At the Office of Archaeology & Historic Preservation and the State Historical Fund, we're excited about the projects we support.  Organizations around the state are working hard to preserve Colorado's historic buildings and sites, and now it’s your chance to read a selection of their stories.

	Bent Hinsdale Boulder Lake Broomfield Montezuma Delta Montrose Denver Phillips Douglas Routt Fremont San Juan Gunnison Statewide
Please note: The counties highlighted on this map only represent the sample of grants listed on this page, not all funded grants.  View a list of all funded grants. Can't find the grant you're looking for?  In fiscal year 2014, the State Historical Fund awarded grants in two rounds in October and April, respectively.  The following grants were awarded during the October 2013 grant round.  Click here for a list of grants awarded during the April 2013 grant round.

Bent County

Las Animas

U.S. Naval Hospital-Fort Lyon Veterans Administration Medical Center-Fort Lyon Correctional Facility
Grant Applicant Organization: Bent County
Fund: Survey and Planning
Grant Awarded: $105,000
Grant Number: 14-02-019

Since 1867, Fort Lyon in Bent County has served as a U.S. Army fort, a tuberculosis sanatorium, a neuropsychiatric facility, and a minimum security prison, which closed in 2011.  Last year, the Colorado State Legislature passed the Long Bill, which authorized Fort Lyon’s reuse as a rehabilitation center for the homeless.  Aiming to be effective stewards of the significant historic property, Bent County will use funding from the History Colorado State Historical Fund to create a Preservation Master Plan to identify potential additional uses for the complex and evaluate the integrity and significance of all structures, buildings, and objects on campus.  In partnership with the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless, Bent County is transforming Fort Lyon into not just a center for the homeless, but a self-supporting campus where those in need can find critical life skills and purpose.
Check out this and other Bent County National and State Register properties

Boulder County

Boulder

St. John's Episcopal Church
Grant Applicant Organization: St. John’s Episcopal Church
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $99,633
Grant Number: 14-02-028

Cracked masonry, sheering capstones, failing gutters, and antiquated wiring currently threaten the 111-year old St. John’s Episcopal Church that sits in downtown Boulder.  Featuring Gothic windows and crenellated parapet, the stately stone church has welcomed its congregation since 1873 but faces immediate dangers to the more than 2500 community members who use the building every month, as well as to the neighbors, pedestrians, and visitors to historic downtown Boulder.  Through a History Colorado State Historical Fund grant, St. Johns can continue to serve its century-old congregation.

Broomfield County

Broomfield

Broomfield Depot
Grant Applicant Organization: City and County of Broomfield
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $94,578
Grant Number: 14-02-006

In 1909, when the Broomfield Depot was built, you could board a train in Broomfield and travel to almost anywhere in the United States, Canada, or Mexico.  Though the height of its use as a depot lasted just sixteen years, the building remains an excellent example of an early twentieth-century live-in depot -- that is, a railroad depot with a kitchen, parlor, and bedrooms for travelers -- and was an important part of the area's development.  Today the building houses the Broomfield Depot Museum, which is in dire need of repair in order to appropriately house its artifact collection.  For example, the south-facing original wood paneled door has deteriorated to the point where daylight creeps through parts of the door panel.  This History Colorado State Historical Fund grant will fund window, door, siding, and trim rehabilitation to keep this rare Broomfield building extant and its collections protected.

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Delta County

Crawford

Crawford School-Crawford Town Hall and Community Center
Grant Applicant Organization: Town of Crawford
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $156,668
Grant Number: 14-02-007

First erected in 1906, the brown sandstone Crawford School was nearly wholly destroyed by a 1912 fire.  Rebuilt the following year, and augmented in the 1930s by a Works Progress Administration (WPA) project, the school served the community for the next fifty years until the Town considered demolition in 2008 when a lack of occupants and funding left the building unused.  Fortunately, the impassioned citizens of Crawford argued for its survival, citing it as the “heart and soul” of the community.  Today, with funding from the History Colorado State Historical Fund, the building will undergo roof stabilization and reshingling, upgrades to internal systems, improvements to energy efficiency, and restoration of historic features so that the Town may continue to provide a safe, functional, and attractive community center for Crawford and the surrounding area.
Check out this and other Delta County National and State Register properties

