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Verkamp's at the Grand Canyon.

The Verkamp's building and Visitor Center on the South rim of Grand Canyon National Park. From the National Park Service website..."John Verkamp headed to the developing South Rim in 1898. He set up a tent and sold souvenirs to the few people who made the long stagecoach trip to the rim. Not happy with the volume of business, at the end of the summer he sold his inventory to one of the hotel operators and went back to Flagstaff.

Development of the South Rim boomed with the completion of the railroad spur in 1901. Verkamp returned to the South Rim in 1905 and constructed the current building with supplies shipped in from Los Angeles. He opened his business early in 1906.

For decades the Verkamp family operated the Verkamp's store as a concession permitted by the National Park Service. When their contract last came up for renewal, the Verkamps chose not to compete for a new one. The National Park Service purchased the building and opened it in November 2008 as a visitor center and Grand Canyon Association bookstore."

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© Adam Schallau, All Rights Reserved
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Grand Canyon Train & Historic Buildings
The Verkamp's building and Visitor Center on the South rim of Grand Canyon National Park. From the National Park Service website..."John Verkamp headed to the developing South Rim in 1898. He set up a tent and sold souvenirs to the few people who made the long stagecoach trip to the rim. Not happy with the volume of business, at the end of the summer he sold his inventory to one of the hotel operators and went back to Flagstaff.<br /> <br /> Development of the South Rim boomed with the completion of the railroad spur in 1901. Verkamp returned to the South Rim in 1905 and constructed the current building with supplies shipped in from Los Angeles. He opened his business early in 1906.<br /> <br /> For decades the Verkamp family operated the Verkamp's store as a concession permitted by the National Park Service. When their contract last came up for renewal, the Verkamps chose not to compete for a new one. The National Park Service purchased the building and opened it in November 2008 as a visitor center and Grand Canyon Association bookstore."