| Notes |
- . William Preston Redmond was born in 1873 in Newport, Rhode Island, the son of William Redmond, Jr. & Mary Lawrence Griffin Redmond.
His only sibling, Julia Lawrence Redmond, died at the age of 6 & when his mother died in 1887, he was placed in a boarding school, the Lawrenceville Academy.
His desire was to go west, however, so at the age of 18 he obtained a job as a helper with the U.S. Geological Survey & went to Montana. In May 1893, he purchased supplies in Bozeman, MT & traveled to Jackson Hole, Wyoming, filing for a homestead patent after May 1894 when he reached the required age of 21.
On December 1, 1897, he married Ida Byrd Simpson, the "vivacious" daughter of John Porter & Margaret Susan Sullivan Simpson. Together, they developed his homestead as the Spring Gulch Ranch. In 1916, he purchased the Red Rock Ranch from his brother-in-law, who had homesteaded it & ran it as a dude ranch until 1929. He & Ida continued to manage it for a few years for the new owner, after which they moved to the Aspen Ranch in Kelly, WY, which is now a part of Teton National Park. He was prominent in the cattle business & became the first Commissioner & Chairman of the Board of Teton County.
Until he & Ida had their family, he was the only living descendant (great grandson) of Captain James Lawrence, who, with his dying words during the War of 1812 battle between his ship the 'Chesapeake' & the English ship 'Shannon', gave the Navy its motto, 'Don't Give Up the Ship'.
. 1919 Apr 11, Friday. Steel Shoes for Elk, Jackson's Hole Stockman Has New Theory for Preservation: W. P. Redmond, a prominent stockman of the Jackson's hole country, has advanced a new theory regarding the preservation of the herds of elk. Calling attention to the conditions in the valley in the spring to the year when the melting show covers the grown with slush & water, Mr. Redmond argues that, living under these conditions, the elks' feet become tender, making it almost impossible from them to leave the valley to seek new feed.
As a remedy for this, he suggests that the government provide the elk with good steel shoes, erecting a corral & well equipped shop on the federal ranch east of Jackson.
Ref: Wyoming State Tribune, Cheyenne, WY.
. 1919 Apr 12 - Would Shoe Elk - W. P. Redmond has suggested that the government provide steel shoes for the several thousand elk in the Jackson Hole country. That is laudable, but we rise to enquire who is going to shoe the elk?
Ref: Wyoming State Tribune, Cheyenne, WY.
. 1938 Jun 24 - Funeral Services for W P Redmond Friday Afternoon, on Jun 24, well known Jackson Hole pioneer who passed away suddenly early morning following an operation Holy Cross hospital, Salt Lake city. Services will be held at St. John's Episcopal church.
WPR was born at Newport, May 19 1873, After his graduation fro Lawrenceville Academy, NY, he went to Montana & the Yellowstone National Park geological survey, which which he was connected for several years.
. 1892 Jackson Hole, Wyoming where he took up a ranch on the Buffalo Fork of Snake River. Later he was one of the first settlers in Spring Gulch, northwest of Jackson town, Here he was engaged in the cattle business.
. purchased Red Rock Ranch on Crystal Creek, which he operated in connection with cattle holdings, as a Dude Ranch.
. Purchased a large ranch in the Bid Hole Basin, near Wisdom, Montana & moved his cattle to that point. This ranch is being operated by his only son Lawrence.
. His present ranch holdings in Jackson Hole are on Ditch Reek, near Kelly Wyoming.
His industry & good management of his properties always made his operations successful. Likewise he contributed to the general public welfare.
. His only official capacity was first commissioner & chairman of board of Benton Co., Wyo. Mr. Rdemond was a 'thoro going' rancher, but always abreast of the latest developments in the industry. He was a believer in modern methods; progressive & enterprising character.
. 1899 Dec 1 he was united in marriage with Ida B Simpson, daughter of Margaret L & John P Simpson, pioneers of the valley & l owners of a large part of Jackson.
. Their 3 children: LARRY Lawrence, of Wisdom, Montana,
Gertrude M Caine, Yosemite Park,California, &
Dorothy Hubbard, resides on Red Rock Ranch Wyo., All during with 4 grandchildren.
. Mr Redmond was a direct descendant, great grandchild of Capt. Lawrence, US Naval hero. Being a perfect gentleman, liberal in his thought & always interested in the development of Jackson Hole.
Ref: Jackson Hole Courier, Wyo, pub. 1938 Jun 23.
Research & transcriptions by PJ Ahlberg. Thank you. - - -
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1873 - 1938 (65 years)