and planned to stay at the ranch. “I brooded over leaving Faraway for 13 

years and have been so very happy here since returning.”321

Lillian and Westbrook continued the leasing arrangement for another year, but ended it in October 1961. 

Lillian and Anderson did operate the cottage rental business for a while, but in March 1963, she leased five 

housekeeping units and the horse business to Frank and Lee Sullivan. Although their lease was supposed to 

last until 1966,322 the Sullivans gave up cottages and horses in March 1965, and Anderson took over the 

management. They discontinued serving meals except to cottage guests who desired them and to those who 

made reservations in advance.323

THE LAST YEARS, 1966- 1972 

In the next couple of years, the Cochise County Health Service expressed concerns about several conditions in 

her kitchen. Perishable food was being stored at improper temperatures, the storage room didn't have a floor 

of "easily cleanable construction," and her sink was a two- compartment instead of three- compartment style, 

which was required to clean the utensils and kitchenware. In addition, food handlers were required to have a 

valid food handler's health certificate, which required a chest x- ray and a physician's examination. Lillian's 

food handlers did not have such certificates. Although the health service was willing to negotiate on some 

aspects of the requirements, the combined health requirements with the difficulties that she had in keeping 

good cooks, Lillian recognized that it was time to completely stop serving meals, which she did in 1968. 

However, she may have started up the service again temporarily, for she also noted that she closed for meals 

on January 1, 1970.324

Looking to the future, Lillian understood that she couldn't continue to operate a guest business at Faraway, 

and she realized that her relatives were not willing to take on the responsibility.325 Knowing that the location 

 

321 Andy Anderson to Lillian Riggs, May- June, 1960, FRC, series 1, folder 17- 20. 

322 FRC, series 8, folder 54. 

323 Lillian Riggs' Christmas letter, December 1965, FRC, series 1, box 9, folder 243- 153. 

324 John Bates, sanitarian, Cochise County Health Service, to Lillian Riggs, November 30, 1966, FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 34; John A. Bates to Lillian 

Riggs, July 17, 1967, FRC, series 8, box 26, folder 9; John Bates to Lillian Riggs, August 22, 1967, FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 34; and Lillian Riggs, 

November 12, 1968, FRC, series 8, folder 69. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

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was ideal for vacationers visiting Chiricahua National Monument, she looked elsewhere for someone to take 

over the business. She proposed to Holiday Inns of America that the company build a hotel on her land. “If 

in establishing a Holiday Inn here the question of caring for the travelers who wish to visit the Chiricahuas 

would be taken off my shoulders, I could then see my way clear to a happier life,” Lillian observed.326

Lillian's selection of Holiday Inn as a potential owner of the Faraway site may seem incongruous with Lillian's 

and Faraway's character. For one thing, in most areas, "The arrival of a bright shiny new Holiday Inn spelled 

doom for the older motels" (such as Faraway).327 In addition, the franchise also represented standardization- -

a quality that would never be used to describe Faraway. Indeed, Holiday Inn "brought a new, modern look to 

the commercial landscape. . . . new Holiday Inns were glass- bright two- story structures poised by Interstate 

highway interchanges. The focus of the facility was inward, toward a public yet private recreational 

courtyard."328 Those features were certainly not apparent at Faraway's hodgepodge of facilities or within the 

character at the guest ranch. 

But upon closer examination it becomes more apparent why Lillian would have selected that hotel franchise. 

First, Lillian knew that Faraway would have to change in order for someone to be successful- - so she 

knowingly offered to sacrifice the Faraway facility so that the guest business at the location could continue.329

 

She also knew that the world of hotels and motels was changing, and that tourists were flocking to standard 

hotel chains such as Holiday Inn, as opposed to mom- and- pop arrangements. Kemmons Wilson had started 

Holiday Inn in 1952 after he returned from a family road trip discouraged over the lack of family- and valueoriented lodging.330 Wilson's attempt to provide clean lodging for families would have struck home with 

Lillian, who had always tried to keep the clientele at Faraway restricted to people of a class whom she would 

want in her home. In addition, she knew that whoever operated a hotel at the Faraway site would need "deep 

pockets" to invest in the enterprise- - and that the deeper the pockets the more likely it was that she would 

profit from the sale. In 1968, the 1,000th Holiday Inn opened and by the 1970s, Wilson's 300,000 beds 

outdistanced his nearest competitor in the same market more than three- fold, thus that company was a clear 

candidate as a well- financed investor. Other attributes of the franchise may have appealed to Lillian, such as 

Holiday Inn's promise of "low prices, consistent quality, and convenient locations" as well as it being the first 

to offer "now- basics such as in- room air conditioning, free in- room television, a swimming pool and an onsite restaurant."331 Whatever the reason for Lillian's choice of Holiday Inn as a potential purchaser of Faraway, 

the company did not express an interest in her offer. 

 

325 A trend that contributed to the diminishing number of dude ranches was the death or retirement of the generation of dude ranch operators. Their 

children frequently were unwilling to stay in the ranch or dude ranch business, and were willing to sell the land for a profit. Typically, the buyers were 

not interested in operating a dude ranch. Borne, 193. 

326 Lillian Riggs to Walter Broadfoot, administrative assistant of Holiday Inns of America, Inc., May 24, 1967, FRC, series 8, folder 36. 

327 Andrew F. Wood, "Wal- Mart of the Roadside," <www.sjsu.edu/faculty/wooda/motelholidayinn.html>, accessed January 29, 2003. 

328 Wood, citing John Jakle, Keith Sculle, and Jefferson Rogers, The Motel in America (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996), 284. 

329 Lillian had recognized Faraway's shortcomings since at least the 1940s: "It is wholly inadequate for the needs of a real guest ranch. In short, Faraway 

is what it has always been planned for. A very nice?- - with some much needed renovations- - home. But nothing more. Lillian Riggs to Evelyn 

Hutchison, August 11, 1947, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

330 The motor court industry had started in the 1920s, and those facilities quickly developed a reputation as "favorite trysting places (known in the 

industry as the "hot trade") or hideouts. . . . The hostels' . . . potential for breeding lust and larceny alarmed FBI chief J. Edgar Hoover, who demonized 

motor courts as "camps of crime." Andrew Nelson, "The Holiday Inn Sign," <www.salon.com/ent/masterpiece/2002/04/29/holiday_inn/>, accessed 

January 29, 2003. 

331 Conrad N. Hilton College of Hotel and Restaurant Management, "Hall of Honor" <www.hrm.uh.edu/home.asp?PageID=188>, accessed January 29, 

2003; Andrew F. Wood; and University of Memphis, "Six Continents Hotels Announces $1.5 million Donation to Wilson School," 

<www.memphis.edu/releases/jan02/6continents.html>, January 28, 2002, accessed January 29, 2003. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

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Lillian soon realized that it was futile to try to sell the land to a developer because Chiricahua National 

Monument was trying to acquire private inholdings, including the 80 acres of the old Stafford property 

directly east of the Faraway ranch house. 

As Lillian aged, and the problems she had hiring and keeping good help increased, business at Faraway 

declined. She announced in 1970, when she was 82 years old, "due to impossible help situation we are 

compelled to close our regular guest ranch business." The change included the closure of the horses rental 

business. She did continue to rent cottages to "old friends and for housekeeping only" (that is, she provided 

no meals) and for the next two years a handful of friends did take her up on the offer; these were usually for 

long- term residence. Friends and previous customers expressed regret at the passing of the era: “There [at 

Faraway] you offered peace, quiet, and friendship.” 332

The guest ranch business at Faraway had finally come to an end. Hildegard had started the business venture 

when she was only 22 and the guest ranch industry in the Southwest was in its infancy. Indeed, Lillian was 

embarrassed by the enterprise for quite some time, even though she joined in the venture once she recognized 

its potential. Under the sisters' management, the business focused on being a short- term getaway for 

respectable local residents. But in the early 1920s several factors pushed Faraway into a new era: Ed Riggs 

entered the management team, the Southwestern guest ranch industry blossomed, Faraway's focus on guests 

shifted to a national market and Chiricahua National Monument was established. Once the site had been 

officially designated as a tourist destination, travelers from around the world started visiting. Fortuitously, the 

guest ranch occupied a position right at the entrance to the park, and no other tourist facilities existed in the 

Faraway's locale. The guest ranch leveraged its locational advantage; any business successes can be directly 

attributed to its key location. For the next two decades, Ed and Lillian enjoyed hosting guests at their home 

and sharing in their love of the nearby Wonderland of Rocks. However, even this "golden era" of Faraway 

was tarnished. The couple's financial standing was consistently dicey, and their cattle ranching business 

repeatedly supported their guest ranch business.333 The couple constantly anticipated a better financial footing 

just around the corner that they never seemed to turn. A major shift occurred in 1945, when Lillian and Ed 

sold their guest ranch business. Keeping her hand in the tourist business through renting cottages, Lillian 

waited through the contractually required ten- year hiatus, then again opened up her home to guests. The 

business limped along for the next fifteen years, in various incarnations. However, Lillian was never able to 

recreate the business as it had operated during the "golden era." The Faraway guest ranch closed in 1970, 

after operating in some form for 53 years. 

 

332 Karl I. Berriman to Lilian Riggs, January 2, 1971, FRC, Series 1, folder 32- 39. 

333 "Faraway was never really self- supporting as a guest ranch, even with the monument business; without the cattle business they never would have 

made it.” Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC; and "Things were dreadfully 

hard for us, both in a financial way" and they worried about "managing a business of that sort." Ed inherited "small sums" from his grandmother and 

Aunt Rhoda, which went into the children’s education. "Cattle prices were low. The cattle alone would never have put us across. Neither could we 

have managed without them. The guest ranch business went toward increasing our land holding and stocking it. It helped with the children's 

education." Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

160 

APPENDIXES 

DUDE AND GUEST RANCH ASSOCIATIONS IN ARIZONA 

Ranch owners became aware of the guest ranch as a standard vacation form, perhaps in response to seeing various 

ranches advertising their services. In an attempt to preserve the standards to meet the public's generalized expectations, 

the guest ranch industry in Arizona organized the first of several organizations in 1929. These organizations included: 

The Arizona Dude and Guest Ranchers’ Association (late 1920s to early 1930s); 

The Arizona Hotel (and Dude Ranch) Association (late 1930s); 

The Southern Arizona Guest Ranch Association (middle to late 1940s); 

The Southern Arizona Dude and Guest Ranch Association (mid 1960s); 

The Tucson Innkeepers, Ranch and Resort Association (late 1960s); 

The Desert Sun Ranchers in the Wickenburg area (late 1960s). 334

 

334 Norris, 40, 42. 
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STATISTICS OF THE EARLY SOUTHERN ARIZONA GUEST RANCH PERIOD, 

ALL TYPES OF RANCHES 

YEAR TOTAL, 

1923 5 

1924 9 

1925 12 

1926 15 

1927 16 

1928 20 

1929 28 

1930 36 

1931 36 

1932 45 

1933 50 

1934 56335

 

335 Norris, 41. 
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REVENUES FROM GUESTS AT FARAWAY RANCH, 1917- 1972 

Year Revenue Comments 

1917 $250 "Statement of account of summer boarders, July 14 to Sept. 8, 1917." Lists 5 people's names, 

with prices of $11.50 to $65, plus "week ends" [quote marks theirs] with price of $32. 3 are 

women's names, 1 man and one can't tell (Mynam). Also details expenses of $53.70 for profit 

of $196.30 

1918 488 Began June 16, with 22 parties, ranging from $1.25 to $75; including their other income from 

fruit and pigs they calculated a total average revenue of $151 per month for the 6 months 

tallied, but also had $14.95 revenue from butter & cheese in those months. 

1919 1337 Covers 12 months; about 56 parties; includes a few "camping privileges" and several names 

repeat through the year so likely locals. 

1920 2658 104 parties, several of which are for meals only; many names repeat through year. 

1921 1589 About 48 parties; 1st year to show length of stay on most parties; most parties (18) stayed one 

night, but not unusual to stay longer: 15 stayed 2 weeks or longer, including 3 parties that 

stayed about 4 months each; median stay was 3 nights. 

1922 871 No entries June 12 thru Sept 30, while Lillian went to Los Angeles.; started new rates for 

summer at end of April: $3/day; $17.50/week. 

1923 1363 $3/day; $20/week; $75/month; includes governor's party (complimentary) on Aug 4 - 5 and 

"Douglas crowd with governor" @ $27 on Aug 4- 5; Dr. Armstrong's party of 11 for dinner on 

Sept. 9; and Forest Service on Sept 14- 15 for $13.50; weekly tally ends Sept 30 (no guests after 

that or lost page? More likely lost page due to tally). 

1924 3057 $3/day; $18/week; $75/month; about 121 parties that stayed overnight, about 33 parties that 

came for meals; included Armstrong, Lindsays et al party of 10 for dinner Feb 17; Dr. 

Armstrong and Mr. Lindsay party of 4 for lunch and dinner on May 11, and Dr. Armstrong & 

[Logic's?] @ $4 Oct 26. 

1925 2214 

1926 2061 They added horse and guest income to get $2879, making 105.90 more in 1926 than in 1925 

per their own tally. 

1927 3736 Total horses and guests = $4300. Note after Aug. 7: "Rest of August & September barely 

enough to get by on. September did not make expenses." Had only one guest in September 

but he lived there for the entire year of 1927. 

1928 5181 In response to inquiry from Neil, got rates at John “Wetherill and Colville guest ranches” in 

La Osa, AZ and Kayenta, AZ: $40/week, no horse/no bath; single room with bath and horse 

= $65/week. FRC, series 1, folder 305- 311. 

1929 3782 First time used term "guests." Rates: $25 per week for house rooms; $20 per week for cabins; 

also elaboration on how many people per room and per bed for daily rates; meals = 75 cents 

or Sunday meals $1. 

1930 3380 

1931 6343 "Surveyors made large total but so many were fed that there was very little profit." 

1932 4634 "Total again swelled by the B.P.R. boys and profit small." "Special summer rates, season 

opens May 28": $30/week including use of saddle horse; $20/week without horse. American 

Plan: $3.25/day/person, 2 or more to a room; breakfast and lunch 50 cents each, dinner 75 

cents; cabin for light housekeeping @ $10/week; horses $1/short rides; $2/longer rides or 

day. 

1933 

1934 2476 Includes Fred Winn (USFS) several times, as well as Pinkley and Miller (NPS) several times; 

had big group Sept 1- 4 for "dedication of the Wonderland Road." 

1935 1701 Guests all months 

1936 2191 

1937 1664 
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1938 2522 

1939 2266 

1940 1697 or 3093 

1941 3508 Handwriting changed at end of 1941- - when Lillian lost her sight? 

1942 1809 

1943 3154 

1944 6492 

1945 7060 In September number of guests suddenly drops, only 10 lines of guests SeptemberDecember. (Sell guest ranch business.) 

1946 579 Only 1/2 page for whole year, no meals. 

1947 950 Rentals were housekeeping cottages; only $5.70 was for meals, $944.30 for cottages. 

Rates: room with meals without bath = $6.25/day; room with private bath = 

$3.50/day/person; breakfast = 75 cents, lunch = 85 cents, dinner = 1.40. 

1948 1988 $1411 for rooms, $577 for meals 

1949 500 less than a page for whole year 

1950 462 less than a page for whole year 

1958 1838 Housekeeping cottages 

1959 878 Income is January through July. On August 1 Lillian leased the cottages to Myrtle 

Westbrook. Did not include any house rooms. The lease was given up October 31, 1961. 

1960 "I take occasional guests in the main house and continue to serve some meals." January 26-

April 3, Colleen Adair; January 15- April 8, Miss Winifred Robey; September 21 to December 

11, Capt. T.W. Morse. 

1961 Started running housekeeping cottages again at beginning of November, after end of 

Westbrook lease. 

1963 Cottages and horses leased to Frank and Lee Sullivan 3/1/63 to 3/1/66; took possession 

2/17/63 but no charge up to 3/1/63; Sullivans gave up cottages & horses 3/1/65, We took over. 

1970 1032 Closed for meals 1/1/70. Note at bottom of page, after end of April 1971: "1970 Due to 

impossible help situation we are compelled to close our regular guest ranch business- -

exceptions as listed below- - cottages are rented to old friends and for housekeeping only. 

No horses rented." 

1971 1041 

1972 1089 

 

Faraway Ranch ledgers, FRC, series 9, folders 8, 9, 10, 11; and FRC, series 8, folder 89. 
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HORSE RENTAL REVENUES 

Year Total 

Revenue 

Comments 

1921 21 No rentals December 2, 1921 thru May 29, 22 

1923 287 

1924 Rates are: $2/day; $1 per 1/2 day; half rates to guests of 1 month or more. 

1925 560 

1926 817 

1927 564 

1928 814 

1929 500 

1930 1134 Seems unusually high 

1931 1026 Road surveyors were there, so perhaps they used horses? 

1932 718 Summer rates, May28- : horses $1/short rides; $2/longer rides or day; note at end of year: 

$2.50 for Wonderland trip; guide $5 extra except to house guests. 

1934 167 

1935 317 

1936 305 

1937 199 

1938 494 

1939 508 

1940 343 

1941 612 

1943 874 

1944 473 or 1298 First time shows: "Annual report on Operation - 1942 - of Horses in Chiricahua National 

Monument" Their state sales tax memo shows $1297.81 for horses in 1944. FRC, Series 8, 

folder 89. 

1945 1458 

1946 825 

1957 The horseback "business provides about half the revenue of the ranch at present." [The 

cattle or guest ranch, or both?] Lillian Riggs to Mr. and Mrs. Blakeney, September 2, 1957, 

FRC, series 8, box 29, folder 63- 65. 

1963 Cottages and horses leased to Frank and Lee Sullivan 3/1/63 to 3/1/66; took possession 

2/17/63 but no charge up to 3/1/63; Sullivans gave up cottages & horses 3/1/65. 

1969 141 

1970 9 Also $24 for pasture rental for 1 horse. 

1971 Note at bottom of page, after end of April 1971: "1970 Due to impossible help situation we 

are compelled to close our regular guest ranch business - - exceptions as listed below - - 

cottages are rented to old friends and for housekeeping only. No horses rented." Rented 

pasture for 2 horses. 

 

Faraway Ranch ledgers, FRC, series 9, folders 8, 9, 10, 11; and FRC, series 8, folder 89. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

165 

Illustration 10. Besides a guest ranch, the Faraway was a working 

ranch with up to 500 cattle. Here a guest helps rope a calf. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Tourism and Guest Ranching 

166 

Illustration 11. Branding cattle at Faraway Ranch. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Ranching 

167

THEME V: RANCHING 

"Livestock ranchers work because they like it, not because they're making money at ranching." 

Paul F. Starrs1

Originally envisioned as a quarter-section Eden in the desert, economic reality shaped the character of 

Faraway Ranch, turning the original 1880s homestead into but a small part of a diverse business. An 

underlying theme of the property became obvious rather quickly: the homestead could not support a family, 

so it had to be supplemented with another source of income. Originally that income came from a series of 

wage- earning jobs. Eventually, the additional income derived from the partner guest ranch. In addition, the 

size of the acreage that comprised the ranch was increased 4,000 percent, to a size more in the realm of a 

feasible ranch in the southeastern Arizona environment. Even so, the combined 1920s- 1960s guest ranch and 

cattle ranch (with its ten sections and up to 500 cattle) provided only a marginal income for the Riggs family. 

RANCHING IN SOUTHEASTERN ARIZONA: UP TO 1880 

Although the Spanish introduced cattle to the southwest early (long before British brought the animals to their 

North American colonies), the resistance of resident Apaches caused the cattle raising industry- - like 

European settlement- - to develop sporadically in Arizona. Francisco Vásquez de Coronado first brought 

cattle into southern Arizona in 1540, when his exploration expedition of some- 300 men required 5,000 sheep 

and 150 cattle for food.2

 It is not likely that any of the animals escaped to reproduce in the wild in 

southeastern Arizona. The Spanish again introduced stock to the area, in the late 1600s, when Padre Eusebio 

Francisco Kino distributed small herds of cattle and horses among the O'odham, and at about the same time 

Spanish ranchers started running cattle in southeastern Arizona. However, throughout the Spanish colonial 

period, the Apaches restricted ranching to the Santa Cruz Valley (which runs north- south through Nogales, 

Tucson and Casa Grande- - about 90 miles west of present- day Chiricahua National Monument), by 

preventing the ranchers from moving farther north or east. In 1804 about 3,500 cattle grazed around Tucson 

and 1,000 forty miles south near Tubac, fairly small numbers compared to the great haciendas of the nearby 

Mexican states of Chihuahua and Coahuila.3

 After gaining independence in 1821, the Mexican government 

awarded ten land grants in the southeastern Arizona region; five of these were located along the Santa Cruz 

River, but four of them were situated approximately forty miles east, along the San Pedro River (which roughly 

parallels the Santa Cruz). Even so, it is likely that no more than twenty to thirty thousand cattle ever occupied 

Mexican Arizona. The ranchers raised the cattle primarily for the hide and tallow market.4

 War between 

Mexico and the resident tribes escalated until by the 1840s most Mexican ranchers abandoned their land and 

their cattle to seek refuge at the presidio at Tucson. The abandoned cattle continued to reproduce and as a 

result, early American travelers through Arizona reported vast herds of wild cattle in the Santa Cruz and San 

Pedro river valleys. However, by the 1850s, wild cattle were exterminated from the Arizona range due to 

slaughter by "Apaches, American soldiers and gold- seekers crossing Arizona, and Mexican hunters."5

 

1

Let the Cowboy Ride: Cattle Ranching in the American West (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998), 76. 

