4 more spots added to ‘endangered places’ list in Colorado
Colorado has four more “endangered places,” as identified by a nonprofit keeping a list.
That’s Colorado Preservation Inc., which for 28 years has annually added projects to its Endangered Places Program.
The four picks this year: the childhood home of a Hollywood hero; a town hall in the mountains; one building in rural Colorado recalling lively nights at the opera; and another recalling a grim chapter in the state’s history.
The endangered places were recently announced at a Colorado Preservation Inc. conference in Colorado Springs. The four brought the organization’s list of identified sites to 144, said Katie Peterson, Endangered Places director.
Since the program started in 1997, 57 of those places have reportedly been saved and nine lost. The “saved” list includes the well-known likes of the Amache Internment Site — where Japanese Americans were exiled during World War II — and the lesser known likes of old homes, schools, theaters and train depots.
The list “includes everything from city blocks to churches, apple orchards and small local, family-owned establishments,” Peterson said in a statement. “Every place has a story to tell, and our purpose is to relay those histories to the public and preserve them for future generations.”
The Endangered Places Program partners with local groups and individuals on projects, raising advocacy, adding technical support and pitching in money from History Colorado funds.
These are the next four places set to benefit:
Indiana Jones Bed and Breakfast
In 1988, Hollywood descended upon the tiny, southern Colorado town of Antonito to film the origins of a legend. “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” starts here inside 502 Front St., the hero’s boyhood home.
The action plays out on the Cumbres and Toltec Railroad, the historic tracks where the train continues to roll. The house continues to host overnighting movie fans — but the long-term future depends on a new foundation, according to Colorado Preservation Inc.
The house is said to be one of Antonito’s first, built in 1888. It was occupied by the Carrolls, who “moved to the area to support local miners and ran a business selling horses and mules,” according to Colorado Preservation Inc. An agency news release adds the old house “offers a unique opportunity to celebrate the intersection of movie history and heritage preservation.”
Newman Block

The southeast Colorado town of Granada lies about a mile from Amache, that internment camp turned national historic site telling the story of Japanese Americans whose lives were uprooted during World War II. One of those was Frank Masa Tsuchiya. He had been forcibly removed from his fish market in Los Angeles.

Upon his release in 1943, Tsuchiya opened a market in Granada, in the building next to Newman’s Drug Store. Ed Newman was said to have employed men from Amache. “He also sponsored sports teams inside Amache, providing uniforms and trophies,” reads Colorado Preservation Inc.’s account. Tsuchiya, meanwhile, delivered fish, poultry, ice and more to those held at Amache.
The Newman Block’s buildings still stand, recalling those two businesses. The old pharmacy is now an event space, while the fish market sits empty. “Attention was drawn to the structures when one of the four buildings that share walls collapsed,” according to Colorado Preservation Inc.
Knearl Block and Opera House

William H. Knearl was a prominent businessman in Brush, a central figure to the eastern Colorado town’s early, much busier days. Fittingly, his namesake building has served as a central gathering place since its 1902 construction. Since 2003, the building has housed the Corral Sports Bar and Grill.
“The owner has taken as many steps as possible to stabilize the building using available funds,” Colorado Preservation Inc. reports. “Unfortunately, time has taken its toll on the building, rendering the upper story unusable and the south wall beginning to detach.”
The upper story was once home to an opera house. The years have also seen a post office, a hat-making factory, a bank and a hotel. An unusual blue enamel sign still marks the Desky Hotel here.
Red Cliff Town Hall

Red Cliff is the quaint town nestled in the mountains off U.S. 24, north of Leadville. By Colorado Preservation Inc.’s description, this building “serves as a testament to the early mining days in the Battle Mountain Mining District.”
The town hall would not just be for political goings on, but also for a base to guard against natural forces threatening Red Cliff. Fires nearly destroyed the town in 1882 and 1883. And so residents got to work on a fire house and underground pipe system to fill hydrants along the streets.

The building would be even more than a town hall and fire house through the next century. There was a dance hall upstairs in the 1930s. There was a jail around back. There was a day care before the building closed in 1980. There was a structural assessment completed in 2023 — the first step toward an effort to stabilize the building and create a museum.







