Canyon Village in Yellowstone: The Model for Mission 66

by Lesley M. Gilmore

Overview

By 1955, the national parks were facing a crisis of dilapidation from heavy use and lack of funding. The answer was Mission 66. This visionary plan, implemented over the next decade, included installation of new facilities to accommodate the influx of visitors and enhance their experiences. The pilot development in Yellowstone, named Canyon Village, introduced a modern aesthetic to the parks and emphasized the concept of conservation. This man-made environment was purposefully sited away from the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, providing a natural buffer. Architect Lesley M. Gilmore presents the complexities of this historic, ambitious model for the movement that marked the continued evolution of the national parks into the destinations we flock to today.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781467119559
Publisher:	Arcadia Publishing SC
Publication date:	05/08/2017
Pages:	160
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.40(d)

About the Author

Lesley M. Gilmore is a licensed architect who has been director of CTA's Historic Preservation Services since 2006. In that capacity, she has worked on the preservation of historic properties in Yellowstone National Park and other national parks across the country. She became more immersed in the study of modern architecture when engaged by the General Services Administration to evaluate several of its modern federal courthouses. Her recent work on the renovation of Canyon Village Lodge has given her the opportunity to delve deeply into the lives of those working for the National Park Service, the Yellowstone Park Company and the architecture firm of Welton Becket & Associates when this seminal Mission 66 project was planned in 1955. Lesley and her husband, Bob Franzen, live in Gallatin Gateway, Montana, a one-and-a-half-hour drive from Yellowstone National Park.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements 7

Introduction 11

1 Historical Background 13

2 Mission 66: The Federal Program 19

3 Mission 66: Disseminated by Memoranda 27

4 The Design History of Canyon Village 49

5 Mission 66 Modernist Design Features 79

6 Canyon Village Construction 91

7 Acceptance of Canyon Village 107

8 The Future of Mission 66 117

Notes 119

Bibliography 133

Index 137

About the Author 141