Intermountain Histories

The History of Sundance

2024-03-03T03:43:20+00:00

Sundance, Utah is a small resort in the North Fork of Provo Canyon that has a rich history, particularly within its ownership. The area was originally populated by members of the Ute nation. It then passed into the hands of the Stewart family who arrived with the Latter-day Saints. Most recently it has been the site of a ski resort owned and operated by Hollywood actor Robert Redford.

Nestled in Provo Canyon, what is known today as Sundance has a rich history that reflects the different eras of Utah settlement. The land was occupied by the Ute nation beginning in 1,400 AD. Sundance was in an area where the Utes would visit in the summer to enjoy the cool mountain temperatures and lush forests filled with game. The arrival of Latter-day Saint pioneers pushed the Utes out of the area, leaving Sundance to be settled by the Stewart family. The Stewarts were Scottish immigrants that came to Utah in the mid-1800s. Andrew Jackson Stewart Jr. and his sons surveyed land in Provo Canyon and felt particularly drawn to the area. Through the Homestead Act of 1862, the Stewarts were each able to secure 160 acres of land within the canyon. Other families joined them, and by 1911, there were 2,200 acres of settled land in the North Fork of Provo Canyon that were then known as Stewart Flats. Stewart Flats began to be recognized for its recreational draw in the 1930s and 40s. In 1944, S. Paul Stewart and his brother and sister-in-law Ray and Ava Stewart opened up Timp Haven, a small ski area that operated for 20 years. Timp Haven was greeted by a noteworthy guest in the 1950s when Hollywood actor Robert Redford accidentally stumbled on the area due to a miscalculated turn on a road trip through the West. Redford purchased a sizable portion of the Stewart family land in 1969 and renamed the area Sundance, after his character in the western film Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. According to Redford, one of his major goals for Sundance was “to develop a little and preserve a great deal.” Instead of succumbing to overdevelopment with hotels and condominiums, Redford’s focus at Sundance was environmental conservation and the promotion of the arts. In 1978 Redford increased his Utah presence by founding the Sundance Film Festival, held annually in Park City, building on his Sundance legacy. In 2020, Redford sold 2,600 acres, including the Sundance Mountain Resort, to Broadreach Capital Partners and Cedar Capital Partners with an agreement that they would continue Sundance’s pursuit of environmental preservation and conscientious development.

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The Divorce of Miller, Marilyn, and the Misfits

2019-10-03T04:19:04+00:00

Playwright and Movie Star Make Washoe Courthouse History, Twice.

Many divorcee’s inaugural steps as single souls graced the Washoe Courthouse steps. One such divorcee was the famous playwright Arthur Miller. Miller had resided at the Pyramid Lake Guest Ranch in the spring of 1956. After his six weeks residency and subsequent divorce, he returned to film a movie he had written that was founded upon his own six-week stay as a divorcee.

Miller’s residency was fulfilled on May 31, 1956. Arthur Miller received his divorce from Mary Slattery Miller on June 12, 1956. He held mental cruelty as grounds for divorcing Mary, whom he’d met in college. The Washoe Courthouse divorce hearing lasted only five minutes. This speedy hearing would strike a strong comparison to another upcoming hearing for Miller. He had been subpoenaed to testify before the House un-American Activities Committee Washington D.C. the following week.

Amidst the height of the Red Scare, Miller had been accused of Communist leanings. His hearing before the House had been delayed to allow for Miller to stay in the state for the duration of his residency. After enduring both his marital and political hearings, Miller would marry star Marilyn Monroe.

Miller had two eras in Reno. The first occurred in 1956 when Miller obtained a divorce from his first wife. In Miller’s second act in Reno, he arrived with his new bride Marilyn. The two arrived to film Misfits in 1960. Misfits’ premise was inspired by his own residency on Pyramid Lake. The film combined Miller’s experience on a divorce ranch with a plot that featured his movie-star wife. The divorce ranch served as a token of Reno that was romanticized by many but brought to the big screen by Arthur Miller and Marilyn Monroe. Monroe operated as the leading lady and starred alongside Clark Gable. Gable was already a familiar face in Reno, beyond his national fame. He had stayed at the Flying M E Ranch and later fished with Sinatra on Nevadan lakes. The stars offered a film that brought the stories of Nevada’s many divorcees to light.

