Movin’ to the High Country
In 1933, the Civilian Conservation Corps built a U.S. Forest Service ranger station near Bridgeport, California. In 1962, the service moved it to Nevada’s Reese River Valley. In 2008, the building was relocated to Bend, Oregon—and in July, the renovated station reopened there as part of the High Desert Museum.
The museum’s Curator of Western History Bob Boyd and volunteer Les Joslin, who actually worked in the station in 1962, led the effort. Other folks provided free work on the structure. Businesses and Forest Service retirees also donated materials, equipment and 1940s-era artifacts. The move and renovation cost about $25,000. Professional estimates had put the price tag at $100,000.
The High Desert Ranger Station tells the story of the Forest Service and its contributions out West, which goes way beyond prevention of forest fires. Rangers manage herds of mustangs, oversee grazing allotments to cattle ranches and create campgrounds.
541-382-4754 • HighDesertMuseum.org
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