Unsurveyed land and uninviting settlers kept a mountain park nearly uninhabited.

Evidence

The park is unsurveyed, and the huge tract of mountainous country beyond is almost altogether unexplored. Elk hunters occasionally come up and camp out here; but the two settlers, who, however, are only squatters, for various reasons are not disposed to encourage such visitors. — Isabella L. Bird, A Lady’s Life in the Rocky Mountains, 129

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s interest in landscapes not yet mapped or claimed — the ‘blank space on the map’ as a lived condition rather than a metaphor. — connects to: The parks are claimed by wildlife in the absence of settlers — Isabella L. Bird, A Lady’s Life in the Rocky Mountains, 97; Natives were rightful occupants but lacked power to sell their land. — Supreme Court of the United States (Marshall Court, 1823), Johnson & Graham’s Lessee v. M’Intosh,…, 169
• SEED: Essay angle: what it means to live somewhere officially unmeasured, and why the few residents preferred no company.

Broader Connections

• Natives were rightful occupants but lacked power to sell their land. #complicates (0.85) — Supreme Court of the United States (Marshall Court, 1823), Johnson & Graham’s Lessee v. M’Intosh,…, 169