ap

Skip to content
Rep. Scott Tipton of Colorado plans bill to…
Wednesday, June 24th 2026

Trending:

News

Rep. Scott Tipton of Colorado plans bill to make Chimney Rock a national monument

New findings from the Chimney Rock archaeological site near Pagosa Springs, Colo., suggest that resident elites were dining on elk and deer, unlike the workers who constructed the site, who were eating smaller game, according to CU-Boulder Professor Steve Lekson, who directed the excavation. The royalty at Chimney Rock -- an "outlier" of the brawny Chaco Canyon culture centered 90 miles away in northern New Mexico that ruled the Southwest with a heavy hand from about A.D. 850 to 1150 -- were likely tended to through a complex social, economic and political network, Lekson said. Image courtesy CU-Boulder
New findings from the Chimney Rock archaeological site near Pagosa Springs, Colo., suggest that resident elites were dining on elk and deer, unlike the workers who constructed the site, who were eating smaller game, according to CU-Boulder Professor Steve Lekson, who directed the excavation. The royalty at Chimney Rock — an “outlier” of the brawny Chaco Canyon culture centered 90 miles away in northern New Mexico that ruled the Southwest with a heavy hand from about A.D. 850 to 1150 — were likely tended to through a complex social, economic and political network, Lekson said. Image courtesy CU-Boulder
By | newsroom@denverpost.com | The Denver Post
PUBLISHED: | UPDATED:
Getting your player ready...

U.S. Rep. Scott Tipton announced Friday he will introduce legislation that would make Chimney Rock a national monument.

During a ceremony Friday morning, Tipton, a Republican from Cortez, said he would introduce the legislation in the next few weeks.

The large, natural stone tower is about 20 miles west of Pagosa Springs.

Tipton’s announcement follows Colorado Democratic Sen. Michael Bennet’s reintroduction in March of a bill to name the area a national monument.

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee approved a version of the bill last year.

The new designation would require no additional federal funds. It also would ensure that local ranchers, outdoorsmen and members of Indian tribes would be able to continue to use the land around Chimney Rock.

The Denver Post

Photo: University of Colorado file

RevContent Feed

More in News