History of Colorado; Volume I, Part 4

Author: Stone, Wilbur Fiske, 1833-1920, ed
Publication date: 1918
Publisher: Chicago, S. J. Clarke
Number of Pages: 954

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The first of the jurisdictions under which the present territory of Colorado came was that of "Nueva España"-or New Spain, which covered an immense part of North America in the Sixteenth Century. The domain of this empire included all of Mexico, practically all of the land west of the Mississippi River and extended into the unknown and unexplored regions of the Great Northwest. Spain's right of ownership was based solely upon the discoveries in the New World made by her subjects during the first half of the century. In 1519 Alvarez de Pineda discovered the Mississippi River and named it "Rio del Espiritu Santo"; and within the next quarter century Spanish explorers had crossed parts of the present states of New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Colorado. The first settlements were made upon the eastern coast of the United States at a time when fully four-fifths of the present area of the Union was Spanish territory, under the rights of discovery.

The Spanish held undisputed sway over this vast territory and were not in any way threatened until the closing years of the Seventeenth Century. Then the Sieur de la Salle descended the Mississippi River and on April 9, 1682, took pos-

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HISTORY OF COLORADO

session of this "Father of Waters" in the name of the French Crown. He in- cluded with the Mississippi all the tributaries and the lands through which they flowed and which they drained; thus declaring ownership over a great extent of country from the Alleghanies to the Rockies. He named the new possession "Louisiane," in honor of his sovereign, Louis XIV. Louisiane comprised about one-half of the present area of the United States and included a large portion of Colorado. Spain naturally denied the right of France to any land west of the Mississippi, but the French succeeded in holding all they had claimed until November, 1762, when a secret treaty was drawn up, by which the Mississippi again became the eastern and northeastern boundary of New Spain, or New Mexico as it was called by that time.

DE VACA'S EXPLORATION

Spanish history in the territory now included in the southwestern part of the United States begins with the story of Alvaro Nuñez Cabeza de Vaca, a Spanish nobleman, and his three companions, Andres Dorantes, Alonzo del Cas- tillo Maldonado and an African negro named Estevanico (Stephen). These were the first Europeans to come into this part of the country, and were sur- vivors of the ill-fated De Narvaez expedition into the Florida country in 1528. De Vaca was held a prisoner by Indians near Galveston, Texas, but after several years escaped and struck out for the interior, where he joined his companions. The four started in search of Spanish settlements in Mexico and slowly made their way from one tribe of Indians to another. Their course is not known, but in time they reached the western coast of Mexico, where they met a band of their countrymen. Supplied with guides, De Vaca and his companions later reached the City of Mexico in July, 1536, after wandering for fully eight years.

De Vaca's story of the unexplored country through which he had passed and his account of the tales which had been told him by the Indians fired the imag- ination of the Spaniards and they came to believe of rich and thriving cities far to the northward, where the sole industry of the people was the making of gold and silver articles. Nuño de Guzman, a high official in the administration of New Spain, inspired by De Vaca's stories and those of an Indian, guided an expedition northward from Mexico City, but did not go farther than the Yaqui River. Don Antonio de Mendoza, viceroy of all New Spain, also determined to forage among the rich cities of the North and made preparations for a large ex- pedition. He first despatched a scouting party, led by two Franciscan friars, Juan de la Asuncion and Pedro Madal, which traveled as far as the Gila River in Arizona, then abandoned the quest. Not to be discouraged, however, Mendoza formed a second party and chose Marcos de Nizza, a Franciscan, captain. Ac- companied by the negro, Stephen, and Onorato, a lay brother of the order, De Nizza began his journey to the northward.

Onorato left the party soon on account of sickness, so De Nizza and Stephen pushed on, acquiring many Indians in their party as they progressed. After a time, Stephen and a party of Indians were sent ahead of De Nizza and the others, with instructions to report by messenger. In June, 1539, De Nizza reached the "Land of Cibola"-the "buffalo country," where the seven rich cities were sup- posed to be located. Here he learned that Stephen had been murdered.

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Stephen and his Indians had discovered a great pueblo in the western part of the present New Mexico. Despite the warnings of the inhabitants, Stephen went among them. After a few days his presence became so intolerable that the natives put him to death, with a number of his Indian companions. Those of the party who escaped hurried southward and one of them returned to De Nizza with the account of Stephen's death. The intrepid friar, though dismayed by the news, refused to retreat until he had obtained a view of the "city." He reached a high point of land and from this eminence saw the "City of Cibola" in the dis- tance. Then he returned home, where his vivid and colorful tales more than substantiated the wildest of De Vaca's stories of the rich peoples to the north. De Nizza really believed that the pueblo which he had viewed from a distance to be larger and richer than the City of Mexico.

