Cunningham Cabin
Encyclopedia
The Cunningham Cabin is a double-pen log cabin in Grand Teton National Park
. The cabin was built as a homestead in Jackson Hole
and represents an adaptation of an Appalachia
n building form to the West. The cabin was built just south of Spread Creek by John Pierce Cunningham, who arrived in Jackson Hole in 1885 and subsisted as a trapper until he established the small ranch in 1888. The Cunninghams left the valley for Idaho in 1928, when land was being acquired for the future Grand Teton National Park.
Cunningham and his wife grew about 100 acres (40.5 ha) of hay, later irrigating another 140 acres (56.7 ha) to provide feed for 100 cattle and eight horses. His brother, W. Pierce Cunningham, settled his family nearby. By 1924 the Cunningham ranch comprised 560 acres (226.6 ha). By 1926 Cunningham had moved out of cattle and was raising sheep on the land.
J. Pierce Cunningham was one of the original county commissioners chosen when Teton County
was organized in 1923. He was also, at various times, justice of the peace, postmaster and game warden.
After 1895 the Cunninghams, who had built a more commodious house, used the cabin as a barn or a smithy. A small fortification was erected in 1895 during unrest involving the Bannack Indians. Traces of foundations survive. The cabin was the scene of a shootout in 1899 between a Montana posse
and two horse thieves, who were killed at the scene. The dead men, who had worked for Cunningham the previous season, were buried in unmarked graves nearby.
style building with a room on either side of the central breezeway or "dog-trot." The form is Appalacian in origin. No nails or metal fastenings were used in the cabin's construction. The cabin was reconstructed in 1956, resetting the wall logs after replacing the sill logs and rebuilding the roof. The logs are saddle-V-notched at the corners. The site comprises 10 acres (4 ha), including the cabin, 1890 house site, fort site, barn site, bunkhouse and outbuildings sites, as well as pits that may have been wells or privies. The cabin measures about 41.5 feet (12.6 m) by 15.25 feet (4.6 m). Two rooms both open into the breezeway, each room with two windows facing northeast and southwest. The south room was the living quarters, the north was used as a forge.
Grand Teton National Park
Grand Teton National Park is a United States National Park located in northwestern Wyoming, U.S. The Park consists of approximately and includes the major peaks of the long Teton Range as well as most of the northern sections of the valley known as Jackson Hole. Only south of Yellowstone...
. The cabin was built as a homestead in Jackson Hole
Jackson Hole
Jackson Hole, originally called Jackson's Hole, is a valley located in the U.S. state of Wyoming, near the western border with Idaho. The name "hole" derives from language used by early trappers or mountain men, who primarily entered the valley from the north and east and had to descend along...
and represents an adaptation of an Appalachia
Appalachia
Appalachia is a term used to describe a cultural region in the eastern United States that stretches from the Southern Tier of New York state to northern Alabama, Mississippi, and Georgia. While the Appalachian Mountains stretch from Belle Isle in Canada to Cheaha Mountain in the U.S...
n building form to the West. The cabin was built just south of Spread Creek by John Pierce Cunningham, who arrived in Jackson Hole in 1885 and subsisted as a trapper until he established the small ranch in 1888. The Cunninghams left the valley for Idaho in 1928, when land was being acquired for the future Grand Teton National Park.
Cunningham and his wife grew about 100 acres (40.5 ha) of hay, later irrigating another 140 acres (56.7 ha) to provide feed for 100 cattle and eight horses. His brother, W. Pierce Cunningham, settled his family nearby. By 1924 the Cunningham ranch comprised 560 acres (226.6 ha). By 1926 Cunningham had moved out of cattle and was raising sheep on the land.
J. Pierce Cunningham was one of the original county commissioners chosen when Teton County
Teton County, Wyoming
Teton County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wyoming. As of 2010, the population was 21,294. Its county seat is Jackson. Teton County contains the affluent Jackson Hole skiing area...
was organized in 1923. He was also, at various times, justice of the peace, postmaster and game warden.
After 1895 the Cunninghams, who had built a more commodious house, used the cabin as a barn or a smithy. A small fortification was erected in 1895 during unrest involving the Bannack Indians. Traces of foundations survive. The cabin was the scene of a shootout in 1899 between a Montana posse
Posse comitatus (common law)
Posse comitatus or sheriff's posse is the common-law or statute law authority of a county sheriff or other law officer to conscript any able-bodied males to assist him in keeping the peace or to pursue and arrest a felon, similar to the concept of the "hue and cry"...
and two horse thieves, who were killed at the scene. The dead men, who had worked for Cunningham the previous season, were buried in unmarked graves nearby.
Description
The cabin is a sod-roofed double-pen or dog-trotDogtrot house
The dogtrot, also known as a breezeway house, dog-run, or possum-trot, is a style of house that was common throughout the Southeastern United States during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Most theories place its origins in the southern Appalachian Mountains. Some scholars believe the style...
style building with a room on either side of the central breezeway or "dog-trot." The form is Appalacian in origin. No nails or metal fastenings were used in the cabin's construction. The cabin was reconstructed in 1956, resetting the wall logs after replacing the sill logs and rebuilding the roof. The logs are saddle-V-notched at the corners. The site comprises 10 acres (4 ha), including the cabin, 1890 house site, fort site, barn site, bunkhouse and outbuildings sites, as well as pits that may have been wells or privies. The cabin measures about 41.5 feet (12.6 m) by 15.25 feet (4.6 m). Two rooms both open into the breezeway, each room with two windows facing northeast and southwest. The south room was the living quarters, the north was used as a forge.
External links
- J.P. Cunningham Cabin at Grand Teton National Park
- The Affair at Cunningham's Ranch at Grand Teton National Park
- A Place Called Jackson Hole:A Historic Resource Study of Grand Teton National Park
- Cunningham Cabin, Between Snake River & U.S. Route 89, Moose vicinity, Teton County, WY: 5 drawings, 3 photos, 5 data pages, at Historic American Building Survey
- Cunningham Cabin at the Wyoming State Historic Preservation Office