History of Colorado; Volume II, Part 42

Author: Stone, Wilbur Fiske, 1833-1920, ed
Publication date: 1918
Publisher: Chicago, S. J. Clarke
Number of Pages: 944

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Thomas H. Wilson was reared and educated in the land of his nativity and there spent the first twenty-six years of his life. He was seventeen years of age at the time of his father's death, after which he operated the home farm in association with his brother until 1881, which year witnessed his departure for America. He made the voyage to the new world in company with Lord Ogilvie, now of Denver, and took up his abode in Weld county, Colorado, where he was employed by the latter as farm manager for two years. On the expiration of that period he purchased a relinquish- ment of one hundred and sixty acres and as his financial resources increased, owing to his untiring industry and thrift, he added to his holdings from time to time until at present he is the owner of six hundred and forty acres of rich and productive land. The town of Eaton was not in existence at the time of his arrival here and the land which came into his possession was absolutely devoid of improvements. With charac- teristic energy, however, he began the work of cultivation and development and his section of land is now divided into four farms, all of which are splendidly improved, lacking in none of the equipments and accessories of a model farm property of the twentieth century. For many years he devoted his time and attention to general agricultural pursuits, but in 1913 he rented his land and has since left the active work of the fields to others. In addition to raising the cereals best adapted to soil and climate he has been extensively engaged in the feeding of sheep and cattle, both branches of his business proving profitable. He is a stockholder and director of the First National Bank of Eaton, also a stockholder in the Farmers Bank of Severance and for more than fifteen years has served as president of the Larimer & Weld Reservoir Company, while for a number of years he has been a director of the Larimer & Weld Irrigation Company.

On February 21, 1881, Mr. Wilson was joined in wedlock to Miss Mary Milne, a daughter of Thomas and Isabella (Duff) Milne, both of whom were natives of Scot- land. Mrs. Wilson was born in that country May 25, 1857. Her father was a carpenter by trade and also a forester in the early days, looking after timber on the big estates in Scotland. His demise occurred in February, 1902, and his wife passed away in June, 1904. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson are the parents of four children, as follows: John D., who is the president of the First National Bank of Eaton; Isabella, who is the wife of Andrew Ross, proprietor of the Seven Cross ranch at Briggsdale, Weld county, which comprises four thousand acres; Blanche, the wife of W. D. Kay, who cultivates a farm adjoining that of his father-in-law, lying across the road to the north; and Arthur J., who operates one of his father's farms.

Mr. Wilson gives his political allegiance to the democratic party, believing firmly in its principles. Fraternally he is identified with the Masonic order and the Woodmen of the World, while in religious faith he is a Congregationalist.

He and his wife have twice returned to Scotland, visiting their native land in

THOMAS H. WILSON

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1904 and in 1907, while during the past three winters they have resided in California. In Weld county they are widely and favorably known, the circle of their friends being almost coextensive with the circle of their acquaintance.

SIGOURNEY D. HALL.

Sigourney D. Hall is a partner in the firm of Hall Brothers, automobile dealers of Fort Collins, handling the Ford car. He was born in Sterling, Colorado, February 5, 1887, a son of Dr. J. N. and Carrie G. (Ayers) Hall, who are mentioned in connection with the sketch of Oliver W. Hall on another page of this work.

Sigourney D. Hall was reared and educated in Denver to the time that he went east for the further advancement of his education by study in the University of Pennsyl- vania, from which in due course of time he was graduated. He then went to the Ford factory in Detroit, Michigan, and worked in different departments in connection with the building of the car until 1911, thus gaining intimate and accurate knowledge of the construction of the car. Next, in connection with his brother, he took the Ford agency for Fort Collins, Colorado, and they now have a garage that is seventy-five by one hun- dred and thirty feet. They have carried on the business continuously since 1911 and their patronage is today extensive, their annual sales reaching a very large and gratifying figure.

On the 12th of August, 1914, Mr. Hall was united in marriage to Miss Lucile Barkley and to them have been born two children: Richard S., born May 5, 1916; and Josiah N., who was born December 24, 1917, and was named for his paternal grandfather.

