Prairie Cultural Revitalization

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Prairie Cultural Revitalization A 501(c) (3) non-profit, organized for educational and Charitable purposes.

Memories from the 2026 BHS Homecoming Parade. Photos courtesy of Kit Carson County Royalty Program and KNAB Radio. ...
10/02/2026

Memories from the 2026 BHS Homecoming Parade.
Photos courtesy of Kit Carson County Royalty Program and KNAB Radio.

America 250, Colorado 150 and our Pioneers: The Brooks and Mangus Families Before Burlington was a landmark town, there ...
10/01/2026

America 250, Colorado 150 and our Pioneers: The Brooks and Mangus Families

Before Burlington was a landmark town, there were wagon trails. Arriving April 1889, 18 year old C.J. Buchanan and his family migrated from Iowa to Kit Carson County in a covered wagon. They built a sod house on their homestead in the northeast corner of the county. Water was the hardest part of prairie life, and most of their neighbors hauled it from the creek. The Buchanans were fortunate because one of C.J.'s brothers worked on a drilling crew and put a well on the claim.

C.J. married Myrtle Sleight during 1893 and welcomed five children to a growing homestead. In 1924, Mr. Buchanan was elected County Commissioner, which led to their move to Burlington. C.J. was on the 1928 board of commissioners that bought the hand carved wooden carousel from Elitch Gardens of Denver, Colorado. Today the National Historic Landmark, the 1905 PTC #6, still whirls at the county fairgrounds.

Weeks after the Buchanans moved to town during 1925, their granddaughter Nola Faye Brooks was born. As a child, she walked two miles each way to a country school. When it was time for high school, she came to Burlington to live with her grandparents, graduating with the class of 1943.

Meanwhile, another family was putting down roots north of Kanorado, Kansas. Ray Mangus married Lois Persis Hines at Goodland, Kansas, on December 26, 1918. Glenn Eugene, their first child, was born on the farm during 1921. He was the oldest, followed by Garth, Dale, Leslie, Ona and Ina.

Nola married Glenn during 1945. The early years were spent moving through a string of farmhouses. Merle was born while they lived with Ray and Lois. Jerry arrived after they moved south of Glenn's folks, and Rita was born on the old Ralph Schmidt place.

Then, 1958 brought Nola home. She and Glenn bought the Buchanan house of Burlington, where she had lived as a teenager, and where their youngest, Kenny, was born.

Through it all, there was sewing. Pioneer Grandma Myrtle pieced more than 250 quilts over her lifetime. Granddaughter Nola Faye kept the needle moving, sewing clothes and quilts.

The sod house is long gone, yet the carousel still turns and the quilts are passed down.

The Kit Carson County Royalty Program held their Fall Photo Shoot, featuring a variety of backdrops around the community...
09/27/2026

The Kit Carson County Royalty Program held their Fall Photo Shoot, featuring a variety of backdrops around the community. We are excited the pioneer section of the mural, brush stroked by Some Girls and a Mural, was part of the day! Good luck ladies with your upcoming royalty duties!

Taking photos at the mural? We would love to see them and please be sure to tag us.

🇺🇸 Preserving Our Past • Revitalizing Our Downtown • Building Our Future 🇺🇸Prairie Cultural Revitalization would like to...
09/26/2026

🇺🇸 Preserving Our Past • Revitalizing Our Downtown • Building Our Future 🇺🇸

Prairie Cultural Revitalization would like to extend a heartfelt THANK YOU to the generous individuals, families, businesses, and community supporters who have donated to help bring our Historic Hand-Dug Well & Water Tower Revitalization Project to life!

Because of your generosity, we are making real progress toward transforming this historic site at the north end of Main Street into a beautiful landmark celebrating the railroad, pioneer settlers, and ranchers who helped build Kit Carson County.

The work is underway and we are just getting started!
There is still more restoration, painting, and mural work to be accomplished. If you have been thinking about supporting the project, there is still time to become part of it. Every donation, large or small, helps us preserve an important piece of Burlington's history while creating a welcoming focal point for our downtown that can be enjoyed for generations to come.

