The last original structure in the north central town of Valmont, Colorado has been placed on the state’s Most Endangered Places list.
Located at 3227 61st Street, the Valmont School was built in 1911 and operated as a educational facility for four decades until it was closed in 1951, owing to an area school consolidation effort.
Subsequently privately owned, the building has sat empty since the 1980s and is today in somewhat of a dilapidated condition.
The listing was announced by the group Colorado Preservation, which seeks to draw attention to some of the oldest and most historically significant structures in the Centennial State, and in so doing raise funds for their upgrading.
The Valmont School housed two school rooms and was built of ornamental concrete blocks, a building material produced by inventor Harmon Palmer, who patented a concrete block machine in 1899.
Preservationists have pointed out that the building, crowned by a wooden bell tower, has endured both roof and water damage, and will need significant funding to be completely restored.
The larger town of Valmont, four miles to the northeast of Boulder, currently has a population just over 60 people.
By Garry Boulard
