National Park Service Cultural Landscapes Inventory Grant-Kohrs
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National Park Service Cultural Landscapes Inventory 2007 Grant-Kohrs Ranch NHS Landscape Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site Table of Contents Inventory Unit Summary & Site Plan Concurrence Status Geographic Information and Location Map Management Information National Register Information Chronology & Physical History Analysis & Evaluation of Integrity Condition Treatment Bibliography & Supplemental Information Grant-Kohrs Ranch NHS Landscape Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site Inventory Unit Summary & Site Plan Inventory Summary The Cultural Landscapes Inventory Overview: CLI General Information: Purpose and Goals of the CLI The Cultural Landscapes Inventory (CLI), a comprehensive inventory of all cultural landscapes in the national park system, is one of the most ambitious initiatives of the National Park Service (NPS) Park Cultural Landscapes Program. The CLI is an evaluated inventory of all landscapes having historical significance that are listed on or eligible for listing on the National Register of Historic Places, or are otherwise managed as cultural resources through a public planning process and in which the NPS has or plans to acquire any legal interest. The CLI identifies and documents each landscape’s location, size, physical development, condition, landscape characteristics, character-defining features, as well as other valuable information useful to park management. Cultural landscapes become approved CLIs when concurrence with the findings is obtained from the park superintendent and all required data fields are entered into a national database. In addition, for landscapes that are not currently listed on the National Register and/or do not have adequate documentation, concurrence is required from the State Historic Preservation Officer or the Keeper of the National Register. The CLI, like the List of Classified Structures, assists the NPS in its efforts to fulfill the identification and management requirements associated with Section 110(a) of the National Historic Preservation Act, National Park Service Management Policies (2006), and Director’s Order #28: Cultural Resource Management. Since launching the CLI nationwide, the NPS, in response to the Government Performance and Results Act (GPRA), is required to report information that respond to NPS strategic plan accomplishments. Two GPRA goals are associated with the CLI: bringing certified cultural landscapes into good condition (Goal 1a7) and increasing the number of CLI records that have complete, accurate, and reliable information (Goal 1b2B). Scope of the CLI The information contained within the CLI is gathered from existing secondary sources found in park libraries and archives and at NPS regional offices and centers, as well as through on-site reconnaissance of the existing landscape. The baseline information collected provides a comprehensive look at the historical development and significance of the landscape, placing it in context of the site’s overall significance. Documentation and analysis of the existing landscape identifies character-defining characteristics and features, and allows for an evaluation of the landscape’s overall integrity and an assessment of the landscape’s overall condition. The CLI also provides an illustrative site plan that indicates major features within the inventory unit. Unlike cultural landscape reports, the CLI does not provide management recommendations or Cultural Landscapes Inventory Page 1 of 165 Grant-Kohrs Ranch NHS Landscape Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site treatment guidelines for the cultural landscape. Inventory Unit Description: The Grant-Kohrs Ranch NHS Landscape is located in Powell County, Montana. John Grant established the ranch in 1862 and Conrad Kohrs operated the ranch from 1866-1920. Grant-Kohrs Ranch is an outstanding representation of the days of the open range cattle industry in the American West during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Grant’s and Kohrs’ dominance of the regional beef market demonstrated the possibilities available to entrepreneurs on the developing frontier, and the ability to run cattle over a virtual empire of open and free grassland. While the current boundaries of the site encompass approximately 1,618 acres, this is only a fraction of what was once a much larger ranch. During the 1890s, the ranch extended over 27,000 acres, with feed, water, and grazing rights over ten million acres of public land that spanned across Montana, parts of Utah, Idaho, Wyoming, Colorado, and the Canadian province of Alberta, Saskatchewan. The Home Ranch, a term that historically defined the Grant-Kohrs ranch home and building complex and its adjacent lands, extended beyond the current boundary to the