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Denver County

Denver

Pierce T. Smith House-The Old Smith Mansion-Smith Mansion
Grant Applicant Organization: The Denver Center for Crime Victims
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $139,460
Grant Number: 14-02-005

Originally built as a private residence for Pierce T. Smith, a dentist who moved to Denver in the 1880s, the Old Smith Mansion today houses the Denver Center for Crime Victims (DCCV), which has provided free services in 41 languages and dialects to more than 165,000 crime victims in the last 25 years. With funding from the History Colorado State Historical Fund, DCCV will repair the masonry foundation, which has faced rising damp, causing the lower courses of brick and mortar to deteriorate. This urgent project will prevent further structural damage to the building and permit DCCV to uphold its vital role in the community.
Check out this and other Denver County National and State Register properties

George W. Wyatt Elementary School-Hyde Park School
Grant Applicant Organization: Wyatt Academy
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $177,873
Grant Number: 14-02-008

Constructed in 1889, Denver’s Wyatt Academy is one of the few remaining examples of renowned Denver architect Robert Roeschlaub's school buildings.  With its large red brick arch, heavy masonry walls, hipped roofs, terra cotta embellishments, and grand three-story tower and adjacent turret, the building is an excellent example of the Richardsonian Romanesque style, but its distinctive and century-old masonry also requires considerable rehabilitation, as do the remaining original windows, which will be replaced with historically appropriate windows.  In addition to ensuring the building can continue to operate as a school, the project serves as an excellent case study of rehabilitation versus replacement of historic windows and will act as a catalyst for neighborhood revitalization.
Check out this and other Denver County National and State Register properties

Catherine Mullen Memorial Nurses Home
Grant Applicant Organization: Saint Joseph Hospital Foundation
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $200,000
Grant Number: 14-02-013

Denver’s visionary Art Deco architect Temple Buell knew how to leave his mark -- you can see it in the vertical red brick spandrels on the 1933 Catherine Mullen Memorial Nurses Home in Denver.  From a distance, the brick that creeps up the building and extends beyond the roofline almost resembles a rustic wheat tuft, evoking a regal feel, but without frivolity or ostentation -- a quality Buell mastered.  This distinctive architectural flair is only one reason the building is so significant to the city; today it’s known as the Mullen Building and is a part of St. Joseph’s Hospital, Denver’s oldest nonprofit community hospital.  With funding from the History Colorado State Historical Fund, St. Joseph’s will rehabilitate 72 of the 123 double-hung original wood windows that have deteriorated and pose potential safety hazards.

Bennett-Field House
Grant Applicant Organization: Open Door Ministries
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $143,436
Grant Number: 14-02-014

Built in 1905, the Neoclassical Revival Bennett-Field House in Denver today houses the Lighthouse Program, a boarding home for men in recovery, but the deteriorated historic entryway has suffered major moisture damage that affects the tile terrace, coffered ceiling, grand fluted columns, and decorative balustrade. Open Door Ministries will use History Colorado State Historical Fund grant dollars to rehabilitate the historic portico and correct the poor drainage system from the roof so that the entryway may be restored to its original appearance and further welcome those seeking comfort from the Lighthouse Program.
Check out this and other Denver County National and State Register properties

City and County of Denver Survey
Grant Applicant Organization: Historic Denver, Inc.
Fund: Survey and Planning
Grant Awarded: $104,305
Grant Number: 14-02-016

Despite the strong preservation presence and ethic in the city, only five percent of Denver's primary buildings have been comprehensively surveyed.  One of the most ambitious survey projects in the country, the Discover Denver program has worked since 2011 to develop a strategy and methodology to survey the city and is now ready for implementation.  With funding from the History Colorado State Historical Fund, Historic Denver, Inc. will first develop historic contexts and themes, such as The Instant City: The Gold Rush and Early Settlement, to categorize buildings during documentation before surveying approximately 4,000 properties, analyzing the findings, and then crowd-sourcing the data to allow any Denver resident to share information about a surveyed property.  This type of large-scale, modern survey both engages local residents in their neighborhoods and history and amasses survey information for students, researchers, the city planning department, and other interested parties to prepare for the city’s future and understand its past.

