This month, archaeologists and volunteers helped to stabilize and restore a historic frontier cabin near Blanding, Utah.
The Shumway Cabin site, located on the banks of Recapture Wash, is part of an early 20th-century ranch by the Peter and Mary Shumway family.
The stone home, built about 1911, may be the best preserved example of a Mormon outlier cabin in southeastern Utah, according to archaeologists. But its existence is threatened by many environmental factors.
Severe erosion caused by the shifting channel in Recapture Wash could collapse the cabin. A large cottonwood tree looming over the structure threatened to crush it, and cattle walking inside and leaning on walls has also been a problem.
To help save a piece of local history, Friends of Cedar Mesa partnered with the Shumway family and Utah School and Institutional Trust Lands Administration to restore the cabin.
Assisting with the project were Woods Canyon Archaeological Consultants, of Cortez, and a $2,600 grant from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
“We want the cabin to last another 100 years, so we decided to be proactive and organize a project to stabilize and preserve the site,” said Amanda Podmore, assistant director for Friends of Cedar Mesa. “It’s in a tricky location, right on the edge of a wash.”
For two weeks in May, eight volunteers, under the direction of an archaeologist, stabilized and rebuilt stone walls, added some roofing, and replaced some window frames. The mortar was mixed from on-site soils, just like it was done more than 100 years ago.
In March, a large dead cottonwood tree was removed that overhung the cabin. The delicate job was carried out by Thomas Wigginton, of TM Premier Services, out of Monticello.
Kay Shumway, of Blanding, is the grandson of Peter and Mary Shumway who settled the family in the area.
“They moved here from New Mexico and built that stone cabin with a wood floor. They had an orchard, a garden, a milk cow and raised cattle,” Shumway said in an interview.
A horse and wagon was used to haul stones from a nearby sandstone cliffs to build the cabin, he said. The remains of the family dairy bunker are still visible nearby.
Kay’s dad, Lee Shumway, lived in the cabin as a kid and took Kay there as a child to show off family history and the toughness of pioneer lifestyle.
“My dad remembers hearing the coyotes eat the peaches off the trees at night, and the crack of their teeth hitting the pit,” Shumway says. “They had a melon farm, and would store watermelons under the haystacks. It was good grazing country.”
The homestead was occasionally raided by local Native American tribes who were resisting increasing pioneer settlements.
“That scared my grandmother quite a bit. Eventually the family resettled in Blanding,” Kay said. “We grew up visiting our family homestead and hearing the stories. We still go there for family reunions.”
The Shumways are proud of the recent efforts to try and save the cabin. The next step is to bolster the Recapture Wash embankment to prevent more erosion, put up interpretive signs, and install some fencing to prevent cattle from getting to the cabin.
“I believe that growing up with an awareness of your family history creates a more stable childhood,” Shumway says. “Later as adults, we have perspective when looking at our problems and comparing them to what their challenges were. With air conditioning and a grocery store, we’ve got it easy!”
The public is welcome to visit the Shumway canyon, which sits on Utah state lands. Visitors should be mindful of the cabin’s historic value and fragile state.
