Historic Preservation Month!
Here at Cornerstones we are very excited for our upcoming summer projects! If you are interested in participating or becoming a volunteer, please fill out our Volunteer Registration form. This can be found here,
https://www.cstones.org/volunteer-registration
None of this would be possible without your support. Please consider donating today!
Annual cleaning of the Historic Rael Ranch Acequia + Earthen Plastering Workshop
Just outside La Cienega, a village downstream from Santa Fe, the historic ranch house of the Rael family has been a focus of preservation and documentation work of Cornerstones for several years now. The Raels lived on the ranch for centuries; a sign at the driveways dates them and the acequia to 1718. One and a half miles long, the Rael Acequia has been upkept for lifetimes, and Cornerstones now leads the annual cleaning and stone masonry repairs to sustain it for the next century.
Throughout the past month, Cornerstones staff and interns have been removing accumulated leaves and debris along the 2-mile acequia that runs parallel to the Santa Fe River. Additional work will include the rebuilding of damaged sections with reinforced stonework. Upon completion, community members will celebrate the acequia’s 307th opening.
This Spring, Cornerstones will also be hosting an earthen plastering workshop at the Rael Ranch, during which participants will begin removing amended cement plasters and assessing the condition of the adobe wall underneath.
Fort Cummings: Luna County, NM
(BLM) February 21-26, May 28-June 4
Isaiah, Kateri, Faz and volunteers have been working on the preservation of adobe wall ruins and will be back to finish up the job at the end of May into early June.
Preservation of adobe wall ruins.
Wellesley Adobe Making
Every year, Cornerstones is lucky to receive volunteer support from Wellesley Village Church High School Service Project - youth participants come from Massachusetts to help with our projects. We worked at the Casita Desiderio work site at Plaza del Cerro in Chimayó. We dismantled a shed and saved all the good materials- roofing, decking, 2/4s, 2/6s, plastic tarps and moved it all to the Reyes/Ortega site nearby. We also moved all the good adobe that Wellesley participants had made in the past, stacked them and covered them with the old, shed roofing. We learned how to mix fresh adobe and made new adobe bricks. A good time was had by all, lessons learned, and much needed labor and love given to this project. Thank you, Wellesley youth and adults!
Luna Community College Preserving Heritage: Adobe Construction Course
The class commenced on April 11th and aside from some stormy weather the students and instructors have been hard at work! Adobes have been made to finish up the adobe walls of the home. Once adobe courses are laid out the bond beams will be laid in anticipation for the roof trusses to be installed.
Fort Davis National Monument, TX (NPS)
From April 16th-23rd Issac, Kateri, Isaiah and NPS Staff worked on adobe ruins preservation and stabilization and training workshops for NPS Maintenance Action Teams.
NOMA Presentation (The National Organization of Minority Architects)
Cornerstones had the incredible honor of leading a discussion about Historic Preservation and Regionalism with members of the National Organization of Minority Architects New Mexico Chapter. Cornerstones’ staff member, Kateri Lopez, began by introducing Cornerstones and our emphasis on historic preservation as it relates to traditional earthen building practices in New Mexico.
Kateri also led the group through a summary of past and current projects, during which the group discussed the importance of cultural and architectural preservation, and challenges that arise during the preservation process.
Thank you to NOMA and FML Albuquerque (Furniture Marketing Group, Inc.) for this incredible opportunity!
Horno Building Workshop in Saguache, CO
Earlier this month, Cornerstones returned to the San Luis Valley to host an horno building workshop in Saguache, Colorado! Over a period of 6 days, members of the community worked alongside Cornerstones’ staff members Issac Logsdon and Kateri Lopez to install an earthen oven in one of the town’s public parks. Members of the workshop participated in horno adobe making, foundation construction, horno base assembly, dome mechanics, earthen plastering, and horno firing practices.
The class concluded with a public firing celebration during which bread, beans, chile, tortillas, and pizza were cooked and enjoyed by all!
Adobe Days at the National Hispanic Cultural Center
In celebration of National Historic Preservation Month, Cornerstones partnered with the National Hispanic Cultural Center to host our annual Adobe Making event! Held at the national Hispanic Cultural Center, approximately 40 people joined us in a conversation about adobe making, soil selection, mixing methods, and preservation techniques.
Participants of all ages joined in a hands-on opportunity to mix and make adobes that will be used in an upcoming historic preservation project.
Thank you to the National Hispanic Cultural Center for having us!
Gutierrez-Hubbel House (county)
On May 3, Kateri and volunteers replastered and fired hornos at the Gutierrez-Hubble House in Bernalillo County, NM.
