Spring 2024 Newsletter

2024 Spring Newsletter

Hello, history-loving friends!  Buckle up for another year of fascinating local history!  Our first program of the year took place at our Annual Meeting on March 23rd at the historic Coaldale Schoolhouse, now known as the Coaldale Community Building.  We enjoyed a “meet and greet” time before the business meeting, and then moved on to our featured program, “Cattlemen, Cattle Ranches and Cowboys” presented by Debbie Hildebrand and Shari Mohr.  Debbie and Shari have been involved in extensive research and documentation of the history and location of the historic cattle operations in Fremont, Custer and Chaffee Counties, and shared some of the information and stories they have gleaned.  If you missed the program, they will be happy to answer your questions and share research findings anytime!

 UPCOMING EVENTS AND PROGRAMS

  •  LOOK BACK INTO HISTORY” ongoing open-house events with rotating displays at our two history centers
    • COTOPAXI-MULLINS HISTORY CENTER, located at CR 12 at Plum Street in Cotopaxi – 2nd Sunday of every month, 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
    • HOWARD HISTORY CENTER, located at 70 CR 56 in old Howard, 4th Sunday of the month from May through September, 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.
  • June 8, 1-3 p.m., Cotopaxi school – “North Country Cattle Barron” – all about T. Witcher
  • July 6, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. – vintage car show at Howard History Center
  • September 14, 1-3 p.m. – Coaldale area history, with particular emphasis on the quarry
  • October 13, 1-3 p.m. – Cotopaxi/Plum Street tour

In addition to the above events, we will once again have a table at the Coaldale Market which takes place at the Coaldale Community Building on Wednesdays from 4:00 to 6:00 p.m. during the summer months.  Stop by to say hello, ask questions, or purchase local history guides or tour books (great gifts!). We hope you will be able to join us for as many of these programs or events as possible.  Documenting and sharing local history is our mission and we learn something new or make a new connection every time we get together.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES

This spring we added two new Board members, Sandy Wallace and Clark Gardner, who have already contributed numerous hours assisting at the evolving Cotopaxi-Mullins History Center.  Volunteer opportunities abound, whether it might be research and filing, watering plants around the buildings, cutting grass/weeds, maintaining the areas around the “Pathways to History” signs on CR 45, distributing event flyers, providing goodies for bake sales – whatever your skill set or interests, we’ll find a place for you!  THANKS FOR YOUR ONGOING SUPPORT AND INTEREST IN LOCAL HISTORY; SEE YOU SOON!

Craig Leitner, President (719) 207-0015 Kris Shurr, VP/Membership (719) 942-3653
Barbara Snyder, Secretary (719) 539-3956 Cinde McPhail, Treasurer (719) 942-4521
Betsy Denney, Historian/Programs (719) 942-3679 Shari Mohr, Community Outreach/Website (719) 942-3355
Casey Hildebrand, Maintenance (720) 412-4001 Debbie Hildebrand, Event Coord. (303) 506-4399
Sandy Wallace, Admin. Coordinator (719) 942-3714 Clark Gardner, Visual/Tech Design (303) 903-4461

 

2023 SPRING NEWSLETTER

WESTERN FREMONT HISTORIC SOCIETY

P.O. Box 181, Howard, CO  81233

Parkdale   Texas Creek   Cotopaxi   Coaldale   Howard   Swissvale   Wellsville

2023 SPRING NEWSLETTER

We enjoyed seeing so many of you at our Annual Meeting on April 1 at the Coaldale Community Building.  It is always fun to get together with other history lovers and community members who want to learn more about our area.  If you were unable to attend, you missed a great program about the history of Cotopaxi and the old general store which until recently was owned by the Mullins family.  We are anticipating a lot of adventures and discoveries now that WFHS has taken on the preservation of that property, and we look forward to an expanded presence in the Cotopaxi area.  The Annual Meeting also featured a bake sale as the first of our fundraising efforts to maintain the Cotopaxi-Mullins History Center, including property taxes and utilities – most of us took home a fine sampling of yummy treats!

 

              SUMMER PROGRAMS AND EVENTS ON TAP:

  • “Look Back into History” – open house events at the History Center in Howard (0070 Co. Rd. 56) from 1-3 p.m. on the last Sunday of the month beginning in May (5/28, 6/25, 7/30, 8/27 and 9/24) featuring special themes and items from our collection and files
  • June 24 – Badger Creek Ranch tour and program featuring the historic IM Ranch property, native American hunting sites, and wonderful scenery in the northwest corner of western Fremont County. We are so excited to offer this totally new program!
  • July 2 – vintage car show around the historic Howard town square, in conjunction with Howard Community Center’s annual Independence Day celebration
  • September 23 – Amy Homestead tour (Co. Rd. 4/Howard Creek Rd. in Howard), an all-day open house event featuring historic ranch house and outbuildings, as well as heritage apple orchard, cider press and other activities for the whole family

We also plan to have an information table at the Coaldale Market on Wednesday afternoons throughout the summer, so we hope to catch some of you there, too.

              VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES:  If you have some extra time and are looking for ways to get involved, we can use your expertise and assistance in any of the following areas:

  • Help set up displays at the History Center in Howard
  • Assist at the information table at some of the Coaldale Market days
  • Trim weeds and/or water perennials/shrubs occasionally at either of our History Centers (Howard or Cotopaxi)
  • Assist with clean-up and maintenance projects at the Cotopaxi-Mullins History Center
  • Provide baked goods for occasional bake sales

We always have a great time and learn so much when history lovers get together, so please contact one of the Board members below and let us know how you’d like to get involved.  We look forward to seeing you at upcoming events!

Craig Leitner, President (719) 207-0015 Kris Shurr, VP/Membership (719) 942-3653
Barbara Snyder, Secretary (719) 539-3956 Cinde McPhail, Treasurer (719) 942-4521
Betsy Denney, Historian/Programs (719) 942-3679 Shari Mohr, Community Outreach (719-942-3355)
Casey Hildebrand, Maintenance (720) 412-4001 Debbie Hildebrand, Event Coord. (303) 506-4399
   
Facebook: Western Fremont Historical Society Website: westfremonthistory.com

January 2023 Newsletter

WESTERN FREMONT HISTORIC SOCIETY

P.O. Box 181, Howard, CO  81233

Parkdale   Texas Creek   Cotopaxi   Coaldale   Howard   Swissvale   Wellsville

2023 JANUARY NEWSLETTER

Dear Members and Friends of WFHS,

A new year is dawning and the Board of Directors of WFHS is looking forward to more adventures as we explore local history together.  Many of you had the opportunity to enjoy a variety of rotating displays at our History Center in Howard over the past year.  We will continue to experiment with new ways to utilize that beautifully restored building this year.  

Our newest project is the former Mullins general store property on Plum Street in Cotopaxi which was donated to WFHS by the Estate of Glenn Mullins. We are in the process of converting that property into the Mullins-Cotopaxi History Center.  What a gift to the community, and what a challenge for our little society!  Our heads are spinning with all the ideas for potential uses of that building, but with a lot of volunteer help, elbow grease and the assistance of Cotopaxi High School students, we hope the building will be presentable for public viewing in the near future.  If you happen to have, or know the whereabouts of, any old pictures of Plum Street, the general store or railroad depot, we’d love to hear from you. 

In the meantime, we are planning our programs and events for 2023, including our Annual Meeting in the spring, events at the Howard History Center, and our popular programs and tours of historic locations in the area.  Enclosed is our annual membership form and a self-addressed envelope. Your annual dues enable us to pay our basic expenses, such as real estate taxes and insurance on the Howard History Center as well as the new Mullins-Cotopaxi History Center, liability insurance, website maintenance, printing and postage, as well as incidental costs for producing programs and tours. We appreciate your ongoing financial support; special thanks to those of you who also donated to WFHS through the Colorado Gives campaign that wrapped up in December!  WFHS is an IRS Code 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, so every donation matters.  

Please check our website for fun historic facts, follow us on Facebook, and watch for email newsletters and program reminders. Feel free to contact any of the Board members listed below if you have questions or suggestions for programs, would like to volunteer, or need additional information.  Also, if you are aware of anyone (an individual or perhaps an estate) that has photos or other historic items of local interest to donate, please let us know.  You can also reach out via email at wfhsinfo@westfremonthistory.com.  

Thank you for your ongoing interest and support, and special thanks to all who have volunteered their time or allowed us to borrow items from their personal collections for special events at the Howard History Center. We look forward to seeing you at programs and events this year!

Craig Leitner, President (719) 207-0015 Kris Shurr, VP/Membership (719) 942-3653
Barbara Snyder, Secretary (719) 539-3956 Cinde McPhail, Treasurer (719) 942-4521
Betsy Denney, Historian/Programs (719) 942-3679 Shari Mohr, Community Outreach (719-942-3355)
Casey Hildebrand, Maintenance (720) 412-4001 Debbie Hildebrand, Event Coord. (303) 506-4399
   
Facebook: Western Fremont Historical Society Website: westfremonthistory.com

Summer 2022 Newsletter

 

   

 

WESTERN FREMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETY
P.O. Box 181, Howard, Colorado 81233
Facebook: Western Fremont Historical Society
WFHS HISTORY CENTER
0070 Co Rd 56, Howard, Colorado 81233
Website: WestFremontHistory.com

2022 SUMMER NEWSLETTER

 Here is what we have in store for our history loving friends this season: 

Access Sundays – This year we are focusing on our monthly “Access Sundays” at the History Center in Howard.  We invite everyone to stop by and enjoy informative displays and special presentations on the last Sunday of each month during the summer and early fall.  In May, we shared an array of vintage toys, while June’s special feature was souvenirs and artifacts collected by Kris Shurr during her military service abroad.  Upcoming features will include:

  • July 31, 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. – books by local cowboy/historian/author Paul Huntley who rode the range in western Fremont County in the first half of the 20th century
  • August 28, 1:00 to 4:00 p.m. – antique tools and farm implements (Bring your treasures/stories!)