2

 J.J. Wagoner, "History of the Cattle Industry in Southern Arizona, 1540- 1940," University of Arizona Bulletin: Social Science Bulletin no. 20, vol. 23, no. 2 

(April 1952): 7. 

3

 Thomas E. Sheridan, Arizona: A History (Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1995), 127. 

4

 Sheridan, Arizona, 128, 129. 

5

 William S. Collins, "Cattle Ranching in Arizona, 1540- 1950," draft, Multiple Property Documentation Form, National Register of Historic Places, 

[2000], manuscript at State Historic Preservation Office, E- 14. 
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168

After the Gadsden Purchase in 1854, the United States owned the land south of the Gila River (it runs roughly 

east- west through Yuma and Safford, about 40 miles north of Willcox about 50 miles north of Chiricahua 

National Monument). However, ranchers from the U.S. were hesitant to bring cattle to southeastern Arizona, 

due to the Apache presence. An observer in 1863 noted that because of the "Apache hostilities, Arizona had 

no livestock industry."6

 The cattle raising industry was finally established in the region due to a major boost 

from the U.S. Army. With the establishment of military posts in Arizona, the army needed cattle, grain and 

fresh vegetables for its soldiers and horses, so the authorities encouraged the opening of farms and ranches 

near the posts. The guaranteed market for beef through government contracts encouraged western ranchers 

to risk the hazards in Arizona, and a handful of entrepreneurs followed the bait. One such rancher, Colonel 

Henry Hooker, founded the Sierra Bonita Ranch at the north end of the Sulphur Springs Valley (north of 

Willcox near Fort Grant). From 1868 to 1872, Hooker and his partners fulfilled most government contracts, 

sometimes by supplying stock for other ranchers’ contracts.7

 Though Hooker and his like were big players in 

the game, they didn't have much competition. The 1870 census reported only 5,132 cattle of all descriptions in 

the territory.8

 The isolated ranches themselves soon became the bait. Apaches liked to eat beef, and so the 

cattle became the targets for their hunting parties. In 1869 and 1870, Apaches killed at least two of Hooker's 

employees and took more than 400 head of cattle.9

The ranchers and the military shared a symbiotic relationship. The military came in Arizona to overpower the 

Indians, so that American citizens could settle in the territory. Ranchers were hesitant to come to Arizona 

because of the Apaches until the military presence gave them incentive. However, this relationship became 

rather limited and circular. In the late 1860s, the only paying business in Arizona was supplying the troops. 

Conversely, active military operations were largely carried on to protect the ranchers who were there because 

of the army.10

The situation began to change in 1872, when the army placed most of the Apaches on reservations and issued 

them rations of corn and beef. The creation of a large guaranteed market at Indian reservations (in addition 

to the military post market) combined with a previously unknown level of safety from Indian depredations led 

to the rapid development of a livestock industry. By 1873, the territory was filling up with competitors for the 

early ranchers. Stockmen established ranches wherever there were forts or Indian reservations. Many settlers 

in the Sulphur Springs Valley came to the region between 1873 and 1878. The Brannick Riggs family arrived in 

this period and laid the foundation for their dynasty at the base of the Chiricahua Mountains.11 Movement 

into the territory by both settlers and livestock began increasing rapidly in the last half of the 1870s. By the 

end of the decade, the number of cattle in Arizona had increased 26- fold since 1870, to 135,757 animals.12 But 

since the federal government purchased thousands of cattle and sheep each year to feed two army regiments 

 

6

 Sheridan, Arizona, 130. 

7

 Sheridan, Arizona, 130. The Sulphur Springs Valley is a broad, nearly level plain between the Pinaleno, Dos Cabezas, and Chiricahua mountains on the 

east, and the Winchester and Dragoon mountains in the west. Collins, E- 19. Hooker's ranch subsequently included Hooker's Hot Springs, now owned 

by the Nature Conservancy, associated with the Muleshoe Ranch. 

8

 John P. Wilson, Islands in the Desert: A History of the Uplands of Southeastern Arizona (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1995), 188. 

9

 Darlis A. Miller, Soldiers and Settlers: Military Supply in the Southwest, 1861- 1885 (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1989), 200. 

10 Raymond L. Welty, "Supplying the Frontier Military Posts," Kansas Historical Quarterly 7, no.2 (May 1938). 

11 Wilson, 188. 

12 Collins, E- 17. 
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169

and 4,500 Native Americans, Arizona ranchers still could not produce enough animals to satisfy that market as 

late as the early 1880s.13 The growth and prosperity set the stage for the great boom of the 1880s. 

THE BOOM OF THE 1880S: SETTING THE STAGE FOR THE ERICKSON HOMESTEAD 

Neil Erickson came to the neighboring New Mexico Territory in 1881 as a soldier and his future wife, Emma 

Peterson arrived there as an officer's servant in 1883. Together, they stepped into the Arizona Territory in 

1884. Their impressions of the livestock industry in Arizona, established during their first years in the 

territory, were influenced by the prosperity of that period. By the time that they married and established their 

own ranch in 1887, it would have been easy for them to believe that livestock raising was a comfortable way to 

make a living. 

"The first half of the 1880s was the golden age of the range- cattle industry everywhere in the West; a time of 

high prices, when the open ranges carried as many head of stock as the owners could buy.”14 In Arizona, 

especially, the situation encouraged growth and development. The army posts and Indian reservations 

continued to demand beef, and there was also demand from booming mining camps that were spreading 

across southern Arizona. 

The 1877 Desert Land Act provided further incentive by increasing homestead allotments from 160 to 640 

acres. By 1882, more than 21,000 acres had been distributed under that act, which required that the land be 

irrigated. Many of those who used the act were investors who saw ranching as a big business.15 Besides 

Hooker’s Sierra Bonita operation, other large successful ranches in southeastern Arizona included Colin 

Cameron's San Rafael Cattle Company (east of Nogales); Walter Vail and H.R. Hilsop's Empire Ranch (east of 

Tucson), the Chiricahua Cattle Company in the lower Sulphur Springs Valley, and the San Simon Cattle 

Company along San Simon Creek. However, many of the settlers operated small family ranches with a few 

hundred cattle or less. For instance, along the Santa Cruz ranching area, in 1880 "the largest ranches were 

American, running on the average from 500 to 800 cattle each. However, the majority of cattle owners were 

Mexican" residents of Arizona.16

The railroads and increasing beef prices also contributed to the boom. The Southern Pacific railroad route 

connected southern Arizona to California in 1880; the transcontinental link was completed in 1881. The 

Atlantic and Pacific (later the Santa Fe) route crossed northern Arizona in 1883. The railroads spawned a 

series of new towns along the routes, providing more customers for beef. In addition, thousands of cattle 

were shipped into the region by rail from Texas, California and Mexico, to exploit the new Arizona ranges. In 

1885, 652,500 cattle were reported to be on Arizona ranges, an increase of over 400 percent in only five years. 

By then, all land near a water source had been claimed and the rangelands were fully stocked, yet cattle 

continued to stream into the territory. The increasing price of beef continued to feed the frenzy; the price of a 

three- year- old steer increased from $15 to an average of $30 to $35 a head between 1881 and 1883. Such 

promises of returns on investments led to widespread speculation. Between 1885 and 1887, 57 percent of the 

acres filed upon under the Desert Land Act belonged to people who did not reside in the territory.17

 

13 Sheridan, Arizona, 130. 

14 Wilson, 189. 

15 Sheridan, Arizona, 131. 

16 Wagoner, 40 citing Clarence W. Gordon, et al., "Report on Cattle, Sheep and Swine, Supplementary to Enumeration of Livestock on Farms in 1880," 

Tenth Census of the United States, 1880, p. 93. 
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170

The railroads also contributed to the ranching boom by providing access to national markets. In 1885, for the 

first time, the territory’s beef output fully satisfied the local demand. The ranchers thus had to ship surplus 

cattle to national markets, a service provided by railroads. The need to find markets outside the territory 

greatly affected the livestock industry in Arizona. First, stockmen had to pay attention to prices in various 

markets, and sell accordingly to maximize their profits. One shipment might go to Kansas City and the next 

shipment would go to Los Angeles. In addition, no longer did the territory’s beef industry sell only to the 

local “captive customer,” who had to put up with the poor quality of the mostly Texas Longhorns and 

Mexican criollos. Now that the ranchers had to compete in a national market, their product had to improve. 

Ranchers began importing blooded breeding stock, especially Shorthorns and Herefords. The latter “were 

found to be most suitable for the arid climate” when they proved to “have all the vigor and endurance of 

native cattle.” Also in their favor were their "early maturing qualities, and prolific reproduction.” In addition, 

they “sold as well in the beef market and better as feeders than did the other breeds."18 So important was the 

need for high quality cattle in the territory’s beef inventory that the territorial legislature passed an act in 1885 

requiring that “service of one good American bull of graded stock be provided for every 25 cows or fraction 

thereof. . . . Further legislation permitted a rancher to castrate any scrub bull which was off of his home range 

and running with brood stock."19

The boom of the 1880s created such an attitude of success that it blinded the territory to any problems. In 

1883 the territorial governor boasted that Arizona could carry over 7 million cattle; however, when the number 

of cattle went significantly over one million the conditions were ripe for a collapse of the system. By the mid1880s, overstocking and overgrazing were commonplace in southeastern Arizona's rangelands. For four years 

of the first half of the decade, the region had enjoyed an abundance of rainfall, which had only served to boost 

unrealistic expectations regarding carrying capacity even higher. In 1885, however, only 45 percent of the 

expected annual amount of rain fell, creating severe drought conditions.20 The combination of low rainfall 

and a record number of stock on the range combined to make a disaster; high numbers of livestock died as a 

result. In addition, prices were low. The industry made some minor adjustments (three are noted below), but 

the stockmen failed to realize the serious impact of overstocking and overgrazing. The warning signal had 

little effect on the industry’s soaring visions, and the rangelands continued to be overused. 

One trend that the 1885 drought did begin was the selling of cattle at a younger age. When the stockmen 

realized they couldn’t feed all of their cattle throughout 1885, they sold their younger steers as “feeders,” that 

is, the animals were to be fed to full weight at feed lots that were in other locations. The ranchers found that 

to be successful enough that during the next years they sold the cattle younger and younger. By 1890, the 

average age of marketed range cattle was 2 years. Thus, since the 1885 drought the ranches of southern 

Arizona have been devoted more to breeding purposes rather than raising the stock to full weight.21 A second 

trend involved the development of artificial water; wells, cattle tanks, and small dams assured a more reliable 

supply of water.22 A third trend involved the consolidation of small holdings into companies.23

 17 Sheridan, Arizona, 132, 133. Widespread abuses of the law were notorious. 

18 Wagoner, 50; and Richard J. Morrisey, "The Early Range Cattle Industry in Arizona," Agricultural History 24, no. 3 (July 1950): 154. 

19 Morrisey, 154. 

20 Wagoner, 45. 

21 Wagoner, 45. 

22 Wagoner, 48, citing the Tombstone Prospector, March 24, 1888. 
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171

DECIDING WHAT TO DO, 1884- 1886 

In the midst of the booming livestock decade, Neil Erickson and Emma Peterson were trying to decide what to 

do with their lives. Erickson had been in region since 1881, serving in the U.S. Army. Peterson had arrived in 

the Southwest in 1883, and had primarily been employed as a servant by officers in the army. Erickson 

eventually resolved to leave the army at the end of his term of duty. He then began trying to decide what to do 

with his life. The couple definitely was attracted to each other, and Erickson certainly wanted to continue the 

relationship, but they still had not made formal commitments to each other. They also hadn’t formed any 

definite opinions about how to spend their lives (whether together or apart). Thus began a delicate 

negotiating process that lasted two years, primarily through letters- - in which they decided the direction to 

take. Unfortunately we do not have any of Peterson's letters during this time, but we do have Erickson's 

letters. They reveal one side of a lengthy dialogue in which these lovers were trying to make important 

decisions through the medium of letters. 

In 1884, apparently at Peterson’s suggestion, Erickson thought about staying in the Southwest. He was 

attracted to the rural life but found living in a city appealing as well; apparently Peterson had a similar division 

of interests. While on army maneuvers, he visited a ranch near Mud Springs, where the owners invited him to 

spend the night. Erickson thought that they “had a superbly delightful home, even if it is far out in the desert, 

and I wished that even I had a home like that for my Dove, but she wants indeed to go to some city where 

everything is Music or noise.”24 Apparently Peterson redirected his thoughts, because he began looking 

intermittently for land on which to settle. “I thought when I was out hunting that I’d find land on which I 

could begin livestock breeding,” he wrote to her, “but I found unfortunately nothing but hills and stones and 

sand and thorns, and for which I shudder.”25 A month later, he had decided to drop the livestock plans and 

instead to work in a city, acknowledging that Peterson could "not stand farmers."26

However, in the spring of 1885, Erickson got the idea to buy 80 acres at Mesa City, "a very beautiful place" 

about 18 miles south of Fort McDowell.27 He wrote to the fellow soldier who owned the land to suggest the 

sale. While he waited for a response, Erickson dreamed up plans for the property. He wanted to have his 

brother come out to “work it up until my service is finished.” He planned to build a little house on the 

property, and in the late autumn would begin a vineyard. “I’d thrive indeed well in that place for it is 

exceedingly beautiful, yes a real pleasure garden where all kinds of fruits grow.” Although he had also 

recently looked at lots in Phoenix, he didn't like the idea of moving there because the lots were too small: "I 

want to have a big place to turn around in." However, he expressed concern about whether Peterson would 

be interested in such a rural lifestyle. “But how will it go with my Emmy if I become a farmer, then I’ll 

probably get the basket, won’t I, say if you have changed your mind.” Regardless, that Mesa City land deal did 

not go through.28

 

23 Wagoner, 47. 

24 Nils Erickson to Emmy Peterson, Acc. 1776, Western Archeological and Conservation Center, Tucson. Cited hereafter as WACC. 

25 Neil Erickson, Ft. McDowell, to Emma Peterson, December 1, 1884, Acc. 1776, WACC. 

26 Erickson to Peterson, January 12, 1885, Acc. 1776, WACC. 

27 Mesa City, a Mormon community, had a population of about 300 in 1883; today Mesa is part of the Phoenix metropolitan area. 

<www.mesalibrary.org/about_mesa/mesahistory/fullhistory.asp>. 

28 Erickson to Peterson, March 13, 1885; March 18, 1885; and May 8, 1885, Acc. 1776, WACC. 
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172

By the fall of 1885, at the same time that cattle were dying on the Arizona range from the drought, Erickson 

had been offered 160 acres "of beautiful land" in the area called Smith's Ranch near Mud Springs. Neil 

thought it was "the most beautiful place I have seen in Arizona." He was quite excited about the offer, and 

asked Emma what she thought about it. But, again, that land purchase did not occur.29 By midwinter Erickson 

had again switched directions, and asked a friend if he could find him a place on a police force when he was 

discharged from the army. "I think I will no doubt get a place as police in Baltimore."30

But by the summer of 1886, Erickson was again on the fence regarding his city/country decision, and so had 

decided to do both. “I want to in one way or another get myself a little farm near the city in which I live, and 

have Brother and Mother live on this farm and then it can at the same time be a Summer resort, for one who 

can not live in the country, and it will even to get to be a Sunday resort for me now and then for I’ll quickly get 

tired of the city life."31

A month later, he had again switched direction, and he was trying to decide whether to purchase a particular 

ranch for $250 or move to the East. The ranch could support 1,000 cattle, and he thought Emma could “earn 

a lot of money by selling eggs and milk.” But he was leaning towards leaving Arizona: “I would however like 

best to go to the east where I have many friends and acquaintances and I believe I would get along better 

there. . . . Please tell me what you think will be best. . . . If you think it best to stay here you may lend me four 

hundred dollars (400) to begin with."32

Peterson apparently rejected the idea of staying in Arizona and lending him money, for Erickson responded to 

her: “I will very gladly put miserable Arizona out of my mind for I have never been very in love with this part 

of the country. And had it not been for you, I would never have thought of staying here. And I am glad that 

you have decided to travel away from here.” Emma owned some milk cows and would have to sell them to 

move East, and so he began planning for that.33 However, only a week later, he again was reconsidering 

purchasing the ranch, which had been reduced in price to $200. He asked Peterson to tell him her decision.34

Suddenly, a month later, in October 1886, Erickson learned that Peterson had purchased a house, apparently 

the cabin at Bonita Canyon. And so it would seem that Peterson took charge of things, and made the purchase 

quite quickly, something that Erickson didn't seem capable of doing. He wished her well: "I hope you are 

going to thrive in the same."35 Four days after writing his letter, Erickson was discharged from the army; he 

and Peterson became engaged. 

Peterson's cabin was located in the Sulphur Springs Valley, a new area of settlement in the territory. West of 

the Chiricahua Mountains, about 20 miles wide and 50 to 60 miles long, in 1880 the valley was described as 

 

29 Neil Erickson to Emma Peterson, September 1, 1885. Acc. 1776, WACC. 

30 Neil Erickson to Emma Peterson, February 24, 1886. Acc. 1776, WACC. 

31 Neil Erickson to Emma Peterson, July 20, 1886, Faraway Ranch Collection, Western Archeological and Conservation Center, Tucson, (cited hereafter 

as FRC), series 1, folder 79- 100. 

32 Neil Erickson to Emma Peterson, August 13, 1886, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

33 Neil Erickson to Emma Peterson, August 30, 1886, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

34 Neil Erickson to Emma Peterson, September 6, 1886, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

35 Neil Erickson to Emma Peterson, October 6, 1886, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 
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173

being particularly adapted to the grazing of range cattle because of its "location, climate, abundance of forage, 

and freedom from the damaging brushy chaparral."36 The ranch sites were usually 10 to 15 miles apart and 

located along the permanent streams and ciénegas (low lying swampy areas) in the foothills of the mountain 

chains surrounding the valley, exactly the location of the Peterson homestead. The mountains generally 

provided water only during the spring and fall, when ephemeral streams and wet- weather springs were 

apparent. Although cattle would penetrate the mountains at those times, the ranchers typically did not move 

their stock seasonally to highland pastures. 

Peterson later recalled, "I bought a little house with improvements in beautiful Bonita Canyon, and my plan 

was to move there, raise cattle, horses, chickens and plant an orchard."37 While Peterson continued to live at 

Ft. Bowie, her fiancé worked to make her dream come true. Erickson lived in the cabin that she had 

purchased in Bonita Canyon, building fences and making improvements.38 But her dream was put on hold 

when the city life- - and the smell of money- - attracted Neil so he moved to Evansville, New Mexico 

(apparently also known as Volcano); while he lived there the couple married in January 1887. Together they 

moved to Lordsburg, New Mexico, to operate a hotel. After a bad experience there, Emma was “sick of the 

town and the town business."39 "I then told him we would have to fall back on our ranch."40 So they moved 

"out in the country to Sulphur Springs Valley.”41 They had finally arrived at Bonita Canyon in July 1888. 

