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~_ 1.0 IN'T'RODUCTION Alpine Archaeological Consultants, Inc. (Alpine) conducted a historical significance evalua- tion of standing structures at t:he Camp Bird Mine (50R65) prior to mine reclamation. Such an in- ventory was specified in an approved reclamation plan for Level 14 of the Camp Bird Mine under Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Board Permit No. M-82-090. The objective of the inventory was to assess the significance of the standing architectural elements at the mine. The work was re- quested by J. M. Beck & Associates of Lakewood, Colorado, on behalf of Camp Bird Colorado, Inc., of Salt Lake City, Utah. State of Colorado mandates for examination of the site are included in the Historical, Prehistorical, and Archaeological Resources Act of 1973 (CRS 24-80). Fieldwork was con- ducted November 12, 1996, b~~ Jonathan C. Horn, Principal Investigator, of Alpine Archaeological Consultants, Inc. Work was conducted under the provisions of State of Colorado Archaeological Permit #96-3 (expires February 28, 1997). Field notes and photographs resulting from the project are on file at Alpine, Montrose, Colorado. No artifacts were collected. 2.0 LOCATION AND ENVIRONMENTAL SETTING The project area is loc:sted in the Southern Rocky Mountains physiographic province. The site is situated in a deep canyon at an elevation of 9,754 feet (2,973 m) at the junction of Sneffels and Imogene Creeks, which converge to form Canyon Creek, a tributary of the Uncompahgre River. The terrain is characterized by high vertical relief, large rocky outcrops, and the deeply entrenched drainages. The area is very complex geologically. The underlying rock is sedimentary and volcanic rock of Paleozoic and Mesozoic age overlain by Cenozoic age volcanic rock. Above this is sedimentary rock of the Cutler formation of Permian age, followed by sandstone, siltstone, and conglomerate rack of the Triassic age Dolores formation and Jurassic age Entrada sandstone. Over these is a thick deposit of the Tertiary age Telluride Conglomerate and an even thicker layer of rock of volcanic ori- gin known as the San Juan tuff, also of Tertiary age. The uppermost geologic unit is the Silverton Volcanic Group comprised of the Picayune, Burns, Henson, and Potosi formations (Rosemeyer 1990; Tweto 1979). Vegetation in t}~e project area is that of the fir-aspen belt. Observed plants include spruce, aspen, and willow. Numerous animal species inhabit the area, including mule deer, elk, big- horn sheep, black bear, marmot, porcupine, snowshoe hare, cottontail, rock squirrel, voles, and a wide variety of raptors and songbirds. One bird species, the black swift, is particularly unique to the immediate area. The project area is in Ouray County on unsurveyed land in what would correspond to Section 22, Township 43 North, Range 8 West, New Mexico P.M. (Figure 1). The land on which the mine is located is privately owned by Camp Bird Colorado, Inc. 3.0 CULTURE HISTORY The following culture }iistory is a brief synthesis of historic and prehistoric occupation in the Southern Rocky Mountains, including the Ouray area. It is based upon archaeological and historical work undertaken in and around the Southern Rocky Mountains. The mountains of Colorado may have been first inhabited to a limited degree as early as 10,000 B.C. by big game hunters representative of the Paleoindian Tradition. Evidence of this early occupation is rarely encountered in the region. With the end of the Pleistocene came climatic condi- tions very similar to those of the present. By about 5,500 B.C., coinciding with this climatic modera- tion, was a transition in subsistence and material culture termed the Archaic Tradition. Archaic peoples exploited a greater variety of plant and animal foodstuffs and manufactured tools quite dis- tinct from their predecessors. At the time of Euroamerican contact, the primary aboriginal group in the project area were the Ute, living anArchaic-like lifestyle. The Ute were Numic-speakers who may have arrived in western Colorado as early as A.D. 1500. As a result of Euroamerican contact,