| Highlands Historic District | |
| Nrhp Type: | hd |
| Nocat: | yes |
| Coordinates: | 43.7089°N -110.7292°W |
| Added: | August 19, 1998 |
| Refnum: | 98001029 |
The Highlands Historic District in Grand Teton National Park is a former private inholding within the park boundary. The inholding began as a 1914 homestead belonging to Harry and Elizabeth Sensenbach, who began in the 1920s to supplement their income by catering to automobile-borne tourists. In 1946 the property was purchased by Charles Byron, Jeanne Jenkins and Gloria Jenkins Wardell, who expanded the accommodations by one or two cabins a year in a U-shaped layout around a central lodge. The lodge and cabins are constructed in a rustic log style, considered compatible with park architecture. The Highlands was neither an auto camp, which encouraged short stays, nor a dude ranch, which provided ranch-style activities. The Highlands encouraged stays of moderate length, providing a variety of relatively sedentary amenities.[1] [2] It was the last private-accommodation camp to be built in the park before the Mission 66 program created concessioner-operated facilities on public lands.[3]
The National Park Service acquired the property in 1972 and uses it to house seasonal employees. The acquisition allowed the Park Service to demolish most of the nearby Mages Ranch - Elbo Ranch property.[1] The Highlands was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 19, 1998.