Mr. Hall is a member of the Knights of Pythias lodge. His political support is given to the republican party, of which he has been a stanch advocate since age conferred upon him the right of franchise. His religious faith is that of the Presbyterian church and his life is actuated by high and honorable principles and worthy motives that make him a man among men. In business he is alert and energetic and is building up in- terests of large and gratifying proportions. Fort Collins has reason to be congratu- lated on that he cast in his lot with her citizens, for his influence is always on the side of advancement and improvement as relating to material, intellectual or moral conditions.

ANDREW T. MONSON.

The youthful experiences of Andrew T. Monson were those of the farmbred boy, but when about twenty-three years of age he completed preparation for the bar and entered upon the practice of law in Denver, where he has since continued, following his pro- fession and winning success by reason of thorough merit, resulting from careful prepara- tion of his cases.

He was born at Fort Lupton, Colorado, on the 1st of February, 1881, and is a son of Theodore L. Monson, who is a native of Missouri and a representative of one of the old families of that state of English lineage. The first of the name on this side of the Atlantic settled in New England at an early period in the colonization of the new world. Theodore L. Monson was born and reared in Linn county, Missouri, and came to Colo- rado with his parents in 1863. He is a son of Hugh T. Monson, who conducted the first store in Fort Lupton and there resided for a number of years, after which he returned to Missouri, spending his last days in Linn county, that state. Following the establish- ment of the family home in Colorado, Theodore L. Monson became identified with farm- ing and stock raising at Fort Lupton, where he has since continued, successfully con- ducting his business affairs. He has served as a member of the eleventh general assembly and was for two terms state dairy commissioner under Governor Thomas and Governor Orman. He has always taken an active interest in civic matters and his aid and in- fluence are ever given on the side of progress and improvement. He married Elizabeth Dolan, also a native of Missouri and a member of one of the pioneer families of that state. She comes of Irish and Welsh ancestry, being descended in the paternal line from ancestors who came from the Emerald isle, while in the maternal line her ancestors came from Wales. She is still living and by her marriage she became the mother of four children, two sons and two daughters, namely: Eleanor M., who is the widow of Alfred R. Fischer, who died December 28, 1916; Andrew T., of this review; Dr. George L. Monson, a practicing physician of Denver; and Anna B., living at home.

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Following the acquirement of his early education in the public schools of Fort Lupton, Andrew T. Monson continued his studies in the East Denver high school, from which he was graduated with the class of 1900. He next entered the University of Colo- rado at Boulder in preparation for the practice of law and was graduated with the LL. B. degree in 1904. His early life up to that time, when he was twenty-three years of age, had been spent upon the old homestead farm and he early became familiar with the best methods of tilling the soil and caring for the crops. He continued to assist his father until he determined upon a professional career and entered college. After his graduation he began to practice in Denver, where he has since continued, and as the years have passed he has won a good clientage that has connected him with considerable important litigation. He belongs to the Denver County & City Bar Association and the Colorado State Bar Association.

On the 15th of June, 1914, Mr. Monson was united in marriage to Miss Ellen J. Dolan, a native of Denver and a daughter of M. H. Dolan, who was one of the early settlers of Denver and for years was associated with the Colorado Milling & Elevator Company. His wife bore the maiden name of Catherine A. O'Connell. Mr. and Mrs. Monson have become the parents of a son, Talbot George, who was born in Denver, April 20, 1915.

Mr. Monson is a member of the Kiwanis Club and has served as its president. He also belongs to the Denver Civic and Commercial Association-a fact indicative of his interest in the welfare, upbuilding and progress of the community in which he makes his home. His military record covers service as a member of the Denver City Troop and one year's connection with the High School Cadets. He is a Mason, having been made a member of Fort Lupton Lodge, No. 119, A. F. & A. M., and since that time he has become a member of Denver Chapter, No. 29, R. A. M., Denver Commandery, No. 25, and El Jebel Temple of the Mystic Shrine. His political allegiance has always been given to the democratic party but he has never sought nor desired office. He has, since his admission to the bar, practically concentrated his entire effort and attention upon his professional duties. At the beginning of his legal career he was associated in law practice with the firm of Thomas, Bryant & Lee, which later became Thomas, Bryant, Nye & Malburn. This connection continued until September, 1917, when Mr. Monson withdrew and has since practiced alone with a clientage that is now large and of an important character. He had previously demonstrated his ability to cope with intricate and involved legal problems and the worth of his professional work is attested by the many favorable verdicts which he has won for his clients in the courts.

