The Teton County Historic Preservation Board has completed its latest survey of one of Jackson’s many historic structures. That analysis revealed that the Wort Cabin, a 570-square-foot log structure at 55 S. Glenwood Street, is still what it has always been.
“It was built as a commercial building in 1929 and continues in that use today,” said Michael Stern, board president of the Teton County Historic Preservation Board. “Not a lot of historic buildings that old have sort of a continuous use in one particular way.”
The 14-page survey of the Wort Cabin and its history doesn’t offer any protection for the historic structure. However, it might be enough to save the small, unassuming cabin if it’s ever threatened by the skyrocketing value of Jackson’s real estate.
Humble Origins
The Wort Cabin is one of several historic structures associated with the Wort Family. Their storied history goes back to when Charles Wort settled in Jackson Hole in 1894. The family is the namesake of the Wort Hotel, built on their property in Jackson.
By 1929, the Wort Family had prominently established themselves in Jackson’s business community. They operated the first concessions in what became Grand Teton National Park, hunting and outfitting in the Gros Ventre Mountains, and excursions at the Wort Lodge and Camp, now the Signal Mountain Lodge.
According to the survey, the Wort Cabin was built in August 1928 on one of the several lots the Worts owned. When they bought four acres in downtown Jackson in 1914, it only cost $25 per acre.
The modest structure has served many purposes during its 95-year history. It started as a bakery and became a short and long-term rental with multiple restaurants.
The Teton County Historic Preservation Board determined that the cabin has moved twice since its construction to accommodate bigger enterprises in the booming community. Today, it is the home of the Shari Brownfield Fine Art Gallery.
Rustic Rental
Kathy Boyer Sanford and her sister, Chris, owned the Wort Cabin until they sold the structure and the land in 2019. Their grandfather was John Wort, one of Charle’s three sons.
“That whole corner property was a Wort property,” Kathy told Cowboy State Daily. “I had my store, Lila Lou’s Jewelry, on the corner of Glenwood and Pearl starting in 2010 but then moved it back to the cabin in 2016.”
Kathy described the small Wort Cabin as “very rustic” and a nice place for a small business in Jackson.
“You could feel the history in there,” she said. “It had old windows and not much insulation — as stated, it was very rustic — but it was a charming space.”
While working at Lila Lou’s, Kathy learned tidbits about the cabin’s history from customers and passersby who shared their memories of what the Wort Cabin used to offer Jackson. They were all small businesses that either moved out as they expanded or fizzled out and moved on.
“People would stop in and tell me stories of times they rented the cabin,” she said. “It seemed to have been many different things – a flower shop, a video store, and much more.
Kathy recalled telling a local tour guide that the Wort Family no longer owned the Wort Cabin after the 2019 sale. It was a slightly melancholy moment that's stuck with her.
“I told a man giving walking tours for the Jackson Hole Historical Society that we had sold it, and he was very sad,” she said. “He liked knowing a family member still had it. It does make me feel sad that we sold the property.”
Often Overlooked
The history of the Wort Cabin was known to many but overlooked for much of its existence. Stern said surveying the cabin seemed obvious and long overdue.
“We’ve done several hundred surveys in Jackson and Teton County, but we discovered this one hadn’t been surveyed,” he said. “We knew it was a historic building, but we didn’t know much about it.”
Other buildings associated with the Wort Family on the growing list of surveys include the Wort Hotel and the Wort Family Home & Cabin in downtown Jackson, and the Wort-Stilson Pucci Cabin on the Gros Ventre Ranch, Jackson Hole’s last remaining outfitting structure.
The survey includes a collection of photographs showing the Wort Cabin and the growing community through the 20th Century. It’s never been a focal point of Jackson’s history, but a witness to its development from a tiny mountain town to one of the wealthiest locales in the nation.
In addition to preserving its history, the Teton County Historic Preservation Board added a plaque to the Wort Cabin “in recognition of maintaining and preserving a building 50 years or older.”
Kathy believes part of the reason the Wort Cabin has survived this long was her family’s determination to keep it as is. Her mother, Lila Lou Wort, owned the cabin and property until she died in 2005, leaving it largely unchanged for several years.
“My mother was not interested in developing the property,” she said. “I think that’s why it’s been preserved.”
Preservation Power
The Teton County Historic Preservation Board doesn’t have the power to save historic buildings from demolition, which has become increasingly common as the historic value of Wyoming’s buildings outpaces their real estate value.
Stern and the rest of the board hope that researching and documenting Jackson’s historic buildings will help the community and private owners assess their properties. The surveys don’t assign any monetary value to the properties, but they might be enough to make them priceless.
“This survey doesn't confer any preservation on the structure,” he said. “It just gives us more information that we can share with the owner and the community. It’s certainly our hope that these surveys increase advocacy and awareness, but our role is to serve as a historic resource for our community.”
While more luxury apartment complexes are erected in Jackson, Kathy hopes there will always be a place for the Wort Cabin. It’s a unique piece of history for her family and the Jackson community.
I hope it can be preserved for the future,” she said. “I hope that the long and varied stories about all of the different businesses and people come out. It has a very colorful and interesting history.”
Andrew Rossi can be reached at arossi@cowboystatedaily.com.