🇺🇸 ❤️Want to help us finish the project? 🇺🇸 ❤️
Please use our QR code or mail your contribution to:
Prairie Cultural Revitalization
P.O. Box 754
Burlington, CO 80807
Prairie Cultural Revitalization is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and donations are tax-deductible as allowed by law.

We are incredibly grateful to everyone who has donated, volunteered, shared our story, and encouraged this effort. This is what community revitalization looks like and it is accomplished with your help!

Stay tuned as we continue bringing this piece of Burlington history back to life!

Please join the growing benefactors list:
Legacy Partner
Carlyle and Debbie James

Heritage Steward
Matthies Family Farm
El Pomar Foundation
Community Builder
Cactus Operating LLC
Colorado Federal Agency
Hendricks Rentals / BHS Class of 77
Mark Hillman Family
Mystic Skies RV Park
Vince’s GM Center

Friend of the Prairie
Dan Brenner Ford / BHS Class of 77
Linda Enfield / BHS Class of 77
Sandra Haman & John Vavra
Plains Heating & AC, Inc.
Art & Lou Waitman

Thank you both for spreading love and beauty throughout our world!!
09/26/2026

Thank you both for spreading love and beauty throughout our world!!

America 250, Colorado 150 and Our Pioneers: Tracing the James Family RootsWoven into the pioneer history mural, we are c...
09/26/2026

America 250, Colorado 150 and Our Pioneers: Tracing the James Family Roots

Woven into the pioneer history mural, we are celebrating the multi generations of the James Family. The story begins with William James Sr., born in 1729 in Rowan County, North Carolina. David James, his son,was born there in 1763, carrying the family forward.

David's son, Elijah James, was born in 1790 in Tennessee and later settled in Edmonson County, Kentucky, where he passed away in 1844. Elijah's son, Jesse Herbert James, continued the journey west. He was born in Kentucky in 1839 and eventually making his home in Beaver Crossing, Nebraska, where he died in 1911.

Jesse’s son, Herbert Byron James, was born in 1868 in Beaver Crossing, Nebraska, and died in 1954 in Sherman County, Kansas. In 1892, while living in Beaver Crossing with his wife, Emma Brewer, he loaded a team of horses and a wagon of supplies onto a train and traveled to the end of the line at Benkelman, Nebraska. From there, he headed southeast to the northeast corner of Kit Carson County, where he homesteaded 26 miles northeast of Burlington, Colorado. There, he farmed, raised eight sons and one daughter, and trained horses and sold them to the United States Cavalry.

As each of Herbert’s eight sons came of age, they homesteaded on land adjacent to Herbert’s property.
One of those sons was Herbert Carlyle (Lyle) James, born in 1891. He homesteaded 17 miles northeast of Burlington, married Blanche Nealley, and raised three daughters and two sons. Lyle farmed and raised sheep, managing 10,000 ewes, which allowed him to invest in additional land. He died in 1964.

Lyle’s son, Chester Earl James, was born in 1921 in a sod house 17 miles northeast of Burlington, Colorado. He married Winifred Jay James and raised two children, Carlyle Chester and Diane Winifred. Chester (Chet) raised sheep until 1965, then switched to black Angus cattle when sheep ranching became unprofitable. In 1958, he began irrigating with propane-powered equipment. When his son Carlyle joined the operation, they formed C & C James Ranch, Inc. in 1971. Chester died in 1994.

Carlyle Chester James, born in 1948, married Deborah Jane Brown, and together they raised two children, Codey Carlyle and Heather DeAnn. Carlyle continued the family’s cattle and irrigation business, raised and marketed club calves, and introduced black Limousin cattle into the commercial cow herd. He also expanded the feedlot and pioneered the cultivation of Milo, using a new variety that performed well in the area.
Heather DeAnn Howe, born in 1971, serves as Secretary, Codey Carlyle James, born in 1975, serves as President of C & C James Ranch. Carlyle and his sister Diane Mettling serve as directors. Together, they continue the family operation.

