Grand Canyon watchtower a work of vision
Mary Colter's 70-foot-tall watchtower rises over the Grand Canyon, offering visitors a panoramic view of the walls plummeting a couple of thousand feet below and a broad perspective of the Colorado River. Colter was an architect and interior designer who spent her entire career working for the Fred Harvey Company. Her tower is considered one of her finest works. © 2011 Gallup Independent / Vida Volkert

By Vida Volkert
Staff writer

GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK — Mary Elizabeth Colter was in her early 60s when in 1931 she chartered a small plane and went in search of pueblo ruins to get the inspiration she needed to design an observation tower and visitor center on the south rim of the Grand Canyon.

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