east approximately 1.75 miles and west from one to five miles to reach grazing leases on state lands and the Deer Lodge National Forest. Other holdings in the Deer Lodge Valley included Dog Creek Pasture (9,129 acres) and Humber Ranch (1,160 acres) to the northeast, and the Upper Ranch (also known as Nick Bielenberg place, 4,800 acres) to the southeast. The Grant-Kohrs Ranch NHS encompasses both the Grant-Kohrs Ranch home and building complex as well as the Warren Hereford Ranch and residence. Operated by Conrad Warren from 1929-1982, the Grant-Kohrs Ranch/Warren Ranch, which has been nominated to the National Register of Historic Places, represents the modernization of cattle ranching on the Great Plains of the American West, specifically in the era that began in the early 20th century and which marked the close of the open range. Conrad Warren, the grandson of Conrad Kohrs, moved to his grandfather’s former ranch in 1929. In 1932 Warren assumed management of the Conrad Kohrs Company Ranch, and transformed the relatively small financial and physical remnants of his grandfather’s once vast cattle empire into a modern cattle breeding and sales complex. Warren ran the ranch for over 50 years. Altogether, the Grant-Kohrs Ranch NHS represents changes in agriculture, and the continuum of cattle ranching from the days of the open range into the modern era. Its landscape encompasses the cultural and physical resources that help interpret the story of continuity of ownership and the evolution of western cattle ranching operations throughout the 19th and 20th centuries. This CLI boundary conforms to the official boundaries of the Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site. While the park has identified a number of important areas within the Grant-Kohrs Ranch, JMA defined a number of component landscapes discussed in the 2004 CLR. These areas are primarily the result of design, construction, and agricultural/grazing practices under Kohrs/Bielenberg and Warren. For the purposes of this CLI, these component landscapes are as follows: •Home Ranch Complex: This area includes all landscape features associated with the core complex of the Grant-Kohrs Ranch. It is bounded by the railroad corridor on the east, the riparian corridor of the Clark Fork River on the west, and consists of the Lower Yards, Lower House Yards, Bunkhouse Yards, Cultural Landscapes Inventory Page 2 of 165 Grant-Kohrs Ranch NHS Landscape Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site Johnson Creek Field, West Corrals, and West Feedlots. •East Feed Lot/Warren Hereford Ranch: This area consists of the area east of the railroad corridor, which was developed by Con Warren. It contains the land bordered by the main entry road on the south, the park boundary on the east, the rail corridor on the west, and the south edge of Front Field on the north; •Grant-Kohrs Residence: This consists of the features contained with the domestic landscape immediately surrounding the ranch home built by John Grant, and later, Conrad Kohrs; •Warren Residence: This consists of the features contained with the domestic landscape immediately surrounding the home built by Conrad Warren; •Pasture/Hay Field: This area includes the irrigated and low-lying lands bordering the Clark Fork riparian corridor. It consists of Stuart Field, the Lower Yard Fields, the North Meadows, L-Barn Fields, Western Hay Fields, Olson Fields, as well as the Front Field located to the north of the East Feed Lot. •Upland Pasture: This area includes the land west of the Westside Ditch, and includes Big Gulch, Little Gulch, and Taylor Field, as well as the ranges and hilltops in between. While this area contains both hay fields and pasture land, it is considered a separate component landscape because of its relative sense of isolation from the rest of the ranch. •Riparian Area/Woodland: This area consists of the riparian woodlands found along the Clark Fork River corridor, Johnson Creek, Cottonwood Creek, and the Olson property along the park’s northern boundary. •Railroad Bed & Barrow Pit/Wetland: This area consists of the linear railroad corridor and utility lines associated with it. It also includes the depressed wetland areas (barrow pits) bordering the railroad corridor. •Development Zone: This area contains the Visitor Center building, restrooms, curatorial building, and visitor parking lot. A portion of Johnson Creek comprises the southern boundary of this zone (CLR 1.13). This CLI finds that the Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site retains historic integrity. Overall, the condition of the inventory unit is good. Cultural Landscapes Inventory Page 3 of 165 Grant-Kohrs Ranch NHS Landscape Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site Site Plan The IU boundary is the same as that for the Grant-Kohrs Ranch National Historic Site. It includes 9 component landscapes. Source: John