However, the pensive Miller who had created stories along the shores of Pyramid Lake would later discover a painful irony in his Misfits film. Miller and Monroe’s marriage would fall apart on the Misfits set. The film was released in 1961 and Marilyn’s role as a divorcee in Miller’s film would be realized that same year.

Within Miller’s own experience and his wife’s portrayal of Reno divorces, the infamous Washoe County Courthouse maintained a central symbolic presence. Miller’s first steps as an ex-husband were captured by local reporters. Then, a few years later, his new wife Monroe would stand on the very steps Washoe County Courthouse steps portraying the divorcee she would soon become.

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Sinatra’s Reno Residency

2019-10-01T20:23:37+00:00

Sinatra established residency at the Riverside Hotel where he sang as he filed for divorce from his first wife.

The Riverside Hotel became a temporary home to many as the divorce colony blossomed. Its walls evolved and expanded over the 20th century. In 1951, Frank Sinatra came to establish a Nevadan residence to divorce his first wife and sang at the Riverside Hotel during his stay.
Years before his 1951 divorcee debut in Reno, a twenty four year-old Frank and nineteen year-old Nancy were wed thousands of miles away from the Riverside Hotel. Young Frank and Nancy Sinatra were married in 1939 just as Frank was beginning to sing in a successful band.
The two were married for eleven years and had three children. Eventually Frank’s fame grew and rumors of infidelity spread. Over time, one extramarital relationship took on greater importance in Sinatra’s life than all the others. Sinatra sought a divorce from Nancy in 1950 per his lover Ava Gardner’s request. On February 14, 1950, Nancy and Frank announced their intent to divorce. His journey towards Reno began.
The once humble and now legendary Frank Sinatra arrived in Nevada on August 9, 1951. Newspapers across the country and around the world bore his name that day, announcing his movement towards divorce. While he established residency, his voice filled the Riverside Hotel for six weeks as he performed for visitors and residents. Frank did not come alone, however. On August 18th, a familiar brunette arrived at Lake Tahoe to stay with friends. From that day, Sinatra was accompanied by his new love interest and intended wife, Ava Gardner.
Complexity filled Sinatra’s time at the Riverside Hotel. His ties to the mob intensified as Lucky Luciano, a known mob member, visited Sinatra in the gambling town. Evidently, Sinatra mingled with the famous and the infamous while seeking the usual Reno cure. Clark Gable also visited Sinatra in August. This visit to the divorce haven spurred questions of Gable’s own intent to divorce.
Newspapers across the country noted Sinatra’s schedule while residing in the divorce capital. The Des Moines Tribune noted on August 24, that Ava Gardner, Clark Gable, and Frank Sinatra had plans to go on a fishing trip together.
Gable and Sinatra also spent time at the Riverside Casino. Their time was documented by newspapers that mentioned Gable’s presence and Sinatra’s lack of finances. At the time, Sinatra’s fame had been dwindling and rumors of Sinatra’s troubled financial situation mounted.
In an article documenting Gable’s presence, the Gazette also notes, “Sinatra is crooning for his supper at the Riverside.” Sinatra performed in Reno’s Riverside until August 22. Gardner and Sinatra relocated to Las Vegas for another singing engagement before he completed his six week residency at the end of September. He ultimately received his divorce in Las Vegas.
The day after Sinatra’s divorce, the duo applied for a marriage license. Some newspapers note that twenty-four hours had not passed from the time Sinatra was divorced from Nancy before applying for the marriage license with Gardner. Frank Sinatra and Ava Gardner left the Nevadan communities they’d called home to marry at Isaac Levy’s home in Pennsylvania on November 7, 1951.
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