CORONADO'S EXPEDITION

De Nizza stirred the imagination of the Spaniards as no one had done before. Dreams of a country vastly richer than Peru were indulged in by the people. The remembrance of cargoes of gold and silver from that South American country only stimulated their desire to loot the mysterious cities of the still more mys- terious north. Mendoza in particular resolved upon a huge expedition for the invasion of the country which De Nizza, De Vaca and others had painted in such glorious colors.

Accordingly, in the fall of 1539, Mendoza financed and equipped an expedi- tion to be captained by Francisco de Coronado, the young governor of New Galicia. On February 23, 1540, Coronado left Compostella, in New Galicia, with Friar Marcos, three other Franciscans, 260 Spanish cavaliers, seventy Spanish footmen, over a thousand Indians and servants, six pieces of artillery and about a thousand horses. This army entered what is now the southeastern corner of the State of Arizona by the end of the following spring. The rest of the year was spent in subduing the Pueblo Indians and various minor explorations. Win- ter found the expedition encamped on the Rio Grande River, discouraged and disillusioned.

An Indian, supposed to have been a Pawnee, who lived at the Pecos Pueblo fifty miles north of Coronado's encampment, told the Spaniards that he was from a rich city 1,000 miles to the northeast, where even the commonest of utensils were made of gold. The "Turk," as he was called by the Spanish, promised to lead them thither.

This incident had a rejuvenating effect upon the fagged and heart-weary ex; plorers, so on April 21, 1541, the march was begun. Ten days later the plains Indians were first encountered. A captain in the expedition, Juan Jaramillo, afterward wrote that "we began to enter the plains where the cows (buffalos) are, although we did not find them for some four or five days. * * * We found Indians among these first cows, who were, on this account, called 'Que- rechos' by those in the flat-roof houses." One authority suggests the resemblance of the name "Querechos" to Apaches.

Having crossed the Canadian River, or the southerly branch of the same, the Coronado party proceeded in a northeasterly course. The exact route taken by Coronado has never been determined definitely, several different versions having

HISTORY OF COLORADO

been given by as many historians and investigators. It is probable that Coronado reached the southeastern part of the present Colorado; at least, a study of the different histories of the expedition would seem to establish this fact.

The "Turk" eventually guided the expedition in an easterly, then southeasterly, course, diverting the Spaniards from the original trail. On the thirty-fifth day of the movement named a halt was made at another Indian village, the inhabi- tants of which were given the name of "Teyans," and who were undoubtedly Comanches. Coronado estimated at this time that he had traveled fully 650 miles from the encampment on the Rio Grande. They were now probably in what is now Oklahoma, on the north fork of the Canadian River. Here Coronado first learned that De Vaca had visited this village.

A council was held and it was decided that the main part of the expedition should go no farther in search of the mythical City of Quivira, but should return to the Rio Grande, while Coronado and thirty of his picked horsemen should con- tinue the journey as planned. This was done and forty-two days later, after crossing the Arkansas River and marching to the northeast, Coronado reached Quivira.

Here, instead of finding a wealthy and populous city, the Spaniards discovered a lonely village of Indians, probably Pawnees, who earned their living by hunting buffalo and raising patches of corn. For twenty-five days the explorers remained at Quivira, garroting the "Turk" to appease their anger and disappointment and in punishment for his duplicity.

Then, with several Quivira Indians to guide them, the party began the return journey to the Rio Grande. The route taken is thought to have been one familiar to the Indians in their travels to the "flat-roof" villages and which undoubtedly `crossed southeastern Colorado.

Coronado met with a cold reception when he returned to the capital of New Spain and was openly snubbed by Mendoza. He did not deserve to be discredited for his failure to find the mythical cities of treasure, but the fact remains that his own sense of disgrace and the obscurity forced upon him by his fellows bore upon him until the day of his death, while he was yet a comparatively young man.

The exact location of Quivira is not known. Coronado claimed that it was "950 leagues," or 2,470 miles, from the City of Mexico. It is thought by the best of writers that Coronado's farthest point into the interior of what is now the United States was in the vicinity of Junction City, Kansas. Quivira appeared on both English and French maps in the early days, in various latitudes and longi- tudes, and was really thought to exist.

