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"Uniquely American": The Great Northern Railway, The Blackfeet, And The Creation Of A National Identity In Glacier National Park, 1910-1935, Caitlin A. Carlson

Culminating Projects in History

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, upper-class urban Americans began to feel that the ills wrought by a modem society, including the influx of European immigrants and labor disputes at various mills and factories, necessitated a stronger symbol of true American cultural identity. These wealthy folks needed to be assured that they were the true Americans, while also asserting that the luxuries available to them did not diminish their rugged vitality. Louis W. Hill, the son of "Empire Builder" James J. Hill, tapped into this need when he created the Glacier Park Hotel Company, a subsidiary of the …