Brief by Central Staff
Preservation – September 2003 – Colorado Central Magazine –
The State of Colorado doesn’t have a lot of money to hand out these days (shorter hours at the courts, driver’s license offices closing, etc.), but the State Historical Fund still has money, since it’s financed by casino-style gambling in Cripple Creek, Central City, and Black Hawk.
Among those receiving grants this time around are the Buena Vista Heritage Museum, which got $93,740 for two projects in St. Elmo: the structural restoration of the old schoolhouse, and the structural rehabilitation of the Brown Cabin.
(Don’t ask us the difference between “restoration” and “rehabilitation.” We’ll try to find out sometime.)
The Beckwith Ranch in Custer County (the handsome red-roofed complex you pass on the way into Westcliffe from the north) got $133,275 for structural rehabilitation.
In Gunnison County, the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory got $98,989 for restoration of the Assay and Law Office in the old mining camp of Gothic — where the lab has made its headquarters for the past 75 years.
In La Garita, just outside Penitente Canyon in Saguache County, the Artes del Valley received $114,500 for restoring the Capilla de San Juan Bautista.
If you’re involved in some historic project, and you need some money, the deadline for the next grand round is Oct. 1, and you can reach the program at 303-866-2825, or on the web at www.coloradohistory-oahp.org.
