From the living room of Emery and Ellsworth Kolb’s studio, I saw the floor
of the Grand Canyon nearly a mile below. The adventurous brothers built
their home and studio on cliffs overlooking the Grand Canyon, and what a
view they had. The original structure, completed in 1904, had no plans.
Emery married Blanche Bender in 1905. Ellsworth lived with the couple in
the cliffside dwelling at the head of Bright Angel Trail until retiring to
California.
A picture taken in 1909 shows Emery and Blanche’s baby daughter, Edith,
carried about the canyon in a box tied on a mule. Blanche died in 1960,
after fifty-five years of marriage. Emery lived at Kolb Studio until his death
at age 95 in 1976. The home on the south rim is maintained by the Grand
Canyon Association and is a museum of the Kolb brother’s adventures in
the Grand Canyon. Unfortunately, many who come to the Grand Canyon
miss the opportunity to see this house with a view.