TRYING TO MAKE A LIVING: 1886- 1917 

Neil still didn't work at the property full time because of indebtedness due to his poor business decisions in 

the towns; he had to go to work to earn money to pay the outstanding debt. That fall and the next year Neil 

worked in a variety of places including El Paso, Lordsburg, Demming, and Bowie Station, as well as working 

for his neighbors such as William Riggs and Louis Prue.42 Meanwhile Emma ran the ranch, while raising 

Lillian, their year- old daughter. They acquired some cattle, but Emma later lamented that “six head of fine 

milch cows I had before my marriage we left in care of some people, but never got them back."43

After heavy rainfall during 1888- 89 “great optimism for future prosperity in the cattle industry prevailed in 

Arizona."44 However, for the Ericksons, it soon became apparent that the homestead was not going to be selfsupporting. This is not surprising given the size of their property in an arid climate. Opinions vary on the 

amount of land necessary to support a family on a ranching farmstead on non- irrigated arid land, but all 

experts agree that even 640 acres (one section) is "hopelessly inadequate" and that more realistically, a family 

would need between 2,000 and 6,400 acres (about three to 10 sections). Some early observers estimated that 

one section could support up 300 head of cattle. However, experience demonstrated that the estimate was 

 

36 Wagoner, 43. 

37 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

38 Torres, 12 citing Emma to Landone, August 3, 1923,FRC, Box 102; and Torres, 13. 

39 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 

40 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

41 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 

42 Ledgers, ca. 1888- 1894, FRC, series 9, box 32, folder 1. 

43 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

44 Wagoner, 53. 
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174

wildly overstated; by the 1950s it was recognized that it took at least 25 acres to feed one cow and calf. In 

other words, one section could support 26 cow- calf units. By 2001, estimates had moved even lower; typical 

land- animal ratios on Arizona ranches on one section ranged from 8 to 12 cow- calf units, that is, two to three 

cow- calf units per 160 acres. The Erickson's petite 160 acres played the role of a hobby ranch, whether Neil 

and Emma intended that, or even realized it.45

Years later, Lillian romanticized her father’s lack of success at the ranch. "You younger folks will never know 

what it meant to take a hundred and sixty acres of raw land in this desert country far from neighbors, a grim 

determination, and love, and build that into a home.”46 “The mountain land on which they had made their 

[homestead] would not support many cattle; the young soldier was no cowboy. Though he might take a shot 

at an Indian in warfare he shrank from applying a hot iron to a struggling calf of his small herd.”47 "My father 

was not a cattleman by instinct or training. He was too honest and honorable to compete with the many small 

outlaw bands that lived about the country at that time.48 However, the true story of the conditions that Neil 

and Emma faced make a more interesting, and complex story. 

During the boom decade of cattle ranching in Arizona, the Ericksons were in debt and unable to make a living 

on their small ranch. Neil realized that to support his family he would have to move to Bisbee, where he 

worked for the Copper Queen mine, primarily at the smelter, from late 1890 to late 1894.49 Emma continued to 

stay at the ranch most of the time. During those years they planted a “home garden,” large enough that it took 

two days to plow it, and also planted another garden they referred to as the “lower garden.”50 Their family 

also grew during that time; their second child, Ben, was born in 1891. Also about 1891, Emma had 500 peach 

trees set out, and also some apple trees. At some time during those early years they planted grapevines.51

 

Emma was carrying out her plans to grow an orchard, and Neil’s plans for a vineyard. That year, however, 

was destined to be the first in a three- year drought. 

For the Arizona livestock industry, the 1880s had been a great party. There had been a tremendous increase in 

the number of cattle, leaping almost 700 percent in a decade to 927,880 in 1890.52 However, the range was 

terribly overstocked, and the resources were stretched. The breaking point came during a devastating drought 

of 1891- 1893. February 1891 had seen especially heavy rainfall, but for the next 28 months, rainfall was meager. 

Total precipitation during the drought was 70 percent of the excepted amount, and the nearly 3- year duration 

of the drought "amplified deteriorating range conditions."53 The effect of the drought was cumulative; in 1891 

 

45 Sheridan, Arizona, 131; Wagoner, 63 citing John W. Powell, Report on the Lands of the Arid Region, 2nd ed., pp. 23- 24; Wagoner, 68 citing "The 

Public Domain and the Stock- Raising Homestead Law," American Forestry XXIII, no. 280 (April 1917), p 243; Collins, E- 4; Christian C. Young, 

"Defining the Range: The Development of Carrying Capacity in Management Practice," Journal of the History of Biology 31 (1998): 65; A.T. Steele, "The 

Lady Boss of Faraway Ranch," Saturday Evening Post, March 15, 1958, 132; and Thomas E. Sheridan, "Cows, Condos, and the Contested Commons: The 

Political Ecology of Ranching on the Arizona- Sonora Borderlands" Human Organization 60, no. 2 (Summer 2001): 142. 

46 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

47 Lillian Erickson Riggs, ca. 1936- 37, FRC, series 8, folder 4- 5. 

48 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 49 Neil Erickson, “Some Facts about (Bigfoot) Massai,” n.d., FRC, series 4, folder 7. 

50 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, March 24, 1893, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

51 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

52 Collins, E- 16. 
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ranchers were concerned, but did not anticipate livestock deaths. It was not until July and August of 1892 that 

stockmen realized that they had to move their cattle out of the territory at once or lose their entire investment. 

Livestock loss attributed to the drought was estimated between 50 and 75 percent; the largest number was lost 

during the summer of 1893. The greater severity of the drought occurred in the southern portion of the 

Territory - - resulting in the highest losses there. Though not the most severe in terms of rainfall deficit, the 

drought of 1891- 93 (along with the upcoming drought of 1898- 1904) were "unequaled in Arizona's history" for 

their "deleterious impacts on cattle and range."54 In addition to this natural disaster in Arizona, the country 

was undergoing a national depression, resulting in record low average prices for beef. Many smaller ranchers 

went out of business, and sold their holdings to larger owners.55 Thus, a trend toward consolidation that 

started after the 1885 drought was accentuated after the 91- 93 disaster. 

Another trend started after the 1885 drought became established as the industry standard after the 91- 93 

drought: selling younger stock. Until 1892, many ranchers had continued to raise range- grown steers until 

they were about three- years old; they'd sell them to farmers in the Midwest or Arizona who would in turn 

fatten them in pastures or feedlots, then send them to market.56 By selling their range cattle earlier during the 

drought, the Arizona stockmen realized that they could receive bigger returns by selling younger animals. The 

territory was not particularly well suited for fattening cattle, except in the limited irrigated agricultural areas. 

In addition, the population base was not large enough in the state to support a sizeable slaughtering market.57

 

By 1896, the standard procedure in southern Arizona leaned toward selling yearlings as feeders, bringing the 

average sale age down from 2.18 in 1890.58 The ranches of southern Arizona became devoted to breeding 

purposes, rather than raising full- grown steers.59

Emma later offered her opinion on the cattle industry of that era: “At that time [when they moved to Bonita 

Canyon] was lots of rain and water in the canyon., and the whole country looked like a beautiful meadow and 

where ever you rode in the country the grass came up to the stirrups of the horses. . . . At that time this part of 

the country was a regular paradise but the people’s greed and selfishness got the best of them. The big cattle 

men said, ‘That fellow got so many head of cattle so I can increase my head too.’ Which they did until they 

made a desert out of a beautiful country. The whole country was over stocked, and there had not been 

enough watering places provided. So when the cattle came to a watering place to water they were unable to 

get up and leave. So thousands and thousands of head of cattle died at the watering places. Of course all the 

cattle at this time were too poor to be shipped out. Right here is a good example of what greed and selfishness 

will accomplish. The country never recuperated from that time. Because the grass was eaten to the bare 

roots.”60

 53 Conrad J. Bahre, and Marilyn L. Shelton, "Rangeland Destruction: Cattle and Drought in Southeastern Arizona at the Turn of the Century" Journal of 

the Southwest 38, no. 1 (Spring 1996): 8. 

54 Bahre, 9,12, 2. 

55 Sheridan, Arizona, 142, 143. 

56 Wilson, 190. 

57 Collins, E- 63. 

58 Wagoner, 45. 

59 The terms feeders and stockers are often used synonymously and in combination; both refer to young animals- - large calves and yearlings. Stockers 

are cattle capable of additional growth and finish on pasturage, while feeders are used for rapid growth by intensive feeding. Wilson, 190. 

60 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2. 
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176

The existing records don’t make clear to us exactly what effect that drought and economic depression had on 

the Erickson family, but we can gain an impression based on some clues. The family already was in a 

financially difficult time, so that Neil was working in Bisbee. The drought of 1891 apparently affected their 

crops, since late that summer, Neil advised Emma, “I don’t believe that you can raise any crop on the ranch 

this year, so you might as well pack up and come here at any rate next month.”61 In spring of 1893, the drought 

continued to affect their crops; Emma had asked if it was too late to plant wheat; Neil replied that it was 

somewhat late “unless one could water it and that I know you cannot, so you’ll do best to let everything lie but 

what you can do in the garden around the house.”62 However, Neil was able to cut hay in 1893.63 In each of 

the fours years following Emma’s planting of the orchard, the fruit was killed by frost. Neil believed the peach 

trees would not pay, although Emma insisted they would, as they grew larger.64

Neil’s brother John lived at the ranch at least part of the time, and promised that he would look out for Emma 

while Neil was in Bisbee. Neil held John to the promise, and told him that if John made sure that Emma had 

wood then he could go to the Riggs ranch or elsewhere to earn some money; but first he had to fix the house, 

as Emma “said it would blow down this winter.”65 John also did other work around the homestead, and 

plowed the home garden and the lower garden.66

But apparently brother John was not at the ranch long, and Emma controlled the property. During the winter 

of 1892, Neil advised Emma about digging a well, then said, “But now you are Boss of the ranch and will have 

to please yourself, hoping you will have good success, so that I can soon come out there and live with you.”67

 

Later, Neil lamented, “You are out mending fences, and will go out and plow, hereto I can only say that if you 

think such work is suitable for you, I can at the present time not prevent you from continuing with it, but I 

think it is a little wrong that you should need to go out and pick up wood, or also to rip the bark off the trees 

that you might escape freezing, I think this is very wrong, but I do not see how I can help even this.”68

By 1894, Neil and Emma's homestead included a three- room frame house, one rock house, an 18' x 20' corral, 

a shed, two wells, 500 fruit trees, and about 40 acres surrounded by a wire fence, with a total value of about 

$700; they had raised a crop on about ten acres for the past ten years.69 The Erickson’s tax assessment of 1894 

provides some additional insight into the property that they held at that time. Their receipt states that they 

had four horses, and six cattle, an adobe house, implements, furniture, a mower and a harness.70 Of course, 

care must be taken when using historic tax records to estimate the quantity of property, since taxpayers had 

an incentive to skew the actual quantity and value of their holdings. A government report at about that time 

 

61 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, August 14, 1891, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

62 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, March 23, 1893, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

63 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, September 1, 1893, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

64 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

65 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, December 23, 1892, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

66 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, March 24, 1893, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

67 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, January 28, [1892?], FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

68 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, March 23, 1893, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

69 Neil Erickson Homestead Application 1171 for Section 27, T16S, R29E, patented November 22, 1894, Tucson, Arizona, General Land Office, Records of 

the Bureau of Land Management, Record Group 49, National Archives, Washington, DC. 

70 Tax receipt, Cochise County, December 15, 1894, FRC, series 26, box 43, folder 1. 
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determined that figures on county tax rolls were underestimated by 57 percent.71 Assuming that the Ericksons 

followed that pattern, they would have owned about ten cattle. 

Neil’s years in Bisbee were difficult on the family; disagreements played out through their letters. ”I have got 

so that I almost dread to open your letters and to read them,” Neil complained. “I expect one tomorrow, and 

with it I also expect another scolding, if not about windmills it will be shoes or something else, that don’t suit 

your Ladyship.”72 Months later he again complained of the whining tone of her letters.73

Their financial situation was also interwoven though the pages of their letters. He repeatedly apologized for 

not sending Emma money, but explained that he had none to send. He believed that he needed to stay in 

Bisbee to earn money: “I don’t intend to leave here until my debt is paid.”74 They both continually tried to 

think of schemes to make money. At one point, Neil was trying to rent a dining room and was trying to find a 

man to help him cook. At the same time, he was renting the house for $25 per month.75 A man at Steins Pass 

contacted Neil because, “he wants to buy our property there;” Neil agreed to sell it for $100. Emma sent some 

rock to Neil to determine if it contained gold.76 He warned Emma, however, “I see you have again gone off 

into the gold craze, but my dear Emma, do not go too far.”77 By late summer of 1893, the Bisbee mine had laid 

off 50 men, so Neil was anticipating further lay- offs. “Times are very hard all over the country,” he explained, 

referring to the depression, “and of course capital have a chance to do as they please with Labor.”78 But Neil 

continued to work in Bisbee, while Emma stayed at the ranch with their two children. “Well you may live 

where you best thrive and I may live there where I can earn money,” he lamented, “if I could feed us all on the 

ranch, I’d probably come there too.”79

Indeed, Neil did return to the ranch to live, not because of the family’s economic success, but rather because 

of Emma’s poor health. She had moved to Bisbee during her third pregnancy, had become so ill she returned 

home to Bonita Canyon. During that time she injured her ankle, which did not heal properly. At that point, 

Neil sold the Bisbee house and returned to Bonita Canyon. After the Hildegard’s birth, Emma, almost 41, did 

not recover her health; she traveled to a hot springs to recuperate. Her homecoming on crutches was all but 

happy for her, however. “When I came home, I received another shock. . . I found hubby had plowed up all 

the peach trees.” It seems that the peach orchard was the symbol of the power play between Neil and Emma 

over the control of the homestead. After her return from the hot springs- - and the shock of the removal of 

the 500 tress- - “I seemed to have no strength,” she recalled. Although Emma continued to be active, her 

physical restrictions limited what she could do. However, she felt proud about continuing to work; she “went 

 

71 Underestimated property holdings is substantiated by census records, which consistently are higher than tax records, though they do exhibit the 

similar basic trend lines. One should exercise care in applying this calculation to other years. Collins, E- 38 citing E.C. La Rue, The Live Stock Industry 

and Grazing Conditions in Arizona (U.S. Geological Survey, 1918). 

72 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, December 9 1892, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

73 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, May 16, 1893, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

74 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, April 14, 1893, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

75 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, December 9 1892, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

76 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, August 5, 1892, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

77 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, November 26, 1892, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

78 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, August 28, 1893, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

79 Neil Erickson to Emma Erickson, March 23, 1893, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 
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on crutches to gather grapes, and put them in the children's little wagon,” and she recalled, “I made jams and 

jellies, did my washing, ironing and took care of the house, while on crutches.”80

Neil’s idea of how to live at the ranch had evolved over time. Being a Swedish immigrant he shared the radical 

political philosophy of many of his countryman, expressing solidarity with small- farm operators and bluecollar workers against big business.81 His strong beliefs regarding socialism as the best route to protect the 

laboring classes naturally demonstrated themselves in his own property. He decided to try a cooperative 

colony approach to his ranch.82 In 1898, he wrote to Eugene V. Debs, then chief editorial writer of Appeal to 

Reason, an independent Socialist weekly.83 In 1894, Debs had been a leader of the famed Pullman Strike in 

Chicago; three years later, his railway union dissolved itself as a union, and became the Social Democracy of 

America party.84 "The new party favored public ownership of all monopolies and utilities, public works to 

make jobs for the jobless, and a shorter workday." Its major plank, however, was a plan for colonization: "the 

Socialists were to choose one western state to concentrate their forces, colonize their members there, win 

political power there, form a 'cooperative commonwealth' in the one state, and fan out until it was national."85

 

They hoped to alter the moral and economic order of the entire country. Neil liked this idea, and wrote to 

Debs, “I have about fifty head of cattle, about 15 mares and horses, 160 acres of land with a small orchard on 

the same. All of which I will donate to and share equally with any socialist commune or colony that will locate 

anywhere in the territory. . . . Please cause this to be published either in your paper or the Coming Nation or 

both.”86

 Coming Nation was an independent Socialist weekly, the largest Socialist paper of its time, and was 

the official paper of the Ruskin Colony. Profits from the newspaper had been donated by the editor, Julius 

Wayland, to found the colony in 1894 on 800 acres in Tennessee. The goal of the colony was to produce a 

practical utopian socialist alternative to the capitalistic society.87 The colonization model appealed to Neil 

Erickson, so he offered half of his holdings to start such a colony in Arizona Territory. Apparently, however, 

no one took Neil up on his offer, since life continued the same at the ranch at Bonita Canyon. 

 

80 Emma Erickson, Flagstaff, to Mr. Browne Landone, New York, August 3, 1923, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

81 Charles A. Lindbergh, Sr. offers a good example of Swedish immigrant political philosophy. Father of the famed aviator, Lindbergh was elected to 

Congress from Minnesota, a state heavily populated by Swedes. He wrote a widely read book denouncing the "money barons;" like the populists, he 

attacked big business and trusts and spoke for the people who lived on farms and in small towns. Many Swedes sympathized with the populist 

movement of the 1890s and Theodore Roosevelt's Progressives. Stephan Thernstrom, ed., Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups (Cambridge, 

Massachusetts: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1980): 979. 

82 “I am glad to know that you are trying the co- operative colony scheme and wish you success. . . . It is only in some such sort of socialism that any 

permanent relief can be expected from unrestricted competition that is devouring labor . . .” Bucky O’Neill to Neil Erickson, January 20, 1897, FRC, 

series 1, folder 202- 206. 

83 At that time in his earlier years of promoting socialism, Debs would in the next three decades become a famous leader in the field, including being the 

Socialist Party's presidential candidate in five elections. 

84 Debs headed Social Democracy of America during its existence from 1897- 1898; the organization was a forerunner of the Social Democratic Party, an 

early Socialist- Populist party founded by Debs and some of his followers in 1898. That party subsequently became the Socialist Party in 1901; Debs 

became one of the best- known leaders of the Socialist Party before he died in 1926. Walter Goldwater, Radical periodicals in America, 1890- 1950 (New 

York: University Place Book Shop, 1977), xiii, xiv. Debs' home in Indiana is a National Historic Landmark. 

85 Jonathon Glickstein, "Marxist Socialism and Anarchism in Late- Nineteenth- Century America," 

<www.history.ucsb.edu/syllabi/Spring03materials/Glickstein/Glichsteinmaterial.html>. 

86 Neil Erickson to Eugene V. Debs, March 2, 1898, FRC, series 1, folder 79- 100. 

87 Goldwater, 7; and Robert S. Fogarty, "Communitarians and Counterculturists,” in Encyclopedia of American Social History, Mary Kupiec Cayton, 

Elliott J. Gorn, and Peter W. Williams, eds. Vol. 3 of 3. (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1993), <http://are.as.wvu.edu/scribners/commurel.htm>. 

The site of the Ruskin Colony is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. 
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However, Neil's statement regarding the quantity of his livestock was revealing. It would seem that Neil 

would be honest about how much livestock he was offering the new colony; for if he offered them half of his 

holdings of cattle- - estimated in this letter to be about 25 head- - then he certainly wouldn’t want to be held to 

that offer if he in fact owned only about 6 or ten head. This 1898 figure for cattle is over eight times the 

amount that he paid taxes on in 1894, and the figure on horses is almost four times the amount; this helps us 

make estimates of his holdings in subsequent tax years. 

When Neil returned to the ranch in 1895, it may have seemed that the weather and market were on his side. 

Indeed, good cattle prices returned in 1896, and copious rains in 1897- 98 brought on abundant forage.88

 

However, on a larger scale, southern Arizona was in the midst of a climatic cycle that devastated the 

agricultural industry. The cycle had actually started back in 1885, and continued almost continually until the 

early 1900s. During that time there were "six long stretches when the amount of evapotranspiration (moisture 

lost through evaporation and transpiration by plants) was greater than the amount of precipitation."89 In the 

fourteen years between 1891 and 1904, only two years received more than average rainfall. After October 1898, 

drought persisted until December 1904. “The severity of the effect of the 1898- 1904 drought and the impact 

on the rangelands is due to the drought's duration and to the cumulative dryness which greatly exceeded that 

of any other drought between 1868 and 1935."90 In 1901, the chef botanist in charge of grass and forage 

investigations for the Arizona Experiment Station observed, “the grasslands of southern Arizona were more 

degraded than any he had seen in the western United States.”91

By 1902, Neil was again discouraged by the inability of the ranch to generate an income, and had to return to 

Bisbee to make a living. Once again, Emma stayed at the ranch, along with their three children. He was quite 

frustrated by the situation, and when he left home, he stated, "unless I can get an income from the ranch by 

staying on it I never will again go back there to live, and I do not feel like spending any more money on a place 

where there is no income at all.” He decided to seek a new career, so he could “build a home that will hold us 

all.” Indeed, he had applied for a job with the federal government. “If I get the appointment I am looking for, 

then I shall either fix up [the ranch] or sell it. If not I will not willingly spend one cent more on the old place.” 