HARRY J. BROWN.

Harry J. Brown is the owner of a valuable farm of one hundred and thirty-two acres situated on section 35, township 66, in Weld county. The place is pleasantly and conveniently located northwest of Greeley and is devoted largely to the cultivation of beets. He is also engaged in stock raising and has a large number of cattle upon his farm. He was born in the San Luis valley of Colorado on the 25th of August, 1877, and is a son of Frank P. and Henrietta Brown. The father was born in Ohio, January 27, 1848, and the mother's birth occurred in Iowa in January, 1857. The former acquired a public school education and was reared to farm life, spending twenty-four years upon an Ohio farm. He afterward removed to the west and homesteaded near Wichita, Kansas. At an early day he was a guide for United States surveyors through Colorado, Texas, Arizona, Mexico and Utah, acting in that capacity for several years. At length he settled at Telluride and went into the mining camps, devoting his attention to mining pursuits and to stock raising. He developed big interests at San Miguel, Colorado, where he still resides, and is the owner of much valuable property and of business interests of that district. He also has an extensive cattle ranch in Ouray county. Coming to Colo- rado he settled in San Miguel and has the distinction of being the oldest resident of that county. His wife was the third white woman in the county. At one time Mr. Brown was the owner of a dairy at Telluride, San Miguel county, where he conducted business for twenty-five years. His business interests are of a varied and extensive character and place him among the prominent men of his section of the state, his labors having contributed in marked measure to its substantial growth and upbuilding, so that his name is inseparably interwoven with its history.

Harry J. Brown was graduated from the preparatory department of Colorado College, in which he had spent four years in study, at the end of which time his diploma was accorded him. He was thus well qualified for life's practical and responsible duties and after leaving college spent six months as a student in a business college. He was

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then called to the office of deputy county clerk at Telluride and acted in that capacity for three years. He afterward removed to Windsor, Colorado, where he was engaged in the butchering business for five years, and later he turned his attention to farming, which he followed at Windsor for seven years, having seventy acres of land, which he carefully cultivated and improved. On the expiration of that period he removed to his present home farm on section 35, township 66, in Weld county, and is now the owner of one hundred and thirty-two acres of excellent land, which he has brought under a high state of cultivation and to which he has added many modern improvements, trans- forming it into one of the attractive and valuable farms of his section of the state. He has rented eighty acres of land. Upon his farm he has fifty head of cattle, twelve horses, and he employs about eight men to carry on the farm work. He is extensively engaged in the raising of beets, which he makes his principal crop, and for which he finds a ready market. His business affairs are most carefully and systematically conducted and substantial success has crowned his labors.

In June, 1903, at Telluride, San Miguel county, Mr. Brown was united in marriage to Miss Eva L. Daniels, a daughter of Noble A. and Mary A. Daniels. Her father was one of the veterans of the Civil war and about twenty years ago removed from his old home in Ohio to Colorado, where his remaining days were spent, his death occurring in 1916. His widow still resides in San Miguel county. Mrs. Brown was educated in the public schools and in the State Normal School and afterward took up the profession of teaching, which she capably followed, imparting readily and clearly to others the knowledge which she had acquired. To Mr. and Mrs. Brown have been born the follow- ing named: Mary H., who was born July 21, 1905; Lindsay, born July 19, 1906; Franklin G., who was born April 16, 1908, and died when sixteen months of age; Virginia H., born January 27, 1910; and Louis H., born March 28, 1912.

The religious faith of the family is that of the Methodist church and the political belief of Mr. Brown is that of the republican party. Both Mr. and Mrs. Brown are well known in Weld county, where they have so long resided. He has lived to witness many notable changes as the work of progress and improvement has been carried forward and his memory forms a connecting link between the primitive past and the progressive present.

WILLIAM WESTON.