Union Station-Union Depot-Denver Union Terminal
Grant Applicant Organization: Historic Denver, Inc.
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $200,000
Grant Number: 14-02-021

When it was completed in 1881, Denver's Union Station was the largest structure in the West, measuring 504 ft long, 65 ft wide, and topped with a 128-ft tower.  But after the central block of the building was destroyed by an 1894 fire and a subsequent reconstruction was deemed “too small,” architects Aaron Grove and Thomas Walsh designed in 1914 a new central portion, featuring a distinctive wrought iron and glass canopy that will be restored to its original grandeur with funding from the History Colorado State Historical Fund.  When Union Station reopens in July 2014, Coloradans will celebrate the historic building -- complete with a restored canopy -- exactly 100 years after the opening of Grove and Walsh’s Beaux Arts masterpiece.
Check out this and other Denver County National and State Register properties

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Douglas County

Lone Tree

Schweiger Ranch-Happy Canyon Ranch (Chicken Coop, Corrals, Loafing Shed)
Grant Applicant Organization: Schweiger Ranch Foundation
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $198,245
Grant Number: 14-02-024

Established in 1872 by Austrian immigrant John Schweiger and his brother, Lone Tree’s secluded Schweiger Ranch is an excellent example of early farming properties in the region and includes a ranch house, granary, chicken coop, stable, bar, tractor shed, silo, cistern, historic fencing, corrals, and cattle loading chute -- most of which are intact.  With a grant from the History Colorado State Historical Fund, the Schweiger Ranch Foundation will restore the chicken coop and corrals, as well as reconstruct the historic loafing shed, to ready the property for interpretation and educational use.

Parker

Parker Consolidated School at the Mainstreet Center
Grant Applicant Organization: Town of Parker, Cultural Department
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $100,275
Grant Number: 14-02-029

Completed in 1915, the Parker Consolidated School Building brought in 38 students (a small number compared to today’s school populations!) of all grades from surrounding schools in Parker, Allison, and Plainfield, and today houses an affordable community children’s theater and dance program that serves as an incubator for a variety of arts and cultural organizations within the community. With funding from the History Colorado State Historical Fund, the Town of Parker, a committed steward of the beloved building, will restore historic windows and screens as well as the historic entrance and its character defining features so that the building may continue to serve the community while retaining its architectural and historic integrity.

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Fremont County

Cañon City

Powell House-St. Cloud-Canon Hotel-St. Cloud Hotel
Grant Applicant Organization: The Future of Yesterday Foundation
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $99,564
Grant Number: 14-02-033

One of the oldest hotels in the state, the 1890s St. Cloud Hotel in Cañon City was recently threatened with demolition before The Future of Yesterday Foundation formed after public outcry halted the razing.  As part of the Cañon City Downtown Historic District, the gorgeous Second Empire building is characterized by its mansard roof with dormer windows, segmental arched windows, and rough cut stones that mark the building’s edges.  With a grant from the History Colorado State Historical Fund, The Future of Yesterday Foundation will rehabilitate the roof of the deteriorated but revered building that was once a home-away-from-home for the rich movie-making industry of Cañon City’s history.

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Gunnison County

Gunnison

West Gunnison School-8th Street School
Grant Applicant Organization: Gunnison-Hinsdale Youth Services, Inc. dba Gunnison County Partners
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $139,252
Grant Number: 14-02-003

Built in late 1800s, the 8th Street School is known as the oldest standing public building in Gunnison, but has been uninhabited since the 1960s.  Gunnison County Partners, a nonprofit youth mentoring organization, purchased the property in March 2010 with plans to transform the building into a community center.  Local fundraising efforts combined with support from the History Colorado State Historical Fund have funded exterior wall stabilization and roof repair.  This grant will fund the final phase of building rehabilitation to include installing attic insulation and a mechanical system as well as repairing the ceiling, windows, and doors, allowing the iconic Gunnison building to uphold its legacy as a center for youth education and community support.

