Staunton Ranch

Opened in 2013, Staunton State Park was formerly a 1,720-acre ranch owned by doctors Archibald and Rachael Staunton. It is located near Shaffers Crossing about forty-five miles southwest of Denver. The Stauntons used the ranch as a vacation home and also operated a sawmill and hosted summer camps on the property. In 1986 the Stauntons’ daughter, Frances, donated the ranch to Colorado for use as a state park.

Staunton Ranch

Archibald and Rachael Staunton moved from West Virginia to Colorado in the early 1900s. Archibald was recovering from pneumonia. The Stauntons were both doctors and had married in the 1890s. They established medical practices in Denver and moved into a house on Downing Street with their daughter Frances. In the 1910s, while visiting the Glen Elk resort, they saw Elk Falls and decided to buy property in the area. Staunton Ranch started in 1918, when the family bought an eighty-acre parcel near Elk Falls and built a cabin on the property.

They expanded their property over the next twelve years, eventually acquiring 1,720 acres of mountain land. The ranch was covered with pine, aspen groves, open meadows, and granite cliffs. It was located around Black Mountain Creek at an elevation between about 8,000 and 9,000 feet. The Stauntons spent weekends and summers at the ranch.

The Stauntons claimed some of their land through the Homestead Act. This was a government program that allowed land to be purchased inexpensively if it was used as a working unit. To satisfy the requirements of the Homestead Act, they grew oats and potatoes and raised horses and cattle. Starting in the 1920s, they leased some of their land to loggers, who built a small sawmill and a cable system for moving logs. Logging continued until 1942, when metal from the sawmill was donated to wartime scrap metal drives. The abandoned sawmill collapsed in the 1960s or 1970s, but a two-story bunkhouse still stands near the ruins.

In addition to logging and agriculture, the Stauntons used their ranch to host a variety of camps. They may have ran a camp for tuberculosis patients at the ranch in the 1920s, but most camps came later and were recreational. About a quarter mile away from their own cabin, the Stauntons built several new cabins and a shower house near an older cabin that dated to before 1918. The foundations of additional cabins have been found on other parts of the property. The family used these cabins, most of them were built by the early 1930s, as part of a commercial camp called the Lazy V Ranch. From 1936 to 1954, the ranch hosted groups such as the Girl Scouts, the Mount Marion Camp for Catholic Girls, and the Lazy V Ranch for Boys.

After Rachael died in 1946 and Archibald died in 1958, Frances Staunton inherited the ranch. Friends and guests of Frances continued to use the ranch’s cabins and bunkhouse.

State Park

In 1961, three years after her father’s death, Frances Staunton wrote a will in which she pledged to donate the family’s ranch to the State of Colorado after she died. It would be given for use as a state park that would be kept largely in its natural state. The donation was announced in 1984 and finalized in 1986. Frances Staunton died in 1989.

State officials hoped to open Staunton State Park to the public in 1991, but it ultimately took more than twenty-five years to open the park. This was because Colorado Parks and Wildlife needed to acquire additional land to create an access point that did not involve driving through nearby private land.

In 1999 a Great Outdoors Colorado Legacy Grant made it possible for the original Staunton Ranch to be expanded by about 2,000 acres through the purchase of the neighboring Davis Elk Falls Ranches. In 2006 the prospective park was expanded again with the acquisition of a crucial eighty-acre parcel of land.

Years of planning and development followed. In May 2013, Staunton State Park opened as the first new state park near the Denver metropolitan area since 1978. Today the park includes more than 3,800 acres of land and twenty miles of trails. It is one of the few places where marmots can be found below tree line. The park has plans to construct new trails and a visitor center, and the nonprofit Friends of Staunton State Park is adding interpretive signs about the park’s cabins, sawmill, and other buildings.

Staunton Ranch is Colorado’s newest state park. It had been a 1,720-acre ranch owned by doctors Archibald and Rachael Staunton. The Stauntons used the ranch, located about forty-five miles southwest of Denver, as a vacation home. They also operated a sawmill and hosted summer camps on the property. In 1986 the Stauntons’ daughter Frances donated the ranch to Colorado for use as a state park. It opened to the public in 2013.

Staunton Ranch

Archibald and Rachael Staunton moved from West Virginia to Colorado in the early 1900s. The Stauntons were both doctors and had married in the 1890s. They established medical practices in Denver and moved into a house on Downing Street. They had one child, Frances. In the 1910s, while visiting the Glen Elk resort, Rachael and Frances saw Elk Falls and decided to buy property in the area. In 1918 they bought eighty-acres of land near Elk Falls and built a cabin for a vacation home.

They expanded their property over the next twelve years. Eventually, they had 1,720 acres of land. The ranch was covered with pines, aspen groves, open meadows, and granite cliffs. It was located around Black Mountain Creek at an elevation of about 8,000 and 9,000 feet. The Stauntons spent weekends and summers at the ranch.

The Stauntons claimed some of their land through the Homestead Act. This was a government program that allowed land to be purchased inexpensively if it was used as a working unit. To satisfy the requirements of the Homestead Act, they grew oats and potatoes and raised horses and cattle.

