Founders Day

The Garden Shed Project - (see more photos) 

By Diane Fusaro (24 APRIL 2008)

TIMNATH, Colo. – A historic weigh scale shed will be moved the week of May 5th to the Timnath Community Garden on Main Street. The shed, owned by Debbie and Rick Myers, was originally used by the Great Western Railroad and was part of the Kluver beet dump, located off of Larimer County Road 1.

Debbie and Rick Myers added to their farm in 1986 by purchasing property from the railroad, which included the shed. Until 1971 there was a rail spur running through the property according to Colorado Railroads by Tivis E. Wilkins. The town of Kluver sprang up along this branch. Sugar beets, potatoes and sheep were hauled on this rail line. The rail spur was gone when the Myers took ownership, but they did salvage the shed by moving it to a temporary location in their hay field. The Myers were pleased to discover that the shed could be used by the Timnath Community Garden, as they needed to re-seed their field and had determined the 10’ by 12’ shed would have to be removed.

Before the relocation can be started, the shed will be stabilized by Matt Brown of the Town of Timnath’s Public Works Department, who will do the carpentry work on the shed. Additionally, a rammed earth foundation will be created in the garden where the shed will be placed. Paul Speck, President of Earth Homes, Inc. is providing technical help with the project, including the design of the soil mix, which will be used in the foundation. The President of Sipes Concrete, Les Sipes, is helping with the foundational slap form and preparation. On April 26 and May 3, volunteers will be working at the Timnath Community Garden to create the foundation in preparation for the shed’s move the week of May 5th.

“It’s very gratifying that we can further the mission of the Timnath Community Garden by acquiring a much-needed shed, and preserve a piece of local agricultural history at the same time,” said Denise Fisher, Timnath Community Garden Coordinator.

The Timnath Community Garden was established in 2006 on Raleigh and Edith Brook’s land.

“I think the Garden has been a great success,” said Edith Brooks. “We so enjoy watching the people come and go. I watched a little kid the other day with a hoe, and man did he chop. I would be thrilled if more people saw the value and would join in the effort.”

The Timnath Community Garden is a project of the Timnath Education and Charitable Association (TECA), a non-profit organization. TECA’s mission is to promote and preserve the history and traditions of Timnath. The first such project is the Timnath Community Garden. Moving the shed to the garden has the additional benefit of saving part of Northern Colorado’s and in particular, Timnath’s agricultural history.

According to the Columbine Club’s Timnath: A History, sugar beet dumps were established to get the beets from the fields to the factories. The first sugar beet factory in Colorado was started in 1899. In 1905, a beet dumping station was built in Timnath adjacent to the railroad tracks. The horse-drawn Giddings beet digger was invented by Timnath resident, John H. Giddings. By 1936, 709 acres in the Timnath area were planted in beets.

The shed that will be moved to Timnath is typical of beet dump weigh stations from that era. Lorraine Schwindt of Fort Collins, worked from this shed for seven seasons, from 1973 to 1981, weighing beet trucks. She was known as the “scale lady.” She talked about the old oil burning stove that was lit every morning before work so they “wouldn’t freeze to death.” The stove pipes, as well as a shelf for the telephone and the large window used to give beet receipts, are still part of the shed. A typical beet weighing scale and the rail spur attached to it can still be seen on Timnath’s Main Street.

Since its inception, the Timnath Community Garden has raised over 1500 pounds of organic produce for the Larimer County Food Bank and helped educate gardeners about organic gardening through the use of Larimer County Master Gardeners. The Garden was also a recipient of the Larimer County’s 2006 Environmental Stewardship Award.