Overview of UFO Managed Cultural Resources

The lands managed by the BLM Uncompahgre Field Office (UFO) display many locations that humans have found a hospitable place to live for thousands of years.  Current studies show that occupation of the area began over 12,000 years ago in the Paleoindian Era and has continued to the present day.  The remarkably high density of archaeological sites, which in some areas is at least one site per ten acres, is testimony to the desirability of this region as a place to live. 

This long period of occupation has resulted in a wide diversity of sites on the landscape providing silent testimony to those who came before.  Perhaps the most eloquent of sites are the rock art sites found throughout the UFO lands.  These rock art  sites range in age from the ancient Archaic (7,000-400 B. C.) up to the Historic Period (1830-1950 A.D.) and have been interpreted as depicting trails and maps, ceremonies, shamanic themes, clan information, histories and hunting stories, explorer’s marks and signatures, cowboy brands, and mundane graffiti. 

Evidence that occupants during the Formative Era (400 BC to 1300 AD) developed agriculture is found in caves and the stone structures they built on the slopes of the Uncompahgre Plateau.  Where these farmers relatives of the Anasazi of the Four Corners region?  Further research may tell! The Tabeguache and Uncompahgre Bands of the Ute Indians left wickiups, teepee rings, scarred trees and Bear Dance rock art as testimony to their occupation of the land from about fifteenth century until removal in 1881. Other types of prehistoric sites found in the UFO lands include rock shelters, open camp sites, lithic scatters, game drives, trails, and quarries.

Lonely cabins and homesteads provide witness to the newcomers to the land- Europeans- Spanish, Mexican and American, first they came as explorers and fur traders, then miners, farmers, ranchers and loggers, all leaving their mark on the land. One of the region’s most remarkable historic sites is the thirteen mile long Hanging Flume, near Uravan.  Constructed to deliver water to placer mining claims, the Flume is an awe inspiring engineering wonder, clinging to sheer red sandstone cliffs high above the Dolores and San Miguel Rivers.

To date 4,638 cultural resource sites have been recorded on the lands managed by BLM UFO.  Many more remain to be found, as only 17% of those lands have been formally surveyed for cultural resources. These sites contain a wealth of information on the prehistory and history of the area, and several hundred are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.

Cultural Resources on the Uncompahgre Plateau  

In March of 2004 a report was completed titled "A Research Design and Context for Prehistoric Cultural Resources in the Uncompahgre Plateau Archaeological Project's Study Area, Western Colorado".  The research was partially funded by a State Historical Fund Grant awarded by the Colorado Historical Society.  It was completed by Alpine Arechaeological Consultants, Inc. of Montrose, Colorado.  Alan D. Reed was principal investigator and was assisted by Rachel Gebauer.  You may view the report in .pdf format by following the title link.