Chew Ranch Complex: Cultural Landscape Inventory, Dinosaur National Monument, National Park Service

Cypher, Kristin; Braa, Brian

The Chew Ranch Complex is an historical agricultural landscape located within Dinosaur National Monument. The ranch sits near the terminus of a small canyon at the confluence of Pool Creek and an unnamed intermittent drainage stream, just southwest of the confluence of the Yampa and Green Rivers in northwestern Colorado. Although it once extended over approximately 2,250 acres, this inventory is primarily focused on an 80-acre area that includes the developed ranch complex, neighboring fields and pastures, and historic circulation systems. The ranch site was permanently settled in 1907 when Charles Moran claimed squatter’s rights. He established a homestead consisting of a cabin, storeroom, bunkhouse, corrals, and alfalfa patch. John Hoyle “Jack” Chew purchased the rights in 1910 to provide his cattle and horses with a winter range, and his family relocated here in 1911, marking the start of a half-century of ranching on the surrounding land. The family soon developed a complex of living quarters, livestock facilities, and growing fields. Jack continued to operate the ranch until about 1921, by which point his son Rial was managing ranch operations with his mother, Mary, and brother, Douglas. Rial worked tirelessly for the next 16 years to build livestock herds, acquire family land from his brothers, purchase land from outsiders, patent his own 160 acres, and repay debts. By 1937, he owned the entire Pool Creek operation and several outlying parcels, an approximately 1,400-acre holding. After his marriage that year, he continued to improve and enlarge the ranch headquarters. Dinosaur National Monument was expanded in 1938, and the Chew Ranch continued to operate as an inholding until 1966 when the National Park Service (NPS) purchased the property. The core of the ranch complex was developed between 1907 and 1921, first by the Morans and then under Jack’s supervision. Built features utilized mostly local materials to align with the natural landscape. During Rial’s ownership, he added sheep operations, and in 1937, he purchased the family’s first motorized vehicle to move more efficiently over the rugged country. By 1945, most of the extant buildings and landscape features had been constructed, and development slowed. Rial and his family now lived on a well-established ranch, with a flood-irrigated grass lawn, ornamental plantings, vegetable garden, and orchard. The final addition to the ranch was the 1958 relocation of a log structure from his brother Harry’s homestead. The buildings of Chew Ranch are largely clustered according to use and function. The agricultural and work buildings, such as corrals and a granary, are grouped on one side of the road; the residential structures such as the main house, outhouse, and storage cellars are on the other. The garden area and chicken coop are near the residence. Rocky cliffs rise to plateaus that frame the ranch site. Vegetation in the area surrounding the developed sites is typical of semi-arid country. The period of significance, 1907 to 1958, encompasses the early years of the Moran homestead, Jack Chew’s development of the site as a cattle ranch headquarters, and Rial Chew’s continued expansion of the ranch. Few changes have been made to the ranch under NPS ownership, and many structures have fallen into disrepair. Rehabilitation was begun in 1992 with the re-roofing of several structures. Most of the historic-era landscape features remain intact, and built structures continue to maintain historic integrity. The historic character, physical form, and setting are largely unchanged from the Chews’ tenure, and the landscape serves as a representative example of regional architecture and agricultural practices at a family ranch complex of northwestern Colorado during the early 20th century.

Chew Ranch Complex: Cultural Landscape Inventory, Dinosaur National Monument, National Park Service

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