Historic pictures/documents/artifacts wanted!  If your family, friends or neighbors happen to be sorting old documents, pictures of the local area, etc., please don’t send those items to the dump or let them leave the area without contacting WFHS.  We don’t have a lot of space, but we are keenly interested in preserving local history and would love for those items to stay in western Fremont County.  Contact one of the Board members below regarding any pictures, letters, documents, etc. that should be preserved.  We would love to hear from you!

Events and Tours

  • July 4, 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. – WFHS commemorated our nation’s birthday with our friends and neighbors at Howard Hall. Open House at our History center featured a special program regarding flag etiquette as well as displays of military memorabilia from local collections.
  • September 24Watch for details about a tour of the historic Amy Homestead on County Road 4 in Howard, featuring the original house, outbuildings, orchard, and a variety of vintage farm equipment,

Mullins property update –The family of Glenn Mullins recently donated the building that formerly housed the general store on Plum Street in Cotopaxi to WFHS.  This building once was the community hub in Cotopaxi, housing the Post Office as well as the general store; we hope to preserve the building and eventually include historic displays and local artifacts for the public to enjoy.  We anticipate a lot of planning, fundraising and elbow grease will be required.  Stay tuned for ways you can become involved in our latest preservation venture!

WFHS Board of Directors

Craig Leitner, President (719) 207-0015                                            Kris Shurr, VP/Membership (719) 942-3653

Barbara Snyder, Secretary (719) 539-3956                                       Cinde McPhail, Treasurer (719) 942-4521

Betsy Denney, Historian/Programs (719) 942-3679                        Shari Mohr, Community Outreach (719-942-3355)

Casey Hildebrand, Bldg. Maintenance (720) 412-4001                   Debbie Hildebrand, Event Coord. (303) 506-4399

 

 

 

FALL 2020 NEWSLETTER

 

Board of Directors
Betsy Denney
Craig Leitner
Mark Minor
Shari Mohr
Kris Shurr
Barbara Snyder
 

 

WESTERN FREMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETY
P.O. Box 181, Howard, Colorado 81233
Facebook: Western Fremont Historical Society
WFHS HISTORY CENTER
0070 Co Rd 56, Howard, Colorado 81233
Website: WestFremontHistory.com

 

2020 FALL NEWSLETTER

Dear Friends,                

After months of canceled events and limited social contacts, you may be ready for some positive news.  We are too, and we’re so excited to share it with you:  Exterior preservation of our 1898 historic church building in Howard, which currently serves as our “History Center”, is finally complete!!  So many events and projects have been canceled this summer, we feel really fortunate that our general contractor, Jon Sargent of Deep Roots Timberworks, was able to work with numerous local subcontractors and maintain the schedule to complete the project by the end of October.  Some of you have been able to drive by the site over the past few months and observe the project as it progressed.  For others, seeing pictures of each stage in the project on our website was a fun and interesting distraction during this “Safer at Home” stage of the pandemic.  Either way, we hope you are as pleased and impressed with the results as the Board members are.

You may be aware that the bulk of funding for this project ($71,928) was obtained through a grant from the History Colorado State Historical Fund (SHF).  The SHF receives funds for grants through a portion of tax revenues from limited-stakes gaming in the towns of Cripple Creek, Central City and Black Hawk, and their grants are extremely competitive.  WFHS was required to raise matching funds in the amount of $24,000 as our share of the project costs, which we were able to do, thanks to your individual donations and community support, including a substantial donation from the Pleasant Valley Club, as well as grants from the Anschutz Foundation, Sangre de Cristo Electrical Assn (SDCEA) Board of Directors, SDCEA Operation Roundup and CoBank Sharing Success.

Several people deserve special recognition for their roles in bringing this project to fruition.   Former president of WFHS, Janet Lastovica, was instrumental in gathering information on the history of the church and its role as the first church in the entire Pleasant Valley area to get the ball rolling for the initial Historic Structure Assessment.  Ellen Hopkins then stepped forward and volunteered to serve as preservation project coordinator, which turned out to be a HUGE task of fund-raising for the required match, completing the grant application, submitting progress reports, managing deadlines, fielding questions from Board members, and attending on-site meetings with the contractor and subcontractors along with current president, Craig Leitner.  Craig also provided on-going oversight and feedback, sometimes on a daily basis, at the work site.  Our heartfelt thanks go out to them, as well as past members of the Board, for their dedication to this project, and their perseverance during the long years and various stages of this process.  There were times we weren’t sure the project was actually going to come to fruition, but here we are, finally with a beautifully restored exterior of the historic church building which now serves as the WFHS History Center.

