Holzwarth Historic Site - Fleshuts Cabin

Fleshuts Cabin

NPS

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Historical/Interpretive Information/Exhibits

The Story of This Place Begins Long Before the Holzwarth Family’s Arrival to the Kawuneeche Valley

For centuries, humans have been using the valley’s resources in search of both sustenance and economic prosperity.

Today, we as park visitors are still using this land for adventure, mountain views, wildlife, or solitude within the wilderness. Thankfully, those who have come before us have preserved a portion of the Kawuneeche valley for us to walk back in time to acknowledge their struggles and triumphs. Keep in mind the environment where you come from, and how it impacts your own livelihood as you make your way across this landscape.  
 

Joe Fleshuts

Before you stands Fleshuts Cabin, initially owned by Joe Fleshuts, a miner who built the cabin in 1902 to claim the land under the Homestead Act of 1862. This cabin illustrates a typical western homestead cabin of the time, with dovetailed log construction.

Records indicate that Joe Fleshuts was unsuccessful at mining and had accrued significant debt leading up his disappearance in 1911. This ultimately resulted in the forfeiture of the property and resale to Henry Lehman, who then sold the property to John Holzwarth Sr. on July 22, 1918. Later a wooden floor was added to the cabin, and as early as 1922, the Fleshuts Cabin was used for the accommodation of guests.

Alongside the miners and hunting guides who worked out of the mountains, the valley saw a stream of European settlers arriving to attempt to not just extract the landscape resources, but also transform them altogether.