From North Carolina to Tennessee, Kentucky, Nebraska, Kansas and finally Colorado, the generations of the James family carried the same pioneering spirit we are honoring in our America 250/Colorado 150 mural.

Thank you to Carlyle and Debbie James for donating as a Legacy Partner to the pioneer depiction brush stroked on to the 1910 Hand Dug Well House!

Rooted in the Land: The Fred and Roysten Matthies HomesteadThe Fred and Roysten Matthies Homestead received its Centenni...
09/24/2026

Rooted in the Land: The Fred and Roysten Matthies Homestead

The Fred and Roysten Matthies Homestead received its Centennial Farms and Ranches designation in 2007.

Fred and Roysten Matthies broke sod near Burlington in 1907, turning native grassland into a working homestead. One of the earliest structures on the property was a wood well house, built in 1916. Through the 1920s and early 1930s, the farm expanded to include an adobe garage, an adobe well house, a concrete cellar, and an adobe house.

Leonard, son of Fred Matthies and Roysten (Ellsworth) Matthies, was born Nov. 6, 1927, in the homestead sod house southwest of Burlington. He grew up with his brothers Harold, Paul, August, Okie, and Charles, and sisters Elsie, Clara, and Bessie. Fred passed away when Leonard was just six years old with his brother Okie exiting earth at a young age.

Leonard married Shirley Schaal on Oct. 11, 1947 and they moved to the homestead. It was there they raised their seven children: Fred, Everett, Carolyn, Dean, Gene, Betty, and Allan. As the operation grew, sons Everett and Gene helped their parents grow corn and wheat.

In his early years, Leonard’s hobbies included breaking horses and organizing rabbit drives. Later, he served on the Bethune School Board as well as a 4-H leader.

Serving as a delegate to Chicago and as a sponsor at Camp Tobin, Shirley was active in 4-H too. She also used her talents to sew doll clothes, working alongside her sister Betty, at the Old Town Museum Doll House.

Through it all, the Matthies’ devotion to family and community is at the core of their legacy.

For more than sixty years, the quarter circle over reverse lazy J brand has been associated with this homesteader’s family name.

Thank you Matthies Family Farm and El Pomar Foundation for your Heritage Steward donations to celebrate our pioneer families.

America 250, Colorado 150 and Our Pioneers: Rooted By Those Who Stayed!Thank you to everyone who cheered us on during da...
09/23/2026

America 250, Colorado 150 and Our Pioneers: Rooted By Those Who Stayed!

Thank you to everyone who cheered us on during day three of the mural's progress!

We are grateful for the support of our Community Builder patrons. With their generosity, the settlers' story is being brought to life on the 1910 well house:

Cactus Operating LLC
Colorado Federal Agency
Hendricks Rentals / BHS Class of 77
Mark Hillman Family
Mystic Skies RV Park
Vince's GM Center

Stay tuned for more reveals!

America 250, Colorado 150 and Our Pioneers: Rooted by the Ones Who Stayed!Thank you to everyone who honked, waved, and o...
09/23/2026

America 250, Colorado 150 and Our Pioneers: Rooted by the Ones Who Stayed!

Thank you to everyone who honked, waved, and offered words of encouragement during day two of the mural creation!

Our pioneer story is being brought to life, one brushstroke at a time, through assistance from our "Friend of the Prairie" benefactors.

Dan Brenner Ford / BHS Class of 77
Linda Enfield / BHS Class of 77
Sandra Haman & John Vavra
Plains Heating & AC, Inc.
Art & Lou Waitman

Thank you all for your support, and stay tuned for the next reveal!

America 250, Colorado 150 and Our Pioneers: Rooted By The Ones Who StayedMural Creation Day 1
09/21/2026

America 250, Colorado 150 and Our Pioneers: Rooted By The Ones Who Stayed

Mural Creation Day 1

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P O Box 754
Burlington, CO
80807

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