Do You Know These Buildings?
Answers: Located north of Delta and east of Grand Junction within the Grand Mesa National Forest, these two cow camp cabins, built between 1931 and 1934, were part of a summer ranching operation for the Raber family of Kannah Creek. Horses hauled spruce logs from the nearby forest, which were then hand-hewn and square notched. The cabins feature unusually straight, long and tightly fitted logs, indicating builder Ralph Foster’s high level of craftsmanship. Both buildings have steeply pitched gabled roofs with attic space above the single room on the main level. Quality tongue and groove flooring, an unusual feature for the typical cow camp cabin, is found in the cabins. An inscription on the original door of one of the cabins reads, "May 25, 1938, Four feet of snow and spring still coming." The cow camp also includes a permanent spring and the original corral and cattle chute. The Rabers occupied the camp during the summer months from the 1930s until 1966. The family’s ranching operation was typical of cattle businesses on the Western Slope. They rounded up calves to be branded in mid-July and periodically rotated the cattle on Grand Mesa to rest the range. Beginning in late August, the final roundup would begin. The cattle were brought to the “low country” stockyards in Whitewater, before being shipped to Denver. Roughly a dozen cow camps were located on the west end of Grand Mesa, each one critical to summer livestock operations. High country cattle growers were major contributors to the economies of Mesa and Delta Counties. Since the Ute Removal in 1881, the lush meadows of Grand Mesa have provided cattle with summer forage. However, through the years, grazing permits were consolidated and the number of cattle allowed on the mesa reduced by almost half. The Forest Service condemned the cow camp cabins and most of them were torn down. Illustrating the significance of the ranching industry to the region, the Raber Cow Camp was listed in the Colorado State Register of Historic Properties and received a State Historical Fund grant to aid in restoration and interpretation work. |
