THE PASSING OF A PIONEER
by
Lynn Harrison

Friends of Mesa Verde National Park, and old timers in the surrounding regions, heard with deep regret of the death of Mr. Charles C. Mason, on May 20, 1936, at his home in Rignall, Washington, Mr. Mason was one of the few surviving discoverers of the cliff dwellings of the Mesa Verde. He was a brother-in-law of the Wetherill brothers and was with them on the trip that resulted in the discovery of the greatest of all cliff dwellings, Cliff Palace, in December, 1888.

The discovery came as the result of a trip the boys had made in search of cattle that were going wild. Charlie Mason and Richard Wetherill happened to be riding together on this particular day. As they rode up to the edge of a canyon, Richard, who was in the lead, suddenly turned and exclaimed

"My God, Charlie, look at that!"

In the opposite wall of the canyon was a tremendous cave, that sheltered the ruined walls and towers of an ancient, stone city. The boys entered the cave, and because of its fancied resemblance to the medieval strongholds of which they had read, they decided later to call the ruin Cliff Palace. In the years that followed the discovery the boys spent much of their time searching for ruins, and they discovered and entered almost every cliff dwelling in the Mesa Verde.

Mr. Mason last visited Mesa Verde in 1935. Despite his 74 years he was very active and he remembered well the days of discovery.

"We had heard of Cliff Palace before we saw it," Mr. Mason said. "A Ute Indian, named Acowitz, had told us about it and we had always hoped to find it. The Utes were afraid of the ruins because of the spirits of the old people that they believed were in them. If we wanted to keep the Utes out of our camp we just put a skull up on a stick and they wouldn't come near."

"Hunting cattle in those days was no easy job," Mr. Mason added. "They were as wild as deer and the country was rough. Once we spent a week chasing them and all we got back to town was an old cow and her calf. We shot lots of them like deer and packed the meat out."

Of the six men who discovered the Mesa Verde ruins: Charlie Mason, and Richard, Alfred, John, Clayton and Wynn Wetherill, three are still living. Alfred Wetherill lives at Sand Springs, Okla., Wynn Wetherill at Farmington, New Mexico, and John Wetherill at Kayenta, Arizona.