Life of the Frontiersmen and Frontierswomen in the Western Aesthetic

By student author Abigale Stangl

On February 1st, 2007, Patty Limerick and the Center of the American West hosted an intimate dinner for a group of fifteen students, faculty, and Center of the American West friends. During an evening of laughter, exploration, and reminiscence, featured guest and architect Rick Petersen lead a presentation and discussion on what entails appropriate architecture for the Rocky Mountain Region, in memory of the late Jeff Limerick. In the setting of the Limerick's home, designed particularly in the spirit of the Western vernacular, we took pause in our lives to look around at the physical elements that create more than just an armature for our daily rituals. Both the natural landmarks of the Rocky Mountain Front Range and the more contemporary built features become holders of personal reminiscence, learning, and sometimes-lively interactions.

In some cases the remainders of environments created in the past help to inform current and future events; other times the exploration of current values helps us better understand the historical contexts of our environments. The landscape of the Rocky Mountain West embodies millions of years of vast transformation. The contrast of where the eastern plains meet the dramatic uplift of the foothills and the subsequent vertical-14,000 foot mountains can only create a sense of importance. When standing on the plains or possibly near the banks of an eroded creek bed and looking up, one can sense the brooding tension in the land. From the early settlements of the Arapahoe tribes to the later trappers, miners, homesteaders, cowboys, current tourists, and inhabitants, the Front Range has signified prosperity. The wealth of the region comes not only from the pelts, the extracted minerals, or the crops, but also of the open skies and the freedom of the frontier.

Over the decades elements from the natural environment and human settlement patterns, have fused into layers creating a recognizable fabric. The image of a trappers base camp, a high mountain cattle camp, or even an old homestead, resonate in the mind of many new developers. The idea of a log cabin seems to create a sense of rustic independence for many. Similarly, many mountain towns and cities along the Front Range use the shape and materials of historic mine tipples to create an identity as means for survival in the twenty-first century.

As a Western citizen in the twenty-first century, I some times feel nostalgic for eras past. I wish for the authenticity of the stoic Western frontiersmen and women. However, when opportunities to discus our environment and the ever adapting nature of our great Western region arise, I am reminded that we too are all frontiersmen and women.

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