Discover the rare and fragile Ute wickiup shelters and how new archaeological findings from Colorado’s western slope reveal that a significant number of Colorado Utes did not make the journey to the reservations in Utah during the “final removal” in 1881, but rather remained on the landscape of their traditional homelands until well into the twentieth century. (26 minutes)
Link to Ute STEM project video (3 minutes) highlighting our field trip to Decker Big Tank site with members of all three Ute tribes; elders, youth, etc.
University of Utah Press
Ephemeral Bounty
Wickiups, Trade Goods, and the Final Years
of the Autonomous Ute
Published 2016
The Daily Sentinel
Monday, May 25, 2022
Domestic chores marked Utes’ use
of site on Uncompahgre Plateau
Rocky Mountain PBS episode of “The Colorado Experience” entitled “The Wickiup Investigation.” Denver, 1/31/19.
Live interview on KAFM radio’s “PBS In Tune” program, Grand Junction, 1/16/19.
Interviewed for KVNF radio’s “Local Motion” program, Paonia, CO., 5/13/16.
Live newscast on KKCO_TV “11 News Today”, 4/25/12.
Interviewed for KJCT-TV newscast, Grand Junction, Colorado, 4/16/12
Interviewed for television documentary by Colorado Canyons Association, Grand Junction. “The Archaeology of Gateway Canyons.” 3/15/12:
Article entitled “A Race to Document Wooden Shelters: Project Aims to Record Historic Ute Structures in Southwest Colorado” in The Durango Herald, March 16-17, 2019.
Article entitled “A Western Wicki-pedia” in Archaeology magazine, May/June 2015.
United States Forest Service Blog. “Archaeological Heritage of Colorado’s Ute Tribe Part of National Forests’ History in Rocky Mountain Region,” posted 1/12/15.
National Trust for Historic Preservation’s PreservationNation Blog online magazine. “Five Unique Examples of Preservation of Native American Historic Sites: The Colorado Wickiup Project”, posted 1/7/15.
Press re. receipt of the 2014 Colorado Governor’s Award for Historic Preservation from History Colorado:
Denver Post newspaper article entitled “On the trail of Ute wickiups in Colorado,” 3/23/14.
Grand Junction Daily Sentinel newspaper “Your Town” column, 1/19/14.
Grand Junction Free Press feature article entitled “Colorado Wickiup Project: Groups work together to document ancient Ute dwellings in award winning project,” 2/14/14.
Grand Junction Daily Sentinel feature article entitled “Wickiup project wins governor’s history award: Team recognized for documenting structures built by Utes in the area,” 2/19/14.
Feature article entitled “Colorado Wickiup Project Suggests Revision of State’s History is Much Needed” (by Bob Silbernagel) in the April 19th edition of the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel newspaper, Grand Junction, 2013.
Article entitled “Martin Talks of ‘Ute Indians, Prehistoric Ancestors’: Historical Society Program Draws Record Crowd” in the May 3rd edition of the Palisade Tribune newspaper, Palisade, 2012.
Article entitled “Many Utes Avoided Forced Relocation, Local Archaeologist Says” (by Sharon Sullivan) in the April 20th edition of the Grand Junction Free Press newspaper, 2012.
Feature article about the Colorado Wickiup Project entitled “A Journey in Time”, (by John Anglim) in the August edition of Grand Valley magazine, Grand Junction, 2010.
Feature article entitled “A Race Against Time: Archaeologists Fight Against Nature, Oil Industry to Study, Save Colorado’s Wickiups, Aboriginal Structures” (by Dennis Webb) in the September 22nd edition of the Grand Junction Daily Sentinel newspaper, Grand Junction, 2008.