Gifford House and Museum
The Gifford House and Museum, formerly the Gifford homestead, lies in the heart of the fertile Fruita Valley, within the 200-acre Fruita Historic District.
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Gifford House and Museum Details
The Gifford House and Museum, formerly the Gifford homestead, lies in the heart of the fertile Fruita Valley, within the 200-acre Fruita Historic District. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Working with the National Park Service, the Capitol Reef Natural History Association (CRNHA) has renovated and refurnished the Gifford farmhouse as a cultural demonstration site, focused on the early Mormon settlement of the Fruita valley. The Spartan house is typical of those from the early 1900s, and the site also includes a barn, smokehouse, garden, pasture and rock walls. The house was originally built in 1908 by polygamist Calvin Pendleton; he and his family lived here for eight years. The home's second residents were the Jorgenson family, who lived here from 1916 to 1928. Jorgenson sold the homestead to his son-in-law, Dewey Gifford, in 1928, and the site still bears that family name. The Gifford family lived in the home until 1969, adding a kitchen, bathroom, utility room, and carport in 1954. In addition to raising a number of farm animals, the family also had an extensive vegetable garden, as well as orchards. They carried water to the house from the Fremont River, and a two-hole outhouse was used until an indoor bathroom and plumbing was installed in later years. The house received electricity in 1948. Today's museum and shop, located in the former kitchen, offer visitors a glimpse of homestead life. In the shop, visitors can purchase period reproduction items such as butter churns, flour sifters, quilts and aprons, as well as books, historic postcards, locally baked fruit pies and homemade ice cream. The Gifford House Store and Museum is open from March 14 to Oct. 31, although the closing date is subject to change; it is open daily from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., with extended hours in the summer.
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Nearby Parks Around Gifford House and Museum
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Nearby Points of Interest Around Gifford House and Museum
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Fremont River Trail
This mostly easy 2-mile, out-and-back trail begins with a walk along the Fremont River and ends with a steep climb to a scenic panorama.
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Fruita Campground
Open all year, the Fruita Campground the park's only developed campground.
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Cohab Canyon Trail
The Cohab Canyon Trail is a 1.7-mile hike that begins beside the Fruita Campground.
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Historic District Parking Area
It's well worth your time to park here alongside the Fremont River and take the time to explore the Fruita Historic District by foot.
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Fruita Historic District
Without the irrigation made possible by the Fremont River, the community that is now the Fruita Historic District would never have been settled.
