St. Vrain State Park
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

St. Vrain State Park, formerly known as Barbour Ponds, is a
Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the wes ...
state park. The park hosts year-round
camping Camping is an outdoor activity involving overnight stays away from home, either without shelter or using basic shelter such as a tent, or a recreational vehicle. Typically, participants leave developed areas to spend time outdoors in more na ...
. It is a popular birding destination, hosting the states largest rookery of Blue Heron, it is home to several other bird species as well including migrating waterfowl, songbirds and the occasional bald eagle. Other park activities include year round
fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...
and
hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...
. There are plans for a reservoir to be built at the park named Blue Heron Reservoir.


History


1800s

The land of St. Vrain State Park was originally home to Ute,
Arapaho The Arapaho (; french: Arapahos, ) are a Native American people historically living on the plains of Colorado and Wyoming. They were close allies of the Cheyenne tribe and loosely aligned with the Lakota and Dakota. By the 1850s, Arapaho ba ...
, and
Cheyenne The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. Their Cheyenne language belongs to the Algonquian language family. Today, the Cheyenne people are split into two federally recognized nations: the Southern Cheyenne, who are enr ...
Native American tribes. Once claimed by Spain then France who sold it to the United States in 1803 as part of the
Louisiana Purchase The Louisiana Purchase (french: Vente de la Louisiane, translation=Sale of Louisiana) was the acquisition of the territory of Louisiana by the United States from the French First Republic in 1803. In return for fifteen million dollars, or app ...
. Having just made the largest land purchase in the history of the nation, the government was eager to discover what $15,000,000 had bought. They sent out scouts, Meriwether Lewis and
William Clark William Clark (August 1, 1770 – September 1, 1838) was an American explorer, soldier, Indian agent, and territorial governor. A native of Virginia, he grew up in pre-statehood Kentucky before later settling in what became the state of Miss ...
, then Army Lieutenant
Zebulon Pike Zebulon Montgomery Pike (January 5, 1779 – April 27, 1813) was an American brigadier general and explorer for whom Pikes Peak in Colorado was named. As a U.S. Army officer he led two expeditions under authority of President Thomas Jefferson ...
to explore. Although neither group traveled in the area, their descriptions of the land and a growing fur trade encouraged adventurers to head west. In 1817, the US War Department sent Stephen Long, a Major in the Topographical Engineers, to explore the upper Mississippi. Following the North and South Platte Rivers, Long likely saw the St. Vrain Valley in July 1820. In 1848, gold was discovered in California bringing a wave of eager gold-seekers headed west. A few made their fortunes, but more often prospectors headed home with empty pockets or found work in the communities that had sprung up around the prospectors. Some who left the goldfields found their fortune in land and sent word to their families. That sparked a new wave of immigrants moving west. The
Oregon Trail The Oregon Trail was a east–west, large-wheeled wagon route and emigrant trail in the United States that connected the Missouri River to valleys in Oregon. The eastern part of the Oregon Trail spanned part of what is now the state of Kans ...
passed by Fort Laramie, north of the St. Vrain Valley, and was a major route for the steady stream of immigrants moving from east to west. Historians estimate a combined 150,000 prospectors and immigrants traveled through Fort Laramie, north of the St Vrain Valley, between 1841 and 1853. Native Americans watching these travelers had cause for concern; their way of life was in jeopardy. The immigrants did not understand the Native American tribes any more than the Native Americans understood them. Tensions rose. Although the government tried to address the issues through treaties, the government also broke those treaties. Bison hunters actively sought hides decimating the Native Americans' food supply while settlers were encroaching on what was supposed to be their land. The Native Americans' only recourse was to push the white men out. In 1858, gold was discovered near
Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
. Another wave of adventurers set off seeking their fortune. Again a few were lucky, but far more became discouraged with the search and left the goldfields. Many of them found land to their liking and made a home. Agriculture began to develop and cities were formed. Milo Smith, Perry L. Smith, and Elisha Duncan settled east of St. Vrain Creek and Boulder Creek on land that would one day become St. Vrain State Park. Life was good along the St. Vrain, but stories of trouble with Native Americas made the settlers wary. In June 1864 the Hungate family, living northeast of Denver City, was murdered by a raiding tribe. The settlers felt they needed to protect themselves, so they formed the Home Guard with 4 officers and 58 volunteers. The government provided each man a six-shooter and a rifle, and they drilled twice monthly on Elisha Duncan's homestead. Perry L. Smith donated a plot of land for a fort, and the community came together in July to build a sod fort. They cut the sod into strips one foot wide and two feet long and stacked them like bricks. The walls were two feet thick. The fort was 100 feet by 130 feet with portholes large enough to shoot through spaced every eight feet wide and eight feet high above the ground. There were sod benches two feet wide and three feet high lining the walls, so defenders could move along any wall in any direction to protect the fort from attack. Inside two structures were built in opposite corners to store supplies. Their roofs could be used as observation towers. They filled voids or gaps in the walls with mud and coated the walls from the bottom to the top both inside and out. Because it was close to where the St. Vrain and Boulder Creek join, it was called Fort Junction. In August 1864, Elbridge Gerry made a historic ride along the South Platte to warn settlers of an impending attack. Two men were sent from the Platteville station to warn settlers along the lower Boulder and St. Vrain. Community members loaded their valuables into wagons and rushed to the fort, but no attack ever came. After a few days, everyone went back home. From February 1866 to May 1867, Fort Junction was used as a post office with Perry L. Smith appointed as postmaster. Then in 1868 three other settlers were killed and the fort was used once again to protect settlers, but again there was no attack. After that, the fort was used as an occasional stopover place for travelers, and eventually, it was absorbed back into the prairie. The Chicago Colony Colorado came to the St. Vrain Valley in 1872 as one of only a few successful planned colonies in the
Colorado Territory The Territory of Colorado was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 28, 1861, until August 1, 1876, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Colorado. The territory was organized in the ...
and was incorporated as
Longmont The City of Longmont is a home rule municipality located in Boulder and Weld counties, Colorado, United States. Longmont is located northeast of the county seat of Boulder and north-northwest of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. Longmont' ...
in 1873. Then in the late 1800s, a coal seam was discovered in the Carbon Valley, southeast of present-day St. Vrain State Park. The McKissick Mine was opened in 1887 and others followed drawing
coal miners People have worked as coal miners for centuries, but they became increasingly important during the Industrial revolution when coal was burnt on a large scale to fuel stationary and locomotive engines and heat buildings. Owing to coal's strategic ro ...
, not just from the United States, but also from Greece, France, Bulgaria, and Italy. Those miners settled in and around three distinct towns.
Frederick Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Nobility Anhalt-Harzgerode *Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) Austria * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria from 1195 to 1198 * Frederick ...
is in the middle and incorporated first in 1907. It was followed by Dacono in 1908 to the south, and Firestone in 1908 to the north. These towns grew up around the mines and miners. Although the mines were all shut down by the 1970s, fossil fuels continue to be a big part of the area economy. They now drill for gas.


