2022 Stephen H. Hart Award Nominees

The following projects have been nominated by staff based on various criteria. Each of the projects have either received SHF grants, historic preservation tax credits, or collaboration with SHPO staff, and all are great examples of historic preservation or archaeology from across Colorado.

• Claim Building Field School: CSU Campus• Goodnight Barn: Pueblo• Haynie Site: Rural/Montezuma County• McElmo Flume: Montezuma County• Sullivan Gateway: Denver

Hart Award: 2020 Field School- Claim Building Project; Colorado State University

Awardees: Dr. Edward R. Henry, Ph.D. and Dr. Mary L. Van Buren, Ph.D., Department of Anthropology & Geology- Colorado State University

Summary: This archaeological excavation occurred in 2020 at a time when most, if not all, field schools had been cancelled due to covid restrictions. Rather than delay graduation for many students, CSU professors, Drs. Henry and Van Buren, arranged and executed a successful field school held on CSU campus. The site is recognized as the Claim Building and was selected based on the building’s ties to the founding of the campus.

Nomination: Colorado State University’s Department of Anthropology and Geography held an archaeological field school with approval from university and county health officials. They were required to conduct all portions of the class outside, and students, instructors, and visitors were required to always wear face coverings. Despite these limitations, under the instruction of Drs. Edward Henry and Mary Van Buren, field school students successfully identified and excavated portions of the Claim Building (a building connected to the founding of CSU) and excavated what was later identified as a large pit refilled with demolition debris from the deconstruction of the Claim Building and an attached greenhouse. The field school ran from June 29 to August 9.

During this time, students learned systematic archaeological survey using tape and hypotenuse grid systems and RTK GPS systems. The students expanded geophysical surveys of the lawn and revealed infrastructure related to a previous flagpole on campus.

The data collected from this project did not rewrite the Colorado state history books or those about Larimer County, Fort Collins, or even CSU itself, but the project provided a valuable opportunity for both the students and the community. Job readiness and industry skills are often overlooked in academia for “ground breaking” research. Many of the students needed this opportunity to complete degrees as they were juniors and seniors and looking for employment in the near future. Additionally, the field school provided an opportunity for the Department and the students to connect with the community. They held “public day” every Friday where the general public toured excavations and learned about the history of CSU’s campus.

Hart Award: Goodnight Barn

Awardees: City of Pueblo, Block by Block Construction, Form + Works Architects, Goodnight Barn Preservation Committee

Summary: The Goodnight Barn has been a part of Pueblo history since the 1870s. The site has received five State Historical Fund grants that assisted in acquisition of the building, planning and stabilization. The Goodnight Barn demonstrates innovative practices and the power of community and collaboration with public entities in order to have a successful project.

Nomination: The Goodnight Barn is a significant asset to the Pueblo region. Charles Goodnight arrived in Pueblo around 1870 and staked out land for his ranch called Rock Canyon Ranch. Even though Goodnight’s stay in Pueblo was brief, he left a part of his legacy in Colorado. Charles Goodnight is most famous for his part of establishing the historic Goodnight-Loving Trail that began in the Texas Panhandle and ended in Wyoming by making its way through Colorado, specifically Pueblo. After Goodnight left the ranch, the barn underwent changes in ownership but was always utilized as an agricultural resource.

Goodnight Barn is listed on the Colorado Endangered Places Program site as of 2002. At the time, the building was under threat of demolition due to the poor stabilization and lack of maintenance. The exterior walls are made from locally quarried stone that over time had began to deteriorate causing lack of stabilization and bowing of the walls. The interior consists of hand hewn timber frame to support the roof structure with pillars and beams. In order to save the building, the preservation team created an innovative cable and anchor system that was attached to the west wall and anchored on the east side of the building. Over time, the weights pulled the bowed wall back into position, which helped to solve one of many big stabilization issues of the building. With a total of $287,152 invested by the State Historical Fund, $530,000 by DOLA to match the $530,000 raised by the city and community brings total rehabilitation in over $1.3 million.

