TRUST FOR PUBLIC LANDS CONVEYS ADDITION TO CANYONS OF THE ANCIENTS NATIONAL MONUMENT

For further information, contact:
    Doug Robotham, Trust for Public Land 303-837-1414
    LouAnn Jacobson, Bureau of Land Management, 970-882-5600

CORTEZ, Colorado – The Trust for Public Land (TPL) and Bureau of Land Management announce the purchase of a 440-acre parcel within the boundaries of the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument. The land will be conveyed to the BLM to manage cultural resources on the site and provide wildlife habitat and additional recreational opportunities for the public.

The parcel is the last portion of the original 2,000-acre Trail Canyon Ranch that was owned and ranched by Reece and Leslie Ann Malles, and had been in family ownership for over 50 years. The landowners approached TPL and BLM last year about the potential of selling this final parcel into public ownership. On an adjacent part of the ranch sold previously to private buyers, a conservation easement has been placed to protect an important Anasazi site, including one of only a dozen great kivas known to exist in southwestern Colorado, and work is underway to stabilize and restore a historic rock cabin and place conservation easements on other portions of the ranch.

The acquisition, located about seven miles west of Cortez, includes Morrison Canyon and a mesa overlooking adjacent Trail Canyon. It contains 10 important archeological sites, according to a survey conducted by the Fort Lewis College Anthropology Department. The property includes pithouse village sites, a pueblo, a granary, and a field house constructed by the ancestral Puebloan peoples between 500 and 1150 AD.

“The Malles have been sensitive to the cultural resource values of their property for many years, and we are pleased they expressed interest in making this last piece of the Trail Canyon Ranch part of Canyons of the Ancients National Monument,” said LouAnn Jacobson, Monument Manager.

The Land and Water Conservation Fund, established by Congress in 1965 to provide for protection of the nation’s important lands using a portion of receipts from offshore oil and gas leases, provided funding for the purchase. The Fund allows for selected land acquisitions by the federal land management agencies, such as BLM, through Congressional appropriations for the acquisition of lands from willing sellers. Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell, a member of the Senate Interior Appropriations Subcommittee that funds BLM, played a key role in securing funding.

“Working to protect a place like this with the landowner, the BLM, and the community is both gratifying and immensely important," said Doug Robotham, Director of TPL’s program in Colorado. "It could not have been done without the support and leadership of Senator Campbell, who worked hard in Congress to secure the funding to make this project successful.”

"The President and Bureau of Land Management requested this funding, and I'm pleased this land will be available for many generations to enjoy," Senator Campbell said.

Canyons of the Ancients, which encompasses 164,000 acres of federal land in southwestern Colorado, was designated as a Monument in 2000 by Presidential Proclamation to protect cultural and natural resources on a landscape scale. The Monument lands contain the highest density of archaeological sites in the United States.

Acquisition and protection of the property was supported by a number of respected organizations, including the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Crow Canyon Archeological Center, and Center of Southwest Studies at Fort Lewis College. “The Malles parcel is in one of the most densely settled parts of the Mesa Verde region, and the sites within that property are remarkably well preserved. They make an important new contribution to Canyons of the Ancients National Monument,” said Mark Varien of the Crow Canyon Archeological Center.

TPL, a national nonprofit organization, conserves land for people to enjoy as parks, gardens, and other natural places, ensuring livable communities for generations to come. Since 1972, TPL has protected more than 1.96 million acres nationwide with a value of more than $3 billion. In Colorado, TPL has worked with private landowners, community groups and public agencies to protect over 72,000 acres of the state’s commonwealth of parks and open space.