William Weston, a mining engineer of high professional attainments and broad experience, making his home in Denver, is a native of England and a son of Henry Weston, who for thirty years was engaged in the private banking business in the borough of London, conducting his interests under the name of The Borough Bank. He also served as magistrate for the county of Surrey, England. In the latter part of his life, however, he lost the greater part of his wealth in unfortunate investments, so that William Weston when a youth of fourteen was forced to start out in the business world on his own account. Going to Toronto, Canada, he there resided for five years, and, entering the newspaper field, was for a part of the time assistant cashier of the Globe, while at different periods he was employed as proofreader, commercial editor and eventually became city editor of the Leader, also a Toronto daily. He afterward held a secret service government appointment in Canada for three years, but his love of outdoor life led him to resign that position and he spent the succeeding two years in shooting wild fowl, in fishing and trapping on the northern lakes of Canada, becoming well known as one of the crack shots of that country. He was also an artillery officer, commanding volunteers during the Fenian troubles in Canada, and for six months was in the regular school of artillery established by the English government for the instruction of volunteer officers. He now holds a first class certificate as an instructor of artillery, signed by John R. Anderson, colonel in the Royal Artillery, who was at that time commandant of the school.

Mr. Weston's residence in the United States dates from 1870, when, attracted by an advertisement of the land department of the Kansas-Pacific Railroad and the prom- ises of sport on the frontier, he came to the west and secured a position with the railroad. After spending a time in the land department he was transferred to the passenger department and rapid advancement in recognition of his worth and efficiency brought him to the position of general traveling agent of the line. One of his most effective methods of advertising Colorado in the east was a large circular shield, with the stuffed head of a bison handsomely mounted in the center, with lettering around the outside of the shield, calling attention to Colorado's natural resources and advantages

WILLIAM WESTON

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HISTORY OF COLORADO

At that time there were millions of bisons upon the plains of the state, and Mr. Weston secured the services of a London taxidermist, who spent his entire time in mounting these heads, and seventy-six of them were put up in prominent places in eastern cities. Mr. Weston also wrote his first book, A Guide to the Kansas-Pacific Railway, a work of two hundred and eight pages, ten thousand copies of which were published and sold. In 1875 the railroad company sent him to London, his native city, as general European agent. While there, however, he learned from one of his old-time friends, who had been on a sporting trip at Del Norte, of the marvelous gold and silver ores in the San Juan region, and in October, 1876, Mr. Weston resigned his appointment and obtained admission to the Royal School of Mines, of London. For six months he attended lectures at the museum and for three months was in the metallurgical labor- atory, assaying ores of gold, silver and lead, and from Dr. Percy, the celebrated metallur- gist, he received his certificate as assayer. In February, 1877, he left London and a month later reached Del Norte, from which point he started for the Sneffels district, one hundred and twenty miles distant, carrying his assay outfit on burros across the main range by way of Stony Pass, Silverton, Red Mountain and on into the Imogene basin. There he formed a partnership with a fellow countryman, George Barber, and they staked six claims, Mr. Weston selling his mule, saddle and bridle to furnish them supplies for their first winter's work. During the succeeding four years the two men lived in a cabin at an altitude of eleven thousand, two hundred feet and single-handed drove tunnels over a hundred feet in length on each of their claims, a total of eight hun- dred and fifty feet of solid rock work, and they did their own blacksmithing and cook- ing. Mr. Weston also built a small drum muffle furnace in his. cabin and tested his own ores as well as those of his neighbors, and at the same time he was a constant contributor to the Engineering and Mining Journal of New York, of which he remained its special correspondent for years. There were no mountain roads in those days and in winter no trails, but he was an expert on snowshoes and made weekly trips to Ouray through the severest winters, thus keeping up the contact with the outside world. In February, 1881, he was appointed state commissioner of mines by Governor Frederick W. Pitkin, and when the senate refused to pass the bill for an appropriation to pay the commissioners, which bill had already passed the house, the latter retaliated by repealing the law creating the office. In the same year Mr. Weston sold his claims for fifty thousand dollars to a New York company and with the capital thus secured he then made investment in all of the enterprises and prospects which have been the basic elements in the development and prosperity of Ouray. He was one of three who put in an electric light plant there, was the largest subscriber to the building of the Beaumont Hotel and was instrumental in securing the investment of large sums of foreign capital in the Ouray district. It was Mr. Weston who sold in London the Guston mine, which brought the Red Mountain district into prominence and led to the purchase of large interests near Ouray and elsewhere in Colorado by British capitalists. In 1882 he wrote a pamphlet on the San Juan mines, which was widely circulated and extensively quoted in almost all writings subsequent to that date concerning the San Juan district. Through all the intervening years Mr. Weston has remained a regular contributor to the daily and scientific press of the state. Going back to the sale of his group of mines in Imogene basin, they were sold to one Orrin Skinner of Quincy, Illinois, a son-in-law of Hon. O. M. Browning, secretary of the interior under President Lincoln; and he organized the Allied Mines Company in which the chief owners were gentlemen of national reputation as business men and financiers. The directors were General Thomas Ewing, of Ohio; Hon. Preston Plumb, United States senator from Kansas; Hon. O. M. Browning, of Quincy, Illinois; B. F. Ham, of Ham Brothers, bankers, New York; and Joseph Ripley, Harvey M. Munsell, and Major Thomas Wentworth, all of New York city. They were also the largest stockholders with H. W. Blair and Hon. H. W. Cragin, of New Hampshire, C. N. Vilas, of New York, and Luther M. Merrill, of Boston. These gentlemen lost a twenty-five million dollar mine by allowing it to be sold for taxes. Orrin Skinner had made a stock deal out of it and in less than two years the company was wrecked. Fourteen years afterward Thomas Walsh, who was conducting a pyritic smelter at Silverton, Colorado, commissioned one of his men to sample the old Allied dumps to see if they contained values sufficient that it would pay him to transport them to his mill as he needed the silica in the ores as a flux. The samples from the Gertrude and from the Una dumps proved very promising and one of them ran eight ounces of gold to the ton. This substantiated the claim of Mr. Weston who had, in a letter to the Engineering and Mining Journal, predicted that these would prove to be the "Big Bonanza" of that region. This showing led to a closer investigation and Walsh found in one of the Allied abandoned tunnels on the Gertrude a half inch

