"To hold Williamsburg up as a model is to accept playacting and false fronts. I hope we can do better than that, but maybe that is an inevitable compromise."
John, your comments are quite interesting. I think Williamsburg as a benchmark for the C&TS comes pretty close to being a fit, but not quite. It's a little like a farmer in an expensive suit with pants that are too short and cow manure on his shoes.
In some ways, I think a better benchmark for the C&TS would be (hold on tight) a nonprofit ranch/outfitter that specializes in long trail rides up in the high country. I'll admit to to wanting to be a little outrageous in my choice of metaphors, but hear me out. Here's what the ranch/outfitter offers:
1. An ADVENTURE for the visitor that uses the "technology" of the classic west - saddled horses, pack horses, ranch hand/guides, etc. Sound familiar?
2. The operation is real, not a stage play and not a re-enactment. Riding horses and using pack teams for the gear represent a valid, authentic way of experiencing the backcountry. It's not a contrivance. It serves a purpose. It's functional.
3. The ranching operation preserves the culture by living it, not by rehearsing it as a historical interpretation. The employees are, first and foremost, ranch hands living that way of life. Likewise, C&TS employees are railroaders, not NPS staff playing the role. They have job titles like engineer and machinist, rather than, say a "Historical Interperative Specialist II". Isn't this the essence of what we are fortunate to have left of the San Juan Extension? Doesn't this preserve the culture in a much deeper sense than Williamsburg?
4. It seems to me that some of these ranch/outfitters (judging from photos I've seen) have also been fairly successful in preserving the esthetics and character of their buildings, while responding to the comfort of their guests back at the ranch.
5. Outfitters understand their market and what the small cues are that appeal to it. Their business comes from people seeking a western adventure that captures their imagination of the West. Outfitters don't have a lot of closeup photos of horses on their brochures.
Similarly, the C&TS has this same sort of western adventure to offer, but one that's different than all the others. And its authenticity is the value added. My sense is that elements such as high trestles, tunnels, track high on narrow shelves, and the sweep of high country landscape are critical to the C&TS adventure for those who've experienced it. From Los Pinos east, it's a completely preserved experience in vitually every way since Gen. Palmer laid the track.
Preserving the character of Chama will be challenging as you've pointed out. However, I'm less confident than you in the ability of planning and zoning to accomplish this, based on my own experience on a village board. I've come to the belief that sustainable preservation of business district buildings is more likely when it becomes smart business to do so. Red Lodge, Montana comes to mind.
Brian
