Death in Yellowstone: Accidents and Foolhardiness in the First National Park [Paperback]

Lee H. Whittlesey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1995

Intriguing stories of how people have died in Yellowstone warn about the many dangers that exist there and in wild areas in general.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Whittlesey believes that far too many people enter our national parks with "a false sense of security." He then goes on to chronicle the deaths in Yellowstone National Park of more than 250 people. Most of the deaths, Whittlesey argues, occurred because of human mistakes and "negligence." In this sense, the book is meant to teach and warn about the many dangers that exist in Yellowstone itself, and wild areas in general. The catalog of deaths includes all manner of dying at the hands of nature (hot springs, bears, bison, avalanches, exposure, and forest fires top the list), as well as deaths strictly caused by human actions (murders, suicides, carbon monoxide poisoning, car and plane accidents, and so forth). A little morbid, but strangely fascinating. Brian McCombie

Review

...one thing is certain: it is the most fascinating book ever written about Yellowstone Park and its environs. (Journal Of The West )

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Roberts Rinehart; Copyright 1995 edition (June 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1570980217
• ISBN-13: 978-1570980213
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 0.9 x 9.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (83 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #74,906 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #21 in Books > Travel > United States > Wyoming > Yellowstone
  • #57 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Biological Sciences > Animals > Wildlife
  • #85 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Sociology > Death

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

69 of 70 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Historical Account! August 23, 2000

By Woodworking Widow

Format:Paperback

Whenever I mention this book to anyone, they are horrified by the title. It is not a "Faces of Death" book of gore. Obviously, the book chronicles deaths within the Park and is therefore not exactly light reading. But, Mr. Whittlesley (the official NPS Yellowstone archivist) tells the stories of the deaths with a historian's tact. There are few - if any - people on earth that know as much about the park as Whittlesley. One version of his "Yellowstone Place Names" (the longer version of the one sold in tourist stores and on Amazon.com)is so comprehensive it is (only?) available on microfiche!

Having lived in the Park, I know it's a very different world. (The story noted by Rhonda, another reviewer, about the bison goring a car - a Lake Lodge employee's Geo Metro in 1991 - is actually quite true.) Many of the deaths are from things you might think of - like climbing falls, eating poisonous plants, and hot pot incidents. Even as I am writing this, another Old Faithful employee died yesterday (8/22/00) in the Park after falling into Cavern Spring in Lower Geyser basin (see Idaho Statesman, 8/23/00, p.2A). But, the book is also full of deaths of the kind you find everywhere else in the world - like heart attacks, suicide, murders (yes, several!), car accidents, plane crashes (six of them - one site of which I've visited - with 20 deaths!), etc. The earliest chronicled deaths are in 1839 and continue through 1994.

Some of the over 300 incidents are briefly related as the facts are slim. Others are told in great detail with quotes, newspaper stories, cemetery inscriptions and exact place names. The simple chronology takes up 5 pages, while the meat of the text takes 198 pages! If you are expecting John Grisham's spellbinding fiction and twists and conspiracy, then this book is not for you. If you want a very well told, fascinating historical look at Yellowstone from a different point of view, then this is the book for you.

36 of 36 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Interesting page turner with theme: "Don't Be Stupid" August 29, 1999

By The Wyoming Companion ([e-mail])

Format:Paperback

At first glance, it sounds like a morbid book. Two hundred seventy six pages about people who have died in various ways in Yellowstone National Park. In reality, it is a fascinating book with an underlying message of safety and caution in National Parks. You might expect a book which is written by an historian to have an academic tone and be full of footnotes and an extensive bibliography. "Death in Yellowstone" by Yellowstone National Park Historian, Lee H. Whittlesey, does have the footnotes and bibliography. It also reads like a Stephen King novel, drawing the reader to the next page. Whittlesey even used a King technique of quoting song lyrics or some other source to introduce his chapters. Even many of the footnotes and bibliography entries are annotated with additional, interesting information.

The book's subtitle, "Accidents and Foolhardiness in the First National Park", sets the tone. Nearly every chronicled death in the book really is due to carelessness on the part of the deceased; or on the part of someone else.

The historian's perspective gives Whittlesey the opportunity to dig into the archives of Yellowstone as well as newspaper accounts in cities in the area taking him (and the readers) back to the 1800's and the park's earliest deaths. For recent events he often spoke with "primary sources", witnesses and family members.

Each of the 25 chapters takes the reader to a different and bizarre way that death has occurred in Yellowstone National Park. The chapter titles, themselves, often give a light hearted and much needed break from the serious nature of the overall work. Chapter titles include: "I Think I Shall Never See --Yellowstone's Deaths from Falling Trees"; "Malice in Wonderland --Yellowstone Murders"; and "The Gloom of Earthquakes --Shaky Breaky Park".

The opening chapter deals with deaths by falling (or jumping) into hot springs and geysers. The first incident in the book sets the tone and the overall theme....."Don't do stupid things in Yellowstone". It is the 1981 account of David Allen Kirwan, who dove head first into the 202 degree water of Celestine Pool of the Lower Geyser Basin to save a friend's dog that had also jumped into the boiling water <---YOU DID read that correctly --a witness described Kirwan's dive as a flying, swimming pool type dive. Among his final words after his friends were able to pull him from the water....."That was a stupid thing I did".

In most instances, it was s "stupid thing" that caused a death in Yellowstone. Usually, it was because a visitor did not heed a warning, or made a conscious decision to ignore the warning. In "Death in Yellowstone", Whittlesey repeats those warnings...over and over again. He also explains in fairly graphic terms the consequences of ignoring them.

"Death in Yellowstone" may save lives. There are few history books, so entertaining and so engrossing that can claim that.

The Wyoming Companion

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Gotta Have for a Yellowstone Visit December 30, 2000

By J. S Thomas

Format:Paperback

Having visited the park i can see how foolhardy accidents happen but don't understand why they happen since all kind of warnings are given out by rangers when entering the park and sign posted with same messages. This book goes into as much detail as could be found about various deaths in the park, geyeser, drowning, bear, bison, hiking, murder, plane accidents etc.. Its strange to be looking at a particular geyeser or steaming pool to know someone died there and how and when it happened. To see a bison walking closely by and giving proper respect for the animal only to see a father trying to put their child on the bison for a picture (saw this myself). This book will give you a different perspective about the park and help to identifiy potential dangers for foolhardy behavior.