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streak of black ore, a telluride of gold, an unknown value to prospectors and miners of that day. Mr. Walsh quietly bought the whole group under tax title, renamed the Ger- trude and the Una the Camp Bird which in the subsequent twenty-three years has pro- duced gold to the value of twenty-five million dollars, and to this day is one of the world's greatest gold mines. It is owned mainly in London, England, by the same people who own that other wonderful gold mine, the Santa Gertrudis, of Pachuca, Mexico. both being under the management of William J. Cox, of Denver.

In 1895, Mr. Weston went to Cripple Creek to buy ore for D. H. Moffat's bimetallic mill at Cyanide, near Florence, of which Philip Argall was manager, and a year later Mr. Weston resigned to take up his profession of consulting engineer. He was consult- ing engineer for the great Gold Coin mine then owned by the Woods Brothers. Later he acted in the same capacity for the Lillie mine owned in London, England.

He made two trips to Europe and secured capital for the purchase and development of the St. Patrick mine, an extension of the Gold Coin mine, the buyers being J. and P. Coats, the great thread manufacturers of Paisley, Scotland; also for the Good Will tunnel which he on his return drove a half mile into Gold Hill, Cripple Creek, making one of the best records for tunneling in that day, which was eleven feet a day for five months, eight by nine in size, all in granite, using two shifts a day. In 1903, Mr. Weston was sent for by the late David H. Moffat to take the position of mining and exploring engi- neer in charge of the industrial development of the Denver, North Western & Pacific Railway (Moffat Road). What Mr. Weston did in that position is briefly told by Mr. Moffat, the road's president, in the following words, being a copy of a letter written by Mr. Moffat:

"To whom it may concern:

"In accepting the resignation of Mr. Weston, mining and railway industrial engineer, I wish to state that he has been at the head of the Industrial and Mineral Departments of the Denver, Northwestern and Pacific Railway Company for the past seven years, during which period he did all exploring and making reports to me on coal, metalliferous ores, agricultural, pastural and other resources of our operated and projected line between Denver and Salt Lake, besides getting up all maps and literature on these subjects. His work has always been of the highest class technical and otherwise and satisfactory to me in every way. He is a tireless worker, of the strictest loyalty and integrity and has my best wishes for his future welfare.

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History of Colorado; Volume II, Part 42

Author: Stone, Wilbur Fiske, 1833-1920, ed Publication date: 1918 Publisher: Chicago, S. J. Clarke Number of Pages: 944

Author: Stone, Wilbur Fiske, 1833-1920, ed
Publication date: 1918
Publisher: Chicago, S. J. Clarke
Number of Pages: 944