When Emma asked him to send a workman to the ranch to do some necessary work, Neil refused, and tried to 

convince Emma to agree with him. “I will not . . . send any man out there to work where no benefit is assured 

for such work. Do now be reasonable my own dear Emma. I love you as much as ever man loved woman, and 

that old place has kept us constantly separated, while we should have been one united in mind and body, and 

spent our days happily with our children by the fireside and under our immediate care. Now Emma, are you 

going to scold me for not sending your man to work for you?"92

In July 1903, Neil’s dream came to fruition, when he began his career as an employee of the federal 

government as a forest ranger. The position perfectly satisfied the family’s needs: Emma could continue to live 

at Bonita Canyon, on her little homestead, while Neil could live at home as well, but earn a steady income 

while there. Although Neil did have to leave home for a month or six weeks at a time while tending to his 

responsibilities, those periods were certainly shorter than the years that he had spent at Bisbee.93 Over the 

 

88 Wilson 190. 

89 Sheridan, Arizona, 142. 

90 Bahre, 16. 

91 Bahre, 13. 

92 Neil Erickson, Bisbee, to Emma Erickson, June 13, 1902, FRC, series 1, folder 101- 106. 
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next 14 years, Neil continued to be based at the ranch while working for the government. However, the rest of 

the family intermittently lived elsewhere. 

A year after Neil moved home, in 1904, Lillian moved to Galesburg, Illinois, to attend high school; she was 16. 

In 1906 she finished her high school studies but when Lillian returned to Arizona, it was to teach school, not 

to work at the ranch. The year years 1906- 08 would have been financially comfortable for the family. Neil's 

forest job, plus Lillian's teaching work brought in outside income, which subsidized the meager products from 

the homestead.94 In addition, no education expenses would have drawn on the family, since Lillian had 

finished high school, and the two younger children were attending school in the county. However, in 1908 

Emma moved with Ben and Hildegard to Galesburg; Emma spent at least one school year in Illinois with the 

teenagers.95 When Ben returned, Lillian and Hildegard went to Galesburg to attend college and high school, 

respectively. While they were there, Ben sent some money to the girls, but specified to be sure to get 

Hildegard’s lessons with $30 of it “because we are a little short on funds you know. [Ben’s underlining].”96

 

However, in spite of the out- of- state schooling, which made cash scarce, the family’s financial situation did 

seem to stabilize.97

During those years, the ranch was tended by whomever was available. In 1912, while Lillian and Hildegard 

were in Galesburg, Ben tended to the ranch. Among his chores were building fences, maintaining and 

repairing water tanks, and plowing so they could plant 10 acres of corn, along with some cane and Kafir corn. 

The previous season, the ranch produced about 6,000 pounds of corn, but Ben steadily fed corn fodder 

through the winter after Christmas, feeding some of the young cows that had calves in the snowstorm and 

cold weather as well as “a raft of horses and I am afraid [the corn] will not hold out.” Irabelle, their horse, 

and her two colts were singled out for special care. “I have already branded 4 little calves for you [Hildegard] 

and 5 for Lillian . . . I have one or two horses to brand for you, so you and Lill are still in the lead in the cow 

business.” In addition, Emma had 33 little chickens. 

The family also worked beyond the boundaries of their homestead. Between 1913 and 1916, they planted 10 

acres of nearby public range land with a mixture of beans, fruit trees, garden truck, and sudan grass. They 

harvested between 200 and 500 pounds of beans each of those years.98 Neil filed a petition for 240 acres of 

that land in 1917 under the Stock Raising Homestead Act. The land was described as being of mountainous 

and broken terrain, with rocky and gravelly soil, some scattering of scrub oak and juniper, none of which had 

been cultivated, nor was there a potential for profitably cultivating the land. Ben also worked at a neighboring 

ranch, the 202, for a week and “it was certainly dusty and hot,” but they shipped about 4,500 head of cattle. 

For 21- year- old Ben, life was pretty quiet in the rural area. “I was at the big burg of Willcox last Tuesday and 

 93 Ben Erickson, “Interview between Ben Erickson . . .,” 28 January 1970, Acc. 1455, WACC. 

94 “Faraway was never self- supporting. Mr Erickson always had to work at outside jobs, and they were very poor. Things were better after he went to 

work for the Forest Service and Lillian began teaching. Much of her money went into remodelling the old house.” Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee 

Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. 

95 Emma S. Erickson, “[Untitled: Autobiographical],” 10 January 1946, FRC, series 4, folder 2; and Hildegard Hutchison, “[Reminiscences],” n.d., FRC, 

series 4, folder 17. 

96 Ben Erickson to Hildegard and Lillian Erickson, n.d. ca. 1912, FRC, series 1, Folder 74. 

97 Tax receipts, Cochise County, December 20, 1909; December 10, 1910; December 15, 1911; December 13, 1913; December 14, 1914; November 1, 1915; May 

23, 1917; FRC, series 26, box 43, folders 4, 6 and 7. 

98 The land they cultivated was in SE1/4SE1/4 Section 21 T16S R29E, land that Neil later homesteaded. Neil Erickson Stock Raising Homestead Entry 

035343 for Sections 21 and 27, T16S, R29E, patented November 18, 1924; Phoenix, Arizona; General Land Office; Records of the Bureau of Land 

Management, Record Group 49; National Archives, Washington, DC. 
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things are just as lively as ever, shoot a cannon ball down main street and never hit anyone.”99 That life was 

appealing to him, however, and soon after, Ben filed a claim on his own homestead, adjacent to his parents’. 

He received a patent on his 160- acre claim in July 1919. 

1917: A SHIFT TO THE YOUNGER GENERATION 

In 1917, a major shift occurred at the Erickson ranch; indeed, the history of the ranch can be divided into two 

major eras, with 1917 being the dividing year. That year, 58- year- old Neil’s position with the U.S. Forest 

Service required that he move to a different work station, and 63- year- old Emma decided to move there with 

him. What to do with the ranch? Ben, 26, had already started ranching on his own property, so was not 

interested in taking on the home ranch. Lillian, 29, was teaching and living in Bowie. Only 22- year- old 

Hildegard had been living at home, working on the ranch. Hildegard and Lillian decided to take on the ranch, 

with Lillian coming home on the weekends; Ben probably helped since his ranch was nearby. Thus in that 

year, the management of the ranch shifted from the older generation, Neil and Emma, to the younger 

generation. Although Neil and Emma continued to own the ranch for many years, and their stock continued 

to run on the ranch’s lands, it was the younger generation who managed the property. 

Soon after Neil and Emma moved, Ben joined the army at the start of World War I; Lillian and Hildegard 

continued doing the ranch work including all of the cattle work except the branding and the roughest of the 

riding.100 In addition, they took over the care of Emma’s pigs, chickens, turkeys and milk cows.101 Meanwhile, 

Hildegard developed her guest business, providing meals for Sunday visitors as well as lodging for deer 

hunters, in season. With Hildegard’s new business taking her time, the ranch needed another hand. Lillian 

quit her teaching position and become Hildegard’s partner at the ranch.102 She also bestowed a new name on 

their home: Faraway Ranch. 

The two young women took over the ranch at a time that appeared to be promising. Since 1910, the value of 

cattle in Arizona had been rising very quickly, jumping almost 200 percent by 1917, in response to very strong 

market and high prices, probably attributed to the crisis in Europe. High market prices combined with 

excellent range condition provided the decade with "the greatest period of prosperity theretofore 

experienced."103

Arizona stockmen had learned lessons based on the disastrous conditions of 1891- 93 and 1898- 1904. "First, 

the realization was brought home with emphasis that stock raising had become an involved procedure; an 

adventure had become a business.” The ranchers had also learned that they needed to plan the use of range 

and water resources. “Tame feed had to be planted and experimentation undertaken to determine the 

hardiest and most nutritious forage.”104 At the same time, the cattle continued to undergo improvements with 

 

99 Ben Erickson to Lillian Erickson, February 24, 1912, FRC, series 1, Folder 74; and Ben Erickson to Hildegard Erickson, January 9, 1912, FRC, series 1, 

Folder 74. 

100 [Lillian Riggs], “Faraway Ranch: The Gateway to the Wonderland of Rocks,” Hoofs and Horns, October 1934; and John Burnham, “[Untitled: On 

Lillian Riggs],” 31 May 1961, FRC, series 5, folder 9. 

101 Emma Erickson to C. O. Anderson, December 31, 1937, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

102 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC; and John Burnham, “[Untitled: On 

Lillian Riggs],” 31 May 1961, FRC, series 5, folder 9. 

103 Wagoner, 56. 

104 Morrisey, 156. 
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the use of breeding stock. Since these breeds could not survive well on their own, they increased the need to 

invest in land improvements. And an important change in emphasis was the redefinition of the capacity of the 

range, changing to what could be carried through the poorest season.105 “Having learned these lessons, the 

industry turned to more scientific husbandry and subsequently recouped its losses."106

Following the trend toward ranching as a business, Lillian and Hildegard decided to keep careful records of 

the ranch business, apparently the first time that the family had done so. They recorded details regarding 

their diversified businesses- - cattle, pigs, fruit, butter and eggs, and guests- - including inventory, prices, 

expenses and proceeds. For the 6 months tallied in 1918 they calculated a total average income of $151 per 

month from boarders, fruit and pigs, plus $14.95 income from butter and cheese in those months.107 (For years 

the only milk stock belonged to Emma and Neil, so apparently the young women tallied those finances 

separately.)108 The next year, they sold even more fruit- - mostly apples, and also peaches, plums, pears- - for a 

total of $521.109 In those early years they also planted barley, alfalfa, corn, wheat and potatoes.110 In addition, 

they grew maize for cows, horses, chickens and pigs- - the pigs got very small percentage. Over a three- year 

period in the early 1920s, the pig business cleared $550 after expenses, and Lillian noted in the ledger, 

“Wonderful! Wonderful!”111

In 1918 Lillian and Hildegard sold cattle five times, for a total of $579.90, including the price for hides. They 

carefully recorded expenses on the cattle that year consisting of vaccines, land lease and taxes, which totaled 

$91.77. About three- quarters of the 16 head that they sold were branded with VPL, the brand that Lillian 

registered the next year. Other brands were 2B (which was Neil and Emma’s brand) as well as HE and A+.112

Lillian and Hildegard continued to record their ranching business and ran the ranch together, as well as 

operating the guest business. They employed hired hands to help them at the ranch; five men worked a total 

of eleven months in 1918, for $444 in total wages. The women also listed Ben as a hired hand, but did not 

indicate that he was paid.113 In 1920, they paid a total of $547 in wages to hired help, who probably performed 

about the same amount and type of work as in previous years, except that two women were hired. Based on 

subsequent employment practices these women probably worked for the guest ranch business.114

Lillian and Hildegard worked together until the fall of 1920, when Hildegard married and moved away from 

the ranch. At that point, Lillian took on the management of the ranch and guest business by herself. In 1921, 

she again hired hands for short term work for a total of $552, similar to the pattern she had established in the 

 

105 Collins, E- 40. 

106 Morrisey, 156. 

107 Faraway Ranch ledgers, July 14, 1917- December 31, 1923, FRC, series 9, folder 8 and 9. 

108 Emma Erickson to C. O. Anderson, December 31, 1937, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

109 Faraway Ranch ledgers, July 14, 1917- December 31, 1923, FRC, series 9, folder 8 and 9. 

110 Faraway Ranch ledgers, FRC, series 9, folder 8. 

111 Faraway Ranch ledgers, July 14, 1917- December 31, 1923, FRC, series 9, folder 8. 

112 FRC, series 9, box 33, folder 8. 

113 FRC, series 9, folder 8. 

114 FRC, series 9, folder 8. 
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previous years. However, in 1921 most of the employees were women, who were apparently hired for the guest 

ranch business.115

About that time, Lillian and her old school- time boyfriend, Ed Riggs, began seeing each other again. By the 

summer of 1921, Riggs was a frequent visitor to the ranch. Born into the Riggs family, ranching was Ed’s 

heritage. He and his brother Charles had been raised by their grandparents, Brannick and Mary Riggs, the 

founders of the local ranching empire. The Riggs family demonstrated an important ranching presence in the 

valley, and many members of their large family were involved in industry. In 1929, the Riggs family had 

acquired 100,000 acres of patented land, 50,000 leased acres, and 25,000 acres in forest lands."116 

The early 1920s were difficult ones in agriculture, both in Arizona as well as nationally. During the European 

conflict, farmers and ranchers had increased production to supply the Allied side, often taking on a heavy 

debt. However, many were caught by surprise when the war ended quickly at the close of 1918. Overproduction led to lower prices and the country faced a recession. In 1921 and 1922, cattle prices declined 45 to 

60 percent. The number of cattle shipped out of Arizona decreased in those two years to about 78 percent of 

the previous ten- year average of 244,680 per year.117 Combined with the economic turmoil, in 1920- 21 

southern Arizona was struck by drought. 

It was during this time that Lillian reached a watershed in her life; she stood at the cusp of deciding what to 

do with her life. While she enjoyed living and working at the ranch, she was exhausted from working without 

a break; she also enjoyed the urban life. In addition, she was also highly educated, and loved pursuing an 

educated lifestyle; writing was especially appealing to her. To add to the mix of variables, her relationship 

with Riggs was becoming more serious and she felt the need to understand her own needs to help her decide 

about that relationship. She decided to enroll in a writing school in Los Angeles, and in so doing would leave 

the ranch for a while to help her make a decision. She made arrangements for others to care for Faraway 

while she was gone. 

Riggs and Ben handled the ranch work in July, but in August Ed got a job in Benson at a garage so it limited 

the time he could get to Faraway. Ed’s letters to Lillian provide some details about the work at the ranch over 

several days in July and August. “Yesterday I spent in discing a little and fixing up the plants and harrow. . . . 

Ben brought up some seed so we are going to get planting right away.” Next, Riggs and Ben planned to round 

up some bulls and take them to a different pasture. They worked on the fields, then Ben went to Willcox to 

get Higeria corn and cane seed while Riggs did more discing. After planting the Higeria corn, beans and cane, 

Ben, Riggs and his young son Murray planned to work on a concrete trough at Ben’s place. Riggs and Ben 

then started planting more cane “down in the forty acres. Will have plenty of feed this fall if the rains will just 

continue.” Later that summer Ben harrowed the fields “so the young and tender shoots can push their way up 

through the hard baked ground.” And Ben and Riggs counted 24 calves in the “big pasture” and more were 

coming. “Everything, dogs, cats, turkeys, chickens, calves and cows are doing just fine,” he assured her.118

 

Riggs also revived Neil’s old dream of having a vineyard; apparently the vineyard that had been planted some 

30 years earlier was not extant. Ed and Ben went to a vineyard to buy grapes- - he was surprised the plants 

were doing well since the weather had been dry and the vines were not irrigated. “I am somewhat enthusiastic 

 

115 FRC, series 9, folder 8. 

116 Wagoner, 74. 

117 Collins, E- 54- 55. 

118 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, July 7, 8, 11, 24, 1922 and August 2, 3, 6, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 
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right now over the possibilities of a vineyard over at the ranch. You know, those little old neglected pieces of 

grapevines over there [where he bought grapes], last year and this year, after all the freezes, had a few bunches 

of grapes on them. There is money in raisins and grapes and not so much work as an orchard. It is worth 

considering, don’t you think?”119

Meanwhile, while Lillian was dwelling on her future, Riggs also tried to make decisions about his own future. 

In a letter, he outlined his alternatives as: 1) continue Lillian's business, by borrowing some money to buy 

Hildegard's cattle; 2) build his own ranch, west of old Fort Bowie site, where his father would give him some 

land; or 3) get a wage- earning job that would "pay enough to enable us to carry on our plans."120 He asked 

Lillian to decide for him. His letter was striking in its resemblance to Neil’s letters to Emma, back in the 1880s. 

And the same themes continued to play through his letters as they did through Neil’s letters. Did Lillian want 

to live on the ranch or in the city? "How do you feel about coming back to the ranch, do you still have the 

feeling that you would like it just as well or better in or near the city?”121 And Riggs encouraged her to 

seriously consider deciding in favor of the ranch: “You mustn’t lose all interest in the ranch, it is a pretty good 

old place yet.”122

However, next Riggs switched directions (as Neil had done years before). He suggested that after he worked 

at the garage for a few months, that he would drive to Long Beach, and that Ed and Lillian would be married, 

get a "nice little flat" and bring the children there. In the mean time Lillian was to "continue right on with 

your work - I know you will have great success.” He suggested that Ben take over the ranch, and by taking 

over Hildegard's and Lillian's cattle Ben "would have enough to make a good living . . . as it is there isn't 

enough for any one of you. You can do much better in your work, living out there and Ben can do better 

here." He begged for her approval of his plans. He did note, however, that Hildegard didn’t agree with the 

plan, although her husband (Jess) and Ed did “think alike" and he thought that Ben would agree too.123

However, mother Emma advised Lillian against Ed's plan to move to California, since he didn't have a job. "It 

would be to live from hand to mouth, and I know Lillian that you could never stand that," Emma observed. 

She recommended that Riggs stay where he was, that Lillian use her return ticket, "and you can plan on your 

wedding next winter when we are all home."124

And, in fact, that is exactly what happened. Lillian decided that her future lay at the ranch, with Ed. She 

returned to Faraway in September, and on February 26, 1923, Lillian married Ed Riggs. Neil and Emma said 

that Lillian and Ed could continue living on the home ranch for three years. After their marriage, Lillian and 

Ed brought a new synergy to making the ranch a successful enterprise; the ranch continued to be owned by 

the Ericksons, with the addition of the Riggs dynasty to the management mixture. 

 

119 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, July 21, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 

120 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, July 14, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 

121 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, July 27, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 

122 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, August 2, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 

123 Ed Riggs to Lillian Erickson, August 9, 1922, FRC, series 1, folder 238- 242. 

124 Neil and Emma Erickson to Lillian Erickson, August 25, 1922, FRC, series 1, box 5, folder 101- 106. 
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LILLIAN AND ED MANAGE THE RANCH 

The weather again challenged stockmen, with 1924 being a record breaking drought year- - the 5.07 inches of 

precipitation measured at Tucson represents the single driest year on record as of 1994.125 The drought 

extended into California; since that state was the largest and most important market for Arizona’s feeder 

cattle, sales of Arizona feeders were reduced as California ranchers moved their cattle off the range. Drought 

continued in Arizona in 1925, but in California too much rain fell, causing another weak market for Arizonafed cattle. The Arizona Cattle Growers' Association reported the range as in “extremely distressing 

condition,” and convinced both the Santa Fe and Southern Pacific railroads to lower their rates by 35 percent 

to help move cattle off the weakened range.126

However, in 1925 another variable was in effect, which helped keep prices stable. The California Cattle 

Growers' Association had created a cooperative marketing system that would guide sales of beef cattle; the 

goal was to buffer irregularities in supply, which could normally destabilize prices. Over 70 percent of 

Arizona's cattle shipments went to California, and by 1925 about 90 percent of Arizona stockmen selling 

feeders had joined the California marketing plan. Cattle prices were indeed stable during poor conditions in 

1925 and 1926, which many attributed to the new cooperative marketing plan. Realizing its membership 

reached beyond state borders, the organization renamed itself the Western Cattle Marketing Association in 

1927, and expanded its membership into New Mexico. “By the late 1920s, Arizona beef cattle ranchers were 

fully integrated into a multi- state marketing system whose explicit purpose was to manipulate the market to 

stabilize prices at a high level. . . . While stockmen might relish the image of rugged individualism, in reality 

they operated as businessmen with an integrated market and their strategies reflected profit maximizing 

behavior."127 During the last half of the 1920s, the Arizona industry prospered. In 1928, for example, they 

received an average of $45 per head for cattle shipped.128

Lillian and Ed Riggs spent the 1920s building up their herd and expanding their ranch lands- - along with 

promoting the establishment of the “Wonderland of Rocks” and their guest ranch business. Their cattle 

revenues continually increased in the 1920s; they took in, for instance, $1214 in 1926, $2301 in 1927, and $5925 

in 1928. In that latter year, as an example, they sold 117 calves and 19 steers, all through the association. The 

majority of the stock were Lillian and Ed’s, but some ($880 worth in 1928) were Emma and Neil’s 2B brand, 

and a smaller number were Ben’s HE brand.129 Expenditures for the ranch covered, for example, salt, vaccine, 

worm medicine, hay and grain, and horse shoes. Hired hands made up another category of ranch (and guest 

ranch) expenses. Through the 1920s the Riggs'130 regular workers were their friends Tom and Nora Stafford, 

although other people helped from time to time.131 They also depended on their large garden for vegetables; 

 

125 Bahre, 17. 

126 Collins, E- 55. 

127 Collins, E- 55. 

128 Wagoner, 58. 

129 FRC, series 8, box 26, folders 16- 21 and series 9, box 33, folder 8, 10. 

130 Tax Return for 1932, FRC, series 27, box 45, folder 2- 11. 

131 FRC, series 9, folder 9. 
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during the summer they grew squash, beans, cabbage, cucumbers, okra, peppers, onions and corn, while into 

the winter they grew carrots, turnips, beets, lettuce, spinach, and parsnips. 132

The Riggses understood that the original 160- acre homestead was insufficient for a ranch, so they acquired 

and obtained permits for additional acreage. More than anything else, this technique differentiated the Riggs’ 

Faraway Ranch from Neil and Emma’s ranch. Neil and Emma could never support their family on their 

quarter section; indeed, experts recommended that ranches be between three and 10 sections to give a family 

operation a chance to be economically viable.133 Ed surely would have understood this premise, coming from a 

family that was known for its extensive land holdings; it’s likely that he influenced the decision to acquire 

more grazing property. The younger couple used Faraway as their home ranch. The ZZ Ranch, situated in the 

foothills at the west end of Apache Pass and west of the Ft. Bowie ruins, came to Ed through the Riggs family. 

