EXHIBITS
Old Ephraim: The Legendary Grizzly of the Bear River Range: The Era of Old Ephraim and Frank Clark
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The Era of Old Ephraim and Frank Clark
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, many residents of Cache Valley depended on cattle and sheep for their livelihoods. Herders moved livestock to the lush grasses of the Bear River Range during the summer months, where a lack of restrictions (on sheep grazing in particular) caused problems for Cache Valley residents, herders, and wildlife alike. [1] From 1870 to 1900, herd size in Cache County increased from 3,167 to 85,817 and in Rich County from 503 to 390,771.[2] Many of these sheep grazed along the Logan River and its tributaries, fouling Logan’s primary source of water.[3] At the same time, the sheep decimated native grasses and shrubs, creating barren areas that could not recover. This left less vegetation for livestock and wildlife as the years went on.
Such overgrazing—combined with other environmental problems like deforestation and wildfires—prompted local demands for environmental protection of the Bear River Range. In 1903, a presidential decree created the Logan Forest Reserve, which became the Cache National Forest in 1908.[4] This allowed the forest to be managed in a way that balanced the needs of both residents and herders.
History of Grazing and Predator Control in Cache National Forest
Grizzly Bears in the Bear River Range
The dramatic influx of sheep in the Bear River Range caused much of the grizzly bears’ habitat to become overgrazed, but it simultaneously offered a tantalizing new source of food.[5] Because they are omnivores, plant sources are an important part of grizzly diets, and this resource suddenly became scarcer.[6] Additionally, grizzlies are opportunistic feeders, meaning they will feed on whatever food is available. Mostly defenseless sheep were an easy and alluring opportunity.[7] Some combination of these factors led a small portion of grizzlies to attack flocks, and those that killed once often continued to do so. Herders responded by hiring professional trappers, or, like Frank Clark, killing bears themselves, usually with no regard to which had killed livestock and which had not.[8]
Frank Clark (1879–1960)
Frank Clark was a sheepherder from Cherry Creek near Malad City, Idaho. He was co-owner of the Ward Clark Sheep Company, and his sheep grazed on the Cache National Forest during the summer months. Clark was fond of nature, but he killed bears and other predators when they preyed on his sheep. Stories say that Clark killed forty-three bears in thirty-four years on the range.[9]
