Underground Cultural Landscape Report and Monitoring Plan
Project ID: P20AC00844
Federal Agency: National Park Service
Partner Institution: University of Oregon
Fiscal Year: 2020
Initial Funding: $173,999
Total Funding: $173,999
Project Type: Technical Assistance
Project Disciplines: Cultural
Principal Investigator: Melnick, Robert
Agreement Technical Representative: Gearty, Erin
Abstract: Project Objectives –
Phase I: Cultural Landscape Report Part I
A CLR Part I includes sections to understand the evolution of the built environment in a specific place of study. These sections are a Site History, Existing Conditions, and Evaluation and Analysis.
For Carlsbad Caverns, this effort will specifically focus on the development of a site history that explores the physical history of the cave’s infrastructure (trail system, associated walls, railings, toilets, underground lunchroom, access to elevator system, and lighting/electrical). This infrastructure allows visitors to access the cave, view the cave interior and specific highlighted cave formations from a designed trail system. Further, the infrastructure is designed around sensitive cave formations and with the topography (natural and man-made) of the cave floor.
Initial construction of cave access and trail systems date from the early-twentieth century and have been altered and improved through the mid- and late-twentieth century. Much of this timeline has been well documented in a Cultural Landscapes Inventory (CLI) for the inside of the cave (to be completed Summer 2020). While the CLI site history focused primarily on the natural resources inside the cave, the CLR site history will expand on this documentation and history, providing a detailed account of the built environment/infrastructure as outlined above. Within the site history, an overview of the associated cultural landscapes characteristics will be discussed setting the tone for deeper analysis in the following CLR sections. This section will also include a summary Statement of Significance.