Science Institute
Cherokee Ranch Science Institute (CRSI)
Founded in 2013 by the late Al Koch, the Cherokee Ranch Science Institute (CRSI) continues to serve the mission of the Cherokee Ranch & Castle Foundation (CRCF) by educating the public and performing scientific research projects on the ranch. Over the last decade the CRSI has accumulated a significant amount of research data about the geology, archaeology and paleontology of the 3,441-acre ranch. Institute members are highly respected in their fields. They deliver presentations at national conferences and covenings, lead guided hikes, and present public lectures through the “Discoveries at Cherokee Ranch Series”.
Each summer the Science Institute presents guided hikes to various sites on Cherokee Ranch. These hikes are designed to share some of what we have learned about the ranch with the public in Geology, Archaeology and Petrified Wood.
Discovery Series Lectures
Periodically the members of the CRSI present lectures on a variety of topics. These presentations primarily focus on the research here at the ranch but also cover other scientific information related to the ranch and accompanying 14,000 acres of open space.
Ongoing Research Projects
Reid Farmer, RPA and Dr. Jonathan Kent have been published in the prestigious Southwestern Lore, official publication of the Colorado Archaeological Society. They direct ongoing archaeological digs at Cherokee Ranch through student field schools.
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History of CRSI
In the early part of this century, a retired geologist, Allan Koch, asked to do some research on the promontory bluffs that punctuate the ranch. Al was doing an in-depth study of the Castle Rock Conglomerate, a local rock formation found in Douglas County. As he surveyed the property over several years, he created a detailed map of the various sedimentary layers that make up the ranch. Along with mapping the bedrock geology, Al developed an interest in the fossils and petrified wood found on the property. By 2013 he proposed the creation of the CRSI to serve the mission of Tweet Kimble by learning more about the ranch and sharing this information with scientists and the public.
Al provided professional geology tours on the property which ultimately led to the educational hikes we offer today. He also solicited the help of many scientists to support the research efforts of the institute. Al supported and participated in the Discovery Series lectures and served as the director of the Institute until his death in 2019.
Peter Brown and John McKinney created the Cherokee Ranch Nature Camp in 2005. As they hiked the property over several years, they discovered large deposits of petrified wood.
Peter and John met Al around 2010, and he was interested in the petrified wood and the sandy layers of sediment where the wood was discovered. Tom Machalski, a local expert in petrified wood, joined the research effort at this time. Tom had a deep understanding of Colorado geology and the various deposits of petrified wood in the Denver area. Over the next five years Peter, Tom and John collected samples and mapped the petrified wood sites on the ranch. Over the years the significance of the Cherokee Petrified Forest has become clear. We have discovered a unique species of extinct laurel trees in the well-preserved logs found on the ranch.
In 2015 Reid Farmer joined the institute to study the archaeological history of the ranch. Reid toured the area around the Cherokee Mountain Rock Shelter with Al Koch and was interested in the artifacts that had been discovered on the mountain. The following summer Reid contacted Dr. Jonathan Kent from Metropolitan State University of Denver, and they began and continued running archaeological field schools at Cherokee Ranch for several years, making important discoveries. Now Farmer and Kent frequently have former students and emerging professionals continue to develop research with them that has been yielding prestigious invitations to deliver national presentations as well as writing award winning papers and peer review articles in publications.