Frederick H. Chapin

Who was Frederick H. Chapin?

Frederick Hastings Chapin was an American businessman, mountaineer, photographer, amateur archaeologist and author. He is best known for his exploration of mesas and ancient Pueblo ruins found in the Mesa Verde area of Colorado.

Chapin visited the Mesa Verde region during the summers of 1889 and 1890, using explorer Richard Wetherill and members of his family as guides. Although active in exploring and photographing the sites, Chapin was not heavily involved in excavating the ruins or collecting artifacts, though he photographed artifacts collected by the Wetherills. Chapin also assessed the climbing possibilities of mesas and peaks in the area. He described the landscape and ruins in an 1890 article and later in The Land of the Cliff-Dwellers, a book published in 1892 by the Appalachian Mountain Club.

Chapin Mesa, which shelters many of the best known cliff dwellings of Mesa Verde, is named for him.