Journal 5: John Vories and the Beginnings of Pinehaven
John Vories had big dreams.(1) He envisioned turning the rugged land into a peaceful resort, but lacked the funds to bring it to life. However, he began planning and working with what little he had. His first project? Designing a cabin area on a scenic hill overlooking what was then just a dirt road, now known as Highway 12.
It was the first step in transforming Pinehaven from wild homestead land into the cherished community it is today. Knowing John Vories’ story and his connection to Raspberry Mountain can help us better understand his vision for Pinehaven.
Where the Story Begins
John Calvin “John C.” Vories entered the world in 1914 in the mountain town of La Veta, Colorado, the son of Fielding “Benton” Vories and Edna Mae Anderson.(2) John grew up in this mountain country and attended the little school in Cuchara, where he was one of three eighth-grade graduates in 1927. From 1928 to 1931, John walked the halls of La Veta High School not just as a student, but as an active part of campus life, suited up on the football field and engaged in a variety of school activities.
John Calvin Vories at La Veta High
By then, the Vories name was already woven into the fabric of local life. Benton and his brother Eugene were well-known in town, running a bustling butcher shop and slaughterhouse that kept La Veta supplied with fresh meat.(3) But Benton’s ambitions stretched beyond the market. In late 1906, the local paper reported that he had traded his apron for a saddle, renting the Frank Hayes ranch south of town and stepping into the rugged life of a rancher.(4) Just months later, in May 1907, he bought the ranch outright, a spread along Indian Creek Road on the slopes of Raspberry Mountain.(5). At the mountain’s foot lies the land that would one day become the Pinehaven cabin community. Just to the north was Vories Canyon, likely named for the family’s homestead and ranching operations that once pulsed with life in its shadow.(6)
The story of Benton Vories’ move from the butcher’s block to the rugged slopes of Raspberry Mountain is more than a footnote in local history, it’s the opening chapter of Pinehaven’s own. His decision to stake his livelihood on that land not only placed the Vories family at the base of what would become Pinehaven but also helped shape the identity of the area itself.
The canyon bearing the family name still whispers of those early days, when hard work, ambition, and a deep connection to the land laid the groundwork for the mountain community we know today.John married a local woman, Sadie “Virginia” Akers, in October 1940, establishing a family of his own. Vories served in the U.S. Navy during World War II and returned home with a vision to put his family’s land to new use as a summer resort community.(7)
Vories Vision for Pinehaven
After the war, John Vories set out to make his dream a reality on the property near Cuchara. He envisioned a “haven among the pines” where city dwellers could build cabins and enjoy the cool mountain air.Nearly four decades later, in 1943, history came full circle. Charles R. Powell, son of early homesteader John L. Powell, parted with the very parcel that would one day cradle the Pinehaven community, selling it to John C. Vories for $1,500.
Vories laid down $200 in cash, agreeing to pay the balance over time and to share in the profits of any timber harvested from its slopes. Five years later, in 1948, the last dollar was paid, the deed was signed, and the land that had once been a homestead for a pioneering family passed into the stewardship of another, linking two legacies in the roots of Pinehaven’s story.Although he faced financial challenges, Vories laid out a section known as Block 11 near the current entrance to what is now Pinehaven. This area later became known as Pinehaven Filing #1.8 He planned 11 cabin lots on what is now Road 402, ranging in size from 70×100 feet to 200×200 feet. Back then, the entrance ran parallel to Highway 12 and was a steep climb up the hillside, unlike today’s longer but more gradual incline along Bend Creek.
The second cabin plot sold was to a man who would be destined to fulfill Vories’ vision – Steve Pierotti. This initiative marked the beginning of Pinehaven’s transformation from untouched homestead land into a recreational destination. Vories’ rudimentary development – a handful of plotted lots and a dirt access road – may have been humble, but it set in motion the creation of a mountain community. Residents and historians look back on Block 11 as the genesis of Pinehaven, crediting John Vories with taking the first steps toward making Pinehaven a “haven” in the pines.
Recreation of the original archival map from Huerfano County (original blurred scan).(8)
John’s Last Chapter
For all his vision and drive, John Vories eventually found himself up against challenges even his determination couldn’t overcome. The high-altitude air that had once filled him with energy began to sap his strength, and by the early 1950s, age and health problems were making it harder for him to manage Pinehaven. The dream was still alive in his heart, but his body was telling him it was time to step back.Knowing he couldn’t continue to oversee the mountain property, Vories made the bittersweet decision to return to the gentler elevations of his native Arkansas. But he refused to let Pinehaven’s future fade away.
Instead, he turned to the one person he believed could carry the torch, his trusted friend, Steve Pierotti. Before leaving Colorado, Vories offered Pierotti the entire Pinehaven property, with its carefully surveyed cabin lots, for $3,700, a gesture as much about friendship and faith as it was about business. Pierotti, equally smitten with the land’s potential, jumped at the chance, even borrowing from a friend to make the purchase, and stepped in to guide Pinehaven’s next chapter.Back in Arkansas, Vories built a quieter life in Booneville, working as a maintenance man at the Ace Comb Company and serving faithfully as a church deacon.(9) Though far from the crisp air and towering pines of Colorado, he surely carried Pinehaven in his thoughts. When he passed away on November 11, 2009, at the remarkable age of 95, he left behind not just memories, but a living legacy, one that still rustles in the wind through Pinehaven’s tall trees.(10)
The Legacy of John C. Vories
In the heart of the Cuchara Valley, one name still echoes through Vories Canyon, John Calvin Vories, the man who first looked at a rugged sweep of timber and meadow and saw not wilderness, but possibility. With little more than vision and grit, he carved out modest cabin plots on a steep hillside, planting the seeds of what would one day become Pinehaven.What began as a handful of simple retreats grew into a cherished mountain community where generations have found, as many say, “a touch of heaven among the pines.” Today, Pinehaven’s winding roads, cozy cabins, and laughter-filled summer evenings all trace back to Vories’ quiet determination. Every family gathered on a porch at sunset, every child chasing fireflies under the tall evergreens, carries forward a dream first sparked by one man who believed this hillside could be home.(11)
8. AI-generated recreation of original plat map from Pinehaven Filing 1B, created by ChatGPT-4o using DALL·E, based on archival map image from Huerfano County (original blurred scan), July 31, 2025.
11. Author’s note: In preparing this article, the author used AI-assisted tools for research support, proofreading, fact-checking, and stylistic refinement. The narrative, analysis, and historical interpretations are the author’s own, and responsibility for accuracy rests solely with the author. The blog’s research methodology statement is available at:https://cabininthepines.org/journal-81-methodology-sources-and-use-of-research-tools/
