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Pipe Spring National Monument is a fortified ranch and natural spring in the desert in northern Arizona. It’s surrounded by the Kaibab Paiute Indian Reservation and the nearest city is Fredonia. We visited on our way from Kanab to St. George, both in Utah.
History
The area around Pipe Spring has been an important place to hunt and raise crops for nearly 1,000 years. The Ancestral Puebloans and Kaibab Paiute people used the spring to raise crops and hunt animals. Later, in 1858, Pipe Spring received its modern name from Mormon missionaries.
In the early 1860s, Mormon settlers from St. George started a cattle ranching operation at the spring. After raids by Native American tribes in 1866, the ranchers built a fort between 1870 and 1872 called Winsor Castle. It was purchased by Brigham Young for the LDS Church in 1873.
In the 1880s and 90s, the fort served as an outpost for polygamist wives, and the LDS Church lost ownership in 1887 under the Edmunds-Tucker Act. In 1923, it was purchased by the National Park Service and became a national monument.
Museum
The site is entered through the Kaibab Band of Paiute Indians Visitor Center and Museum. There are exhibits about the history of the Kaibab Paiute people and the Mormon settlers in the area as well as a 25 minute film.
The Grounds
A path from the museum leads to Pipe Spring National Monument, passing a replica Kaibab Paiute village on the right. Just past the village is an orchard to the left and a garden to the right.
If you follow the path to the left past the orchard, there’s an audio station where you can listen to a story about the site. You’ll also pass two ponds fed by Pipe Spring that sit in front of Winsor Castle.
West Cabin
If you follow the path to the left of Winsor Castle, you’ll come to the West Cabin, which was used by cowboys. An audio station is just past the cabin.
From the West Cabin you can see a corral. There are also great views of the first telegraph wire to pass through Arizona and the Arizona Strip.
East Cabin
If you follow the path to the right of Winsor Castle, you’ll come to another corral and the East Cabin. The corral was filled with horses when I visited. A chicken coop sits behind the East Cabin. Another audio station is also there.
