Historical Sites
Prefer to experience history in its natural setting? Then these historical sites are just the thing for you. They'll give you a feel - taste and smell too! - of what the west was really like.

Dry Fork Canyon Petroglyphs
John Jarvie Ranch Historic Site
Josie Bassett's Cabin Historical Site
Nine Mile Canyon
Swett Ranch National Historic Site



Vernal, Uintah County
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Open to the public.
Admission is free. Donations accepted.

Located 10 miles north of Vernal, at McConkie Ranch, the Dry Fork Canyon petroglyphs are famous for their quality and accessibility. These panels cover 200 feet of cliff face in the Navajo formation. This gallery of primitive art dating from 1-1200 A.D. shows excellent examples of the Fremont culture. The petroglyphs are located on private land. Access is granted to those who treat the artwork with respect.

Browns Park, Daggett County
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Visitors welcome anytime.
Site tours conducted daily May through October: 10 AM to 4 PM
Admission is free.

Located on the Green River in Browns Park, historic Jarvie Ranch provides a glimpse of turn-of-the-century frontier life in what is still a remote part of the West. The 35-acre site contains the original stone house and two-room dugout that was Jarvie's first residence. There is also a replica of the general store, originally built in 1881.

Dinosaur National Monument, Uintah County
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At the end of Dinosaur National Monument's Cub Creek Road is an old cabin nestled in a shady oasis. Now part of Dinosaur National Monument, the cabin is empty, but it continues to tell a story of one pioneer woman's life in this isolated and beautiful red rock canyon...In 1914, Josie Bassett staked out a homestead along Cub Creek and began a small cattle ranch. The cabin she built with the help of her son was simple but homey...There were canyons that served as stock pens, plentiful game, and even a fruit orchard she planted which still stands today... Though weathered by time, the cabin stands as a memorial to the pioneers who preceded us, a generation which faced hardship and isolation, but also which knew self-sufficiency.

Excerpts from the Josie Bassett Historic Cabin Restoration Project brochure produced by the Intermountain Natural History Association. For more information on the project, phone 1-800-845-3466.

Duchesne County

A must see for those interested in high desert prehistory and the Fremont Indian culture. For nearly 1,200 years, ancient cultures have left their paintings and etchings carved upon the stone walls of Nine Mile. Considered by many to be the longest natural art gallery in the world, Nine Mile Canyon is actually 40 plus miles of spectacular panels of petroglyphs and pictographs. Ancient cliff dwellings and remnants of early pioneer cabins are reminders of those who once called the canyon home. All are easily viewed from the road without trespassing onto private land. Guided tours are available from private concessionaires.

For maps and additional information, check out the National Scenic Byway Website.
http://www.byways.org/travel/byway.html?CX_BYWAY=15780&CX_STATE=UT

Ashley National Forest, Daggett County

Open for Guided Tours: Memorial Day to Labor Day
Thursday through Monday
Admission is free.

Visit a ranch that was the result of the Forest Homestead Act of 1906. See what was necessary to make a living in the early 1900s in a remote and rugged part of the West. This homestead, listed on the National Register of Historic Sites, was constructed by Oscar Swett in 1909 and contains two cabins, a five-room house, a meat house, a root cellar, sheds, a granary, and a barn. Located one mile east of US Highway 191/Utah Highway 44 Junction near Flaming Gorge Dam.