Historic Properties in Mesa County (August 2018) (The following are provided for informational purposes only) NATIONAL AND STATE REGISTER PROPERTIES Unincorporated Mesa County A. CLIFTON COMMUNITY CENTER AND CHURCH F Road & 1st Street (353 2nd Street), Clifton National Register 6/3/1982, 5ME.1180 This early Mesa County community center dates from 1920. The stuccoed building has a cross-gabled roof, is two stories in height, and includes a raised basement. Organizers of the church were committed to providing space for a variety of community events. Even though church membership was less than one hundred, the building could seat six hundred people within its main floor and balcony level. B. KETTLE-JENS HOUSE 498 32nd Rd., Clifton National Register 5/6/1983, 5ME.4518 Constructed in 1905, this 1½ story wood frame Queen Anne- style dwelling includes Shingle-style detailing. The asymmetrical building includes two porches, several gables, and a tower with a bell cast roof. Other local residences surviving from the period tend to be simple utilitarian structures devoid of architectural detailing. C. CROSS LAND & FRUIT COMPANY (Museum of Western Colorado) 3079 F Road (3073 F Road), Grand Junction vicinity National Register 3/28/1980, 5ME.298 The property includes numerous intact buildings and structures associated with early 20th century fruit production in the Grand Valley. Established in 1909 by a group headed by Walter B. Cross of Denver, apples and pears were the primary crop. The design of the large circa 1910 barn was adapted for the handling of large-scale fruit processing. While many local orchards averaged ten acres in size, the property encompassed 243 acres. Financial difficulties forced the sale of the land for taxes in 1923. Through a community fundraising campaign, the property was acquired by the Museum of Western Colorado in 1980 for operation as a living history farm. 1 Historic Properties in Mesa County (August 2018) D. FRUITA BRIDGE County Rd. 17.50, over Colorado River, Fruita vicinity National Register 2/4/1985, 5ME.4532 This three-span, pinned Parker through-truss was completed in 1907 and served the main highway south of Fruita until the road was realigned in 1970. Since then, the bridge’s beams and stringers have suffered fire damage, but the truss is still intact. It is one of the few spans left in the state associated with the engineer M. J. Patterson. (Listed on the National Register under the Highway Bridges in Colorado Multiple Property Submission.) E. WECKEL HOUSE 1620 Highway 6 & 50, Fruita vicinity State Register 3/13/1996, 5ME.7384 The 1908 Weckel House is an example of an early 20th century Mesa County farmhouse exhibiting the characteristics of the Edwardian Style. Much of the interior remains as built, and the integrity of the exterior has not been diminished by additions made to the rear of the house. F. DRIGGS MANSION 24505 State Highway 141, Gateway vicinity State Register 9/14/2005, 5ME.765 The Driggs Mansion is an important geographic landmark in rural Mesa County. While presently a ruin, enough of the 1918 building remains intact that its unusual application of indigenous materials is still visible along the Unaweep/Tabeguache Scenic and Historic Byway. The site is an evocative visual landmark for the local community as well as passersby. G. COATES CREEK SCHOOLHOUSE 3791 DS Rd., 16 miles west of Glade Park National Register 2/3/1993, 5ME.6985 Built in 1919, the school was located so close to the Colorado/Utah border that children from Utah often attended. It is Mesa County’s only surviving rural schoolhouse of log construction. (Listed on National Register under Rural School Buildings in Colorado Multiple Property Submission.) H. PIPE LINE SCHOOL (Glade Park Community Hall) 1521 S 16 ½ Road, Glade Park Vicinity State Register 5/14/1997, National Register 4/29/1999, 5ME.7362 Dating from 1922, Pipe Line School is Glade Park’s only intact example of a wood frame rural schoolhouse. The simple, hipped roof building reflects the commitment of early farming and ranching families to provide adequate educational facilities 2 Historic Properties in Mesa County (August 2018) for their children. Inside, the original folding partitions used to create two classrooms remain in place. The school closed in 1951, but the building remains in use as a community hall. (Listed on National Register under Rural School Buildings in Colorado Multiple Property Submission.) I. GRAND JUNCTION COUNTRY CLUB (Redlands Women’s Club) 2463 Broadway, Grand Junction vicinity (unincorporated) State Register 9/13/1995, 5ME.7370 Also known as the Redlands Women’s Club, the building has served as a gathering place for community groups and events for over sixty years. The 1920 clubhouse is an example of the relatively rare Mission style in the Grand Junction area. J. HURLBURT-KNOWLES HOUSE 1151 13 Rd., Loma vicinity State Register 8/9/2000, 5ME.500 The circa 1896 house was constructed by Frank Knowles for his brother-in-law, George Hurlburt. Hurlburt made his fortune through mining interests in Ouray County. Located at the head of Horsethief Canyon, the