Cunningham Cabin!

What Is the Cunningham Cabin?

This was the original double pen log cabin of John P. Cunningham’s Bar Flying U Ranch and the oldest structure in Grand Teton National Park!

What Makes It Historical?

John Pierce Cunningham arrived in Jackson Hole in 1885, one of the region’s first homesteaders, and after meeting his wife, Maggie, in 1888, built a cabin to start a ranch! This particular type of cabin is a spectacular example of eastern frontier architecture making its way all the way out to Wyoming! Once established as a rancher, Mr. Cunningham also served as game warden and justice of the peace, while Maggie served as postmaster! As the ranch expanded, this cabin became a barn and blacksmith shop, where two horse thieves hid out in 1899 while the Cunninghams weren’t home, and a shootout with a posse ensued!

In 1909, Mr. Cunningham made an odd swap with Jackson Hotel owner, J.P. Nelson: his ranch for the hotel, an arrangement which lasted 5 years before Mr. Cunningham missed ranch life. So the two swapped back, and Mr. Cunningham picked up the new Bar Flying U brand instead of his old JP, now too similar to J.P. Nelson!

World War I was tough on ranchers here, with falling beef prices amid an already tough drought! In 1927, Mr. Cunningham and his fellow ranchers, Struthers Burt and Josiah Ferrin, drafted a petition for the federal government to manage the land and convinced 97 of their neighbors to sign! They ended up selling to the Snake River Land Company instead, secretly funded by J.D. Rockefeller, and because of that secrecy, those 35,000 acres sat in limbo until 1943 when they became part of Jackson Hole National Monument then expanded Grand Teton National Park in 1950! The Cunninghams, meanwhile, had left for Victor, Idaho back in 1928!

How Can I #HelpTheHelpers?

Volunteer at Grand Teton National Park!
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Be a responsible visitor! Please respect the signs and pathways, and treat all structures and artifacts with respect. They’ve endured a lot to survive into the present. They’ll need our help to make it into the future!