MISSION STATEMENT
Friends of Public Land Cabins is a grassroots, volunteer organization dedicated to the preservation and protection of culturally significant structures on public land.
HISTORY
Over the years, cabins were built on public land all over the western United States. These cabins were built to support such activities as mining, grazing and hunting. Many of these old cabins are no longer used for their original purpose but have become popular destinations for modern-day explorers and lovers of history. These old structures have tremendous historic and/or cultural value, and are an important part of our “living history.”
The original cabin protection program, the Adopt-A-Cabin program, began in 1989 when a citizen, concerned about a historic cabin in the Inyo Mountains, contacted the Ridgecrest, California Bureau of Land Management. He wanted to save the 1890s Beveridge Ridge Cabin. It was in danger of collapsing and the roof needed to be replaced. A group of volunteers was put together to do the work, while the BLM arranged to provide the necessary materials and use of a helicopter to deliver over 2,000 pounds of materials to the remote site.
The volunteers then formed the Friends of the Inyo Mountains, dedicated to saving and maintaining several historic cabins in the Inyo Mountains. The Friends of the Inyo Mountains have also inventoried and mapped 126 miles of the area’s historic mining trails and done trail signing and maintenance work.
In the mid-2000s, the Adopt-A-Cabin program morphed into today’s Historic Site Stewardship Program. Volunteers take special classes sponsored by the California Archaeological Site Stewardship Program and sign volunteer agreements with the BLM and other land management agencies. Volunteers help maintain existing sites by doing inspections, general clean-ups, and routine maintenance. Major stabilization and repair projects are done by special arrangement.
Separate and distinct from governmental land management agencies, Friends of Public Land Cabins represents and supports the volunteers themselves and the general public who wish to preserve and protect these culturally important sites. We provide oversight on public land management agencies’ policies and procedures with respect to these culturally important structures. We strive to serve as a liaison between the concerned public and these agencies, and attempt to provide workable solutions to management issues.