Ohio City

Ohio City Town Hall
Grant Applicant Organization: Gunnison County, dba Gunnison Board County Commissioners
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $119,450
Grant Number: 14-02-026

Though it name implies otherwise, the Ohio City Town Hall originally housed the Baer Boss Mercantile and subsequently a restaurant before the Town of Ohio City bought the property for use as a town hall in 1914. The late Victorian vernacular building features a false wood front, vertical board-and-batten siding, and a unique corner entrance. Today the building is a vibrant community center where Ohio City residents host potlucks, fundraisers, meetings, and cultural events, but the building is in dire need of foundation stabilization, adequate interior lighting, and additional structural support for the roof, all of which will be funded through the History Colorado State Historical Fund. Additionally, the grant will fund the removal of interior non-historic columns to keep the building in line with its historic character.

Hinsdale County

Lake City

Hinsdale County Courthouse
Grant Applicant Organization: Hinsdale County Government
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $109,275
Grant Number: 14-02-025

As the oldest courthouse in the state of Colorado that continues to function for its original purpose, the 1877 Hinsdale County Courthouse is a beloved community building with a legacy of esteemed visitors, including Susan B. Anthony, who addressed miners in 1877 on the importance of women’s suffrage, and Alfred Packer, the notorious Colorado cannibal who was convicted at the courthouse in 1883.  Today the building houses county services during business hours, but moonlights as a featured stop during Lake City’s Summer Ghost Tours, when visitors are invited into the reportedly haunted upstairs courtroom.  But because of its continuous, century-long use, the building is need of repair; with funding from the History Colorado State Historical Fund, Hinsdale County will stabilize the foundation and rehabilitate the exterior.

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Lake County

Leadville

Matchless Mine-Matchless No. 6 (Powder Magazine)
Grant Applicant Organization: The National Mining Hall of Fame & Museum
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $59,229
Grant Number: 14-02-017

The Matchless Mine in Leadville is famously known as the residence of silver magnate Horace Tabor, once the wealthiest man in the state, and his wife Elizabeth “Baby Doe” Tabor. Widely recognized as an important Colorado landmark, the site is owned and maintained by the National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum (NMHFM), but even its stewards could not protect the Powder Magazine (where the mine’s explosives were stored) from damage after the hills that surrounds its three sides encroached on the building and compromised its stability, leaving it at risk of collapse. With funding from the History Colorado State Historical Fund, the NMHFM will dismantle the magazine, install a concrete retaining wall, and reconstruct it to ensure that the Matchless Mine site remains a comprehensive interpretation of the Tabor’s story and legacy.
Check out this and other Lake County National and State Register properties

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Montezuma County

Cortez vicinity

Montezuma Valley Irrigation Company Flume No. 6-McElmo Creek Flume-Flume #6
Grant Applicant Organization: Montezuma County
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $123,840
Grant Number: 14-02-022

Known first as simply Flume #6, the McElmo Creek Flume is the only remaining flume of the 104 originally constructed during the 1890s to irrigate Montezuma County. Today it serves as a reminder of this impressive engineering and irrigation feat, which was instrumental in developing southwestern Colorado. Through a grant from the History Colorado State Historical Fund, Montezuma County will repair the steel and concrete substructure of the flume so this historic National Register-listed structure may be interpreted for the visiting public at a new roadside pullout on the Trail of the Ancients Scenic Byway.
Check out this and other Montezuma County National and State Register properties

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Montrose County

Uravan

The Hanging Flume
Grant Applicant Organization: Western Colorado Interpretive Association, dba Interpretive Association of Western Colorado
Fund: Survey and Planning
Grant Awarded: $121,265
Grant Number: 14-02-036

A recipient of a 2014 Stephen H. Hart Award, the Western Colorado Interpretive Association (WCIA) will continue its innovative work with the Hanging Flume in Montrose County.  Constructed between 1889 and 1891 with 1.8 million feet of lumber, the flume was built along the canyon wall to carry eight million gallons of water per day to placer gold -- hence the moniker “hanging.”  At 150 feet above the Dolores River, the Hanging Flume is the only surviving flume of its kind in the United States.  With funding from the State Historical Fund, the WCIA will continue preservation efforts on the ten mile long flume for additional investigative work to better understand the diverse construction, innovative engineering, and significance so that preservationists and the public alike may more holistically and comprehensively understand mining history and innovation in Colorado.
Check out this and other Montrose County National and State Register properties

