1/6/2009 8:43:00 PM John Riffey was last 'Old Time Ranger'
Jean Luttrell's book, "John Riffey: The Last Old-Time Ranger."
By Jean Luttrell From the Ol' Pioneer, GC Historical Society
When John Riffey arrived at the Tuweep Ranger Station on Aug. 18, 1942, he found the answer to his dreams and a home for life. Some rangers might have thought this National Park outpost was the worst possible assignment, but it was exactly what Riffey wanted.
So where is Tuweep? Or is it Toroweap? Actually the original Paiute name for this valley is Toroweep. However, the early settlers, cowboys and sheep herders incorrectly called it Tuweep. When the residents petitioned for a post office in 1929, they spelled the name the way it was pronounced locally and Tuweep became the official name of the community.
As to where it is: if you travel south from Fredonia on a dirt road marked BLM Road 109, after 61 dusty miles (depending on the weather) you will come to the Tuweep Ranger Station. If you continue past the ranger station six more miles over big boulders, through deep ditches and manage to avoid the high centers, you will come to Toroweep Overlook, a place where it's possible to look straight down 3,000 feet and see the Colorado River. It is a magnificent view and one that John Riffey never grew tired of.
The Tuweep Ranger Station was Riffey's first and only assignment. When he was offered a position as National Park ranger at Grand Canyon National Monument, the appointment was for "the duration of the war and six months thereafter unless sooner terminated" and the salary was $1,860 per year. Then a little more than a year after receiving this assignment, he was drafted and spent a year and five months in the Army serving as a medical technician on a hospital ship before returning to his position as Tuweep ranger.
Riffey was a young man - 31 years of age - when he became a ranger. The Park Service was also a relatively young organization, less than 100 years old. At that time, there were fewer rangers than there are now and they often served in remote places where they were expected to do everything that needed to be done.
But after World War II the Park Service was forced to grow and change to meet a staggering increase in visitation and crime. The service more than doubled in size and do-it-all generalists were replaced by specialists: resource managers, law enforcement rangers, interpreters and maintenance personnel. The Park Service became a bureaucracy.
However, the rules and regulations, which were necessary to meet the complex problems of growth, did not apply to Riffey's isolated area. In 1942, Toroweap Overlook had less than 20 visitors in an entire year, and even with tremendous growth of the post-war years, Riffey never saw more than 1,000 visitors in a year. As the only Park Service employee at Grand Canyon National Monument, Riffey did everything that needed to be done. He protected the park, greeted visitors, maintained roads and equipment, flew fire patrols in Pogo (his personal plane) and when necessary, he fought wild fires.
Riffey was aware of the changes elsewhere in the Park Service but saw no need for change in his remote area and because he liked his assignment he steadfastly refused promotions and transfers. In the 1950s, he was pressured to conform to the new ways and for a while it seemed he would either have to comply or resign. Still he resisted.
In the end, he was not forced to quit, because his superiors came to realize that Riffey, with his old-time values and procedures, was a treasure - a living tie to a simpler time. Being a ranger was not his job - it was his lifestyle. He didn't go to work, he lived his work, and his park and its visitors were well-cared for and protected.
In recognition of his service, the Forest Service and the Park Service jointly presented him with a Superior Performance Award in 1965 and in 1970, he received the Department of the Interior's second highest award - the Meritorious Service Award. However, these prestigious awards were eclipsed by an even greater honor. In a highly unusual move, the Park Service allowed Riffey to be buried in Tuweep Valley near the ranger station where he had lived and worked.
For 38 years Riffey remained in the same position, doing the same things in the same way. He died on the job on July 9, 1980.
He was the "Last Old-Time Ranger."
Luttrell is author of "John Riffey: The Last Old-Time Ranger," published by Vishnu Temple Press. Click below for more information.