When the Riggs Cattle Company was dissolved, part of the land went to Thomas J. Riggs (Ed’s father) and 

later passed to Ed and Lillian.134 Their Valley Ranch was at the center of the valley about 15 miles northeast of 

Pearce. They also grazed stock on their Holdeman pasture.135 In addition, their cattle grazed on federal lands 

in the Bonita allotment (an area immediately east of Faraway with North Bonita Canyon on the north, Sugar 

Loaf Mountain and Massai Point on the east and an unnamed area just north of Jesse James Canyon as the 

south boundary). That permit was renewed regularly; in 1924, for instance, twenty head of cattle were allowed 

to graze in that area of the national forest lands.136 Faraway, the ZZ and the Valley were three points on a 

triangle, with about 20 miles along each side; much time was spent traveling between the pastures. In 

addition, the couple lived 65 miles from the town where they bought most of their supplies.137

However, even with their additional land holdings, the ranch didn’t support the Riggs family. “The cattle 

alone would never have put us across. Neither could we have managed without them. The guest ranch 

business went toward increasing our land holding and stocking it. It helped with the children's education."138

 

So the ranch and the guest ranch established their symbiotic relationship; each was required to provide a 

living for the Riggs family. Just as Neil had required an additional income from a wage- earning job, the 

Riggses needed the additional income from the guest ranch. Expanding their land base had increased their 

chances of profitability, but it had not guaranteed it. 

Faraway Ranch was not unique in its inability to produce a living wage for the Riggses. Studies of ranch 

economics in the 1970s and '80s used cost- benefit analysis to determine that costs were likely to be greater 

 

132 Lillian Riggs to Neil and Emma Erickson, July 12, 1931, FRC, series 1, box 9; and Lillian Riggs to Neil and Emma Erickson, November 1, 1933, FRC, 

series 1, box 9. 

133 Sheridan, Arizona, 131; Wagoner, 63 citing John W. Powell, Report on the Lands of the Arid Region, 2nd ed., pp. 23- 24; Wagoner, 68 citing "The 

Public Domain and the Stock- Raising Homestead Law," American Forestry XXIII, no. 280 (April 1917), p 243; and Collins, E- 44. 

134 Lillian Riggs to Richard Murray, January 1966, FRC, series 1, folder 243- 253. The size of the ZZ acreage varied over time, but at one point it covered 

4- 1/8 sections, just west and south of the high point of Apache Pass, including all of sections 9, 15, 16 and portions of sections 4, 10, 14, T15S, R28E. FRC, 

series 26, box 52- 56; FRC, series 23, folder 2; FRC, series 23, folder 1; FRC, series 16, folder 1. 

135 FRC, series 8, box 26, folder 4- 5. The size of the Holdeman pasture varied over time, and included land they owned and land they leased, but at one 

point it included 5- 5/8 sections, just west of the Pat Hills, including Section 36 and portions of Section 25, 35, T16S, R26E; Section 31 and portions of 

section 29, 30 and 32, T16S R27E; Section 1 and portion of section 2, T17S R26E; and Section 6, T17S R27E. FRC, series 26, box 52- 56; FRC, series 14, 

folder 5; and FRC, series 23, folder 4. 

136 FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 33. 

137 Tax Return for 1932, FRC, series 27, box 45, folder 2- 11. 

138 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 
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than revenues, regardless of the type of operation, location, or size of ranch. The studies deduced that 

"ranchers could not stay in business for purely financial reasons. There had to be other benefits." One 

researcher suggested that instead of being paid in dollars, ranchers gained their benefits from "scenery, rural 

life, aesthetic enjoyment, pride in ranching, 'rugged individualism,' and several other imponderables." In 

other words, "What livestock ranching produces is not necessarily a purely economic product. It also 

produces a life itself. . . . Livestock ranchers work because they like it, not because they're making money at 

ranching. . . . As a business with little economic justification, ranching exists because ranchers like what they 

do and are willing to sacrifice to continue. . . . Some might simplify the whole argument and describe ranching 

as 'a calling.'"139

When Neil retired in December 1927, he and Emma moved back home. It had changed in several ways since 

they had left: it was now a working ranch, with a larger number of cattle grazing on extended lands, and in 

addition, it was now a guest ranch for visitors who sought to enjoy that ranching lifestyle. But perhaps most 

significant for Neil and Emma was the fact that Lillian and Ed were in charge of the operation. Although Neil 

and Emma had originally allowed Lillian and Ed three years to ranch at Faraway, that limit was extended, and 

their status continued indefinitely until it came to a heated series of discussions in 1931- 32. 

After living on the home ranch for four years, Neil and Emma decided to move to Hildegard’s home in 

California. Their move was only a symptom of the family’s feelings that would boil to the surface over the 

course of the year. Many of the heated discussions that followed the move took place through letters, leaving 

us a record of their dissatisfaction, but also some details about how the ranch and guest ranch were managed. 

In 1931, Lillian and Ed had been living at Faraway for over eight years, rent- free, plus Lillian had lived there 

on her own for over two years before that. When their disagreement with Neil and Emma erupted, the issue 

of their occupancy became the topic of conversation in the family. Neil, Emma, and Hildegard felt that Lillian 

and Ed had overstayed their welcome, and that they had done a poor job of managing the ranch and guest 

ranch. “People that knew me well,” Emma wrote, “knew that I was never happy and satisfied at home- -

neither is Dad- - we both consider that you mismanage things and when I suggested things my plans have 

always been disregarded. Dad always says, 'What is the use in me saying anything; they never pay any 

attention to it.'”140 The threesome felt that Hildegard had been unfairly treated, since one- third of the home 

ranch was destined to be hers, yet she had not had any say in how it had been managed. "Hildegard is the 

most unselfish person that ever lived, but she cannot help but feel that an injustice has been done to her, since 

she got married she has never received anything from home."141 Hildegard accused Lillian of "reaping all the 

harvest to yourself and Ed's children; not one of the rest of the family has received a penny. . . . You have in 

mind selling a hotel site for a big price and if that is done and developments made, it will greatly detract from 

the value of the home place and likely ruin the water entirely."142 Her criticism of Lillian continued, "You 

claim to be such a business woman but after eleven years you are $10,000 [or $18,000?] in debt and not paying 

it off very fast.”143 Hildegard was confident that she and her husband would have made money at the ranch 

business, instead of being in debt. The younger sister disclosed her frustration even further: “You win your 

 

139 Paul F. Starrs, Let the Cowboy Ride: Cattle Ranching in the American West (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1998), 71, 73, 76, 78 and 

citing C. Arden Pope III, "Agricultural Productive and Consumptive Use Components of Rural Land Values in Texas," American Journal of Agricultural 

Economics 67, no. 1 (1985): 81- 86. 

140 Emma Erickson to Lillian and Ed Riggs, September 9, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

141 Emma Erickson to C. O. Anderson, November 10, 1938, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 

142 Hildegard Hutchison (with co- signers Emma and Neil Erickson) to Lillian Riggs, August 21, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153.

143 Hildegard Hutchison to Lillian Riggs, September 2, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. 
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point with Dad by pressing the ever ready weep button” and she resented that Lillian “always gets her own 

way in the end.”144 Neil interjected and told Lillian to "Make your plans like you are to vacate the old home a 

year from now, or September 1, 1932."145 Meanwhile they would continue to discuss alternatives. 

Lillian and Ed refuted the criticisms, defended their actions, and wanted to be able to live on the home ranch 

an additional five years rent- free. She claimed that she and Ed put value into the ranch, so Ben and Hildegard 

would benefit in the long run. "Our work in developing and advertising the park, getting the road in, and 

putting Bonita Canyon on the map, adds directly and immensely to the increase of value of the property in 

which we all know they have an equal share." She acknowledged that there had never been a year that the 

income from cattle sales did not have to help out on the improvements and expenses of the ranch. And she 

admitted ruefully, "Some of my friends told me that I was a 'darn fool' to put all my time and money into 

something that was not my own."146

Neil, Emma, and Hildegard proposed a joint management plan in which the family would form a corporation, 

which would own the home ranch, then build a store with a post office, gas station, and possibly a garage.147

 

Lillian resisted, and asked if the couple could stay at Faraway until they had paid for the land that they had 

purchased, and then they could use cattle income to support themselves. They hoped that- - with good luck- -

that could be accomplished in three years, though it could take five.148 Neil determined to go to Faraway to 

discuss the situation. He wanted to assist “in a small way to extricate you from the hole you are in at the 

present time." And he also added, "You three were all of our hope and pleasure during our struggling years 

and we desire above all other things that . . . a pleasant future shall continue."149

The exact details of the resolution are not clear. However, we do know that that Hildgegarde and Jess did not 

move to Faraway to join in running the business. Lillian and Ed continued to live at the ranch, except that 

instead of living there rent- free, Lillian and Ed paid in rent for the home ranch.150 It would appear that, as 

Hildegard predicted, Lillian got her own way in the end.151 In addition, Neil and Emma did move back to 

Faraway. The family seemed to resolve their differences, and continued writing and visiting each other. For 

instance, in 1933- 34, Neil and Emma again lived in California, and Lillian joined them to celebrate Christmas 

season at Hildegard’s home. During that period, Lillian wrote to her parents: "You two gave to your children-

 

144 Hildegard Hutchison to Lillian Riggs, September 2, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. 

145 Neil Erickson to Lillian Riggs "and all at home," September 22, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 101- 106. 

146 Lillian Riggs to Neil Erickson, November 23, 1930, FRC, series 1, box 9 

147 Hildegard Hutchison (with co- signers Emma and Neil Erickson) to Lillian Riggs, August 21, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153.

148 Lillian Riggs to Neil Erickson, November 23, 1930, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

149 Neil and Emma Erickson to Lillian Riggs, September 9, 1931, FRC, series 1, folder 101- 106. 

150 They paid $750 in rent in 1932. Tax Return for 1932, FRC, series 27, box 45, folder 2- 11. In January 1933, Neil, Emma, Ed and Lillian signed a five- year 

lease agreement that stipulated the terms of the use of the homestead. Rent would be at least $250 per year, that the older couple's room in the ranch 

house was for their exclusive use, and that the Riggses would continue to run the 2B cattle without charge for work, salt or vaccine. Lease Agreement, 

January 1, 1933, FRC, series 18, folder 2. 

151 Emma's opinions about Lillian's management persisted. Several years later, she explained, "Lillian never did manage Dad's and my business, because 

we did not like the way she managed her own affairs. She has had entire charge of the cattle, but Dad and I paid expenses of the same, such as salt, 

extra help and trucking when they shipped. Lillian and Ed have had our place entirely free of rent for the past sixteen years, we did not pay any board 

when there, but paid out more for provisions and improvement of the place than would have cost us to board any other place. Dad spent about all his 

pension money and the cattle money for his personal use and improvement of the Ranch." Emma Erickson to C. O. Anderson, December 4, 1937, FRC, 

series 1, folder 75- 78. 
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- and all who came within the circle of your friendly- light- beams. No wonder every one who knows you is 

always asking about you, when you are coming home, and rejoicing when I can tell them you are well. You 

two lived your lives as they should be lived- - and as so few do. And I am deeply and forever grateful for such 

a heritage."152 The elder couple returned to Faraway to live in 1934. 

Meanwhile, prices declined steadily as the Depression set in, combined with a series of droughts. Lillian 

noted that 1932 was the "worst cattle year since 1924,"153 the year of the record- breaking drought. Several 

government programs aided Lillian and Ed- - along with other ranchers- - to get through the difficult years. By 

June 1932 the cost to produce cattle exceeded the market price; stockmen demanded that taxes on livestock 

and grazing lands be reduced. Accordingly, Arizona’s county assessors and state tax commissioners agreed to 

readjustments.154 The Riggses income for 1933 was only $3,327, so they did not have to pay income taxes that 

year.155 And another drought, in 1933- 34, added to the problems.156 In 1934, the majority of cattle in Arizona 

were mortgaged.157 Mortgaging cattle was a technique that Lillian and Ed had used since their marriage to 

make use of their assets. Every year or two, they mortgaged all or a substantial portion of their holdings. For 

instance, in 1930 they had mortgaged 100 cattle for $1000 (an average value of $10 per head); in 1933, they had 

mortgaged 200 cattle for $900, at an average value of $4.50. 

Another government program to aid cattle ranchers was the lowering of fees for grazing on state lands. 

Typically, up to four sections of land in each township were leased by the state, usually for grazing purposes; 

the term of leases was set not to exceed five years. Beginning in June 1933, the State Land Commission 

lowered the fees from 3 to 1- 1/2 cents per acre.158 Lillian and Ed took advantage of that situation, and leased 

many acres of land from the state. For instance, during 1936 to 1940 they leased over 2,800 acres from Arizona 

for grazing, and continued similar leases. In 1945- 1955 they leased over 1,600 acres; these leases were in the 

Valley Ranch area.159 Combined with their 3,156 acres of patented grazing land, they controlled over seven 

sections of land. With the addition of their permit for grazing in the national monument, their grazing 

holdings were sizable.160

On July 8, 1934, Lillian and Ed enrolled in the “Government Drought Relief Program."161 Based on the belief 

that overproduction was a major contributor to the agricultural problems of the nation, the Agricultural 

Adjustment Act of 1933 (AAA) instituted production limitations. Responding to the drought of 1934, the AAA 

administration quickly began purchasing livestock from the range. Between July 1934 and January 1935, the 

AAA purchased 8.4 million head of cattle,162 over 100,000 of which came from the state, largely from 

 

152 Lillian Riggs to Emma and Neil Erickson, November 1, 1933, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

153 FRC, series 9, box 33, folder 9. 

154 Wagoner, 59. 

155 Tax return for 1933, FRC, series 27, box 45, folder 2- 11. 

156 Wilson, 192. 

157 Wagoner, 60. 

158 Wagoner, 72. 

159 FRC, series 18, folders 4- 5. 

160 Loan application, [1938?], FRC, series 8, folder 75. 

161 FRC, series 9, box 33, folder 10. 

162 Collins, E- 57. 
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southeastern Arizona.163 There the government paid $18 for a good cow, $10 for a yearling and $6 for a calf.164 

The resulting decline in the number of cattle on ranches contributed to a 75 percent rise in the price of cattle 

by spring 1935.165 

Although the year 1935 indeed brought a dramatic improvement, nonetheless, it seems that conditions are 

frequently hard on ranchers. The end of the drought resulted in the cattle doing well, plus the prices received 

"were phenomenally better.”166 However, Lillian and Ed were not so optimistic in their observations on 

conditions in subsequent years: "Summer 1936: A very droughty year. Many people got no feed and sold early. 

We carry on." "Winter of '36- '37 a very hard one. Lots of snow and cold. Had to feed and take some losses." 

"June 26, 1937: Scarcely any rain at Bonita. No water in canyon; how go on?"167

 

During one drought period, ranchers in the Faraway locale were so desperate for rain that they banded 

together for 3 years to hire rainmakers. The rainmaker flew an airplane over Sulphur Springs Valley, seeding 

clouds with silver iodide. Ranchers didn't have to pay for the service if it didn't rain. It did rain, but, as Lillian 

asked, "Who was to say that the rains that fell, would not have fallen anyway?" Lillian recorded her rain 

observations, which indicated that there was little or no relation between the flights and the rain, and so she 

believed that the effort was not successful.168

In addition, Lillian was facing a personal loss at this time. Her father, Neil Erickson, passed away in October 

1937. Emma, who inherited Neil’s estate (consisting primarily of Faraway Ranch), returned to California the 

next year to live with Hildegard. One week after Neil's death, Emma, Hildegard and Ben gave Lillian and Ed a 

two- year lease extension, rent- free. However, after the two- year period, the Riggses were to have one year in 

which to prepare to move to their own home. The couple also continued to manage Emma’s 30 head of 

cattle.169

Managing cattle can be compared to trading on the stock market: the guiding principle is “buy low, sell high,” 

yet predicting when those points occur is difficult, part skill and part luck. Emma wasn’t satisfied with the 

return she received on her cattle that year; the couple got only $22 a head on the Los Angeles market. "I urged 

Lillian and Ed to sell early to the local buyers when prices were up, but they would not do so as Lillian always 

wants to keep them just as long as possible for those few extra pounds and consequently it was almost a case 

of giving them away." However, Emma apparently did not see the irony when she stated that she did not plan 

to sell the remainder of her cattle at that time, but planned to put them to pasture "and we expect to make 

money by holding them."170

 

163 Bahre, 20. 

164 Terry McNair McEuen, "Cochise- Graham Cattle Growers' Association," Cochise Quarterly 17, no. 2 (Summer 1987): 19. 

165 Collins, E- 57. 

166 Wagoner, 61. 

167 FRC, series 9, box 33, folder 10. 

168 No year was indicated, but in the records July 16 was noted as Friday and July 22 was Thursday. This date/day combination occurred in 1926, 1937, 

1943, 1948. FRC, Series 8, box 26, folder 4- 5. 

169 Agreement, October 25, 1937, FRC, series 18, folder 6. Neil "never did accumulate any wealth. He had his pension and the small amount that he 

received from our cattle and was satisfied and contented with the same." Emma Erickson to C. O. Anderson, December 31, 1937, FRC, series 1, folder 

75- 78. 

170 Emma Erickson to C. O. Anderson, November 26, 1937, FRC, series 1, folder 75- 78. 
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Ed obtained employment through the Emergency Conservation Work (ECW)/ Civilian Conservation Corps 

(CCC) program in 1934, so began earning a steady wage, which made a big difference in their income. In 1936, 

the ranch's total cattle revenue was $3337; hog revenue was $609 and horse revenue was $305. Even so, the 

expenses were higher than all revenues, so the stock and guest ranch's net loss was $397. It was only Ed's 

$1800 income with the ECW/CCC that enabled them to operate in the black.171 In 1937, the ranch had higher 

revenues that the guest ranch, with the horses, cattle and hogs bringing in $4376 while the guests paid only 

$1664. That year, their ranch/guest ranch income after expenses had nudged into the black, with $194 profit.172

 

The next year was even better: “This is the best year we have ever had. . . . All financially speaking. This year-

- especially now that cattle sales are over and I can see the way to pay some of the debts. Things do look 

brighter financially.”173 The figure went up again a year later, when income (aside from Ed’s salary) was $2434, 

and in 1940 when it was $3381.174

Throughout the 1930s and 1940s, a pattern emerged regarding the employees at Faraway Ranch. Although the 

Riggses sometimes had multiple hired hands working at once, in general, they employed one man to do the 

ranch work, and one women to do the cooking and domestic chores and help with the guest ranch business. 

There was a great deal of turnover in these employees; for instance, Mollie Shambly worked December 10, 

1930 through March 17, 1931; then Mabel Conroy, Nellie Estes , Mamie Washington and Merrie Hamilton took 

turns covering the rest of the year. Often the employees were a married couple, a trend that was more 

consistent in later years.175

Among the stream of workers who appeared on the rolls in the 1930s and early ‘40s, two people were 

noteworthy. In 1939 Hildegard’s son, Stanley Hutchison, joined this troop of workers. A few years later, 

Clover Kline began on the morning of May 18, 1943; a romance developed between her and Stanley, resulting 

in Cherry ultimately leaving Faraway in 1946 to marry Stanley.176 Lillian- - with her sentimental nature- -

probably wasn't surprised by this turn of events, since she knew, “Romance and Faraway seem to be forever 

linked. . . . love emanates from the very canyon walls and touches those who come within its lingering 

shadows.177

At the eve of World War II, the Riggses seemed to be at a peak of productivity. Indeed, before World War II 

the cattle industry was one of the most important contributors to the Arizona economy.178 Nearby Willcox was 

a cattle shipping capital and it was common to see five herds waiting their turn to be worked in the pens and 

loaded into railroad cars.179 In 1940, the Faraway Ranch had 25 horses and 200 cattle, apparently the most 

 

171 Tax return papers for 1936, FRC, series 27, box 45, folder 2- 11. 

172 Tax return papers for 1937, FRC, series 27, box 45, folder 2- 11. 

173 Lillian Riggs, diary, November 18, 1938, Acc. 76, WACC. 

174 Tax return papers for 1937, FRC, series 27, box 45, folder 2- 11. 

175 FRC, series 9, folder 9. 

176 FRC, series 9, folder 10. 

177 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 1958, FRC, series 2, folder 56. 

