Glenwood Springs, Colo. – The Glenwood Springs Historical Society has been awarded $34,930, the full mini-grant amount requested from the State Historical Fund, for work at the Cardiff Coke Ovens. The project includes site stabilization, planning documents, erosion mitigation, interpretive signs and graffiti removal. Matching funds for this grant were provided by the City of Glenwood Springs.

“This site is a special part of Glenwood history, and we are grateful to receive this grant from the State Historic Fund,” said Glenwood Springs Historical Society Executive Director Bill Kight. “The Historical Society will use this grant as Phase 1 and start the planning process immediately.”

Work on vegetation removal will take place in the spring of 2023 to prevent further deterioration and reduce vandalism. Graffiti in the ovens and trash dumped on the project site will be removed. Though open to the public, the site may be temporarily closed during construction.

Through a partnership with the City of Glenwood Springs, future improvements to the site will be built by the City and funded by a separate $140,000 Garfield County Federal Mineral Lease District (FMLD) grant for the city property adjacent to the actual coke ovens. These improvements will include construction of a new Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessible path, reconstruction of an existing trail and a display area for important artifacts from the original coking operations at the site.

“Without the support of many individuals and businesses in the Glenwood community--too numerous to mention at this time--this project would not be possible,” Kight added.

Phase 2 will include substantial masonry work to further stabilize the ovens and partially reconstruct and interpret portions of the ovens that are no longer intact. While phase 2 is not yet fully funded, Garfield County has set aside matching funds for this larger phase of the project through a letter of commitment and the Historical Society will apply for a separate grant from the State Historic Fund following Phase 1.

About the Cardiff Coke Ovens

Located in Cardiff a few miles south of Glenwood Springs on Airport Road, the coke oven site is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. At the height of operations in the late 1890s, there were 249 coke ovens used to burn and extract components from coal to produce coke, which is used in making steel. Cardiff was so named because the coke produced there was considered second in quality only to coke produced in Cardiff, Wales. These coke ovens on Airport Road are owned by the Historical Society and listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

For more information and historic photographs of the Cardiff Coke Ovens, please visit GlenwoodHistory.com/general-6.