W W W. D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA N A . C O M
81
"the ranger staff will be made up entirely of men," she wrote
presciently. And this was indeed true. With Albright's retire-
ment as Superintendent in 1933 came the end of the promo-
tion of women to the status of Park Rangers. One official at
the time stated that it was crucial for Park Service employees
to be seen as "the embodiment of Kit Carson, Buffalo Bill,"
and "Daniel Boone", not "Pansy pickers and butterfly chasers"
— a statement which would have horrified Marguerite.
Five years before Albright's retirement, Marguerite mar-
ried one of her many suitors: fellow Mammoth Hot Springs
Ranger, Everett LeRoy (Ben) Arnold. Once again she showed
her independence by eschewing a white dress in favor of "a
blue gown" with "a corsage of roses." Marguerite, like all
women of the time, was not allowed to keep her full-time posi-
tion once she was married, and she reverted to being a seasonal
employee. She wrote: "I love the work of the rangers, and if I
were a boy, I would make the park service my life's work. It was
born in me, I know it."
e couple had a son, of which there is very little known,
and for the next quarter of a century Peg and Ben carried on
their tireless work in Yellowstone sharing its magnificence with
all who visited. Marguerite died on May 18, 1952 at the age of
fifty-one and in one eulogy she was referred to as "the breath
of Yellowstone" — a reference to her intimate association with
the Park. is was the woman who one night was taken over by
"some primitive instinct of loneliness" which made her throw
back her head and howl. She wrote: "My efforts were rewarded
… I called again and another group joined the first and this
time the echoes chased each other around the hills for nearly
two minutes before they all died away and quiet regained."
Marguerite Lindsley's echo is still felt today by all the
women who work for the Park Service and those who enjoy
the wildness that is Yellowstone, a wildness cherished and
preserved by great women like her.
With the sale or purchase of your home,
5% of net commissions go to local animal
shelters in Montana.
cell 406.220.2013
pam@smalldogrealty.com
smalldogrealty.com
facebook.com/SmallDogRealty
Marguerite in a more
comfortable outfit.