178 Collins, E- 2. 

179 McEuen, 19. 
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cattle they'd owned up to that point.180 That year they branded 104 calves under all brands, but did not 

purchase any cattle that year. They sold 119 calves, steers and cows, and one bull.181

The following year they owned at least 300 head of cattle, even more than the previous year, seemingly setting 

a new record of quantity of cattle.182 That autumn they made an interesting purchase: "Our first bunch of 

Mexican steers:" 105 yearling steers, 50 steer calves, 50 heifer calves.183 They also purchased five bulls from a 

Mexican ranch in Sonora.184 It's not clear if these cattle were Mexican criollos, which had been notorious in 

the late 1800s for being smaller and bonier than the gaunt and long- legged 'Texans,' not very easily improved 

by purebreeds, and having a limited market appeal.185 It is possible, in fact, that the Sonoran ranch ran 

registered cattle. However, eleven years later, Lillian did note that she had sold steer calves "which are 

Mexican breed" and specified that her other stock were Herefords.186 It should also be noted that in years of 

good grass, ranchers will buy almost any kind of cheap stock to make a fast extra profit. 

LIFE BEGINS TO SLIP: THE 1940S 

With the onset of World War II, the country shifted gears into heavy production. The favorable prices of the 

late 1930s continued into World War II, and both World War II and the post- war years saw a great boom in 

the cattle industry, with the value of cattle in Arizona more than tripling between 1940 and 1950.187 However, 

the decade of the 1940s was a contradictory one for the Riggs family. While the cattle economy thrived, their 

personal quality of life was disintegrating. 

Lillian and Ed faced personal challenges during that decade. In 1942, Lillian lost her sight. Already extremely 

hard of hearing, the loss of her sight was especially troubling. At about the same time, Ed’s health began 

limiting his activities. The ranch began to decline. "Since the loss of my sight five years ago, we have been 

more or less coasting along. My husband's health has prevented him from taking an aggressive stand in regard 

to our business. When one feels miserable most of the time (he has trouble with arthritis which gives him 

considerable pain most of the time) . . .”188 In addition, a cardiac condition had resulted in two heart attacks.189 

Even though Ed spent most of his time doing the ranch work, his limitations prevented him “from doing most 

of our own ranch work."190 “And since he must also be very careful not to overdo, we have been getting only 

the most obvious and absolutely necessary things done. The help we have been able to obtain for the outside 

 

180 "Request for Participation in 1940 Range Conservation program," March 22, 1940, FRC, series 8, box 26, folder 3. 

181 Livestock Statement, Office of the County Assessor, [January 1941?], FRC, series 26, box 43, folder 21- 29. 

182 “Chattel Mortgages,” FRC, series 13, folders 1- 6. 

183 FRC, series 8, box 26, folder 16- 21. 

184 Livestock Statement, Office of the County Assessor, [January 1941?], FRC, series 26, box 43, folder 21- 29. 

185 Collins, E- 30; and Wagoner, 49. 

186 “Chattel Mortgages,” FRC, series 13, folders 1- 6. 

187 Collins, E- 63. 

188 Lillian Riggs to J.P. Anderson, Kansas City, MO, [March? 1947], FRC, series 8, box 28, folder 63- 65. 

189 Leavengood, 14. 

190 Lillian Riggs, [1946 or 47], FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 26. 
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during the war years has been most unsatisfactory. None of them would do things unless my husband led at 

all times. And since this is difficult for him, many things have been undone and neglected."191

His health restrictions troubled Ed. "My husband is an outdoor man. He and I opened up this scenic area 

and he had more to do with its development than any other person. He took out the parties, picnicked with 

them and showed them all the sights. We were more or less an institution in these parts. Now he cannot 

climb with the parties, and much work with the horses is too hard on him.”192

Although Lillian and Ed's health was failing, and they weren't able to keep up with the maintenance and 

chores at the ranch, they continued ranching, nonetheless. In 1944 they owned a total of 492 head of cattle, 

the most they had ever recorded. In addition, they left a clear tally of the gender and age of the entire 

inventory.193 From this information it becomes apparent that they were using the cows for breeders, then 

selling the calves and yearlings. They sold 80% of their female calves and yearlings, and 90% of their male 

calves and yearlings. But they sold only 20% of their cows, and no bulls. At the end of the year, they owned 

201 head on the range.194 Their ranch thus exemplified a typical ranch of that time: a cow and calf outfit, 

producing calves and yearlings for fattening elsewhere in the country.195 They also intended to improve the 

quality of their herd, since in 1945 they purchased registered Herefords for breeding stock: 13 cows and 6 

bulls, from Rancho Sacatal, near Paul Spur, Arizona.196 In addition to their cattle herd, they raised stock for 

family use: they typically kept two or three cows for milking, a family size flock of chickens, and two or three 

hogs for winter killing.197

The Riggses were able to run the large number of head of cattle because they had access to a large range for 

grazing: "We have a fenced ranch of about 10 sections."198 "This is not a large ranch as ranches go in Arizona. 

But it is in good range country, which makes up somewhat for its size.”199 They still grazed on the home ranch 

at Bonita Canyon, at the Valley Ranch, and the ZZ Ranch. They also continued their use of the Bonita 

Allotment, or Bonita Basin Range, entirely within Chiricahua National Monument. Although the Riggses 

preferred to run 10 head of cattle on that allotment, in some years they had to graze five cattle and five horses, 

 

191 Lillian Riggs to J.P. Anderson, Kansas City, MO, [March? 1947], FRC, series 8, box 28, folder 63- 65, fiche 119. 

192 Lillian Riggs to J.P. Anderson, Kansas City, MO, [March? 1947], FRC, series 8, box 28, folder 63- 65, fiche 119. 

193 They owned 76 female calves, 46 female yearlings, 199 cows, 89 male calves, 73 male yearlings, and 9 bulls. Of those, they sold and removed 60 

female calves, 37 female yearlings, 39 cows, 73 male calves, and 73 male yearlings, for a total of 282. 

194 "Check sheet supplemental to grazing application," November 20, 1944, FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 33. 

195 Collins, E- 63. 

196 FRC, series 12, folder 19. 

197 [1946 or 47], FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 26. 

198 [1946 or 47], FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 26. 

199 Lillian Riggs, July 27, 1951. FRC, series 8, folder 63- 65. 
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because of the NPS preference for horses.200 In addition, in 1946 they began leasing 160 acres at the Star 

Ranch for $100 per year.201

By having several different pastures, in different microclimates (the three main pastures were twenty miles 

from each other), the Riggses were able to move their cattle to make the best use of the range. For instance, 

on May 21, 1946, Ben's well went dry, so they moved his cattle, along with Lillian and Ed's, to the Star Ranch. 

The grass there lasted until July 25, when they divided the cattle and Lillian and Ed took 20 head to the Valley 

Ranch and brought 34 head to the home ranch (adding to the 4 milk cows and 4 milk calves already there).202

 

The following year, they kept cattle at the ZZ until mid August by selling some and moving others. They also 

used the Star Ranch, which "proved to be worth much more than the $100.00 paid for it. . . . Moved from ZZ 

to Valley on August 14th . . . Moved from Valley to ZZ November 24th, 1947."203 Known today as rotational 

grazing (as opposed to continuous grazing), this technique rests the pasture, which allows forage plants to 

deepen their root systems, renew energy reserves and give long- term production. In addition, the Riggses had 

enhanced their land by developing or improving wells and tanks to assure a ready supply of water. This 

followed the pattern of ranches in Arizona. "Where range cattle in the pioneer era relied on natural sources of 

water, by 1950 it was said that cattle rarely had to travel more than two miles to find water."204

In 1945 the couple began to simplify their lives by selling their guest ranch business along with the associated 

portion of their property.205 This action marked a major shift in their lives; Faraway had been involved in the 

guest ranch business for almost 30 years. But with the Riggses limited faculties, the sale made sense. 

Even so, Lillian and Ed continued to hire employees to help them at the cattle ranch. Indeed, as their own 

capabilities diminished, their reliance on others increased, and made their employees key to the success of the 

ranch. They advertised beyond the local area to attract capable people; for instance in the late 1940s they 

advertised in the Kansas City Star for a couple to do ranch and domestic work.206

Lillian explained the work to an interested applicant: 

In addition to looking after the cattle, which consists in the main of riding the range once or twice a 

week to make sure that things are going right, that the water and fences are O.K. and that there are no 

worms or strays in the herd. There are regular chores that come with the scope of the farm. Milking 

two or three cows, caring for the milk, cream and butter. We have a separator and separate once a day. 

We have a small garden plot and like to raise enough vegetables for our own use. We have a family size 

flock of chickens. We keep two or three hogs for winter killing. The regular daily chores consist of the 

 

200 When the Riggses had started this grazing permit in the 1920s, the U.S. Forest Service administered the national monument. However, in the 1930s 

the jurisdiction was transferred to the National Park Service. The NPS and USFS entered an agreement in which the USFS continued to administer and 

issue grazing permits in the national monument. The permit was transferable only with the approval of the National Park Service. FRC, series 8, box 27, 

folder 33. 

201 FRC, series 10, folder 27. 

202 FRC, series 10, folder 27. 

203 [Ed Riggs], 1947, FRC, series 9, folder 11. 

204 Collins, E- 63. 

205 Ed Riggs, [1951]. FRC, series 8, folder 79; and Lillian Riggs to Wayne T. Walbridge, April or August 25, 1954, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

206 [1946 or 1947], FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 26. 
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milking, care of the chickens and hogs, supplying the house with wood, (we use a wood cook stove) 

seeing that the fires are started in the mornings. Just those things that go with every farm home. After 

the morning chores are done, there is time for the garden, and for looking after the cattle and horses.207

After describing the regular ranch work, she continued with a description of their other activities: 

As we are adjacent to a National Monument and ran a guest ranch at one time, we run the horses for 

the sight- seeing trips into the Monument. We have twelve riding horses at present and sometimes 

these go out three times a week. Sometimes not at all. I would want the man to be able to take charge 

of these trips. I must have a woman who is a good cook and a clean one. There are four in our family at 

present. We have quite a lot of company. I usually employ one woman to do the housework aside from 

the kitchen and dining room work. This woman also helps me with my correspondence and bookwork. 

She also helps some with the care of my mother who is ninety- two and is in good health, but she does 

not see well.208

The year 1947 was a fortuitous year for employment, for two of the individuals they hired that year developed 

close ties to Faraway, which lasted for years. Pat MacDonald joined the Faraway staff when she arrived to be 

a companion to Emma, who was by then in a wheelchair and hard of hearing. MacDonald's caring manner 

earned her a place in the Erickson/Riggs family. In May 1947, J.P. (Andy) Anderson was added to the long list 

of workers who had flowed through Faraway. Although he apparently worked only a short time in 1947, he 

reappeared in later years. Anderson was destined to become a significant person in Lillian’s life, and in the 

history of the ranch. 

1950s: A DARK DECADE 

In early 1950, Lillian and Ed anticipated losing their hired couple. Perhaps because of Ed’s failing health, they 

started trying to get their families more involved at the ranch. Wrapped up in the meaning for the land for 

many ranchers, and probably for Lillian and Ed, are conceptions of "family continuity in ranching enterprises 

on family land, centering on the idea that the struggles of one's parents and grandparents to prosper on the 

land meant something, and one's children and grandchildren should be able to continue the tradition on land 

already steeped in tradition."209 Lillian and Ed appealed to Hildegard’s daughter Evelyn and her husband 

Herb, and they also wrote to their son Murray and his new wife Anne, who were living in New York. Three 

years earlier, Evelyn had expressed an interest in managing the ranch someday, but Lillian had recommended 

that she wait until she had married to make the decision. Now Evelyn and Herb declined the offer to move to 

the ranch: 

Evelyn and I are very much in love with the ranch, and would some day like very much to call it our 

home, however in view of the difference in monetary return between the ranch business under the setup down there and our present business we feel that we should stick by this job for the time being. We 

appreciate the position you are in, but . . .210

 

207 [1947], FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 26. 

208 [1947], FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 26. 

209 Starrs, 77 quoting Joseph Jorgensen, "Land is Cultural," 5. 

210 Herb and Evelyn Robards to Lillian and Ed Riggs, February 21, 1950, FRC, series 1, folder 257. 
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Anne and Murray Riggs, however, jumped at the opportunity: "I can't begin to tell you how wonderful it is of 

you to consider us for such a proposition."211 Lillian explained the situation to the young couple: 

If I had been spared my sight another three or four years, we would have been far better established 

than we are at present. I cannot run the house and do the work without a woman's help. Ed cannot do 

the outside work without a man's help. To find both a man and a woman who can be trusted to do the 

right things without supervision is almost impossible. . . . If Ed were temperamentally and physically 

able to take full oversight of the outside and inside, we could get along fine with hired help for a long 

time to come and make progress in building up the ranch. But he never has and never will tell the other 

fellow what to do. Result: we are slipping both in appearance of the ranch which means so much to me 

and in the efficiency of the whole ranching plant.212

Lillian then outlined the conditions and what needed to be done. She proposed that they could build up the 

horse business. 

We should put in a good irrigation system and alfalfa for the horses and cattle. A gasoline station, store, 

and curio shop would bring in good revenue. . . . We have a good herd [of cattle] and enough range for 

them. . . . Improving the rangeland is always a problem. The mesquite is taking over and will have to be 

controlled. Rats will again have to be eradicated. More fences built and those now in, repaired. Some 

new water systems developed and the ones we now have kept up to par. All work, but not all to be done 

at once. All the buildings must be kept in good repair [as well as] the windmills, pipelines, light plant, 

and all ranch equipment. . . . Ben is furnishing his pasture for our use so long as we run Mother's cattle. 

She needs the income and we need the pasture. 

She then summed up their current situation: "We overstepped ourselves in buying both a house and a Buick 

last year. Also some brood cows to bring up our herd."213

As she had a few years earlier, Lillian described some daily responsibilities: 

Claude [their hired man] builds the fires, gets wood into the house (Ed helps with the getting it in from 

the timber and in sawing it up). Claude milks and separates, strains up the milk we sell and takes all 

care of the chickens. I used to do that. Fires, milking, chickens and wood are also evening chores. And 

I almost forgot the pigs. Those are regular. The things that are done one day and not the next are the 

riding after the cattle, watching for worms, branding, etc. moving the cattle. Fence building, or repairs, 

care of tanks and troughs. Care of horses. Repairs of wind mills, plumbing, piping, just all those things 

that have to be done on a ranch or farm. . . We would hope to raise a garden and care for the fruit when 

the frost does not get it. Also keep the yard looking like people with some pride live on the place.214

Lillian also discussed the advantages of living at the ranch: 

 

211 Anne Riggs to Lillian Riggs, January 18, 1950, FRC, series 1, folder 237. 

212 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

213 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

214 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 
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A life in the open for you and your children. The opportunity to grow up with a growing country and 

eventually become one of the stable and respected families. Transportation is becoming so simple that 

we are only a matter of hours time from the center of population, if that means anything to anyone. 

Our elementary schools are good. By the time the children are ready for high school some of us will 

probably have a home in town or they can go to boarding schools. There are a lot of nice young people 

in the neighborhood now. The climate is equaled by none. . . . One can make a social life almost 

anywhere. Movies, dances every night, bars- - those things are no part of real culture.215

She also passed on some advice from speakers at a cattlemen’s convention that had impressed Lillian: “To 

succeed in the cattle business, one must have the ability to work hard, perseverance, and business ability. It is 

no longer just a cowboy stunt.” Another said: “Hours do not count. Cows carry no watches and overtime is 

an unknown word.”216

Lillian concluded, “We are not ready to turn over the business to anyone. But we are ready to take in 

someone who will learn to run it with a view to taking over some day." They saw three options available to 

themselves when they had to give up active management: 1) if they had trained someone to take over, Lillian 

and Ed could earn a percentage of the proceeds; 2) sell the cattle and rent the land to "the Riggs boys whose 

lands adjoin ours"; 3) sell everything outright, their “least desirable option."217 Even with the daunting list of 

work that needed to get done, Anne and Murray moved to Faraway; Murray started as employee on May 15, 

1950.218

Anne and Murray’s return to Faraway was timely, for only seven weeks later, on June 29, Ed died of a cerebral 

hemorrhage. Lillian was devastated and in shock, and it helped to have her family close at hand. Since the 

onset of her blindness, Lillian had relied on Ed more and more. Widowed at 62, blind and almost deaf, and 

living on a ranch that was desperately in need of work, Lillian faced some major decisions. She chose to 

continue living and working at the ranch. That November the family divided Ed’s cattle (117 cows, 15 calves, 

and 8 bulls) according to Ed’s will: Lillian received half, and Lee and Murray split half. Then Lillian bought 

Lee's stock (paying her over time) and Lillian ended up with: 88 cows, 11 calves, 5 bulls and 1 yearling.219

The year ended with another shock; Emma passed away in December. Coming only six months after Ed’s 

death, Lillian felt shattered. Being blind, almost deaf and now to have the two people closest to her suddenly 

die, Lillian went into a tailspin. She sank into a depression that darkened her life for years. 

From a practical perspective, Emma's death jeopardized Lillian's livelihood, since Lillian had lived at Faraway 

her entire adult life at the pleasure of her parents. Emma’s will divided her estate- - primarily the home 

ranch- - in three portions, one- third each going to Lillian, Ben and Hildegard. With the ownership of the 

ranch out of Emma's control, Lillian was vulnerable, considering Hildegard's earlier opinions about 

management of the ranch. However, Lillian learned that "Ben and Hildegard agreed that I should live on the 

 

215 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

216 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, Box 9. 

217 Lillian Riggs to Anne and Murray Riggs, March 1, 1950, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

218 FRC, series 9, folder 11. 

219 Faraway Ranch ledgers, FRC, series 9, folder 11. 
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home place during my life time or as long as I am able to manage it satisfactorily." Lillian wouldn't have to 

consider another major life change at a time when she was already feeling her life was without moorings.220

While Murray and Anne Riggs apparently continued living at Faraway for several years, their arrangement 

changed, so they were not doing work for Lillian's ranch. Lillian reverted to her previous pattern, employing 

helpers to do work at the Faraway. Lillian was a difficult person to work for, and with Ed gone, her 

domineering style focused unabated on the hired help. Few people could stand to work for her for an 

extended length of time, and so she repeatedly had to hire new help. Typically, she hired one man who did 

“ranch work, handles machinery, repairs windmills and pumps, handles cattle and horses, etc., one woman 

who does the cooking and one who serves in the capacity of companion, secretary and general 

housekeeper.”221 One exception was Pat MacDonald, who served for many years as Lillian's companion. 

Later, Lillian observed, "Pat was loyal and faithful to me and always has been." However, for all Pat's 

admirable qualities, Lillian acknowledged, "Pat is a poor housekeeper."222 But Lillian felt that she had a break 

through in August 1951, just over a year after Ed's death, when her son- in- law and daughter, Hunter and Lee 

Stratton joined Lillian at the ranch. Lillian stated that Hunter “entered the business with me a co- partner and 

from now on, I will not have need of other employees,” other than Pat MacDonald.223 The couple took over 

the work previously done by her hired couple; in Lillian's business records, she listed the Strattons as 

employees, earning $160 per month, the same rate that her previous couples had earned.224 Pat MacDonald 

continued as Lillian's assistant. Also during this time, Lillian began providing rental cottages for visitors to the 

national monument, the first time since they had sold their guest ranch business.225 Hunter and Lee continued 

working at Faraway for almost two years; by spring 1953 the ranch was back into the cycle of various shortterm workers.226

Again, Lillian took her situation under consideration. What would the next step be? She came up with a 

proposition, for her co- owners Hildegard and Ben, whose details are unknown to us. Ben's written response 

was rather brief, since he planned to discuss it with her in person. He did suggest, however, "As to the range 

and cattle, it seems to be that the only way for you to retain your cattle, is to let some competent man run 

them on shares, and you quit all that worry. Of course, if you do that that the share basis would have to be 

enough so who ever took them would have to stand a percentage of the expenses."227

Hildegard's written response was much longer, since she had to include all of her comments. She wanted 

Lillian to stop managing the ranch, and lease the land. "Our reason for begging you to sell the cattle and lease 

the land is because when anything ceases to make a living it is time to stop that line of work and try something 

 

220 Other elements of Emma's estate included cattle (33 cows, 2 bulls, 1 yearling, 5 calves), $2,200 in bonds and $1061.61 in cash. Lillian Riggs, November 

8, 1951, FRC, series 9, folder 11. 