1900s

After the turn of the century, people began depending on cars rather than wagons. The
Colorado Department of Transportation The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT, pronounced See Dot) is the principal department of the Colorado state government that administers state government transportation responsibilities in the state of Colorado. CDOT is responsible f ...
first built highway 87 then as early as the late 1940s began to rebuild it as an interstate highway running from
Wyoming Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...
south to
New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Tiguex , OfficialLang = None , Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ke ...
."Historical Construction Highlights" https://www.codot.gov/about/CDOTHistory/50th-anniversary/interstate-25/construction-highlights accessed September 11, 2020. Building roads requires a lot of gravel, so in 1958 the Department of Transportation purchased land along the St. Vrain from Edwin and Albert Anderson to mine the needed gravel. In 1961 the highway was completed north to Highway 66, and the Department of Transportation no longer needed the
gravel pit A gravel pit is an open-pit mine for the extraction of gravel. Gravel pits often lie in river valleys where the water table is high, so they may naturally fill with water to form ponds or lakes. Old, abandoned gravel pits are normally used either ...
. At first, they thought the Department of Wildlife might use it for a
fish hatchery A fish hatchery is a place for artificial breeding, hatching, and rearing through the early life stages of animals—finfish and shellfish in particular.Crespi V., Coche A. (2008) Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Gloss ...
, but flooding changed those plans.Gerhardt, Gary "Bigger Better Barbour Ponds- $9.29 Million Grant to Turn Fishing Hole into Rec Showpiece" Rocky Mountain News January 15, 2003 page 26A. Instead in 1962, the gravel ponds were turned over to the State Parks Department for a state recreation area. It was up to the Parks Department to turn the 50 acres of land and 80 acres of water into a recreation area named for Roy N. Barbour, an area resident and avid conservationist who was credited with helping to establish a chapter of the
Izaak Walton League The Izaak Walton League is an American environmental organization founded in 1922 that promotes natural resource protection and outdoor recreation. The organization was founded in Chicago, Illinois, by a group of sportsmen who wished to protect fi ...
in Longmont."Gravel Pit Renovated." Colorado Transcript Golden Colorado Vol 102-No.85 July 16, 1968 From the Archives of the State Historical Society Denver, Colorado Game, Fish, and Parks improved existing roads, built new ones, and spent $6,529 to install four toilets, five shade shelters, picnic tables, and grills to prepare the area for visitors. Two of the ponds were reserved for carp. Others received species such as bluegill, sunfish, bass, and bullheads.
Trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', '' Salmo'' and '' Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salm ...
were not stocked because the water is too warm for their survival. Barbour Ponds drew visitors from the Denver area in search of
fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...
and seasonal
duck hunting Waterfowl hunting (also called wildfowling or waterfowl shooting in the UK) is the practice of hunting ducks, geese, or other waterfowl for food and sport. Many types of ducks and geese share the same habitat, have overlapping or identical hunt ...
. In 1967 the area had 60,000 visitors. In 1968 the state allocated $55,000 to construct a 25 site campground with modern sanitary facilities, running water, turnouts and shade shelters, tables and grills. As visitation continued to grow the park service made more improvements. In 1975 the park roads remained closed a little later than usual as park personnel did some upgrades. When it opened in July of that year, it had received a facelift with significant improvements. There were 75 campsites, improved parking, and paving provided a better experience for visitors. In 1977 Muskrat Nature Trail was built with help from the Youth Conservation Corp. In 1980 a
Boy Scouts of America The Boy Scouts of America (BSA, colloquially the Boy Scouts) is one of the largest scouting organizations and one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with about 1.2 million youth participants. The BSA was founded ...
Eagle project planned to raise the level of the boardwalk on the nature trail. Area newspapers sang the area's praises with articles such as, "Nearby Flatland Nature Preserve, Protects Beauty of the Prairie. In 1994, the State Department of Transportation project to rebuild the I-25 Highway 119 intersection led to a resurgence of interest in Fort Junction. A ground-penetrating radar survey revealed possible ruins. Construction was halted and archeologists were called in, but the only artifacts found were a chair leg less than 20 years old. A historical marker commemorating the fort was moved from the northwest corner of the intersection to its current location near the Park-N-Ride on the southeast corner, and construction resumed. But interest in the old fort was sparked. Johnnie St. Vrain, a columnist for the
Longmont Daily Times-Call The ''Longmont Daily Times-Call'', known under different combinations of these names, is a daily newspaper published for Longmont, Colorado, United States. It carries local, regional, national and world news and republishes most of its stories fro ...
, reported on the archeological activity and got three different possible locations for the fort. The first reader said the fort was built about a mile west of the confluence of the rivers. That was supported by another who said according to a map of the Colorado Territory at the Library of Congress, the fort was just west of the confluence. That would mean it was somewhere between the current car dealership on the south side of Highway 119 and the confluence of the rivers. Another reader wrote in that area farmers had found remains, and it was just where the marker suggested about, "200 yards due east," of the original marker location, that would put the fort near the highway. Another person, who had been studying the fort for a long time and had a hand-drawn map from the time when the fort was used as a postal stop, believes the fort was built on land now owned by St. Vrain State Park. He used satellite imagery, but because the fort had been constructed of sod, there would be no foundation. He was looking for a raised area roughly 100 by 130 feet where the sod had been absorbed into the ground. He did find a promising area, but nothing definitive was ever found.


