Colorado County Seeks to Preserve Outhouse

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colo. (March 29) - A group of history buffs is seeking historic designation for a campground outhouse, with one official saying it's important to preserve "fragments of our history."

The 4-Hole Log Outhouse was built in 1935 by the Civilian Conservation Corps, which was organized to employ Americans during Depression and played a key role in the evolution of the nation's parks and forests.

The Routt County Historic Preservation Board wants county commissioners to consider historic designation when they meet Tuesday.

"It's all in the effort of preserving fragments of our history," board chairman Michael Olsen said. "You've got to try to preserve a little bit of the whole area, the whole spectrum."

The Seedhouse Campground outhouse is the last of its kind in the Routt-Medicine Bow National Forest, said Angie KenCairn, the forest's heritage specialist.

"I catch a lot of grief by putting so much energy and effort into protecting an outhouse, but it really is so much more than that," KenCairn said. "It really is a symbol on the landscape."