The Greene Family Collection houses biographical information, correspondence, brochures, maps, and newspaper clippings documenting the Greene family and their formation of Canyon Tours, Inc.
Identification:
MSS-201
Language:
Material in English
Repository:
Arizona State University Library. Greater Arizona Collection
P.O. Box 871006
Tempe, AZ 85287-1006
Phone: (480) 965-4932
E-Mail: archives@asu.edu Questions? Ask An Archivist!
Biographical Note
Arthur "Art" Hayward Greene, Sr. (1895-1978) was born to Allan Butler and Annie Elizabeth (Morgan) Greene in Telluride, Colorado. When he was 18 years old and living in Aztec, New Mexico, he was fascinated by the potential of river float trips. He began running such trips down the San Juan River and soon built a successful business transporting entrepreneurs with mining interests.
Greene married Ethel Cady Johnson (1897-1957) on August 11, 1917 and the couple had five children: Ruth Lorene (Greene) Baker (1918-1994), Grace Katherine (Greene) Williams Schoppman (1920-1987), Arthur Hayward "Bill" (1921-1998), Annie Irene (Greene) Johnson (1923-1974), and Opal Lee (1927-1931). In 1943 Greene moved his family to Granado, Arizona, where he worked for the Hubble Trading Post. Later that year he moved his family to Marble Canyon to operate Marble Canyon Lodge. While there, Greene began running Colorado River trips from Lees Ferry to Rainbow Bridge. With his son, Bill Jr., and sons-in-law, Earl Johnson and Vern Baker, Greene pioneered the use of power boats on commercial river trips.
In 1944 Greene learned about the coming of Glen Canyon Dam. He adapted his business by building an 8 foot by 24 foot flat bottom boat and adding a 45 HP Pratt Whitney Radial motor attached to an airplane prop for propulsion. The local Navajo people named the boat Tse-nan-ni-ago-atim, meaning "Trail to the Rock that Goes Over." As Bill Greene and his brothers-in-law returned from military service, they directed their time and energy to river running and other family businesses. In 1949, the family purchased the Cliff Dwellers Lodge and continued river trips to Rainbow Bridge. Art and Bill Greene also transported Bureau of Reclamation personnel up the river numerous times and helped them to determine the site for Glen Canyon Dam.
The Greene family formed Canyon Tours, Inc. and purchased leases on six sections of Arizona State land from Curly Tsoe in 1953. The first Wahweap Lodge was completed on this land in 1956. In 1957, the Bureau of Reclamation informed the Greenes that they would have to move from their new business site due to the construction of Glen Canyon Dam. With the help of Senators Barry Goldwater and Carl Hayden, the Greene family was able to maintain their enterprise. The National Park Service later told the Greenes that they would have to move because their business was located in a National Recreation Area, but the family (again with help from Senator Goldwater) managed to retain both their land and their concession rights to the Wahweap area.
In 1959, the completion of the Glen Canyon Bridge brought a highway to Page, Lake Powell, and Wahweap. In 1966, water backed up to form Wahweap Bay and marked Wahweap as a premier tourist attraction.
Scope and Content Note
The Greene Family Collection houses biographical information, correspondence, brochures, maps, and newspaper clippings documenting the Greene family and their formation of Canyon Tours, Inc.
Series I: Biographical and Family Information consists of biographical and auto-biographical information found in newspaper and magazine articles as well as family papers.
Series II: Business Development houses deeds, purchase agreements, correspondence, and magazine and newspaper articles documenting Art and Bill Greene's entrepreneurial skills, the purchase of Marble Canyon Lodge, and the building of Cliff Dwellers Lodge and Wahweap Lodge and Marina. Also included are materials showing the formation of Canyon Tours Inc., the building of Deer Valley Airport, and numerous other enterprises.
Series III: Tourism consists primarily of brochures designed to bring families to Arizona and to the Lake Powell area.
Series IV: Correspondence contains letters from Senators Barry Goldwater and Carl Hayden and Arizona Governors Ernest W. McFarland, Paul Fannin, Jack Williams, and Raul H. Castro in addition to letters from other federal and state officials. Correspondence documenting the Greene family's possible relinquishment of their land is located in the relevant federal and state official folders. Also included are thank you notes and letters from customers who enjoyed the Greene family's hospitality at the Wahweap Lodge.
Series V: Maps houses original maps made by architects and surveyors in connection with the Greene family's enterprises as well as copies of additional maps of the area.
Arrangement
This collection consists of fifteen boxes divided into five series:
To view this collection, make an appointment at least five business days prior to your visit by contacting Ask an Archivist or calling (480) 965-4932. Appointments in the Wurzburger Reading Room at Hayden Library (rm. 138) on the Tempe campus are available Monday through Friday. Check the ASU Library Hours page for current availability.
Copyright
The Arizona Board of Regents retains copyright to this collection for and on behalf of the Arizona State University Library. Requests to publish, display, or redistribute information from this collection must be submitted via our online application.
Photographs, negatives, slides, videos, cassette tapes, compact discs, and film reels have been removed and cataloged as the Greene Family Photographs (CP SPC 331).
Access Terms
Personal Name(s)
Greene, Art (Arthur Hayward), 1895-1978.
Family Name(s)
Greene family.
Corporate Name(s)
Canyon Tours, Inc.
Geographic Name(s)
Arizona -- Maps.
Powell, Lake (Utah and Ariz.).
Wahweap Wilderness (Utah).
Subject(s)
Deer Valley Airport (Phoenix, Ariz.).
Family-owned business enterprises -- Arizona.
Glen Canyon Dam (Ariz.).
Glen Canyon National Recreation Area (Utah and Ariz.).
[Identification of item], Greene Family Collection, MSS-201, Arizona State University Library.
Provenance
The Greene Family Collection was received from Judi Greene White as documented in ACC# 1996-01771, ACC# 1997-01798, ACC# 1998-01937, ACC# 1998-01940, ACC# 1998-01940, ACC# 2002-02565, and ACC# 2004-03766.
