William Wallace Bass

Bass was the first to settle at the canyon, forming a camp in 1884. From there, he began forming stage lines to his camp, first from Williams, then from Ash Fork. He was the trailblazer of tourism in the canyon and is the one to thank for many of the roads and trails still in use. His camp consisted of wooden floored tents with a main circus tent for food and entertainment. Before the introduction of the railroad, his guests would stay for weeks or months in order to justify the long, hard, trip they took to get there. In return for the arduous journey, they would get an incredibly in-depth guided tour of the west end of the canyon. Bass was responsible for constructing 50 miles in trails and almost 150 miles in roads. He even constructed a cable system that was used to cross the river. The park service ultimately tore this down in 1937. He was a self-taught all-inclusive historian of the Grand Canyon. A jack-of-all-trades, he installed a dark room below the rim for visiting photographers. He also helped form the Grand Canyon school in 1911. Bass was also the first to supply a reliable source of water in the canyon, constructing cisterns along trails that would collect rainwater and snowmelt. His holdings were eventually sold to the Santa Fe Land and Improvement Company in 1926, realizing that between the growing corporate tourism (Fred Harvey was designated main concessioner in the canyon) and his old age, he would not be able to compete. The properties were transferred to Fred Harvey in 1935, 2 years after Bass’ death, for $25,000. Bass remained good friends with the Havasupai, visiting them often, and advocating for their rights both in the canyon and in Washington. He was instrumental in constructing a school and post office in Supai.