FATHER PADILLA'S FATE

When Coronado started upon his homeward trip one member of his party, Father Juan de Padilla, decided to stay and undertake missionary work among the Indians. With him went Andres del Campo and three educated Indians of Coronado's band. They set out with the Quivira guides who were returning to their own people. Upon the way Father Padilla crossed a corner of Colorado. After arriving among the Quivira Indians he found a portion of them hostile to him and it was not long before he suffered death at the hands of these savages,

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Campo and the Mexican Indians escaping and finally reaching Tampico, Mexico, there to relate the story of Father Padilla and his fate.

MOSCOSCO'S MARCH

In 1542-43 Louis Moscosco de Alvarado, who was one of De Soto's lieuten- ants in the Florida expedition, explored deeply into the northern part of New Spain. While De Soto was in Florida, stories had been brought concerning the activities in the West, Coronado's expedition in particular. After De Soto's death Moscosco began his march westward from the Mississippi, having been ap- pointed commander by De Soto. After many days' journey, it is recorded that his scouts sighted mountain ranges to the westward, supposedly the Rockies. A few early geographical charts represent Moscosco's route as having crossed southeastern Colorado, but, allowing for discrepancies in latitude and longitude, it is improbable that he reached the present borders of the state by several hun- dred miles.

Following these many attempts to thoroughly explore the country comprised in New Spain, there were very few expeditions of any consequence for a period of over forty years. Friars went into the country of the Pueblo Indians, seeking to establish missions, but most of them met death as their reward.

ONATE'S EXPEDITION

In 1595, Juan de Onate, a prominent Spaniard of the time, relative of Cortez and Montezuma, attempted a large expedition into the northern country for ex- ploration and colonization if possible. His actual start was about three years later and his course followed up the Rio Grande Valley and into the San Luis Park region of Colorado. About thirty miles above the site of Santa Fé, Onata founded the Town of San Gabriel, the second in the territory now the United States. Seven years later Onate founded Santa Fé.

A short time after establishing San Gabriel Onate despatched his nephew, Juan de Zaldivar, with a company of cavaliers, farther into the interior. It is believed that Zaldivar progressed along the foothills nearly to the site of Denver.

BONILLA'S EXPEDITION

The undertaking of Francisco Leyva Bonilla in the year 1595 was one fraught with tragedy and failure. Bonilla was sent to subdue an Indian tribe among the northern settlements and had instructions to continue in search of Quivira if the condition of his men warranted it. Other authorities have claimed that Bonilla exceeded his orders by continuing northward. Nevertheless, he traveled up the Rio Grande Valley to the plains. Here, in a quarrel with Juan de Humana, one of his officers, Bonilla was killed. Humana took charge of the expedition, which then had passed through southeastern Colorado into southwestern Kansas. After crossing a large river (Arkansas), Humana and his men were surrounded by Indians while encamped. The savages fired the dry grass around the Spaniards and all were killed with the exception of two-Alonzo Sanchez and a half-breed Indian girl. Sanchez afterward became a chieftain in the tribe of his would-be murderers.

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ONATE'S SECOND EXPEDITION

In 1601 Onate organized another expedition and started northeastward, both for the purpose of continuing Zaldivar's search and to learn more of the ill-fated Humana expedition. For over three months he was absent upon this journey. He came as far north as the site of Denver, then turned eastward into eastern Kan- sas and, according to modern writers, went as far as the Missouri River, either in Kansas or Nebraska. Nothing of material advantage resulted from this sec- ond expedition, aside from the fact that Onate discovered the spot where Humana and his soldiers had been annihilated by the Indians.

Following Onate's last attempt to discover riches in the north, there were no more expeditions of consequence until 1662. Roving bands of Spaniards traveled north in search of adventure, and generally found it, but their result was negative.

PUEBLO UPRISING

Near the close of the Seventeenth Century the Spanish settlements along the Rio Grande from the Taos Valley to Socorro had become numerous. Stock raising and mining for gold were the chief occupations of the people. Pueblo Indians were made slaves by the Spaniards and compelled to do all the heavy work in the mines. This naturally led to an uprising among the natives, which occurred in August, 1680. Then came days of massacre and conflict, with the result that the Spaniards were either killed or driven southward toward El Paso. By September Ist, it is recorded, not a live Spaniard was left upon the Upper Rio Grande and all the settlements were destroyed.

Notwithstanding their utter defeat at first, the Spanish quickly recuperated and sent out small bands to engage the Indians. Finally, in 1693-94, Don Diego de Vargas, after desperate fighting, succeeded in retaking the land, but not in returning the Indians to a state of slavery.

