Modern history of Range Creek

By 1878, portions of the West Tavaputs Plateau were used for grazing by Shadrach Lunt. With the arrival of the D&RGW railroad in the early 1880s, a station was established at the Lower Crossing of the Price River, and a community of Woodside grew up around it. As this area along the Price River populated with farms and ranches, cattle and sheep raisers began looking for additional range in the more remote canyons of the plateau and along the Green River in Desolation Canyon.

In 1884, Deputy U.S. Surveyor, Augustus Ferron discovered a small, perennial stream in an unoccupied canyon on the plateau. He called the stream Ranch Creek. The following year, Ferron and four partners renamed the stream Range Creek and formed the Range Valley Cattle Company. The company claimed all the land and water on the West Tavaputs plateau between the Price River on the south and Nine Mile Canyon on the north. Ferron's partners all came from New York and Pennsylvania to pursue mining and railroad interests in Utah. None of them had any experience in cattle ranching, but Ferron recognized the value of this previously undiscovered range and convinced the group to join him in the venture. The group filed seven Desert Land entries along the creek, securing the valuable water and blocking the only trail to the upper plateau.

Range Valley Cattle Company continued operation until 1902, when they sold their interests to Preston Nutter. Range Valley was opened to homesteading in 1915, prompting numerous legal battles between Nutter and small ranchers seeking a piece of the canyon. With few exceptions, Nutter retained control of the canyon until 1951 when he sold his Range Creek ranches to Ray Wilcox and his sons Don and Waldo. Don and Waldo divided the ranch following the death of their father, with Waldo retaining the Range Valley portion until December, 2001, when it was sold and transferred to the BLM. It was then transferred to the Division of Wildlife Resources.

Historic archaeological sites

Cattle ranches have operated in Range Creek continuously since 1885. Early ranchers built cabins, fences, ditches and buildings throughout the canyon that extended to the plateau above. Prior to 1947, all equipment brought into the canyon by ranchers was packed in by mule over precipitous trails. Much of this equipment remains in the valley, remanded to machinery bone yards scattered around the canyon. These remains add poignant details to the rich heritage of the canyon, and testify to the tenacity and perseverance of early ranchers.