Petition Calls For UW To Protect Cooper House From Demolition

A historic home in Laramie that has served as the American Studies house on the UW campus is in danger during the University of Wyoming's planning sessions to bring more student housing to the Laramie Campus. The Cooper House is on the National Register of Historic Places, but its location on the campus has it in a precarious situation.

The Cooper House was built in 1921 by Richard, Barbara, and John Cooper after inheriting their father's mineral rights. After Barbara passed away in 1979, the house was purchased by the University of Wyoming. In the mid-1980s, the University had previously slated the Cooper House for demolition in order to build a parking lot. The house was saved after pressure from citizens forced the University to pass a resolution to not demolish the Cooper House.

Currently, the University's Housing Task Force is meeting with the intention of deciding if the Cooper House is the right location for new dormitories on the UW Campus. A petition has been started calling for its protection, and citizens are asked to attend the meeting at the Gateway Center on June 17 at noon to voice their opinion on the matter.

"The Cooper Mansion is architecturally significant in Laramie and the entire state of Wyoming for its unique combination of two early 20th century period-revival styles, Mission Revival, based on the architecture of California missions, and Pueblo Revival, based on Pueblo-Indian building traditions in New Mexico." reads the University of Wyoming's page on the Cooper House.