Now, the barn has been rejuvenated to serve another 100+ years to the Pueblo community and Colorado at large. It might not operate as a ranch and major cattle stop, but the Goodnight Barn will now serve as a tourist destination and a center for students and community members to hold special events. The Barn will also be used as an education and interpretation center to better understand Pueblo’s role in shaping the American West. This project was made possible by the city ownership, the large community support, and the highly skilled preservation team that worked together to ensure all work met the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for the Treatment of Historic Properties.

Hart Award: Haynie Site

Awardees: Crow Canyon Archaeological Center; Archaeological Conservancy

Summary: The Haynie site has two Chaco period great houses and several smaller houses. In the 1980s and 1990s private property owners excavated the site without modern methods. The site changed ownership to preservation minded owners in September 2015.

Nomination: This project launched the question as to whether this heavily impacted site held sufficient archaeological integrity? This question launched Crow Canyon Archaeological Center's work at the Haynie site. Crow Canyon Archaeological Center (CCAC) received a State Historical Fund grant in 2016 to assess if the site retained any intact archaeological deposits. Research confirmed that the site retained intact archaeological deposits with the potential to teach us more about the Ancestral Puebloans. CCAC staff used this information to designate the site as the first listed property on the Montezuma County Historic Register, as well as, listing on the National Register of Historic Places. CCAC received a 2017 State Historical Fund grant to do public archaeology at the site. The Archaeological Conservancy purchased the site with a 2019 State Historical Fund grant, preserving this nationally significant place in perpetuity for both research and public education.

Hart Award: McElmo Flume

Awardees: James Dietrich, Montezuma County; Susan Thomas, Trail of the Ancients; Linda A. Towle; Burt Ramsey, Ramco; Ron Anthony, Anthony & Associates; Carlo Citto, Atkinson-Noland & Associates; and Douglas Porter, Porter & Associates

Summary: The McElmo Creek Flume, located east of the City of Cortez on land owned by Montezuma County, is the only surviving flume of the original 104 flumes on the Montezuma Valley Irrigation system.

Nomination: Flume No. 6 on the Highline Lateral was constructed in 1892 and delivered water to the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe's reservoir north of Towaoc. In 2011, the McElmo Creek Flume was listed on Colorado Preservation Inc.'s Most Endangered Places List, and in 2012, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Flume has received four State Historical Fund grants, which resulted in the successful rehabilitation of this National Register listed property. The Flume now can be interpreted by the visiting public at a new stop on the Trail of the Ancients Scenic Byway.

Following successful completion of the four phases of work, the Flume received an award from the National Scenic Byway Foundation in 2020. The Trail of the Ancients was awarded a national Byway public-private partnership award for the new stop at the McElmo Creek Flume.

Hart Award: Sullivan Gateway

Awardees: City and County of Denver Parks & Recreation Department; Kristen Craig and Liz Hallas, Anderson Hallas Architects, PC; Rhona Maas and Bart Baker, Building Restoration Specialties, Inc.

Summary: Sullivan Gateway underwent a full restoration to return the gates to their original look. The Gateway is one of the components of Denver’s nationally recognized parkway and boulevard system, which George Kessler designed as part of his 1906 plan for Denver Parks and as part of the City Beautiful Movement that flourished during the turn of the 20th century. The Gateway is historically significant for its association

with the City Beautiful Movement and its associations with Colfax Avenue and East High School. Historically, Sullivan Gateway was a premier monument on Colfax Avenue that identified the grand entrance into City Park. This historic connection to the park continues today.

Nomination: This past year, the Denver Parks & Recreation Department (DPR) successfully completed the restoration of the Sullivan Gateway at the City Park Esplanade in front of East High School. The gateway consists of terra cotta walls and lion head fountains. The condition of the walls were extremely poor with holes, missing urns and benches, deteriorated mortar, spalling terra cotta, graffiti and paint covering numerous areas and weeds growing within and on top of the walls. It also suffered many years of vandalism. The condition was so poor that Colorado Preservations, Inc. listed it on its Most Endangered Places List in 2012.

Sullivan Gateway is a historic resource located on Colfax Avenue in front of historic East High School, serves as the gateway to City Park, and it now has the new Carla Madison Recreation Center next to it. The Gates illustrate the contrast of new and historic and the recent economic development that has been occurring in this area of Colfax. Its juxtaposition to these city resources illustrates the community impact and the community’s easy access to the gateway and Denver’s history.