THE FRENCH MENACE

With the beginning of the Eighteenth Century there appeared a distinct menace to the Spanish and their rights in New Spain. This menace was com- prised of French explorers and colonists. La Salle came from France in the winter of 1684-85, with a party of colonists, and had located on the Gulf Coast about one hundred miles southwest of Galveston. He had previously, in 1682, taken possession of the Mississippi River, all its tributaries and basin, in the name of the French Crown. Settlements were made near New Orleans in 1699 and also in the present southern part of Illinois.

At the same time the Spanish had considerably extended their field of opera- tions. Traders, missionaries and adventurers had gone as far as Montana and Illinois. Many instances are recorded wherein the Spanish and French had found evidences of each other's presence in different places. The trails crossed many times, but until 1719 there were no signs of resistance by either.

VALVERDE'S EXPEDITION

In 1719 Governor Valverde assembled about one hundred soldiers and their followers for an expedition against the French, whose inroads upon Spanish ter-

PIONEER MONUMENT, DENVER

HISTORY OF COLORADO

ritory had become serious. Their first purpose was to settle with some unruly Comanche Indians and then continue the campaign against the French. The party was joined later by Apaches, who had engaged in sanguinary conflict with the French. Although Valverde claimed that he advanced farther north than any other Spanish explorer, his purpose was unfulfilled and the expedition was devoid of important results.

In 1720 another military force, under Pedro Villasur, left Santa Fé to es- tablish a garrison on the northeast Spanish frontier. The object, as stated in the De Montigny Memoirs, was to destroy the Missouri Indians, who were French allies, and then confiscate the country, also to form an alliance with the Pawnees, who were hostile to the Missouris. The Spanish first met the Missouri Indians and mistook them for Pawnees. Unwittingly they bargained with these Indians and thus exposed their whole plot. The Missouris maintained their bluff and three days later, reinforced, fell upon the Spaniards and annihilated them.

From this time there appears to have been no more military expeditions by the Spanish against the French on the northeastern border of New Spain. The latter were practically unrestricted in their operations in this territory. How- ever, the Spanish turned their attentions in another direction and resumed their long journeys from the Rio Grande settlements. Little is known of these explora- tions, for the simple reason that the Spanish did not keep records or maps of their travels, thus differing from the French.

In the middle of the Eighteenth Century the present San Juan section of Colo- rado became a district of great interest and several expeditions were sent there by the Spanish in search of gold and silver. The first of these was that of Juan Maria Rivera in 1761. This prospecting trip, such as it was, occupied a few months' time without noteworthy result. Rivera and his companions. are said to have been the first white men to visit the Gunnison Valley.

ESCALANTE'S EXPLORATION

About 1773 Father Junipero Serra, in charge of the Spanish missions in Upper California, urged that a road be established from Santa Fé to his missions on the Pacific Coast. Until 1776 his pleas were ignored, then Father Francisco Silvestre Velez Escalante was given the authority to head such an expedition into Cali- fornia.

This exploring party started their journey in a northwesterly direction and entered what is now Archuleta County. They reached the San Juan River and encamped at a point three leagues below the junction with the Navajo on August 5th. This spot they called Nuestra Señora de las Nieves and it was the first named site in Colorado of which the exact date is known.

From this place Escalante again took up his northwesterly course, crossing several tributaries of the San Juan and giving them such names as Piedra Parada, Pinos, Florida, and Las Animas. In order to avoid confusion, it must be stated that the Rio las Animas, or Purgatory, is a tributary of the Arkansas in the south- eastern part of the state and the Rio las Animas in southwestern Colorado is a tributary of the San Juan. Escalante gave the appellation of Sierra de la Grulla to the easterly extension of La Plata Range and called the La Plata River the

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Rio de San Joaquim. In the valley of the latter stream Escalante found evidences of Rivera's mining investigations.

