Cordillera Preservation - Bearden Cabin

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Bearden Cabin

Rolando Bearden, his wife and children moved into their first Cordillera home, a one-room cabin on 300 acres in gorgeous Vail Valley, in 1915. The five-person family outgrew the cabin by the 1940s, however, and abandoned it for a second cabin they built nearby. This first home, referred to as Bearden Cabin, was left uninhabited and untended until 2003, when the Cordillera Preservation Foundation targeted the historic property for its first major restoration project.

Located along Squaw Creek Road, and positioned to face a spectacular mountain panorama, this Bearden Cabin retained many of its original charms, including its impressive wood-shingled roof, after 60 years of neglect. However, the ravages of time made for a daunting interior and exterior clean up and restoration task for the CPF.

Start to finish, till the last bulbs Anne Rainey planted in surrounding flowerbeds, the preservation project at Bearden Cabin took just more than a year.

Now the property exists as an exquisite resting place for Cordillera residents and visitors, alike. We’d like to think the Bearden family would be pleased with the professionally restored log frame, and the freshly manicured lawn. Nestled in the surrounding garden, a paved a rock terrace provides a cozy picnic table and chairs. And a hitching rail accommodates the frequent visitors arriving on horseback. Bearcat Stables, after all, is right there on the Bearden homestead property.

The smallest home in Cordillera, the almost century-old Bearden Cabin is an undeniable piece of Colorado’s history.

View the complete photo gallery of Bearden Cabin

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