Pearl sold the land for Pearl Lake and much of the surrounding area to the Forest Service after the estate was settled and, as a result, Pearl Lake was built in 1962. As an enticement for the settlement, which was seen as a turning point in shifting the land into primarily recreational use, the government promised to name the lake after the seller, Pearl Hartt (69).It bears mentioning that Pearl had become an expert fisherwoman during her many summers at Hahn’s Peak and she went on to catch the largest fish of her lifetime at Pearl Lake just a few months before her death at age 93.
M. Pearl Hartt died in 1972, with the home at Pearl Lake listed as her primary asset (70). Various family retained the “headquarters” until the mid 1980’s, when it was sold to a private individual. The area that had been sold to the Forest Service previously was upgraded to a State Recreation Area and later to a State Park, after Pearl’s death. The acreage that once was home to vast herds of sheep is now the playground for the hundreds of tourists who vacation at Pearl Lake, Steamboat Lake and surrounding wilderness areas each year.
I would end by saying that, as the youngest granddaughter of Minnie Pearl and John Kelly Hartt, when I venture from Denver to the mountains each summer to visit “Grandma’s Lake”, I sometimes close my eyes and imagine what the fields must have looked and sounded like filled with thousands of bleating Cow Creek Sheep and Pioneer Sheep. This lake is named after a true gem: A gem named Pearl Hartt, after all. (end)
UPDATED ENDING: I am now retired from nursing and have an art business called Art from the Hartt. It is my art that has drawn my back into the history of Pearl Lake. Well, and my special needs rescue dogs who I tent camp with at Pearl almost every summer. Catch my travel blog posts for updates on my travel! ~ Cathy Hartt
Family Feuds and Financial Controversies: The Legacy of J.K. Hartt’s Estate in Wyoming
Exploring the History of Pearl Lake State Park: A Journey Back in Time: Chapter Index
- 1. Introduction: the History of Pearl Lake State Park in Routt County
- 2. The Beginning of the Legacy: Go West, John Kelly Hartt
- 3. The Beginning History of Cow Creek and Pioneer Sheep Companies in Wyoming
- 4. Colorado Cattlemen vs. Cow Creek Sheep: The 1903 Stampede
- 5. A Bride From New Brunswick: John Kelly Hartt Marries M. Pearl Hartt
- 6. Sir, They Shot Wilkes Last Night: Life in the Wild West
- 7. Taking the Rap: The Minister’s Son Escapes to Mexico
- 8. The 1910s Tax Dispute: Wyoming Sheep vs. Colorado Cattlemen
- 9. Hartt Family and Sheep Companies at Hahn’s Peak: A Historic Legacy
- 10. Sheep On God’s Mountain: Grassroots Issues
- 11. Hartt’s Business Ventures Expansion in Rawlins | Sheep Business Development
- 12. Family Feuds and Financial Controversies: The Legacy of J.K. Hartt’s Estate in Wyoming
- 13. Pearl Hartt: An Ending Tribute to the Legacy of Pearl Lake’s Namesake
All content in the Exploring the History of Pearl Lake State Park: A Journey Back in Time, including all subsections, are written by Cathy Hartt, granddaughter of Pearl and John Kelly Hartt. Original article written in 2001 with revisions through 2024. Please request written permission for reprints by emailing the author.
Pearl Lake State Park History 