Bighorn Canyon from controversial dam to national treasure

How Yellowtail Dam, Bighorn Canyon and the Cal S. Taggart Visitor Center changed the Big Horn Basin

Today it is difficult to imagine the Big Horn Basin without the Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area.

Each year hundreds of thousands of visitors come to enjoy boating, fishing, hiking, wildlife viewing and some of the most spectacular scenery in Wyoming and Montana. The recreation area encompasses more than 120,000 acres surrounding the 71-mile-long Big Horn Lake, a reservoir that stretches through one of the deepest and most dramatic canyons in the Rocky Mountains.

But 60 years ago none of that was guaranteed.

The creation of Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area began with one of the most controversial public works projects ever undertaken in the region: the construction of Yellowtail Dam.

Long before there was a lake, marina, campground or visitor center, there was a canyon.

For thousands of years the towering limestone walls of Big Horn Canyon served as part of the homeland of the Crow people, known as the Apsáalooke. Archaeological evidence shows human occupation dating back thousands of years. The canyon provided water, wildlife, shelter and travel routes through an otherwise rugged landscape.

When the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1851 established Crow territory, the canyon sat near the heart of a reservation that stretched across millions of acres. Although later treaties dramatically reduced Crow lands, Big Horn Canyon remained one of the most culturally important places in Crow country.

Everything changed as World War II was ending.

In 1944 Congress approved the Pick-Sloan Flood Control Act, an ambitious plan to build dams throughout the Missouri River Basin. Federal planners eventually identified the Big Horn River as a prime location for a large dam that could provide flood control, irrigation storage and hydroelectric power.

The proposal immediately generated controversy.

Much of the land needed for the project belonged to the Crow Tribe. Tribal leaders strongly opposed the plan, arguing that the canyon was sacred ground and that the federal government was once again taking tribal lands for public projects.

Leading that opposition was Robert Yellowtail, one of the most influential Crow leaders of the 20th century. Yellowtail fought the proposal for years, objecting both to the loss of tribal lands and to the compensation being offered by the federal government.

Negotiations became lengthy and contentious. Eventually the federal government acquired approximately 12,000 acres of Crow land for the project at a cost of about $5 million.

Ironically, the massive dam eventually built across the river was named in honor of the very man who had fought against its construction.

Completed in 1966, Yellowtail Dam rose 525 feet above the river and transformed the landscape forever. Behind it formed Big Horn Lake, a reservoir stretching 71 miles through Wyoming and Montana.

Even before the reservoir filled, however, federal officials began to see something more than a dam.

They saw a park.

As early as 1962, planners were discussing the creation of a “Big Horn Canyon National Recreation Area.” Newspaper reports from the time envisioned marinas, campgrounds, access roads and recreational facilities stretching along the new reservoir.

The proposal was ambitious. Early plans called for nearly 98,000 acres to be included in the recreation area, with development costs estimated at more than $7 million.

Officials recognized that the canyon itself was the attraction.

The towering walls rose as much as 2,000 feet above the river. The rugged landscape offered exceptional boating, fishing, hunting, wildlife viewing and sightseeing opportunities. Federal planners believed the area could become one of the premier outdoor destinations in the Rocky Mountain West.

Congress agreed.

On Oct. 15, 1966, Congress officially established Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area. The new unit of the National Park Service would preserve the canyon’s scenic, historic and recreational resources while providing public access to the newly created reservoir.

Development occurred gradually during the next decade as roads, campgrounds, boat launches and visitor facilities were constructed.

One of the most important projects was the South District Visitor Center near Lovell.

The facility was envisioned as much more than a simple information center. Built during the energy-conscious years following the 1973 oil embargo, it became a national experiment in solar technology.

When the building opened 50 years ago in 1976, it was promoted as the first National Park Service visitor center in the United States heated and cooled by solar power.

The project was remarkably ambitious for its time.

Sixty solar panels covering approximately 2,500 square feet collected energy from the sun. A large underground “pebble bed” containing about 20 tons of river gravel stored heat for later use. The building could even provide solar-powered cooling during summer months.

Perhaps the most recognizable feature was the large pond south of the building.

The pond was not merely decorative. Engineers designed it to reflect sunlight onto the solar collectors, increasing the efficiency of the heating system by an estimated 15 percent.

The visitor center itself was impressive. It contained nearly 9,000 square feet on the main floor, another 6,000 square feet in the basement, more than $100,000 in monitoring equipment, 8½ tons of copper, 29 automatic dampers and one of the most sophisticated energy-management systems found anywhere in the country.

Outside, crews planted more than 7,000 ground-cover plants, 2,000 shrubs and 185 trees. Hundreds of tons of rock were used in the landscaping.

Federal officials viewed the project as a model for the future.

At a time when most Americans had never seen a solar panel, visitors to Lovell could tour a building demonstrating how solar energy might someday heat and cool homes, businesses and public buildings.

For the visitor center’s 30th anniversary in 2006, the facility was officially named the Cal S. Taggart Visitor Center in honor of one of the Big Horn Basin’s most dedicated civic leaders. A former mayor of Lovell and Wyoming state senator, Taggart spent decades promoting Big Horn County, Bighorn Canyon, and economic development throughout the region. His vision and advocacy
helped transform Bighorn Canyon from a reservoir project into one of Wyoming’s premier recreation destinations. 

And now, 50 years after its opening, the Cal S. Taggart Visitor Center stands as a reminder of how dramatically the region has changed. What began as a controversial dam project eventually evolved into one of Wyoming’s most important recreational resources. The canyon that once divided people through debates over land, water and development has become a place that brings people together.

Built at the dawn of the modern technology revolution, the visitor center was decades ahead of its time. While many of its original solar components have been replaced or upgraded over the years, the building helped pioneer concepts in both passive and active solar heating long before renewable energy became commonplace. The center demonstrated that the sun could do more than warm the Wyoming landscape, it could help power the future.

Today, with a beautifully redesigned fishing pond, new landscaping and continued improvements throughout the recreation area, Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area and the Cal S. Taggart Visitor Center are ready to welcome a new generation of visitors.

The debates surrounding Yellowtail Dam have not been forgotten. Yet the creation of Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area ensured that the canyon’s remarkable scenery, wildlife, history and recreational opportunities would be preserved and shared with future generations.

Half a century after the visitor center first opened its doors, the vision that seemed so ambitious in the 1960s has become reality. The park that almost wasn’t has become one of the Big Horn Basin’s greatest treasures.