Over and over, the Michigan Volunteers return to Wyoming to restore Mormon homesteads.

Story from the magazine by Margaret Foster / Nov. 7, 2003

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Volunteers from Michigan have restored and stabilized the century-old structures on Mormon Row in Grand Teton National Park. (Grandtetonphoto.com)

It started at a dinner party eight years ago. Ed Brown, a retired science teacher from outside Lansing, Mich., met Judith Crandall-Sloane, a granddaughter of Mormons who settled in Wyoming a century ago. She mentioned her wish to rescue the homesteads that her forebears built, where their families lived until the 1950s; the settlements survived as clusters of abandoned cabins, barns, and pump houses scattered about what is now Grand Teton National Park. Brown, who had banged a few nails for Habitat for Humanity, told her that he and some friends could help restore the buildings. "I lied a little and said, 'Yeah, we do renovation work.' I got a crew together that fall. We didn't know what we were getting into."

That began a partnership between the national park and the group Brown calls the Michigan Volunteers. The 55 amateur carpenters have spent eight summers repairing structures on the last four survivors of 22 original Mormon Row homesteads. They pay their own expenses, sleep in tents, and work long hours. "Some of those buildings were literally on the ground," Brown says, "and we were able to save them."

The Michigan Volunteers were among the 21 winners of the 2003 National Preservation Awards, presented on Oct. 2 at the National Preservation Conference in Denver. The best part of rescuing Mormon Row, Brown says, has been working with his two daughters and their friends. "Those young people then take an interest in preservation," he says, "which is important because when us old folks are gone, if there's no one to follow, nothing will get done."

Only one major task remains on Mormon Row—repairing a hay derrick. After that, Brown says, he'll continue his summer work in Wyoming by restoring a dude ranch "where Hemingway used to play cowboy."

The 2003 National Preservation Awards

HONOR AWARDS

Atlantic City Convention Hall, Atlantic City, N.J.: The 1929 building that hosted Miss America pageants and the first indoor football game undergoes a five-year, $99 million rehabilitation.

Beaumont Hotel Ouray, Colo.: Mary and Dan King use their savings to restore the 1887 hotel, shuttered for 37 years.

Fair Park, Dallas: The city organizes the restoration of the buildings, murals, and sculptures in the art deco park built for the 1936 state centennial exposition.

Ferry Building, San Francisco: Isolated by highway construction in 1957, the renovated 1898 building once again serves as a terminal, with offices and a farmers' market.

Hidalgo Pump House, Hidalgo, Tex.: A town on the banks of the Rio Grande turns a 1909 steam pump house into a museum about irrigation.

Indiana Cotton Mill, Cannelton, Ind.: Seventy affordable housing units are carved out of the 1849 mill.

Jack Shannahan, Hartford, Conn.: During his 35-year career in the Connecticut Historical Commission, Shannahan protected the Merritt Parkway and other state gems by pushing some of the country's strongest preservation laws.

Kit Carson Carousel, Stratton, Colo.: The Carousel Association persevered for 25 years to restore the 1905 merry-go-round.

Market Hall, Charleston, S.C.: The city renews the 1841 landmark that Hurricane Hugo shut down in 1989.

Massachusetts State House, Boston: The exterior is restored for the first time since the building's construction in 1798.

Michigan Volunteers, Mormon Row, Grand Teton National Park, Wyo.: See story above.

National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act: The National Park Service program conveys lighthouses from the federal government to local groups that can restore them.

Porcupine House, Ute Mountain Tribal Park, Colo.: The Ute tribe has been restoring the 12th-century cliff dwelling and its surroundings.

Portland Museum of Art, Portland, Maine: The museum, whose own structure was designed by I.M. Pei, restores its historic neighbors, an 1801 Federal house and a 1911 Beaux-Arts gallery.

Stone Avenue Temple Tucson, Ariz.: Arizona's first Jewish house of worship is rehabilitated as a community center.

LOUISE DU PONT CROWNSHIELD AWARD: Walter Nold Mathis Mathis restored several historic properties in his hometown of San Antonio and helped other communities care for theirs, including the governor's mansion in Austin.

NATIONAL TRUST/ADVISORY COUNCIL AWARD: The Governors Island Partnership, New York City
Federal, state, local governments and private groups create a covenant to preserve the 175-acre former Coast Guard base off Manhattan.

NATIONAL TRUST/HUD SECRETARY'S AWARD: Ziegler Estate, Los Angeles
The historic Ziegler mansion is renovated as a child-care facility in the rundown Highland Park neighborhood.

TRUSTEES AWARDS: Outstanding Achievement in Public Policy, U.S. General Services Administration, Washington, D.C.
The agency launches the Legacy Vision program to transfer aging properties to private developers who can restore them. Stewardship of Historic Sites Central City Opera House Association, Denver The group organized in 1929 to save the opera house. It has raised money for that building's recent restoration and, along the way, for the revival of 30 other buildings.

ORGANIZATIONAL EXCELLENCE: Preservation League of New York State, Albany, N.Y.
The nonprofit group has solicited the governor's support for historic tax credits and a building code better suited to preservation; it has awarded $1 million in grants and helped protect Lower Manhattan's historic resources after Sept. 11, 2001.

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