Arriving at the Rio Mancos, he heard from the Indians tales of gold mines to the northeast and also saw the ruins of the ancient Cliff Dwellers in this dis- trict. He was the first white man to visit these historic ruins, but he saw only a part of them. From the Mancos Escalante proceeded northward to the Rio Dolores. " Along this stream he gave names to localities such as Asuncion, Aqua Tapada, Cañon Agua Escondida, Miera Labarinto, and Ancon San Bernardo. To a small tributary of the Dolores the name of Paraliticas was given, the name suggested by the sight of three paralyzed Ute squaws the party met there. Gyp- sum Valley was entered about this point, otherwise called Cajon Del Yeso. After ascending to a mesa, the party went on to the next halting point, called San Bernabe. Another six leagues of march brought them to the San Miguel River, which they called Rio de San Pedro. Places of encampment upon this stream were San Luis, San Felipe and Fuento de la Guia. Leaving the San Miguel they crossed the Canada Honda, probably the Uncompahgre Park, and encamped again at the Ojo de Lain, so named in honor of their guide. Here Escalante reached the Uncompahgre River and christened it the Rio Francisco. The first station farther on was named San Augustin. It was estimated by the travelers that the distance from the Uncompahgre to the Gunnison River, as they went, was about ten leagues. The Indians called the Gunnison by the name of Tomichi, but Es- calante renamed it the San Javier. A cross on the river bluff established the fact that Rivera had reached this point.

Proceeding up the Gunnison the Spaniards came to another stream, which they named Santa Rosa, and still farther they found another which they called Rio Santa Monica. Then came the Rio San Antonia Martir, the present Divide Creek. The two buttes, North Mam and South Mam, they gave the names of San Silvestre and Nebuncari. Mam Creek they named Rio de Santa Rosalia. Across the summit of Elk Range the party took their way and descended into the valley of the Grand River, which river Escalante named Rio de San Rafael. Continuing in a northwesterly course from the Grand they next encountered the White River, called by them Rio de San Clemente. Their point of contact with this river was about the Colorado-Utah line and the date September 9th.

From here the Escalante party passed into what is now the State of Utah. From this state they returned to Santa Fé. Although Escalante did not succeed in his original purpose, his name has been prominently recorded in the history of the southwest part of the United States. In the northwestern corner of Colo- rado his name has been given to a large range of mountain hills. Some years later a trail was laid down from Santa Fé to Los Angeles, which traversed south- western Colorado for a distance of 115 miles.

THE LAST SPANISH EXPEDITION

The last Spanish expedition to travel into the north country from the south was that commanded by Lieut. Don Facundo Melgares. This was primarily a military enterprise, undertaken after the United States had purchased the Prov- ince of Louisiana. The Spanish became alarmed over the claims of the United States and the rumors of Pike's expedition into the West. The Melgares expedi-

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tion accordingly was organized to go out to meet the incursions of Pike, to ex- plore all the country between the Platte and Arkansas rivers to the Missouri River, and to make friends with the Comanche, Pawnee, Kansas and other Indian tribes. Melgares and his little army marched into the Comanche country and bestowed upon the Indians presents and commissions, then went northeast to the Arkansas River, to a place now in the southern part of Kansas. With a part of his force, Melgares then entered the Pawnee country in the northern section of Kansas, all the time watching for Pike. Returning to the other part of his band on the Arkansas Melgares then followed the stream nearly to the site of Canon City, still in search of Pike. In this quest he failed, as Pike came later, but the two had occasion to meet later while Pike was a partial prisoner of the Spanish and they became warm friends.

As stated before this was the last of the Spanish expeditions in the north. At this writing there are no evidences of any permanent settlement having been made upon Colorado soil by them. From this time on, that is in 1806, when the Melgares expedition went northward, Spain's participation in the affairs of the Southwest was small. Prior to this time they had been masters in this country, even over the region to the northwest which yet was unexplored. The treaty made between England and France in 1763 took from the French all their au- thority over the land now in the United States and left it under the control of either the Spanish or English. In 1800, for some unknown reason, a treaty was made by Spain and France, wherein Spain returned to France all the territory which the latter had ceded to her in 1762. Three years later France sold all of this territory to the United States, a negotiation which shall be described further on. However, this still left about one-half of Colorado's area in the possession of Spain. Mexico rebelled in the first part of the Nineteenth Century and in the region of the Rockies she replaced Spanish ownership. About fifteen years later the Republic of Texas came into existence and claimed more than half of the present New Mexico, about two-fifths of Colorado and a small part of Wyo- ming. This territory Texas held when admitted to the Union as a state. The American war with Mexico placed the boundary between the country approxi- mately the same as at present and made Colorado United States territory. In 1850 Texas gave up claims to the northwestern part of her territory in return for a large sum from the United States Government.

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History of Colorado; Volume I, Part 4

Author: Stone, Wilbur Fiske, 1833-1920, ed Publication date: 1918 Publisher: Chicago, S. J. Clarke Number of Pages: 954

Author: Stone, Wilbur Fiske, 1833-1920, ed
Publication date: 1918
Publisher: Chicago, S. J. Clarke
Number of Pages: 954