Fort Garland, After Restoration by the State.
Mr. McMechen, a meticulous scholar, sought to reconstruct the fort as nearly as possible to its original appearance. He wished to use every original stone, every brick, every timber that was sound in the reconstructed buildings. The first step in the restoration was the removal of the old roofs which had, for the most part, collapsed or become unsound. The five buildings under construction were the west barracks, sometimes referred to as the Infantry barracks, the east, or Cavalry barracks, and three of the original five officer’s quarters along the north of the parade. The east barracks had suffered the most from lack of repair and deterioration. One wall had crumbled and fallen away and nothing remained of the roof but the cross beams. The buildings to the south had long since disappeared and while the Society planned to rebuild these two long structures, it found it impossible to undertake the task at that time. The two officers’ quarters located immediately to the right and left of the commandant’s building had also vanished and were not to be rebuilt.
The reconstruction work on the fort buildings required careful supervision. The adobe bricks were made as they were made in 1858—the mud being molded in forms and placed in the sun to bake. After the adobes were set in place, the walls were plastered inside and out with a coat of the same adobe material. Mexican women were employed to work the mud into the crevices and give the walls a smooth surface. This they did with their hands, alone, just as it has been done in the Southwest United States for centuries.
Plans for the fort museum called for the following: the commanding officers’ quarters, where Colonel Kit Carson commanded in 1866-67, to be restored as nearly as possible as it was when the famous scout resided there, with deer and antelope heads on the walls and the skins of animals covering the floor; one of the officer’s quarters to be used for a resident curator and not to be open to the public; the Cavalry barracks to be utilized as a period museum, to represent the history of the San Luis Valley from the days of the Spanish Conquest to pioneer settlement; the Infantry barracks to contain a typical squad room and the old soldier’s theatre. The painted backdrop on the wall of the theatre was still visible prior to restoration and the simple mural was to be restored. At some later date the two buildings to the south of the parade, on either side of the port sally, were to be rebuilt and would include the commandant’s and adjutant’s offices, the guard room, prisoners’ cells, post blacksmith shop, the post bakery and the post chapel. These rooms would all be furnished and equipped in the manner of the fort’s original service buildings.
Ute Indian Village. Diorama in Fort Museum.
Interior of One of the Reconstructed Fort Buildings.