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Phillips County

Holyoke

Phillips County Courthouse
Grant Applicant Organization: Phillips County
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $110,472
Grant Number: 14-02-002

Constructed by the Public Works Administration (PWA) in 1936, the Phillips County Courthouse is the only surviving PWA project and the most intact New Deal project in Phillips County.  In an effort to render the building more energy efficient, Phillips County will use History Colorado State Historical Fund grant funding to rehabilitate and restore exterior and storm windows.  Additionally, the grant will fund repointing of the chimney, where the mortar has deteriorated significantly in recent years.  This preservation project will ensure the longevity of this public building, which still houses a variety of services for Phillips County citizens.
Check out this and other Phillips County National and State Register properties

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Routt County

Steamboat Springs

Chamber of Commerce Building-Butterfly Building
Grant Applicant Organization: City of Steamboat Springs
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $9,558
Grant Number: 14-02-009

At just 53 years old, the Butterfly Building in Steamboat Springs is an excellent local example of Usonian Modern Movement architecture, featuring horizontal lines, an inverted gable roof, minimalist design, and use of natural materials that fuse with its surroundings.  Demonstrating its value for all eras of its history, the City of Steamboat Springs will use funding from the History Colorado State Historical Fund to address critical needs including replacement and repair of the roof, installation of a perimeter drain tile system, and framing and wall finishes so that this locally rare mid-century gem can continue to house its current and eighteen-year tenant, the Yampa Valley Land Trust, who is equally committed to preserving and maintaining this modern relic in perpetuity.
Check out this and other Routt County National and State Register properties

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San Juan County

Silverton

San Juan County Hospital-Miner's Union Hospital
Grant Applicant Organization: San Juan County
Fund: Acquisition and Development
Grant Awarded: $200,000
Grant Number: 14-02-001

Nestled in the Silverton National Historic Landmark, the 1908 Miner’s Hospital in San Juan County was designed by one of Colorado’s most renowned architects, F. E. Edbrooke, whose firm designed the Colorado State Capitol and the Brown Palace Hotel.  For more than a century, the Italianate-influenced building has been the only public health facility in Silverton.  With funding from the History Colorado State Historical Fund, San Juan County will install a small elevator, reconfigure restrooms to comply with ADA standards, restore door and window sashes, and repair brick jambs, the roof, decorative eave brackets, and the cupola.
Check out the Silverton Historic District and other San Juan County National and State Register properties

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Statewide

Colorado's Midcentury Schools
Grant Applicant Organization: University of Colorado Denver
Fund: Survey and Planning
Grant Awarded: $50,456
Grant Number: 14-02-011

More than thirty percent of Colorado's public school buildings were built between 1946 and 1970, yet little research has been done thus far on the state’s mid-century schools, which are often perceived as too young for and unworthy of preservation.  From “friendly”-designed elementary schools that emphasized color and child-scale to the flexibility and informality of the movable furniture and walls frequently found on sprawling modern secondary school campuses, the designs of these schools reflect the social, cultural, demographic, and economic transformations in Colorado throughout the twentieth century.  With funding from the History Colorado State Historical Fund, the University of Colorado Denver will document Colorado’s mid-century schools and demonstrate their significance through technical tools, such as a National Register Multiple Property Documentation Form, and public-friendly educational materials, such as a visual guide to mid-century architecture and local outreach presentations.

Our Shared Historical Landscapes
Grant Applicant Organization: Crow Canyon Archaeological Center
Fund: Education
Grant Awarded: $127,594
Grant Number: 14-02-035

A long-time partner of the History Colorado State Historical Fund, Crow Canyon Archaeological Center has been awarded funding to develop a plan for place- and community-based K-12 curriculum that will partner schools with community organizations. Through classroom, in the field, and online activities, this modern program will adhere to best practices in place-based education, STEAM education, experiential learning, and online curriculum to engage Colorado students in the stories of the unique places, cultures, and histories that make the state so significant.

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