Carlsbad Caverns National Park: Superintendent’s Building HABS Report

Within the Caverns Historic District in Carlsbad Caverns National Park, Building 16, the Bunk House, and the Mess Hall are examples of the National Park Service’s early years and its expansion into the region before the Great Depression. Construction occurred in two phases: the first between 1927 and 1929 as a simple, one-story building in the Pueblo Revival Style, and the second in 1932, in the New Mexican Territorial Revival Style, which expanded the building into its present irregular plan. As a result of its aggregated construction, the structure is large, rambling, and has multiple levels that follow the site's natural grade. 

The project's scope focused, specifically, on the east wing of the National Park Service Carlsbad Caverns Superintendent Building. Students surveyed the building over three days in September 2018.

Using Historic American Building Survey (HABS) methodology, students created field drawings and took photos with a large-format film camera while on site. Then, the drawings and the photos were used to develop CAD drawings to document the structures, their character-defining features, and architectural details. In addition, students used photogrammetry to extract three-dimensional measurements from two-dimensional images.