Hatch River Expeditions video collection

Collection

Identifier: A0529

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

The Hatch River Expeditions video collection (1923-1998) consists of films and videos that document Hatch river trips on the Green, Colorado, San Juan, Middle Fork of the Salmon, Selway, and other rivers, including some scenes of a 1956 river trip on the Indus River in Pakistan. The collection also contains films that document Hatch family history, including scenes in and around Vernal, Utah that depict family life, work, town scenes, hunting and fishing, skiing, and other family activities.

Dates

1923-1998

Creator

Hatch River Expeditions (Organization)

Conditions Governing Access

Materials must be used on-site; no use of original material, access copies will be made available for viewing. Five business days advanced notice required. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law, condition of the material, or by donor.

Organizational History

Robert Rafael "Bus" Hatch and his brothers Alton and Tom began boating in the Vernal, Utah, area in the late 1920s. They ran the Green River in 1931, the Green and Colorado through Cataract Canyon in 1933, and the Grand Canyon in 1934. In 1935-36, they ran the Middle Fork of the Salmon River in Idaho, as well as the Main Salmon. By the end of World War II, Bus Hatch in particular had become known as a river runner. With the controversy over the planned Echo Park Dam in Dinosaur National Monument in the late 1940s and early 1950s, many people turned to Bus Hatch and his sons, Don, Ted, and Frank, to take them down the Green and Yampa Rivers. During the controversy, Hatch River Expeditions outfitted river trips for both pro-dam and anti-dam groups, trips that often included over 100 people. This was the true genesis of Hatch River Expedtions. After the controversy, and through the 1960s, the name Hatch became synonymous with river running, especially in the western United States. By the end of the 20th century, Hatch had become one of the best-known river outfitters in existence, and there are now 3rd generation members of the Hatch family who are still in the river running business.

Extent

49 VHS : 12 VHS are duplicates; three 16mm film reels are duplicates of VHS tape item 19.

2 8mm film

2 Super 8mm film

3 16mm film

Language of Materials

English

Japanese

Additional Description

Abstract

The Hatch River Expeditions video collection (1923-1998) consists of movies documenting the Hatch family and Hatch River Expeditions river trips from the 1930s to the 1990s. Robert Rafael "Bus" Hatch and his family began guiding groups down the Green and Yampa Rivers in the mid 20th century, and their legacy is continued by the third generation Hatches still running their river running business.

Arrangement

The collection is arranged in two parts: the 1987 donation, and the 2006 addendum. The 1987 addendum contains five films on two VHS videocassettes, of which one is not a Hatch family or Hatch River Expeditions trip. The 2006 addendum is arranged as follows: films; videocassettes, depicting Hatch family, including home movies and family river trips; river trips that were filmed by friends and passengers on Hatch River Expeditions trips, including promotional films and copies of videos made by passengers and later sent to Hatch River Expeditions; and non-Hatch videos, which are either videos obtained by Meg Hatch while she was on the Utah Travel Council Board, or were sent to Hatch River Expeditions or Hatch family members. All are arranged chronologically within these subdivisions.

Related Materials

See also the Hatch River Expeditions photograph collection (P0781) and records (Accn 1325), the Charles Eggert photograph collection (P0766), audio-visual Collection (A0511) and records (Accn 1659), the Frederick Hoffman Wood photograph collection (P1037), and Dr. Robert Jerome Parsons photograph collection (P1236).