Boulder Cabin - Cache, OK - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

NRHP Statement of Significance:

Before Europeans reached the territory which is now Oklahoma, the Wichita people inhabited the area containing the Wichita Mountains. In the last quarter of the nineteenth century the Kiowa and Comanche tribes were moved to a reservation in this same area. As it became evident that the frontier was closing, white settlers increased their demands for the opening of Indian lands. This portion of the Wichita Mountains was not broken up for settlement; however, as the leases of the grazing land to Texas cattlemen prevented this.
At the turn of the century the efforts of the Oklahoma City Commercial Club, with its many influential civic leaders, persuaded the Oklahoma congressional delegation to support the conservation endeavors for the Wichita Mountains. The area was proclaimed the Wichita Forest Reserve in 1901, and a National Game Preserve in 1905.
Camp Boulder was established by the late A.D. Lawrence and his family at the foot of Eagle Mountain in 1911. Frank Rush, Sr., Superintendent of the Wichita National Forest and Game Preserve, granted a permit to the Lawrence's to build a structure. "We built the cabin about 1912." Arthur Lawrence recalls, “Dad hired a mason, and my brother and I hauled the cobblestones in a wheelbarrow."
There was no road to the cabin at that time so Mr. Lawrence promised the boys, Arthur and his brother, the late Robert S., that he would buy a car if they would build a road. They picked their way down "a line of least resistance," establishing a road over which the pavement now runs to Camp Boulder.
After Mr. Lawrence died in 1922, the family traded their permit to two other Lawton men, Ray Babbit and Sam I. McElhoes. The new owners kept the permit and enjoyed the cabin for several years, ultimately agreeing to relinquish it to the government with the stipulation that the cabin and camp could be used by the Boy Scouts. The agreement was made, and the Boulder Cabin and Camp Boulder are known to generations of Scouts, Boy and Girl, as well as a myriad of other groups and organizations.
In considering the physical attributes of this building, it is r the best preserved of its type. Its common plan is made unusual by the screened porches on the east and south sides of the structure. Other examples of this type of cabin are found several miles away in Medicine Park but they are either greatly altered or in ruins.
Historic attributes include: Serving as "administrative shelter" for leaders of summer camps for groups of Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Campfire Girls and church youth. The surrounding areas served as "wilderness classrooms" for all the above groups working for advancement in such skills as Cooking, Hiking, Camping and Swimming, or just enjoying the outdoors and wildlife. Literally thousands of persons, over the decades since the early thirties remember this building with its adjacent stream and natural "classroom".

Physical Appearance:

Boulder Cabin is a single story building consisting of one room, roughly 16’ x 24', with a wood burning fireplace. Several windows admit light to the interior with two doors providing access to the 8' wide screened porch. The walls of the porch cover two sides of the cabin with the insect screening running from the ceiling to the tops of the half wall on the perimeter.
Floors are concrete slabs and are unfinished. The roof structure is wood with the roof itself being wood deck covered with composition shingles. Other than periodic painting of wood members and reshingling the cabin appears the same as when it was constructed.
The exterior is of cobblestones laid in mortar. This type of stone was common to the site and it was natural that it be used as a building material for most structures built in this area.
The cabin is located on a parcel of land that becomes an island whenever there is heavy rainfall. West Cache Creek flows past the cabin and many weeks of the year is dried up since its waters are impounded by Lost Lake upstream. Many times, after several inches of rain, the creek will leave its banks. When that occurs, a second channel fills to the north of the cabin, which leaves the Boulder Cabin on its own
island.
Large trees surround the cabin on three sides while on the southwest side there is a clearing where another cobblestone building stands that is used as a kitchen. The sides open up for ventilation and, serving food. where it .is estimated .that thousands of meals have been prepared and distributed.
The well near the cabin has a long handled pump that brings water to the surface. Uncountable individuals have been refreshed at this spot by the cool, clear water always available with just a little labor.
Buffalo and Longhorn Cattle still roam through the area adjacent to the cabin.

Street address: NW of Cache Cache, OK USA County / Borough / Parish: Comanche Year listed: 1981 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Architecture, Entertainment/Recreation Periods of significance: 1900-1924 Historic function: Domestic Current function: Vacant/Not In Use Privately owned?: no Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Secondary Website 1: [Web Link] Secondary Website 2: [Web Link] Season start / Season finish: Not listed Hours of operation: Not listed National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   11/21/2015 TheRadcliffs visited it