Recent history

The land was the beginning, but the plans would require almost $15 million over 10 years to develop new recreational opportunities at St. Vrain State Park.Smith, Jerd. "Big Boost For Land Preservation-55,000-Acre Parcel Ang Sites to Gain from GOCO Funds" Rocky Mountain News December 2, 2004 page 34A. The plan included adding five more ponds from pits dug by gravel companies and a network of trails that will help connect open lands, park areas, and trails from Longmont under I-25 into
Weld County Weld County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 328,981. The county seat is Greeley. Weld County comprises the Greeley, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Denver ...
. They also planned to add campsites with both water and electric bringing the total number of campsites to 160. By 2004 a new entry station was built, water and electric were installed, and preliminary work was done for improvements through 2007. In 2005 trees and bushes that would provide a buffer for and animal habitat were planted along the south and east boundaries of the park. These buffer zones would be irrigated using a ditch and playa concept. Forty-five new campsites were built with water, sewer and electricity. The road around Pelican Pond and the southern portion of the park were permanently closed to vehicular use. Americorp volunteers helped to plant 100 large cottonwoods in the new campground. Mallard pond was restored with new shoreline grading, rock fishing piers and native plantings along the shoreline. The Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts joined to help plant a native garden at the new camper services building. Youth Corp helped with fencing and weed control. Americorp came back later in April with 600 volunteers for another session and planted 5000 trees and shrubs to finish the wildlife habitat buffer. In 2006 dry weather put all the new plantings at risk and kept park personnel in crisis mode watering everything to keep it alive until monsoon rains dropped 1.5 inches of water in July averting a plant die-off. In the fall Pelican Pond got shoreline grading and seeding. Two Boy Scouts working on their Eagle projects helped with plant restoration activities at Pelican Pond. St. Vrain State Park had been transformed from a "little fishing park" to a restored
riparian A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. Riparian is also the proper nomenclature for one of the terrestrial biomes of the Earth. Plant habitats and communities along the river margins and banks a ...
area earning praise from area newspapers. In May 2015, Blue Heron Reservoir opened helping to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the park. It is the largest Great Blue Heron
rookery A rookery is a colony of breeding animals, generally gregarious birds. Coming from the nesting habits of rooks, the term is used for corvids and the breeding grounds of colony-forming seabirds, marine mammals ( true seals and sea lions), and ...
in the state. Visitors who came to celebrate the park's anniversary would have been able to walk nature trails around ten of the ponds, enjoy birdwatching, and photography. They could spend the night in up to date campsites, fish in stocked ponds, and enjoy views of
Longs Peak Longs Peak (Arapaho: ) is a high and prominent mountain in the northern Front Range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The fourteener is located in the Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness, southwest by south ( bearing 209°) of th ...
.


Present day

Compared to when it was first seen by Stephen Long, St. Vrain State Park is much bigger and more natural, having been returned to a
wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The p ...
area. And at the same time that it is more developed. Campsites will accommodate modern rigs, a Camper Services building with showers, miles of walking trails, and acclaimed fishing. Fish and waterfowl populations are thriving. Native vegetation is once again doing well, and visitors can now see mammals including coyote, rabbits, fox,
deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the re ...
, or maybe even a
moose The moose (in North America) or elk (in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is a member of the New World deer subfamily and is the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Most adult ma ...
. St. Vrain State Park is working with nine other parks on ' augmented reality' to help visitors have an interactive experience in the park.Lounsberry, Sam. "Colorado Parks and Wildlife wins grant to develop 'augmented reality' program for St. Vrain, nine other parks." Longmont Times-Call June 15, 2019. https://www.timescall.com/2019/06/15/colorado-parks-and-wildlife-wins-grant-to-develop-augmented-reality-program-for-st-vrain-nine-other-parks/


References

{{authority control State parks of Colorado Protected areas of Weld County, Colorado Protected areas established in 1965 1965 establishments in Colorado