Greg O’Neil sent me this photo that he took at Capitol Reef National Park in early March of this year.
The stone and mud house is 10×12 and dates back to the early 1800s. Eleven people called it home at one time (eight were children) and a couple of them slept in the rock ledges behind the house.
“This area of southern Utah has a diversity of landscape like no other area in the state – red rock formations and canyons, pristine meadows, alpine forests, as well as lush green valleys.”
Quote from: Capitol Reef National Park
I have lots for Tiny Houses. See at http://www.barrenriverlakelots.com or call (270) 784-4706
A couple of the kids slept in the rock ledges? I guess they didn’t have a Department of Human Services back then!
The sentence doesn’t necessarily say that the ones who slept on the rocks were the kids. But if so, the little caves look like something a kid would enjoy sleeping in.
Well, it looks like two minutes of research yields the answer. Although it also verifies that, although settlers may have started coming there in the early 1800’s, this cabin isn’t that old. Dave was correct.
http://www.gly.uga.edu/railsback/BS/BS-Behunin.html
http://www.adventureroad.com/Parks/Capitol%20Reef/Capitol_Reef.htm
According to the second account, it was two boys who slept in the caves, and two other girls slept in a wagon box outside.
http://www.wanderinglizard.com/Utah/SoutheastUtah/wayneC/capitolreef/behunincabin.html
Another story saying that the boys slept outside and the girls in a wagon. This one includes a picture of the caves.
These look like early versions of the so-called “sustainable” housing of the UN’s “Agenda 21” which will be FORCED on the American people, ere long. It also reminds me of the descriptions of housing in the old Soviet Union in movies such as “Jet Pilot” (John Wayne & Janet Leigh – 1957) or the Gulag of Soljenitsen (spelling?)…
Yikes! Looks like you might end up with a rattlesnake for a teddy bear sleeping in those rocks. I guess if even a couple of the people living there snored those rock ledges would start looking pretty good at bedtime.
Seriously doubt this dates from the early 1800’s as the Mormons didn’t arrive in Utah until 1847. Prior to their arrival there were just Native Americans and the odd Mexican cowboy living in Southern Utah. Early 1900’s I can believe. I lived in Kanab, Utah for twenty years, while most such tiny houses were destroyed a few still exist there as well.
I don’t know; according to the Capitol Reef National Park website
I suppose Capitol Reef National Park are the experts on the history of Capitol Reef National Park.
Love the blog. BUT you are MUCH too fond of lifting quotations verbatim from other websites, giving the appearance that they’re your own words and knowledge, while not giving credit to the real authors.
Your paragraph above,
“This area of southern Utah has a diversity of landscape like no other area in the state – red rock formations and canyons, pristine meadows, alpine forests, as well as lush green valleys.”
–was taken right off the CapitolReef.org homepage you linked to.
Very bad form…and bad karma…if you want to be a writer/blogger.
I love how it blends into the rock.
I’ve been there! I thought it was a really odd place to build a cabin, honestly. It’s in a narrow river valley through the rock, where the road goes through — there’s water very nearby, but not much in the way of desirable farmland. And there’s a perfectly nice verdant little valley, oh, maybe five miles to the right, with a little farming community and everything. I guess the land there was all spoken for? Anyway, hard spot to eke out a living, I thought. Here it is on google maps:
http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=capitol+reef+national+park&aq=&sll=37.0625,-95.677068&sspn=44.928295,88.59375&ie=UTF8&hq=capitol+reef+national+park&hnear=Capitol+Reef+National+Park,+Torrey,+Utah+84775&ll=38.282149,-111.170399&spn=0.001366,0.003726&t=h&z=19
(sorry for the enormity of the link)
I used to live a couple hours from there & I still miss the place- so, so much. Riding the 70 up and down Utah is such a beautiful experience, especially if you get off and roam around & find naturally occurring hot springs to soak in -out in folks’ cow fields sometimes! Also the 50 across it is a wonder to the eyes. Down by places around & past Panguitch -like Parowan Gap (toward College & Shakespeare town of Cedar City) you would find the most amazing old etchings in the desert varnish on the rocks. I can attest to the Caucasian attitude purported above that ‘no one was there before such and such a date: folks were there long before Mormons & I was often asked if I were part Ute as my features apparently bespoke. Can’t say as to how anyone at all -including early Mormons- built their homes, in spite of my education, tours, Museums here and there. I love Utah so much, geologically and botanically speaking. Most folks were really nice too. Geez, I love this image.
It pains me that we can’t simply erect a simple house anymore. Deeply. We have so lost touch with what we are about as people walking the earth. So sad. I’m all about children being protected- they always have deserved that much; but these days folks act like each child needs their own bedroom, bathroom, walk in closet… as a legality. Crazysauce.
This cabin was built by my great-great grandfather. When I was nine years old I visited this cabin with my Grandpa Behunin, who named all the people pictured on the nearby park service plaque. One of those pictured is his father.
Brian, from where did the Behunin clan originate? Any knowledge of their ancestry? Just curious. = )