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Show i! jrown's Park I Place tfo get away -even now it think, at one time outlaws on hack fled t0 the protection of fountains. On the Green River. t el lazily set a dry fly on the spot Jjerea fish just surfaced. There is no "ne in sight- v0 wonder outlaws sought Brown's unlefor protection from the law. The ; " ess in the small of my back was ntle reminder of the four hour ride ' , fer dirt roads to get to the robbers bideout. Suddenly a large trout strikes my fly and all day dreaming about outlaws abruptly ends. Brown's Park, as it is now called, addles the eastern boundary of Utah, the western boundary of Colorado and the southern border of Wyoming Parts lie in the three states. Fur trappers were initially attracted to the area in the 1820s. General William H. Ashley, leader of the trappers, trap-pers, is said to be one of the first to explore ex-plore the area in bull-boats made of buffalo hide. During its time, Brown's Park was visited by such legendary characters as Butch Cassidy, the Sundance Kid, Matt Warner and Ellsworth Lay. Remains of one of the centers of activity ac-tivity during the outlaw period are now being excavated by the Bureau of Land Management. . ' vr- -J. - ; " - 'z-;- , . - , ' t&Ls-' -.-- ----- S , , - . - . . -xr'l ') . -- ' t ' v..; - - - . . 1 Vy ' .; . v. . - -J " -, . . . ,;v ,-, ;V BROWNS PARK is exactly described by its ! original name "Browns Hole" as the area On the north bank of the river, the John Jarvie home and store are being uncovered, square meter by square meter. The excavation is a slow process, pro-cess, but the one full-time personnel and three volunteers have uncovered what they think are the walls of the buildings. They have also uncovered several old bottles of medicine, chocolate drops and some seeds. Jarvie built his home in 1878. He and his new bride lived liv-ed in a dugout made from railroad logs which washed down the river during a flood. They lived in the dugout until the store and log home were finished. A tough prospector, Jesse Ewing, is surrounded by mountains making access, ac-cess, even now, difficult. whose name is still attached to much of the area is buried just north of the Jarvie cabin. As the story goes, Ewing found life somewhat empty and decided to "go outside" for a wife. He returned to the area with a coupon woman, Madame Forrestall. The couple lived in one of Ewing's cabins on the Green River near the mouth of Red Creek opposite a ferry operated by the "Speckled Nigger." Nig-ger." All went along smoothly until a young and handsome outlaw named Duncan drifted to the hole after a shooting affair in Rock Springs, and boarded at Ewing's cabin. While Ewing Ew-ing prospected, Duncan loafed at the cabin. One morning Ewing supposedly supposed-ly left, but slipped back to watch developments from the vantage of a ledge of a rock just below. When the moment was right he reached for his knife, but Duncan, suspecting such a move was watching through a crack in the chinking. As Ewing's head appeared, ap-peared, Duncan fired with an old-fashioned, old-fashioned, heavy caliber rifle, striking the old prospector in the neck. Jarvie buried the prospector, ironically, behind his cabin next to a Mr. Robinson, who Ewing had killed in a mining squabble. In 1909 Jarvie was also murdered by two transients from Rock Springs, Wyo., who thought he had a large stash of money hidden in his store. Jarvie's body was placed in a boat and set adrift on the Green River. It was discovered at the Gates of Lodore and was buried in a cemetery there. The BLM plans to restore the Jarvie Jar-vie Store to much the same way it was in 1909. Also, a small museum has been.buil,t near the store in an oldslone building. The log structure, which was Jarvie's home, will be rebuilt to its ;nv ' -v.v-.V. -' ; .;vr. -.4. V c-., fc i : .... -.t- V . JT 's' ' 4-" . j - ' MARKED GRAVES behind the Jarvie Ranch are some of the outlaw history during the turn of the century in Brown's Park. original state, but the inside will be modernized for BLM use. The easiest access to Brown's Park is by airplane. There is a dirt landing strip, but if you don't have access to an airplane, you'll have to rough the 40-mile trip to the area from Crouse Canyon or from Ewing Canyon on the north. The next best access is rafting from Little Hole or below Flaming Gorge Dam which is a good day trip, but plan for two. Fishing along the 35 miles of Green River is excellent, but may be temperamental at times. There are also old copper mines, cabins and other areas which would interest in-terest the history buffs. The area is rich in history which provides pro-vides plenty of fuel for day dreaming, especially when that big t'-out gets away. ' Lvt y x ' ; , 3 s.- , ' . 1' 1 - ... :mM PIECES OF THE past array the old Jarvie Ranch in Browns Park as BLM officials seek to restore the old ranch house and store. |