We also want to recognize the team whose skill and expertise made the project possible:

  • Barbara Darden, Preservation Architect – Scheuber & Darden, Architects
  • Dave Wittman, Preservation Structural Engineer – Martin Martin Consulting Engineers
  • Michelle Slaughter, Archeologist – Metcalf Archaeology
  • Jon Sargent of Deep Roots Timberworks – general contractor
  • Thaddeus Hust, masonry contractor – Agave Masonry
  • Mike Perschbacher and Jesse Haro, window restoration – Older than Dirt Construction
  • Kurt Etscheidt, painting contractor – Kurt’s Painting
  • Bob Ferraro, excavation and site work – KT Sales and Excavation

We have surely missed sharing historical programs with all of you in 2020 – what a strange year this has been!  Hopefully, there will soon be light at the end of the tunnel and we will be able to meet again in 2021 for some fun programs and events.  Be sure to look at the pictures of the preservation project on our website and enjoy pictures of past programs and events while you are there.  If you have comments or questions in the meantime, please feel free to contact any of the Board members listed below.  We’d love to hear from you! We appreciate your ongoing support and interest in the history of Western Fremont County, and wish you the best – stay safe and healthy!!

WFHS Board of Directors
Betsy Denney (719) 942-3679 Craig Leitner (719) 207-0015
Casey Hildebrand (720) 412-4001 Debbie Hildebrand (303) 506-4399
Mark Minor (719) 207-0921 Shari Mohr (719) 942-3355
Kris Shurr (719) 942-3653 Barbara Snyder (719) 539-3956

2020 Spring Newsletter

 

Board of Directors
Betsy Denney
Craig Leitner
Mark Minor
Shari Mohr
Kris Shurr
Barbara Snyder
 

 

WESTERN FREMONT HISTORICAL SOCIETY
P.O. Box 181, Howard, Colorado 81233
Facebook: Western Fremont Historical Society
WFHS HISTORY CENTER
0070 Co Rd 56, Howard, Colorado 81233
Website: WestFremontHistory.com

 

2020 SPRING NEWSLETTER

Dear Friends, 

                We hope this finds you safe and well during these very uncertain times.  During this period of “social distancing” and “shelter in place”, our Board is just as frustrated and bewildered as everyone else as we try to navigate the current reality.  We decided to cancel our Annual Meeting in March as well as most in-person Board meetings in the meantime, and the programs or tours we had planned for this summer are currently on hold.  We appointed two new Board members, Casey and Debbie Hildebrand, to serve until they are officially elected at our next annual meeting.  So although our programs and tours have been suspended for the time being, we are still active and we want to keep in touch with all of you.

Now for some much needed positive news:  We have completed the necessary contract requirements with the State Historic Fund and the contractor will begin work on the preservation of our historic church/history center in Howard in June!  Completing all of the necessary research, applying for grants, raising matching funds for our portion of the cost, and complying with all the bureaucratic “red tape” has taken many years and lots of patience, but we are finally about to see some results on the ground.  In coming months, you will notice a lot of activity at the building, beginning with removal of the windows for restoration off-site, plus repairs on the siding and trim, foundation, and front porch/stairs, as well as a much-needed fresh coat of paint.  The contractor hopes to complete all the work by the end of the summer, and we look forward to the time we can host an open house to share the results with all of you.  Thanks again to those of you who donated money for this preservation project, and especially for your patience as we worked through the lengthy process involved in obtaining the grant money from the State Historic Fund to allow the project to move forward.

Also, we want to thank those of you who paid your annual dues before this pandemic became our new reality.  Several of our major expenses, such as taxes and insurance on the historic church building/history center, will still be incurred, so we appreciate your loyalty and support during this unprecedented time.

In the meantime, you can get your “history fix” by checking our website listed above for pictures/updates on the preservation project, as well as photos of past tours and events which are now available there.  We look forward to the time when once again we can welcome all of you history lovers to join in our various projects and programs.  Please feel free to call any of the Board members listed below with any questions and comments.  In the meantime, STAY SAFE  – WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU SOON!

WFHS Board of Directors
Betsy Denney (719) 942-3679 Craig Leitner (719) 207-0015
Casey Hildebrand (720) 412-4001 Debbie Hildebrand (303) 506-4399
Mark Minor (719) 207-0921 Shari Mohr (719) 942-3355
Kris Shurr (719) 942-3653 Barbara Snyder (719) 539-3956