Brief by Central Staff
Historic preservation – November 2002 – Colorado Central Magazine
We’re not sure whether this is good news or bad news, but in either case, no sites in Central Colorado or the San Luis Valley appear on the 2002 list of Colorado’s Most Endangered Places, issued recently by Colorado Preservation Inc.
It might be good news because we’re good at preserving our past, or bad news because our economy is so depressed that there’s not enough construction or development to put any old structures at risk.
The closest endangered place on the new list is the Foxton Post Office in Jefferson county, along the old Denver, South Park & Pacific roadbed. The log building served as a depot until 1927, as a post office until 1990, and as a residence until 1996. It is now owned by the Denver Water Board, which is considering demolition or relocation.
It’s in the North Fork National Historic District on County Road 96, which means there are other historic structures nearby: South Platte Hotel, Blue Jay Inn, and the J.W. Green Mercantile Store. It’s also an area we’ve never visited, something we’ll try to cure soon.
To move on, the next closest endangered place is the Goodnight Barn in Pueblo County, at the north terminus of the famous Goodnight-Loving Cattle Trail. The barn, the only surviving structure from the ranch, is endangered because Texans want to buy it and move it to the National Ranching Heritage Center in Lubbock.
Other endangered places include the Bradford Perley House in Jefferson County, Grant Avenue Church in Denver, the old railroad roundhouse in Hugo, a 1907 truss bridge in Mesa County, and the Windsor Mill in Weld County. For more information, you can write Colorado Preservation at 1900 Wazee St. Suite 360, Denver 80202; call 303-893-4260; or log on to www.coloradopreservation.org .