Menor's Ferry facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Menor's Ferry
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Menor's Ferry homestead
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 Location in Wyoming
Location in the United States
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| Location | Moose, Wyoming |
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| Built | 1892 |
| Architect | Menor, Bill |
| NRHP reference No. | 69000016 |
| Added to NRHP | April 16, 1969 |
Menor's Ferry was a special boat that carried people and wagons across the Snake River in Moose, Wyoming. A man named Bill Menor started living here in 1892. He picked this spot because the river flowed in one clear path, not many small streams. For many years, his home was the only one on the west side of the river.
Bill's home had a five-room cabin, a barn, a store, and other buildings. He even had an icehouse! He used water from Cottonwood Creek to grow crops, sometimes with a waterwheel from the Snake River. Bill ran the ferry until 1918. Then, he sold it to Maude Noble, who kept it going until 1927. That's when a bridge was built nearby, making the ferry less needed.
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Bill Menor's Homestead Buildings
Bill Menor's house and store are unique. They look like simple log cabins but have fancy, classical touches. This style is even more noticeable because the buildings were painted white. Bill made his own whitewash from a lime pit on his brother Holiday Menor's land across the river.
The Menor Cabin and Store
The Menor cabin has three rooms. They were built one by one over time. There's a bedroom on the west side and a store on the east. A kitchen and storage room connect these two parts.
The Menor cabin was a famous starting point. On August 11, 1898, the first people to climb Grand Teton mountain began their journey from here. The cabin also hosted the celebration party that evening!
Bill and his brother Holiday Menor were originally from Ohio. Holiday came to Jackson Hole in 1905 to join Bill. Bill later moved to California after selling his ferry to Maude Noble. Holiday joined him around 1927.
Maude Noble's Cabin
The property also includes the log cabin of Maude Noble. This cabin was built in 1916 near Cottonwood Creek. When Maude Noble bought Bill Menor's ferry business in 1918, she moved her cabin to the ferry site.
Maude Noble was from Philadelphia. She visited Jackson Hole in 1915 and loved it so much she decided to stay. Her cabin is a one-story building with three rooms. It has been fixed up many times over the years. Maude sold the property in 1929 after the new bridge was built. For a short time, a tea room operated in her cabin.
A Historic Meeting Place
Maude Noble's cabin was the site of a very important meeting on July 23, 1923. Horace Albright, who was in charge of Yellowstone National Park and later led the National Park Service, met with local ranchers and business people here. This meeting was the start of creating Grand Teton National Park. Maude Noble provided the quiet place for the meeting, but she did not join the discussion herself.
Restoring Menor's Ferry
In 1929, John D. Rockefeller, Jr. bought the property. He worked to fix up the buildings and the ferry. In 1953, he gave the entire property to the National Park Service.
The property was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1969. This means it's a special place that is important to history. The Park Service has even brought the hand-operated ferry back to life since 2009.
How the Ferry Works
The ferry is like a floating platform made of two big floats. It's big enough for a wagon and a team of four horses. The ferry uses the river's current to move itself along a strong cable stretched across the water. The Park Service has also fixed up Bill Menor's old well.