221 FRC, series 8, folder 41- 43. 

222 Lillian Riggs to Mr. Riley, June 29, 1964, FRC, series 1, box 9, folder 243- 253. 

223 FRC, series 8, folder 41- 43. 

224 FRC, series 9, folder 11; and Lillian Riggs to Internal Revenue Service, October 24, 1951, FRC, series 8, folder 84- 87. 

225 Lillian Riggs, July 27, 1951. FRC, series 8, folder 63- 65. 

226 Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC; and FRC, series 9, folder 11. 

227 Ben Erickson to Lillian Riggs, November 9, 1953, FRC, series 1, folder 74. 
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else. You could live on the money the land would lease for." Hildegard also expressed concern about Lillian 

hiring helpers. 

You are running such a terrible risk in getting just anybody to come down there and work, and I wish 

you would see that. People just don't have to work like they used to have to, and they don't like being 

so far from town. And where you have cows to milk that means being there morning and night, and 

with never a full day off, now people work five days a week for more than we ever worked all the time 

for. But you can't turn back Old Father Time, and the easier life is the thing now. 

She shared another relative’s concern about Murray and Anne: "'I never saw a harder working person than 

Anne, and yet I just don't know how they will ever make a go of it.' Now if they were closer to town either or 

both of them could get other work to tide them over the bad place." (This is reminiscent of Neil needing to 

seek outside income, and also the guest ranch supporting the ranch.) She summed up: "Stop . . . trying to keep 

your life as it has always been."228

Lillian's plan apparently evolved into selling the ranch. She proposed this to co- owner Ben, who responded, 

As to . . . the selling of Faraway, I am not too interested at present, I do not want to turn my property 

over, unless at a good figure. Faraway alone as ranch property would not bring much. I wish you 

would see your way clear to base your rangeland and cattle on shares, or sell them, and get away from 

that worry.229

Retiring from the ranch became a serious consideration for Lillian, since she was 66 years old. She wrote to a 

number of retirement homes in California, asking about their facilities for blind people: "Since losing my sight, 

my Mother and my husband, I have been operating my ranch. But I realize I cannot continue to do this 

indefinitely. I am seeking to find out what I can do when the time comes to make a change. That time may 

come very soon or may be delayed a couple of years or so."230

Eventually she rejected the idea of retiring from ranching and thought more about her options. Her financial 

situation was poor. In 1954, her revenue (before expenses) from the cattle was $6151.09 and from the cottages 

was $1638. Expenses totaled $7782.61, with a profit of $6.48.231 Her expenses included $3000 that she sent to 

Lee as the last of settlement on Ed’s estate. She felt quite dejected: “Wonder if I’ll ever get out of the red? 

Don’t know just why I keep lingering on. No use at all that I can see.”232

At the same time, Lillian suffered through another round of problems with hired help. Her beloved Pat 

MacDonald had married Tom Griggs, a man she'd met at Faraway. The couple lived at the ranch, and Tom 

(who knew nothing of ranch work) attempted to do the work of the hired man; Lillian was not pleased with 

his efforts. In one episode, Tom had made a mistake regarding the cattle: “If only he would ask. But he is too 

stubborn to admit that I, a mere woman! knows more about anything than he does.”233 A few days later, they 

 

228 Hidegarde Hutchison to Lillian Riggs and Clara, January 27, 1954, FRC, series 1, folder 128- 153. 

229 Ben Erickson to Lillian Riggs, February 7, 1954, FRC, series 1, folder 74. 

230 FRC, series 1, folders 50- 56, 171- 176; and Lillian Riggs to Claremont, California, July 20, 1954, FRC, series 1, box 9. 

231 FRC, series 27, box 45, folder 16. 

232 Lillian Riggs, diary, November 9, 1954, FRC, series 2, folder 52. 
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argued about the situation; Pat- - caught between the arguers- - became upset. It also didn't improve Lillian’s 

outlook, who noted, “I wish I could be sure I was near the end. Is it right for me to try to carry on against 

such seemingly insurmountable odds? I wonder?”234 Pat and Tom decided to leave Faraway in early 1955, 

when she delivered their first child. They moved to Tucson; although she left Lillian's employment, Pat 

continued to be devoted to the ranchwoman, and helped her on numerous occasions in the future.235

The rest of the decade followed a similar pattern. Lillian hired workers to help her; usually she had great 

hopes at the beginning of the relationship. She was optimistic that these new hires would be better than her 

previous set, and that the ranch would really be cared for properly. The honeymoon typically lasted a short 

while, then Lillian would begin to show dissatisfaction with their work. Ultimately, the workers would leave, 

unhappy with the work situation. Lillian undoubtedly played a key role in the crumbling relationship. She 

had a reputation of being a tyrant, and demanded the best from her workers. Lillian was not alone in having 

problems with employees. Ranch labor is hard to find, and the hands often find it difficult to please an owner 

who has high standards. In addition, ranch hands frequently receive low pay, which results in poor effort. 

But Lillian needed the help, and she needed to be confident in their skills. After a scare with locoweed, a 

friend advised her, "If you can't get accurate information on the condition of the calves, how can you make 

proper decisions? Inexperienced help, even though devoted and of the best intentions, isn't adequate, 

considering how dependent you have to be on it."236

In 1955, Lillian once again began serving meals at Faraway. Combined with renting rooms in her home, the 

cottage rentals and horse rentals, the ranch once again attracted visitors. The meals were served family style, 

so Lillian’s exposure to people increased.237 However, it also increased Lillian’s need for good hired help to 

cook and run the rental businesses. After Pat and Tom Griggs left Faraway, Lillian hired Mrs. Stansberry as a 

cook and housekeeper, her daughter Patricia Greenwood to look after Lillian’s rental cottages and her sonin- law to take care of the cattle and horses. “It sounds like a pleasant set- up but my self confidence has been 

so shattered by the experiences of the past four years that I have no optimism left. It all looks so hopeless.” 

Nonetheless, she hoped it would work out because, “Rusty has so much natural intelligence and knowledge of 

such things," that is, work that needed to be done on buildings and at ranch.238 After half a year, Lillian liked 

Mrs. Stansberry, who was "a wonderful person, a good cook and a fair housekeeper. And as kind and 

considerate of me as they come," and Rusty was a good man in most respects. However, "He must have his 

own way, is very disagreeable if crossed, and since he has been here now for six months, thinks he knows 

more about the ranch than I do."239

By June 1956, Lillian had acquired another hired couple. However, they did not follow the typical married 

couple pattern; instead, they were two women. Del Lemas "is a better MAN than anyone I have had for years. 

She is the outdoors type. Donna [Kramer] is fine, too. She is the indoors one. But manages the outdoors stuff 

 233 Lillian Riggs, diary, July 5, 1954, FRC, series 2, folder 52. 

234 Lillian Riggs, diary, July 8, 1954, FRC, series 2, folder 52. 

235 Lillian Riggs to Aunt Henrika and Victoria, March 24, 1956, FRC, series 1, Box 9; Lillian Riggs, diary, February 4, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53; and 

Lillian Riggs to Mr. Riley, June 29, 1964, FRC, series 1, folder 243- 253. 

236 [Margaret Smith?] to Lillian Riggs, December 14, 1950 FRC, series 1, folder 258- 264. 

237 Lillian Riggs, diary, March 1, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53; Lillian Riggs, diary, April 17, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53; Lillian Riggs, October 7, 1955, 

FRC, series 8, folder 63- 65; and Rock Island Lines questionnaire form, August 28, 1956, FRC, series 1, folder 50- 56. 

238 Lillian Riggs, diary, February 4, 1955, FRC, series 2, folder 53. 

239 Lillian Riggs to [Herb and Evelyn Robards], [ca. August 1954], FRC, series 1, box 9. 
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that she has to do. Wonderful to me- - if only I can afford to keep them.”240 Again, Lillian had high hopes at 

the beginning of their employment: “For the first time in years, I am able to get things done on the ranch that I 

want done—not just what some no count hired man thinks should be done or wants to do. Very slowly, for 

there is SO much to do.241 She later described Del's responsibilities: 

Del does all the outside work that is in her strength, and there is little that is not. She wrangles saddles 

and takes complete care of the horses and takes out parties whenever necessary. She is a good guide. 

She does the milking and takes full care of the cows, . . . Del does an expert man's job on windmills, 

pumps, etc. She works on plumbing and sewers and roofs when necessary. In short, she hired out to 

do a man's job and she does it satisfactorily.242

They also tested the cattle for brucellosis.243 Donna's tasks included feeding and caring for about thirty 

chickens. She owned all the eggs, and could sell whatever she didn't use in the kitchen.244

However, by the end of the year, “The girls seem to be ‘petering out.’”245 Things began to sour by February, 

1957. “February was pretty 'hard to take.' I found great loneliness and discouragement. The girls finally 

agreed to stay on until the fall. They are unhappy because I will not spend the money I do not have to fix 

things the way THEY want them. They talk about me to my neighbors and friends and complain to the guests. 

(I should be used to all that by now but I value loyalty and get so little.)246

 

Lillian continued to despair: “Sometimes I know I am a fool to try to carry on. But what instead?”247 Del and 

Donna left Lillian’s employment in November 1957, and took a job with Stark Riggs. “Donna told someone 

that their leaving Faraway was a matter of personalities. Perhaps. I could never see things as they did—and 

told them so.”248 “There was no peace nor happiness while the girls [Del and Donna] were here. But their 

leaving put the problem of help up to me again. And what is more difficult?” Tom and Pat MacDonald Griggs 

provided support “and are ever present help in time of trouble, especially in securing help for me.”249

Ben worked at the ranch intermittently: “Ben was here or I would have never managed."250 He was living at his 

ranch at Camp Verde (east of Prescott), where he had moved with his wife Belle. She had passed away in 1955; 

 

240 Lillian Riggs, diary, June 17, 1956, FRC, series 2, folder 54. 

241 Lillian Riggs, diary, June 17, 1956, FRC, series 2, folder 54. 

242 Lillian Riggs to Mr. and Mrs. Blakeney, September 2, 1957, FRC, series 8, box 29, folder 63- 65. 

243 1957, FRC, series 9, box 33, folder 12. Brucellosis was a very prevalent disease in Arizona cattle in the 1940s. In 1957, ranchers in Graham and 

Cochise counties gathered cattle to have them tested for the disease. After two years of continual voluntary testing, the two counties were certified "free 

areas" in 1959. Subsequently, legislation was passed requiring Brucellosis testing. Arizona was declared brucellosis free in 1988. McEuen, 30. 

244 Lillian Riggs to Mr. and Mrs. Blakeney, September 2, 1957, FRC, series 8, box 29, folder 63- 65. 

245 Lillian Riggs, diary, November, 1956, FRC, series 2, folder 54. 

246 Lillian Riggs, diary, March 23, 1957, FRC, series 2, folder 55. 

247 Lillian Riggs, diary, May 14, 1957, FRC, series 2, folder 55. 

248 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 16, 1958, FRC, series 2, folder 56. 

249 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 14, 1959, FRC, series 2, folder 57. 

250 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 1958, FRC, series 2, folder 56. 
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Ben was having financial difficulties so couldn’t cover the costs of Belle’s last illness and funeral. Lillian 

covered many of Ben’s expenses; for instance Lillian loaned $1,000 to her brother, and only a month later she 

paid $250 for an overdue note that he couldn't pay.251 Del Lemas and Donna Kramer had purchased some of 

Ben’s land, which also helped him through the difficult financial period.252 Belle's estate was still getting 

settled two years later and Lillian hoped settlement would come soon. “And I hope he can come home to 

stay.”253 Ben did come home to live, with his new bride Ethel Keller, whom he married in 1958 when he was 

67; Lillian very pleased with this union.254 The newlyweds lived in a cabin at Faraway for a couple of years. 

Meanwhile, Lillian hired yet another string of hired helpers. Some, such as Ruth Trask, were “good and sweet 

and capable” and earned Lillian's praise. More often, Lillian thought they were “more of a heart ache than a 

help” and they soon parted ways.255

And as ranchers always do, Lillian dealt with the weather and the quality of the forage. However, in 1955 she 

believed that the winter weather was unusual. “This has been the driest and [warmest?] winter I have ever 

known. . . . No moisture and no cold weather. . .What it portends, I do not know. I hold the atomic bomb 

explosions to be more or less responsible. I wrote to the Arizona Cattle Growers to that effect. My letter was 

belatedly printed. It has aroused some comment.”256 But a few years later, she rode to ZZ: “Was surprised to 

find so much grass. The best I can remember in at least 20 years. All over. Knee high in most places and the 

right sort. The open flat between horse pasture and Delano tank is grass covered. For the past several years it 

has been almost bare. We wondered if grass would ever grow there again. That is Arizona. It drives out those 

who can be discouraged. Those who tighten their belts and hang on are rewarded. When I was hauling water 

last June, I wondered if I could ever win. Now I am wanting to buy more cows and will next fall.”257

 

ANDY ARRIVES, AND LIFE BEGINS AGAIN 

Lillian's life entered a new phase in the spring of 1960, when J.P. "Andy" Anderson re- joined her staff. "I have 

one man [Anderson] for general outdoor work who is completely satisfactory. He also helps out inside if 

really needed and is a fine person. My brother helps in taking care of my cattle. He maintains his own 

home."258 Soon after hiring Anderson, Lillian traveled to Hawaii with Hildegard and Ruth Trask, her current 

companion. Ben's wife, Ethel, wrote to Lillian, "I want you to know how conscientious Andy is. He has done 

so many things to improve Faraway. The back porch looks like a different place- - so neat and clear of trash. 

 

251 July 1, 1955, FRC, series 1, Box 9. 

252 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 16, 1958, FRC, series 2, folder 56. 

253 Lillian Riggs, diary, May 14, 1957, FRC, series 2, folder 55. 

254 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 14, 1959, FRC, series 2, folder 57. 

255 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 1958, FRC, series 2, folder 56. See also FRC, series 8, folder 4- 87; Lillian Riggs to Mr. and Mrs. Blakeney, September 2, 

1957, FRC, series 8, box 29, folder 63- 65; and Lillian Riggs, diary, September 1958, FRC, series 2, folder 56. 

256 Lillian Riggs, diary, December 26, 1955, FRC, Series 2, folder 53. 

257 Lillian Riggs, diary, September 16, 1959, FRC, Series 2, folder 57. 

258 Lillian Riggs to Mrs. Miller, September 18, 1960, FRC, series 8, box 29, folder 63- 65. 
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The yard, the flowers and trimmed trees look so well kept."259 She also noted, "This big brother of yours 

[Ethel's husband] is fine and sweet as ever- - trying to keep things going as you would have it."260

Andy also wrote to Lillian, keeping her up- to- date on the ranch. He described his activities, for example, 

checking on and finding new calves, checking for worms, checking fence, checking the water supply in tanks, 

clearing dead limbs near the telephone line, finding a missing bull that got through broken fence, going to a 

cattle auction, working on a cattle guard, maintaining/repairing the water pump, milking cows in the 

mornings, and skimming the milk. He also quipped that he had worked all day in the “so- called garden. . . . 

While it won’t have a large garden this year I will have a big enough one to call it a garden.”261

The decade of the 1960s continued much as the previous decade had- - with the major exception of Anderson 

sharing the time with Lillian. Her financial situation persisted in its precarious nature. In 1960, although 

Lillian reported revenues of $2,000 from the cottages and horses, and $10,190 from cattle, she reported a loss 

of $11,496, after including her expenses. The next year, she reported no income, and a loss of $12,099.262 It is 

interesting that at this time she gave (not loaned) Ben $12,000 for his house. Although it is difficult to be sure, 

it is possible that her loss in 1960 was due to her gift to Ben. “I have done this because he is my brother and I 

want him to have as many years of peace and happiness as is possible. Without his own home and the wages I 

pay him for helping with the cattle work, he could never have had it. I know what the five years following 

Belle’s death were for him. It broke my heart.” Ben and Ethel moved from the Log Cabin at Faraway into 

their new house at the mouth of the canyon in October 1960.263 "It is nice and comfortable to have them so 

close," Lillian noted.264

She was recognized for her range management techniques. “Officers of the Arizona Cattle Growers 

Association agree that Mrs. Riggs is one of the better ranch managers of the state. She rotates use of pastures 

occasionally, does not over- graze the range, and uses proven range management practices. In the spring of 

1961, when nearly all the ranchers in southern Arizona are meeting the worst drought in decades by doing 

supplemental feeding, Mrs. Riggs has done none and her stock is fat and happy.”265 

Lillian continued to hire helpers to do the work that she, Anderson and Ben couldn’t handle, especially 

cooking and housekeeping.266 By 1965 she had discontinued serving meals except to cottage guests, then 

stopped serving meals completely in 1968.267 Even so, at the end of the decade she was once again looking for 

a good cook for the household. Lillian noted that for part of the time since Ed’s death 19 years earlier, “I have 

 

259 Ethel and Ben Erickson to Lillian Riggs, May 22, 1960, FRC, series 8, folder 27. 

260 Ethel Erickson to Lillian Riggs, May 22, 1960, FRC, series 8, folder 27. 

261 Andy Anderson to Lillian Riggs, May- June, 1960, FRC, series 1, folder 17- 20. 

262 FRC, series 27, box 45, folder 17- 26. 

263 Lillian Riggs, diary, March 9, 1961, FRC, series 2, folder 59; and Eula Lee Murray Riggs, “Eula Lee Murray Riggs’ Account of Ed Riggs Family 

History,” n.d., Acc. 1721, WACC. 

264 Lillian Riggs, December 1960, FRC, series 1, box 9, folder 243- 253. 

265 John Burnham, “[Untitled: On Lillian Riggs],” 31 May 1961, FRC, Series 5, folder 9. 

266 See, for instance, FRC, series 8, box, folder 81. 

267 Lillian Riggs' Christmas letter, December 1965, FRC, series 1, box 9, folder 243- 153; and Lillian Riggs, November 12, 1968, FRC, series 8, folder 69. 
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had help, sometimes good, too often unsatisfactory. For the past year and a half, Andy and I have done 

everything by ourselves. . . .Though not a rancher originally, Andy helps me and we do most of the work of 

looking after our stock and water. We have help with branding, etc. . . ."268 In addition to her concerns about 

employee’s performance, Lillian also dealt with injured employees. For instance, two injuries occurred in 

1967: 51- year- old Mildred Ripple was rounding up cattle when her horse stepped in hole and threw her 

forward against the saddle horn. In addition, Mrs. Rita C. Christmas was checking a bridle trail and was 

injured when her horse shied when kicked by another horse, throwing the woman.269

Although Lillian discontinued keeping chickens,270 she continued raising cattle. Through the first half of the 

1960s she leased 80 acres of BLM grazing lands.271 And, as she had for over four decades, she grazed cattle and 

horses on her allotment in Chiricahua National Monument.272 However, in 1968, when she was 80 years old, 

Lillian decided that she no longer wanted to graze the Bonita Allotment in the national monument, so she 

signed an agreement to release her grazing privileges in the monument; the next year Coronado National 

Forest cancelled the permit.273 She did continue with the cattle, however. For instance, she reported in 1969 

that she owned 4 bulls, 65 cows, 7 yearlings, and 7 horses.274 She rented over 2,000 acres of state grazing land; 

in mid 1973 she renewed her permit to graze for another year.275

However, Lillian could not run the ranch forever. About the time that her grazing permit expired, the 

ranchwoman entered the Willcox hospital. Andy cared for the ranch while she was away, and he visited her 

often. She never returned to her beloved ranch, and died in 1977, at the age of 89.276

Beginning as a (perhaps romantic) dream of an independent immigrant woman in the 1880s, the small ranch 

soon failed the test for providing a livelihood for the Erickson family. Although Neil would have gladly 

disposed of the property, Emma refused. Even so, it was only because Neil acquired wage- earning 

employment that the family was able to continue living at the Bonita Canyon homestead. The Erickson family 

used their homestead almost as a hobby ranch. Even though the property did not support them, it seems that 

they did not try to utilize their acreage to its maximum capacity. With the shift to the younger generation’s 

management, the ranch took on a new character. First, the creation of the Faraway guest ranch business 

provided a new source of cash in the family income. The pairing of the ranch and the guest ranch proved to 

be a natural alliance; neither business could provide the entire income for the family, and the guest ranch 

couldn’t exist without a working ranch base. The true shift in the ranching enterprise came with Lillian’s 

marriage to Ed Riggs. 

