Antonito in Conejos County, Colorado — The American Mountains (Southwest)
Fred "Lightning Heart" Haberlein
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 12, 2025
1. Fred "Lightning Heart" Haberlein Marker
Frederick Fitzjarrald Haberlein (1944-2018), grew up at the Conejos Ranch on the Conejos River just west of Antonito. He graduated from Antonito High School and then attended Colorado State University on an art scholarship where he graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in sculpture and printmaking. He later attended the University of Arizona for graduate studies in 1969.
In 1984, Fred returned to Conejos Ranch and began painting murals in Colorado. He completed 80 murals in the San Luis Valley before moving to Glenwood Springs with his wife, Teresa Platt, in 1988.
¿Sabes que? [Did you know?] Fred continued mural work, completing 140 pieces of public art including pictures on the main streets of Glenwood Springs, Carbondale, Leadville, Gunnison, Salida, Alamosa, La Jara, Manassa, Romeo, and Antonito.
[photo captions]
• One of his more recent projects was the repainting of a mural of Our Lady of Guadalupe in 2016 in Antonito, which he completed despite being diagnosed with esophageal cancer and was undergoing treatment at the time.
• Fred Haberlein working on "Whooping Cranes" on the side of a silo off of Highway 285, west of Romeo, Colorado.
• “Mimbres Rabbit Conejos for Conejos”
• “The Old Plaza of Conejos” — Conejos Post Office
• “Quetzalcoatl de Nuevo
this page online
Los Caminos Antiguos Scenic & Historic Byway
Town of Antonito
Sangre de Cristo National Heritage Area
A member of the National Heritage Area System
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Arts, Letters, Music • Education. A significant historical year for this entry is 1984.
Location. 37° 4.727′ N, 106° 0.52′ W. Marker is in Antonito, Colorado, in Conejos County. It is on Main Street (U.S. 285) just south of East 8th Avenue, on the right when traveling north. The marker is located beside the sidewalk on the south side of Silo Park. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Antonito CO 81120, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains and in the San Luis Valley. It is also in the American Mountain West. Globally, it is in North America, the Rocky Mountains, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain and also the Republic of Texas.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: S.P.M.D.T.U. Concilio Superior (about 600 feet away, measured in a direct line); Don Celedonio Mondragón (about 600 feet away); Warshauer Mansion (approx. 0.2 miles away); The Horse and the Indian (approx. half a mile away); Welcome to Colorado / Antonito Country (approx. half a mile away); The Cumbres & Toltec (approx. half a mile away); La Sociedad (approx. 0.6 miles away); Welcome to El Valle de San Luis (approx. 0.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Antonito.
Also see . . . Fred Haberlein (Wikipedia).
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 12, 2025
2. Fred "Lightning Heart" Haberlein Marker
Looking east from Main Street. Fred Haberlein’s mural “Quetzalcoatl de Nuevo Aztlan — The Great Water Serpent of the Rio Grande” is on the building in the background.
Excerpt: Fred F. Haberlein was an American muralist, painter, and sculptor. He grew up at Conejos Ranch, a guest ranch in Conejos County, Colorado. He studied sculpture and printmaking in college, but he was best known for his murals throughout the western United States, predominantly in Colorado. He lived near Glenwood Springs, Colorado and died in 2018.(Submitted on August 28, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Haberlein was twice nominated for the Colorado Governor's Award for Excellence in the Arts. He taught art classes at Colorado Mountain College for eighteen years. His first mural was rendered in Oracle, AZ in 1977, and he completed over 130 murals since then. A Native American friend gave him the name “Lightning Heart,” which he used professionally. Haberlein completed more single-handed murals than any other U.S. artist.
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 12, 2025
3. Silo Park
Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 12, 2025
4. Silo Park & Fred Haberlein art
Looking northeast from Main Street (near the historical marker). Silo Park and Fred Haberlein’s “Quetzalcoatl de Nuevo Aztlan — The Great Water Serpent of the Rio Grande” are in the background.
Credits. This page was last revised on August 28, 2025. It was originally submitted on August 28, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 147 times since then and 40 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on August 28, 2025, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
