News Release Media Contact: Tim Mikulski, Manager of Public Affairs 202.588.6083, [email protected] National Trust for Historic Preservation Names Colorado’s Boggsville Historic Site a National Treasure 1860s Trading Village Tied to the Sand Creek Massacre Provides Important Links to Multicultural Assimilation on the Frontier Washington (November 24, 2014) – Today, the National Trust for Historic Preservation named Boggsville Historic Site in Bent County, Colo., a National Treasure. The Santa Fe Trail trading village is nationally significant because it is a microcosm of the 19th Century West—a grand experiment with a dynamic mixture of peoples and cultures, and a landscape on the brink of transformation. “Boggsville captures an important story about prairie culture in the mid-1800s and how a diverse group of people worked together to build new lives along the Santa Fe Trail,” said Stephanie Meeks, president of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. “The women of Boggsville in particular played a significant role in the success of the community. We want to preserve and share the stories of these women who, along with their enterprising husbands, helped found Boggsville—women like Rumalda Luna Boggs and Amache Ochinee Prowers who risked a great deal to expand our frontier at a critical and even dangerous time in American history.” Much of Boggsville was built on land acquired by Rumalda Luna Boggs, wife of founder Thomas Boggs. Amache Prowers, daughter of Cheyenne Chief Lone Bear, also acquired land as part of reparations for the death of her father 150 years ago during the Sand Creek Massacre on November 29, 1864. “Boggsville’s narrative is comprised of people of Native American, Mexican, and Spanish descent, and the inclusion of the site in the National Treasures program provides us with a platform and tools to tell all of those stories to a wider audience,” said Kathleen Tomlin, president of the Pioneer Historical Society of Bent County. Boggsville is currently operating as a historic site open to the public seasonally, but is constrained by a severe budget shortfall. Having worked on restoration of the site in the 1980s, the National Trust’s current commitment will help Boggsville become a sustainable historic site for the 21st century. By convening local stakeholders to plan the future of Boggsville, the National Trust will assist in the transition of the site into a new operational structure, creating a potential organizational model for other similar properties throughout the country. The 39-acre National Register Historic District for Boggsville features two early territorial style adobe structures—the 1866 Boggs House and the 1867 Prowers House. The site is owned by the Pioneer Historical Society of Bent County and is currently operated as a seasonal interpretive museum. A new model of operation will be considered as part of the National Trust investment in planning for the site. Partners in the Boggsville project include: Pioneer Historical Society of Bent County, History Colorado, the National Park Service, and Bent County. The National Trust and the local leadership team will consider the future of Boggsville over the next several months, culminating in a spring 2015 planning charette where the public will be invited to review and discuss the merits of each potential solution and begin to solidify the best approach for stakeholders and for the community. The planning effort is supported in part by a State Historical Fund grant from History Colorado, the Colorado Historical Society. National Treasures are a portfolio of highly-significant historic places throughout the country where the National Trust makes a long-term commitment to finding a preservation solution. As the Presenting Partner of the National Treasures program, American Express has pledged $2 million to help promote and enable the preservation of these cultural and historic places. ### About the National Treasures Program National Treasures are a portfolio of highly-significant historic places throughout the country where the National Trust makes a long-term commitment to finding a preservation solution. About the National Trust for Historic Preservation The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded nonprofit organization that works to save America’s historic places. Visit savingplaces.org.
Posted on: Mon, 24 Nov 2014 18:34:15 +0000