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Recreation and Re-creation |
Horseshoe Ranch is an example of an inholding that was required to be removed after the Park was established. The ranch was converted to a large resort complex and named the Horseshoe Inn in 1909. It operated until 1931 when it became the first inholding purchased by the Park which burned all structures and cleared the land.
Eighteen years after the Park’s dedication, Franklin Roosevelt’s CCC arrived and stayed for six summers. They built roads, fought fires, and maintained structures but were best known for cutting and removing insect damaged trees, in the process earning the nickname “Woodpecker Army.”
Deer Ridge Chalet was a popular tourist stop for over 40 years. As Park visitation increased so did traffic problems at the site since it was located at the intersection of two main roads. It was removed in 1960.
Trail Ridge Road connects both sides of the Continental Divide. It was completed in 1932 and replaced the Old Fall River Road built in the 1920s. The old highway is one way only going up but is currently closed due to massive flooding in 2013. Trail Ridge is still the highest continuous highway in the United States with 11 miles above 11,000 feet and four miles above 12,000 feet. Great care was taken to avoid damaging the environment as evidenced by the protective measures taken at Rock Cut. It was completed on time and under budget but stll cost $34,000 per mile.
Rocky Mountain N.P. was dedicated on Sept. 4, 1915, in Horseshoe Park as seen in this photo taken on that day. There were about 300 people attending.
Not all of the attendees arrived by car. Several came by horseback and, if you enlarge the picture, there appears to be a motorcycle just above the lone horse.
Box lunches were handed out, as can be seen in this photo of formally attired picnickers. We could not get to the actual site because the road was closed due to the 2013 flooding.
The fork to the right in this old photo leads to the Park entrance and the dedication site a little further down. Although slightly reconfigured, the intersection appears today (after much walking around) as it used to.
The Ponce de Leon was Henry Flagler’s first hotel venture after founding Standard Oil Company with John D Rockefeller. It was the first large hotel built of poured concrete and opened January 10, 1888. It was four stories high situated on five acres. The dining room could hold 700 people. It is now part of Flagler College and is seen here in an 1897 photo.
Flagler’s second hotel–Alcazar– opened Christmas Day 1888. It closed in 1930 and was virtually abandoned for 10 years. It serves today as City Hall and the Lichtner Museum. It has changed little since the 1905 photo.