large two-story residence is much more sophisticated in appearance than ranch-related dwellings typical of the period. Other buildings associated with the ranching operation no longer remain. First floor walls are of locally quarried sandstone. Late Victorian architectural elements include its complex, steeply pitched roof; asymmetrical massing; oriel bays; and intricately patterned wood shingles. K. LOMA COMMUNITY HALL 1341 13 Rd. Loma State Register 7/13/1994, National Register 11/22/1995, 5ME.7055 The building is an intact example of a Works Progress Administration-constructed community hall built in 1938 for use by local participants in the Depression-era resettlement program. L. CONVICTS’ BREAD OVEN 46147 Colo. Hwy. 65, west of Molina National Register 12/31/1974, 5ME.300 Dating from 1911, the oven is the only remaining structure marking the existence of a camp for approximately thirty convicts who were involved in road building and maintenance in the area. The oven was built on a solid timber foundation, with cement forming the floor and rounded walls and roof. Measuring approximately seven feet in length and five feet in width, it resembles a typical Mexican adobe oven. 3 Historic Properties in Mesa County (August 2018) M. HARLOW GRAVESITE 869 Rapid Creek Rd., Palisade State Register 9/13/1995, 5ME.7367 The 1891 grave site is the only surviving property associated with "Judge" John Petal Harlow, an early settler of the Grand Valley area. Harlow planted the first peach trees in the area and was instrumental in developing irrigation practices that would impact the development of the Western Slope. N. COFFMAN HOUSE 4000 US Hwy. 50, Whitewater vicinity State Register 12/12/2001, 5ME.12464 Constructed in 1890, the two-story wood frame residence is a simple local expression of the Stick style, featuring unusual decorative gable trim and brackets highlighted with cut-out crescents and stars. Home to early settler William Coffman and his family, the house was located off Coffman Road at the western edge of Whitewater, a small town along the Gunnison River. Coffman established extensive orchards and a successful farming operation in the area. In 2000, the house was moved to a site approximately one mile to the northeast in order to prevent its destruction by an expanding gravel mine. 4 Historic Properties in Mesa County (August 2018) (The following are provided for informational purposes only) NATIONAL AND STATE REGISTER SITES Federal or State-owned, unincorporated Mesa County 1. COLORADO RIVER BRIDGE (CDOT) Interstate Hwy. 70 Frontage Road De Beque vicinity National Register 10/15/2002, 5ME.11803 Extending for 407 feet over the Colorado River, the 1945 steel rigid connected Parker through-truss structure features two 200- foot long spans. The bridge was designed by the Colorado Department of Highways, fabricated by Minneapolis-Moline Power Implement Company, and built by A.S. Horner. One of the first major post-World War II bridge projects undertaken by the state, the structure remains intact as a rare surviving example of what was a mainstay structural type utilized for vehicular bridge construction in Colorado. Listed on the National Register under Highway Bridges in Colorado Multiple Property Submission. 2. COLORADO NATIONAL MONUMENT VISITOR CENTER COMPLEX (NPS) Colorado National Monument, Fruita vicinity National Register 7/15/2003, 5ME.11658 The complex, which includes the Visitor Center, Canyon Rim Trail, and Bookcliff Shelter, was constructed between 1963 and 1965 as part of the National Park Service’s Mission 66 program and designed to highlight the spectacular surrounding scenery by placing the visitor in the middle. The trail leads up to the fan-like Bookcliff Shelter perched atop Wedding Canyon, providing visitors with an outdoor experience and an excellent view of the vistas and monoliths that comprise the monument. The building is also an excellent representation of the modern architecture that was starting to proliferate in the National Parks, using low, horizontal building profiles to blend with the landscape. 3. DEVILS KITCHEN PICNIC SHELTER (NPS) Colorado National Monument National Register 4/21/1994, 5ME.1173 Constructed in 1941 with Emergency Conservation Works funding, the Rustic-style shelter is significant for its association with the Civilian Conservation Corps and Works Progress Administration. Built of locally quarried sandstone to serve as a comfort station and picnic shelter, it is the only such structure in Colorado National Monument. Because of its size and unusual design, it is atypical when compared with picnic shelters found in other National Park Service properties. Listed under Colorado National Monument Multiple Property Submission. 5 Historic Properties in Mesa County (August 2018) 4. RIM ROCK DRIVE HISTORIC DISTRICT (NPS) Colorado National Monument National Register 4/21/1994, 5ME.5944 Constructed between 1931 and 1950, the district is significant for its role in the development of automobile access and tourism in Colorado National Monument and its contribution to the local economy during the Great Depression.