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Heritage Courtyard
The Heritage Courtyard contains four historic structures embodying early Euro-American life in the area. You can see many pictures of these structures, taken by Museum visitors, at our Flickr site.
the franz-smith cabin
The c.1882 Franz-Smith homestead cabin represents 70 years of agricultural tradition in Fort Collins. The cabin stood on South Shields near Harmony Road until it was displaced in 1987 by the Clarendon Hills subdivision. The Larimer County Historic Alliance (LCHA) moved the cabin to Livermore to save it from demolition, but their dream of an architectural park in Livermore was not realized. The Fort Collins Museum relocated the Franz-Smith cabin to the Museum's Heritage Courtyard in June of 2000 where it was studied, restored, preserved, and interpreted as part of our cultural heritage.
the auntie stone cabin
In 1864, Elizabeth "Auntie" Stone and her husband, Lewis, convinced the military to allow them to construct a home on fort land to serve as an officer's mess hall. This first entrepreneurial endeavor would not be the last for Auntie Stone or for her cabin. Auntie Stone partnered in the first gristmill in 1869, and the first brick kiln in 1870. An advocate of women's suffrage, Auntie cast her first vote at age 93. Auntie died in 1895 at the age of 94. Her grave marker can be seen at the Grandview Cemetery.
The Auntie Stone cabin is the oldest remaining building from the Fort era, and has moved many times throughout downtown. It served as the town's first hotel, first school, and even a dance hall. Eventually, Auntie Stone's cabin found a permanent home at the Fort Collins Museum.
the antoine janis cabin
Antoine Janis first appeared on the Fort Collins scene before Fort Collins existed. In 1844, Janis traveled west from his home in Missouri and staked a claim along the Cache la Poudre River near Laporte. Not until 1859 did Janis and his wife First Elk Woman reside on the 160-acre homestead and construct their log home.
Janis was a trader, guide, and interpreter. In 1878, Janis chose to relocate with his wife, First Elk Woman, an Oglala Lakota Indian, to the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota. He sold the cabin and land for $4,500. He died in Pine Ridge in 1890.
The Janis cabin came to rest in Library Park through the efforts of the Indian Relic Hobby Club. In 1938, the Club rescued the soon to be torn down cabin and relocated it to Library Park. The cabin became the impetus for the idea of a community museum and in 1941, the Pioneer Museum opened with the cabin rebuilt nearby. The cabin is thought to be the first permanent residential structure built in Larimer County.
the upper boxelder schoolhouse
The Upper Boxelder Schoolhouse originally resided on the Upper Boxelder Creek, 35 miles northwest of Fort Collins, on the Fred Maxwell Ranch. The school and a shed for horses cost $290 to build in 1905. Originally nine students enrolled, ranging in ages from six to sixteen. School sessions ran from November to March, and the teacher received a $35/month salary. The school also served as a Sunday school room and hosted many community socials. It closed in 1951. When the Maxwell Ranch was donated to Colorado State University in 1975, the Victorian Questers stepped in and relocated the schoolhouse to the Fort Collins Museum's Courtyard.
