Come and learn about the significance of the American Southwest in the early 20th century when national attention shifted to the canyons and deserts of the American Southwest. With the arrival of the railroad it eased access and increased interest in both the natural and human history of the Grand Canyon region. Learn how the efforts of William Haskell Simpson (representing the Railroad) and the Harvey Company to coordinate, sustain, and profit from American interest in the region by building and then promoting the El Tovar at the Grand Canyon in the early 20th Century. Author of a book on the settlement of southeast Kansas and multiple peer review articles on American History he is presenting the “The Selling of the Grand Canyon: the Santa Fe Railroad company, Harvey Company and the El Tovar Hotel”.