Starting in the 1920s, the Stauntons leased some of their land to loggers. They built a sawmill and a cable system for moving logs. Logging continued until 1942. The metal from the sawmill was donated to scrap metal drives during World War II. The abandoned sawmill collapsed in the 1960s or 1970s, but a two-story bunkhouse still stands near the sawmill ruins.

In addition to logging and agriculture, the Stauntons used their ranch for camps. They may have operated a camp for tuberculosis patients at the ranch in the 1920s. But most camps were recreational. The Stauntons built cabins and a shower house in the 1930s. The family used these cabins to operate a camp called the Lazy V Ranch. From 1936 to 1954, the ranch hosted groups such as the Girl Scouts, the Mount Marion Camp for Catholic Girls, and the Lazy V Ranch for Boys.

Frances Staunton inherited the ranch from her parents. Rachael died in in 1946 and Archibald died in 1958. Friends and guests continued to use the ranch’s cabins and bunkhouse.

State Park

In 1961 Frances Staunton wrote a will and pledged to donate the family’s ranch to the State of Colorado. She wanted to create a state park that would be kept largely in its natural condition. The donation was announced in 1984 and finalized in 1986. Frances Staunton died in 1989.

State officials hoped to open Staunton State Park to the public in 1991, but it took more than twenty-five years to open it. This was because Colorado Parks and Wildlife needed to acquire additional land. It also had to create an entryway that did not cross private land.

In 1999 a Great Outdoors Colorado Grant helped expand Staunton Ranch by about 2,000 acres through the purchase of the neighboring Davis Elk Falls ranches. In 2006 the park was expanded by another eighty acres.

Years of planning and development followed. In May 2013, Staunton State Park opened as Colorado’s first new state park since 1978. Today the park includes more than 3,800 acres of land and twenty miles of trails. It is one of the few places where marmots can be found below tree line. There are plans to construct new trails and a visitor center. The nonprofit Friends of Staunton State Park is adding interpretive signs about the park’s cabins, sawmill, and other buildings.

Staunton Ranch is Colorado’s newest state park. It is located about forty-five miles south of Denver. Archibald and Rachael Staunton bought the ranch in 1918. They had a sawmill and hosted camps on the property. In 1986 the Stauntons’ daughter, Frances, donated the ranch to the state of Colorado. It is now a state park, which opened in 2013.

Staunton Ranch

Archibald and Rachael Staunton were from West Virginia and moved to Colorado in the 1900s. The Stauntons were both doctors with offices in Denver. They lived in a house on Downing Street with their daughter Frances. They were visiting the mountains and saw the area around Elk Falls. They decided to buy some land in the area. In 1918 they bought eighty acres of land near Elk Falls. They built a cabin and named their land Staunton Ranch.

The Stauntons bought more land over the next twelve years. Soon, they had 1,720 acres. The ranch was covered with pine, aspen groves, open meadows, and granite cliffs. It was near Black Mountain Creek. The Stauntons spent weekends and summers at the ranch.

The Stauntons got some of their land through the Homestead Act. This was a government program that helped people get land. The land was not expensive if it was used as a ranch. To meet the standards of the Homestead Act, the Stauntons grew crops and raised animals. In the 1920s, they built a sawmill and sold lumber. During World War II, the sawmill was closed. The metal from the sawmill was donated to help with the war. The sawmill collapsed in the 1970s, but a two-story bunkhouse is still near the sawmill ruins.

The Stauntons also ran camps on their ranch. They may have had a camp for tuberculosis patients in the 1920s. But the camps were mainly for people to have fun and to be in the wilderness. The Stauntons built cabins and a shower house in the 1930s. They ran a camp called the Lazy V Ranch. Many different groups used the camp from 1936 to 1954. The Girl Scouts, the Mount Marion Camp for Catholic Girls, and the Lazy V Ranch for Boys all camped at the ranch.

Rachael died in in 1946 and Archibald died in 1958. Frances Staunton inherited the ranch. Frances’ friends and guests continued to use the ranch’s cabins and bunkhouse.

State Park

In 1961 Frances Staunton wrote her will. She would donate her family’s ranch to the State of Colorado after she died. She wanted to have the land be part of a new state park. The donation was announced in 1984. Frances Staunton died in 1989.

The State of Colorado hoped to open Staunton State Park by 1991. But it took more than twenty-five years to open the park. This was because the state needed to create an entrance to the new park. They had to make a way to get to the park without driving through private land.

In 1999 Great Outdoors Colorado helped add about 2,000 acres to the park. The neighboring Davis Ranch and Elk Falls Ranch were purchased. In 2006 another eighty-acres were added. It took many years to buy the land and to plan the park.

In May 2013 Staunton State Park opened as a new state park. Today it includes 3,800 acres of land and twenty miles of trails. It is one of the few places where marmots can be found below tree line. There are plans to construct new trails and a visitor center. The group called Friends of Staunton State Park is adding signs about the park’s cabins, sawmill, and other buildings.