 

268 Lillian Riggs to Ida Mae Campbell, Frederica, Delaware, [June 1969], FRC, series 8, folder 26. 

269 FRC, series 8, folder 41- 43. 

270 Lillian Riggs, September 18, 1960, FRC, series 8, folder 63- 65. 

271 FRC, series 18, folder 8. 

272 FRC, series 8, box 27, folder 33; and Bill for Collection, January 27, 1967, FRC, series 24, box 40, folders 6- 8. 

273 "Offer to Sell Real Property," FRC, series 14, folder 11 and 12; and February 4, 1969, FRC, series 8, box 28, folder 51, fiche 117. 

274 1969 Agricultural Property Statement, FRC, series 8, box 30, folder 88. 

275 For July 1972 to June 1973, FRC, series 8, box 28, folder 51, fiche 110; and for July 1973 to June 1974, FRC, series 8, box 26, folders 16- 21. 

276 Andy Anderson to Shelley Richey, June 26, 1976, FRC, series 1, folder 17- 20; and Leavengood, 15. 
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Although Lillian dominates the history of the place, that is due in great part to her extensive writing. Her 

documents have been the maps that show us about life at Faraway. However, Ed Riggs played a critical role in 

the property. The Riggses purchased and leased more land so that it could function as a viable cattle ranch. 

The original homestead became only the home ranch of a ten- section ranch. Serious cattle ranching finally 

took place on the property, involving up to 500 head a year in a cow- calf operation. When Hildegard and 

Lillian operated the home as a guest ranch, they did so only on a small scale. It wasn't until Ed Riggs came to 

Faraway that things shifted gears. Ed and Lillian improved the guest ranch facilities and expanded that 

business so that it became a well- known operation. Ed had his hand in both of these trends. Even so, the 

combined ranch and guest ranch were only marginally successful financially. However, the combined 

organization did enable three generations of Ericksons (and two generations of Riggs)- - along with countless 

guests- - to enjoy the special environment of the place called Faraway. 
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APPENDIX 

PIGS 

PIGS Bought owned Sold Price sold for Cleared after expenses 

1918 41 10 125 

1919 25 

1920 27 pigs/ 2 hogs 384 176 

Over 3 years (20- 22? Or 21-

23?) 

 1294 550 "wonderful! 

Wonderful!!" 

1923 96 

Faraway Ranch ledgers, July 14, 1917- December 31, 1923, FRC, series 9, folder 8. 

PIGS Bought owned sold Price sold 

for 

Cleared after 

expenses 

1924 8 88 

1925 14 125 

1937 22 pigs, 2 sows, 1 breed sow 

(had 9 pigs) 

 15 465 

1938, Jan. 39 

1938, Oct 23 young pigs, 4 breed 

sows, 1 boar 

 

Faraway Ranch ledgers, FRC, series 9, folder 9, 10. 
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FRUIT 

 Type of fruit Price sold 

for 

Quantity sold 

1918 Mostly apples, and also 

peaches, plums, pears 

295 including their income from boarders, fruit and pigs they calculated 

a total average income of $151 per month for the 6 months tallied, but 

also had $14.95 income from butter & cheese in those months 

1919 Mostly apples, and also 

peaches, plums, pears 

521 

1921 "Absolutely nothing!" 

1922 "Nothing!" 

1923 From Faraway 

Orchards 

533 

1923 Cider 245 

 

1923 From Aunt Rhoda's 

orchard 

Cleared 

63 

1926 apples and peaches 785 Most is from the Stafford orchard, some from home orchard 

1927 "Nothing at all." 

1928 "About 2 boxes apples!!" 

 

Faraway Ranch ledgers, July 14, 1917- December 31, 1923, FRC, series 9, folder 8 and 9. 

POULTRY/DAIRY 

 Income/receipts 

1918 Butter & cheese 15 

1920 Butter, eggs & cream 22 

1921 Butter, eggs & cream 3 

1922 Turkeys 70 14 sold @ 40 cents dressed; they ate 3 and kept 

3 

1925 Chickens, eggs & butter $25 

1927 Chickens, eggs & butter $2.00 

1935 Turkeys, Chickens, eggs 39 

Faraway Ranch ledgers, FRC, series 9, folders 8, 9, 10. 

CHATTEL MORTGAGES ON CATTLE 

Jan 1923 all cattle (about 80 head) with her brand part at Ericksons home ranch 

and part at Valley Pasture near 

Light, AZ 

$600 

May 1925 50 On Riggs Ranch $900 

May 1927 About 80, all with their brand On mortgagers ranch $1700 

May 1928 all cattle (more than 120 head) with their 

brand 

ranging on Faraway ranch $4,000 

August 1928 54 with brand TB Double Z pasture $2300 

September 1930 100 with their brand Their range $1000 

February 1933 200 with their brand Riggs’ range $900 

Feb 1936 100 with their brand Range about 10 miles south of $600 
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Dos Cabezas 

 

Nov 1936 100 “ About 10 miles south of Dos 

Cabezas 

$1500 

December 1937 189 About 10 miles s of Dos 

Cabezas 

1,500 

Oct 3, 1938 325 10 m s of Dos Cabezas $3,823.50 

Dec 1939 175 About 70 miles north of 

Douglas 

$1,000 

Jan 13, 1941 (due Dec 

1, 41) 

200 65 m NE of Douglas $700 

Jan 22, 1941 (due 

Dec 1, 41) 

300 65 m NE of Douglas $4,000 

May 1944 200 18 m NE of Douglas $4,500 

Feb 1945 300 22 m SE of Dos Cabezas $5,000 

Mar 1946 150 yearling steers His ranch at Dos Cabezas $6,000 

April 1949 110 cows, 10 heifers, 9 bulls, 120 short 

yearlings 

75 m N of Douglas $15,000 

Dec 1949 100 cows, 5 bulls, 25 calves, 25 cows, 24 

calves, 4 bulls (total 179) 

75 m NE Douglas 

May 1951 75 cows, 5 bulls, 75 yearlings (total 155) On Lillian Riggs ranch 65 m 

NE of Douglas 

$9,000 

May 1952 80 cows, 55 yearlings, 5 bulls (total 140) all 

Hereford 

Lillian Riggs Ranch 60 M NE 

of Douglas 

$10,000 

July 1953 100 cows, 5 bulls, 12 yearlings, 70 calves (187 

total) 

L. Riggs ranch 65 m NE of 

Douglas 

$2000 

Mar 1955 100 cows, 7 bulls, 6 yearlings, 45 calves (158 

total) 

70 m NE of Douglas $3000 

April 1956 100 cows, 50 calves, 10 heifers, 5 bulls (165 

total) (all Hereford) 

70 m NE Douglas $3000 

Aug 1956 100 cows, 50 calves, 10 heifers, 5 bulls (165 

total) all Hereford 

70 m NE of Douglas $2,000 

Oct 1957 92 cows, 6 yr. Heifers, 11 calves, 6 bulls (115 

total) all Hereford 

50 m NE Douglas $2,500 

May 1958 92 cows, 6 yr. Heifers, 6 bulls, 60 calves, 71 

steer calves which are Mexican breed (235 

total) all but steer calves are Hereford 

50 m NE of Douglas 10,800 

Apr 1960 120 cows, 6 bulls, 70 calves (196 total) all 

Hereford 

50 M NE of Douglas $5,000 

Oct 1960 120 cows, 6 bulls (126 total) all Hereford 50 m NE Douglas $6,000 

Dec 1965 101 cows ages 3- 8 

4 bulls, 3- 8 yr 

4 heifers, 2 yr 

5 steers, yearlings 

10 heifers, yearlings (all cattle Hereford) 

9 saddle horses (total 150) 

50 m NE Douglas $4,000 

 

“Chattel Mortgages,” FRC, Series 13, folders 1- 6.) (1925 entry from series 16, folder 1) 

April 1967 90 cows, 7 heifers, 5 bulls, 45 calves $3,000 

Series 21 folder 9 
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CATTLE SOLD 

Calves heifers Cows bulls steers sold to date 

 1 4 10 or 11 some to Gonzales thru 1918 

117 19 thru association Nov. 17, 1928 (total for 

year) 

35 Washburn & Condon, L.A. Stock Yards Oct. 2, 1933 

104 11 1 15 Washburn & Condon, L.A. Stock Yards Dec 11, 1933 

107 8 Washburn & Condon, L.A. Stock Yards, 

shipped via Southern Pacific RR 

Dec 11, 1934 

13 2 Hurley in Phoenix July 30, 1937 

 

111 2 69 3 23 Krueger, Hunt & Thompson, "Live Stock 

Sales & Order Buying", Los Angeles Stock 

Yards, to 7 purchasers incl. Armour 

Nov. 17, 1937 (July 30 

and Nov 17 total of 1937) 

 

 W&C Sept. 41 

 W&C Oct. 41 

 Page and Misenhimer, Willcox. P&M also 

handled "Pontiac sales & Service" FRC, 

series 8, box 26, folders 16- 21. 

Nov. 42 

127 1 14 3 13 Page and Misenhimer "Dealers in High 

Grade Cattle" Willcox 

Nov. 18, 1943 

 W&C Oct 16, 44 

 25 6 Washburn & Condon Feb. 11, 1946 

 letter from Washburn & Condon that they 

had sold Riggs cattle to "a feeder who is 

taking them back to grass." 

Jan. 29, 1947 

90 13 Cook Cattle Co. of Willcox, "Breeders of 

Fine Cattle" 

Nov. 7, 1947 

3 8 4 G.W. Page of Willcox "Cattle Bought and 

Sold" 

Nov. 1948 

4 5 10 4 G.W. Page of Willcox Nov. 1, 1949 

 W&C Sept. 15, 52 

 G.W. Page of Willcox Oct. 53 

 25 Washburn & Condon, L.A. Stock Yards Nov. 14, 1955 

 Willcox Livestock Commission Co. Nov. 61 

80 8 A.F. Alford at San Ysabel, Calif. Nov. 64 

 Willcox Livestock Commission Co. Nov. 24, 1964 

 Nelson Livestock Auctions, Inc., numerous receipts in 

1968- 69 

 2 Nelson Livestock Auctions, Inc., Willscox Sept. 17, 1969 

 2 for 

$335.12 

 Nelson Livestock Auctions, Inc. Nov. 20, 69 

 

Calves cows bulls steers 

FRC, series 8, box 26, folders 16- 21 and series 9, box 33, folder 8, 10. 
Faraway Ranch Special History Study- - Ranching 

210

LEASES ON ARIZONA STATE GRAZING LAND 

640 acres. sec 36 T16S R26E, 7/35 to 6/30/40 

120 acres in the south half sec 30 T16S R27E, $14.50 7/35 to 6/3040 

Lillian and Ed: 600 acres sec 31 T16S R27E, $72.40 7/1/35 to 6/30/40 

320 acres in N1/2 sec 6 T17S R27E, 10/1/35 to 9/30/40 

Ed: 321 acres Sec 2 T17S R26E, 10/23/35 to 6/30/40 

Ed: 40 acres in NW1/4 sec 32 T16S R27E, 12/6/35 to 12/31/36 

Ed: 40 acres sec 4 T15S R28E, 7/1/36 to 6/30/41 

Ed & Lillian: 642 acres Sec 1 T17S R26E, $87.10 7/1/36 to 6/30/41 

Ed: 160 acres sec 25 T16S R26E, 10/1/36 to 9/30/41 

40 Sec 32 T16S R27E 1/1/37 to 12/31/42 

312 Sec 6 T17S R27E Valley 10/1/40 to 9/30/45 

40 Sec 4 T15S R28E Valley 7/1/41 to 6/30/51 

160 Sec 25 T16S R26E Valley 10/1/41 to 9/30/51 

322 Sec 1 T17S R26E Valley 12/12/41 to 6/30/51 

120 Sec14 T15S R28E 7/25/42 to 2/7/44 

40 Sec 32 T16S R27E Valley Ranch 1/1/43 to 12/31/52 

120 Sec 14 T15S R28E ZZ & Valley; $36 2/8/44 to 2/7/52 

280 Sec 31 T16S R27E Valley 7/1/45 to 6/30/55 

640 Sec 36 T16S R26E Valley 7/1/45 to 6/30/55 

322 Sec 2 T17S R26E Valley 7/1/45 to 6/30/55 

120 Sec 30 T16S R27E Valley 7/1/45 to 6/30/55 

320 Sec 6 T17S R27E Valley 10/1/45 to 9/30/55 

[archivist labeled names of ranches, i.e. Valley & ZZ] FRC, Series 18, folders 4- 5.) 
Faraway Ranch- - Bibliography 

211

BIBLIOGRAPHY 

The primary research materials for this study are housed in the faraway Ranch Collection located at 

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Schwantes, Carlos. Bisbee: Urban Outpost on the Frontier. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1992. 

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Weber, David J. The Mexican Frontier, 1821- 1846: The American Southwest Under Mexico. 

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Contexts for Cultural Resource Managers of Department of Defense Lands, Robert Lyon, ed. Denver: 

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4. WOMEN 

Borne, Lawrence R. Dude Ranching : A Complete History. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico 

Press, 1983. 

Bracey, Gerald W. “What Happened to America’s Public Schools?” American Heritage (November 

1997): 38- 52. 

Cayton, Mary Kupiec, Elliott J. Gorn, and Peter W. Williams. Encyclopedia of American Social History. 

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Haber, “The Professions;” and B. Lindsay Lowell, “The Scandinavians.” 

Cooper, Courtney Ryley. "Dude, Howdy!" Ladies' Home Journal 48 (August 1931), 41. 

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Fischer, Christiane. "A Profile of Women in Arizona in Frontier Days." Journal of the West 16, no. 3 

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Hine, Thomas. “The Rise and Decline of the Teenager.” American Heritage (September 1999): 70- 83. 

Lintelman, Joy K. "'America is the Woman's Promised Land': Swedish Immigrant Women and 

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Lintelman, Joy K. "'Our Serving Sisters': Swedish- American Domestic Servants and Their Ethnic 

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Melcher, Mary S. “Tending Children, Chickens, and Cattle: Southern Arizona Ranch and Farm 

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Moynihan, Ruth B., Susan Armitage, and Christiane Fischer Dichamp, ed. So Much to be Done: Women 

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Riley, Glenda. "Continuity and Change: Interpreting Women in Western History." Journal of the West

32, no. 3 (July 1993): 7- 11. 

Riley, Glenda. Inventing the American Woman: A Perspective on Women’s History. Arlington Heights, 

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Riley, Glenda. Women and Nature: Saving the "Wild" West. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 

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Schlissel, Lillian. “Diaries of Frontier Women: On Learning to Read the Obscured Patterns.” In 

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Spring, Agnes W. "Women on a Dude Ranch." Western Farm Life Annual Livestock Review (1947): 14, 

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Steele, A.T. "The Lady Boss of Faraway Ranch." Saturday Evening Post, March 15, 1958, 28. 

Thernstrom, Stephan, ed. Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups. Cambridge, 

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Vecoli, Rudolph J., contributing ed. Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, 2 vol. New York: Gale 

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5. TOURISM and GUEST RANCHING 

Bernstein, Joel H. Families That Take In Friends: An Informal History of Dude Ranching. Stevensville, 

Montana: Stoneydale Press, 1982. 

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Hummon, David M. "Tourist Worlds: Tourist Advertising, Ritual, and American Culture." Sociological 

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thesis, University of Arizona, 1991. 
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Mooney- Melvin, Patricia. "Harnessing the Romance of the Past: Preservation, Tourism, and History; 

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65, no. 4 (November 1996): 517- 523. 

Norris, Frank Blaine. “The Southern Arizona Guest Ranch as a Symbol of the West.” M.A. thesis, 

University of Arizona, 1976. 

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West 10, no. 2 (Summer 1968): 111- 126. 

Rothman, Hal K. “Selling the Meaning of Place: Entrepreneurship, Tourism, and Community 

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Sokol, Marienka J. "From Wasteland to Oasis: Promotional Images of Arizona, 1870- 1912." Journal of 

Arizona History 34, no. 4 (Winter 1993): 357- 390. 

Torres, Louis and Mark Baumler. Historic Structure Report, Historical and Archeological Data Sections: 

A History of the Buildings and Structures of Faraway Ranch, Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona. 

Denver: National Park Service, Denver Service Center, 1984. 

Wilson, John P. Islands in the Desert: A History of the Uplands of Southeastern Arizona. Albuquerque: 

University of New Mexico Press, 1995. 

6. RANCHING 

Bahre, Conrad J. and Marilyn L. Shelton. "Rangeland Destruction: Cattle and Drought in 

Southeastern Arizona at the Turn of the Century." Journal of the Southwest 38, no. 1 (Spring 1996): 1-

22. 

Cannon, Larry S. "Working for the Lady Boss." Cochise Quarterly 19, no. 1 (Spring 1989): 32- 34. 

Collins, William S. "Cattle Ranching in Arizona, 1540- 1950." Draft. Multiple Property Documentation 

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Morrisey, Richard J. "The Early Range Cattle Industry in Arizona." Agricultural History 24, no. 3 (July 

1950): 151- 156. 

Starrs, Paul F. Let the Cowboy Ride: Cattle Ranching in the American West. Baltimore: The Johns 

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Bulletin: Social Science Bulletin no. 20, vol. 23, no. 2 (April 1952). 

Welty, Raymond L. "Supplying the Frontier Military Posts." Kansas Historical Quarterly 7, no.2 (May 

1938): 154- 169.

Wilson, John P. Islands in the Desert: A History of the Uplands of Southeastern Arizona. Albuquerque: 

University of New Mexico Press, 1995. 

GENERAL 

Hayes, Alden. A Portal to Paradise. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1999. 

Lamar, Howard R., ed. The New Encyclopedia of the American West. New Haven: Yale University 

Press, 1998. Includes Harwood P. Hinton, “Arizona”; Donald Worster, “Environmental History of 

the West”; Anne F. Hyde, "Tourist Travel"; John M. Faragher, “Women in Western History” 

Leavengood, Betty. Faraway Ranch: Chiricahua National Monument. Tucson, Arizona: Southwest 

Parks and Monuments Association, 1995. 

Livingston, Dewey. A Pioneer Log Cabin in Bonita Canyon: The History of the Stafford Cabin, Faraway 

Ranch Historic District, Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona. Historic Resource Study. San 

Francisco: National Park Service, 1994. 

Sheridan, Thomas E. Arizona: A History. Tucson: University of Arizona Press, 1995. 

Thomas E. Sheridan, Cows, Condos, and the Contested Commons: The Political Ecology of Ranching 

on the Arizona- Sonora Borderlands" Human Organization 60, no. 2 (Summer 2001): 141- 152. 

Torres, Louis and Mark Baumler. Historic Structure Report, Historical and Archeological Data Sections: 

A History of the Buildings and Structures of Faraway Ranch, Chiricahua National Monument, Arizona. 

Denver: National Park Service, Denver Service Center, 1984. 

Pomeroy, Earl. In Search of the Golden West: The Tourist in Western America. New York: Alfred A. 

Knopf, 1957. 

Wallace, David H. Furnishings at Faraway: Historic Furnishings Report, Faraway Ranch, Chiricahua 

National Monument, Arizona. Harpers Ferry, West Virginia: Harpers Ferry Center, National Park 

Service, 1986. 
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Wilson, John P. Islands in the Desert: A History of the Uplands of Southeastern Arizona. Albuquerque: 

University of New Mexico Press, 1995. 
As the nation's principal conservation agency, the Department of the Interior has responsibility for most of our 

nationally owned public lands and natural resources. This includes fostering sound use of our land and water 

resources; protecting our fish, wildlife, and biological diversity; preserving the environmental and cultural 

values of our national parks and historical places; and providing for the enjoyment of life through outdoor 

recreation. The department assesses our energy and mineral resources and works to ensure that their 

development is in the best interests of all our people by encouraging stewardship and citizen participation in 

their care. The department also has a major responsibility for American Indian reservation communities and for 

people who live in island territories under U.S. administration.
National Park Service 

U.S. Department of the Interior 

Divison of Cultural Resource Management 

Intermountain Region 

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