Boggsville Historic Site

   Historic Background

Boggsville is located on the Purgatoire River, two miles south of present day Las Animas on Colorado Highway 101. First, the high plains native Indians used this as campsite. Next, the Spanish ruled the area and gave it many Spanish names, which still are used today. Later, the Mexicans gained their independence and took over the landlordship from the Spanish. Lastly, the white Americans came into the picture as more settlers moved into unsettled lands. Bent's Old Fort had been the center of fur trade in the area until shortly after the New Mexico Territory became part of the United States (1848). But, with the fur trade nearly gone, many of the traders found work in raising livestock. This settlement was founded on a branch of the Santa Fe Trail about 1862 by Thomas O. Boggs (son of a granddaughter of Daniel Boone), his wife Rumalda Luna Bent (a stepdaughter of Charles Bent),  L. A. Allen, and Charles Ritc.  To the north lived William Bent, who had moved to the area around 1858.  By 1866 Tom Boggs had built a new adobe nine-room house for the family in this hostile land. When the Civil War ended, the Fort Lyon Military Post moved to a point just downstream of the Purgatoire's mouth to protect travelers on the Santa Fe Trail Mountain Route. But it wasn't until around 1874 that the plains Indians finally allowed some peace to come to the land.

In 1867 Boggs was joined by John Wesley Prowers, who moved to the Boggs's ranch (now known as BOGGSVILLE).  Both men had worked for the Bent brothers and Charles St. Vrain in their trading enterprises on the Santa Fe Trail, at Bent's Old Fort, and Taos (Mexican Territory).  In late 1867 the noted ailing frontiersman Kit Carson moved to Boggsville, his last home before his death in 1868 at nearby Fort Lyon.   Thomas and Rumalda Boggs took in five of Carson's children and raised them to adulthood.   The same year, merchant John Hough (Prowers' brother-in-law)arrived.

During the period 1863 through 1873 (arrival of the Atchison Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad) Boggsville was the regional center of agriculture, government, commerce, and culture. In 1870 Boggs was the Bent County seat and remained so until 1872.  The railroad, however, eventually put Boggsville out of business when West Las Animas became the location of the rail station, and this town continued to grow in population.

Additional Sources of Interest:

  Revitalization

Thomas Boggs and John Prowers each built permanent adobe homes of considerable size. In 1985 the site was acquired by the Pioneer Historical Society of Bent County.  In its heyday, more than twenty structures graced the site.

Restoration activities at Boggsville are based on the Boggsville Master Plan that was completed in 1986. Restoring the Boggs and Prowers houses (the only remaining original structures on the site) was a major focus of the current revitalization effort.  Both houses have been structurally restored through major funding from the Colorado State Historical Fund, the Gates Foundation, and the El Pomar Foundation. These houses are among the earliest documented exampled of Territorial achitecture in the state.  Later, other structures will be built to enhance the interpretation of the historic site and its people. In 2003 a Santa Fe Trail Room at the Prowers House will be established by Western Cultural Resource Management, Inc., of Lafayette. Work is still being done along the self-guided tour paths. Cuartelejo HP Associates Inc., of La Junta, is also undertaking archaeological test excavations at the Carson house locale.

Archaeology

Extensive archaeological investigations have take place since the project was begun in 1985. Initial archaeological investigations were completed for the Boggs House through a major grant provided by the State of Colorado through the Colorado Department of Local Affairs. Investigations of areas associated with the Prowers House, the Carson House, and Boggsville's public school (the first in the region) have been accomplished with grants from the Colorado State Historical Fund, and through "field school" activities during the summers of 1994 and 1995. More college classes in archaeology and history of southeast Colorado are planned for Boggsville in2003 through Otero Jr. College and Front Range Community College. Archaeological excavations were underway for authenticating the location of the Carson House/"Trading House" during the summer of 2001 and will continue in 2003.   The archaeologist in residence is Richard Carrillo of La Junta, Colorado. The interpretive and archaeological projects are being funded in part by the State Historical Fund, Colorado Historical Society (Denver), and the Long Distance Trail Branch of the Nationa Park Service (Santa Fe).

Re-enactment

Pioneer Historical Society of Bent County also sponsors the Boggsville Living History Committee. This group of volunteers supports activities at the site and adds a visual reference for the day-to-day human activities that comprised the interactions of diverse cultural backgrounds that were the "community of Boggsville." One project of this committee was the dramatic re-creation of the Cheyenne Indian raid of 1867, for the 1994 annual meeting of the Santa Fe Trail Association. This raid, a product of unrest following the Sand Creek Massacre (November, 1864), resulted in the death of four Indians, two soldiers, and two settlers. The re-enactment was filmed and is available on VHS video from the Boggsville Store. These programs are often associated with Archaeology and Historic Preservation Week, archaeology field schools with colleges and universities, and youth educational programs.

Visiting the Site

The site is open daily seven days a week (Memorial Day through October 1) from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm, and group tours are offered by reservation. In 2003 it will be open in May on Friday-Sunday. Annual activities at the site have included "Boggsville Days," Santa Fe Trail Day," and a "Boggsville Christmas" party.  A new restroom facility (complete with showers) was added in 2001, the exterior of which is being plastered to match the color of the Boggs and Prowers Houses. Self-guided trail tours are available as well.

You are cordially invited to become a part of these historic preservation activities.  Our present achievements have come through the active support of persons like yourself who have volunteered their time and made financial contibutions that support the Boggsville revitalization effort.

You can help by becoming a volunteer and a "Friend of Boggsville." Member privileges include a subscription to the quarterly newsletter, a membership card, and 10 percent off all Trade Room purchases.

Financial support catagories include:

Youth or Student $5.00
Individual $15.00
Family $25.00
Contributing $26.00 to $99.00
Patron $100.00 or more
Checks may be made payable to "Friends of Boggsville"

For Boggsville Information Contact:
Richard Carrillo, Administrator or:
Boggsville Historic Site Las Animas/Bent County Chamber of Commerce
P.O. Box 68 332 Ambassador Thompson Blvd.
Las Animas, Colorado 81054 Las Animas, Colorado 81054
Phone/Fax: (719)384-8054/456-1358 (after April 29) (719)456-0453 (leave message)

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Development Credit: Billie Jackson  (last update 5/19/03)              Email Your Comments & Mail