By most accounts, “Aunt” Molly (Mary Ann Wiltbank Crosby Butler) – daughter of Ellis and Hannah Wiltbank – originally arrived in what was then known as The Arizona Territories by covered wagon when she was just 6 years old. According to records, her parents were to later settle the family permanently in Lee Valley (now known as Greer) in 1894.   One of nine Wiltbank children, Aunt Molly was married to Lorenzo Crosby in 1896. She would later return to Greer in 1902 with her three children – Hannah, George and Lester – while husband Lorenzo was away on an LDS mission. Hannah and George would both achieve literary fame as the main characters in James Willard Schultz’s The Great Apache Forest – a widely read adventure story set in the White Mountains at the turn of the century. At the time of Lorenzo’s mission, Molly kept herself busied raising the children, running a small store, tending crops and working her cattle.  Tragically,Molly’s husband, Lorenzo, would suffer an untimely death at the hands of unidentified gunman while returning by train from his LDS mission in 1904. Some speculated he was shot by members of the Smith Gang of Missouri – with whom he had a run-in at the East Fork Ranch – although opinions at the time fueled rumors of another nature.

A mother of three, Molly remarried John Butler of Greer and by 1908 they laid the ground work for the first Butler Lodge. Originally, the lodge was a place where hunters, fishermen and visitors to Greer could come stay for free – although guests would routinely share in daily chores to maintain the fledgling facility. It was Molly’s daughter Hannah who finally mustered the courage to eventually start charging guests 25 cents per meal.

Over the years The Butler Lodge grew steadily, room by room – building by building to include the Square House, Log House, Long House, and Butler Lodge. Three structures – The Square House, Long House and Log House (Now The Bluebird Library) – exist to this day. In that time, the guest list at the Butler Lodge grew to include such famous Americans as Presidents Herbert Hoover and Teddy Roosevelt, author Zane Grey and legendary movie star John Wayne who was a frequent visitor over the years.  John Butler – the epitome of the western frontiersman – often arranged hunting and fishing trips for these and other guests of the lodge. His easy going and entertaining demeanor made him a highly sought after guide and favorite character of Greer. Molly, along with her children, relatives and a parade of local hands, commanded the lodge in a kindly yet strict manner placing the needs of her guests first and foremost. Visitors in her day were treated to home cooked meals from scratch. Local produce and game, along with handmade butter, cheeses and jams were the highlight of food fare at the lodge. 20-30 guests and 70-100 meals a day was not uncommon at the lodge and many of the recipes that made Molly’s famous over the years are still in use here today.

The lodge and the Butlers continued to flourish, garnering themselves an irrefutable reputation as the most hospitable respite on the mountain. Sadly, John Butler passed away at the age of 54. Now, at having lost a second husband, Aunt Molly was heard to have said, “I’ll bury you all,” over John’s casket, yet she never shed a tear in public. To be certain, Molly Crosby Butler was cut from unusually tough cloth and thus continued on with the support of her children until her own death in 1964 at age 87.

After Molly’s passing, her daughter Hannah made plans, with her husband Rue, to demolish the old Butler home and rebuild a new structure to better accommodate the visitors who continued to migrate to Greer each season. Built over the site of the original Butler home, today’s Molly Butler Lodge guards the hallowed ground where Greer’s history took shape. As Arizona’s oldest continually operated lodge, Molly’s legend lives on – some even say that John and Molly still roam the rooms of the Long House late at night keeping a watchful eye on their valued friends and guests.