History of the State of Colorado, Volume IV, Part 33

Author: Hall, Frank, 1836-1917. cn; Rocky Mountain Historical Company
Publication date: 1889-95
Publisher: Chicago, Blakely print. Co.
Number of Pages: 791

USA > Colorado > History of the State of Colorado, Volume IV > Part 33

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

The First National Bank was organized March 15th, 1888, by Wm. Gelder, A. A. Miller, John O. Boyle, T. J. Blue and David Roberts; George Arthur Rice, president; T. M. Jones, vice-president, and J. F. McFarland, cashier. This bank succeeded the house of George Arthur Rice & Co., who succeeded the Commercial Bank, founded in 1886 by J. F. McFarland. The First National has the most elegant building thus far erected in the western part of the state, of beautiful design and extremely attractive in exterior and interior finish. It is built of fine red sandstone, found in the vicinity of the town, and would be a credit to any city in the state.

Of secret and benevolent orders, there are Masons, Odd Fellows, Knights of Pythias, Knights of Labor, Patriotic Sons of America and Grand Ariny organizations.

Churches. - The M. E. church (South) was the first religious society duly organized in Grand Junction. The Rev. D. L. Rader, its presiding elder, entered the field in 1882. Early in the summer of that year the Rev. Isaac Whitcher became the first resident pastor. He was succeeded by the Rev. Mr. Amsbary in 1883, who commenced the church building. He was succeeded by Rev. Thomas Griffith. At a later period the church building was sold to the Congregationalists, Rev. J. W. Rose, pastor. The Baptists and Catholics followed soon after. The Baptist society was instituted February 7th, 1883, in the office of Mayor Shanks. August 20th the Rev. W. D. Weaver was called and began his pastorate Sep- tember 5th. The church was dedicated May 21st, 1884, by Rev. Dr. Jeffries, of Denver, but it was opened for services July 2nd, 1883. In the summer of 1885

221

HISTORY OF COLORADO.

Rev. C. M1. Jones became its pastor. He was succeeded by Rev. Geo. Walker in 1889.

In the Catholic church Rev. Father Servant, assistant priest at Gunnison, held the first services March 24th, 1883, and on June 7th was appointed pastor by Rt. Rev. Bishop Macheboeuf, his work also embracing Delta, Montrose, Ouray and the San Miguel country. Their new church was opened for services in April, 1884. Fathers MeGreevy and Martin have since been pastors. The M. E. church also began its work in 1883. Rev. R. 11. MeDade, then in charge at Salida, organized a church at Grand Junction in March, 1883, with ten members. In 1884 Rev. C. A. Brooks became pastor. In 1887 Rev. A. L. Chase was appointed and was suc- ceeded by Mr. H. J. Grace. They have a handsome brick church.

The Presbyterians organized January 20th, 1884; Rev. T. S. Day began preach- ing here in June, 1883. The first services were held in MeClure's hall and afterward in Armory hall. James Davidson was elected elder. In the second year Mr. Day retired. In 1888 Rev. F. M. Collier was pastor at Delta and Grand Junction. In September of that year Rev. Charles Fuller assumed charge and was followed by Mr. Collier, who was succeeded in due course by Rev. E. F. Mundy. Quite recently a church was crected. The Episcopalians, though without a church, hold services, Rev. O. E. Ostensen, rector.

The observer, when fully cognizant of the internal conditions of Grand Junc- tion and its neighboring precinets, will be impressed by its enterprise. There is an atmosphere about it which tells of thrift, solidity, manifest resources and definite assurance of support. A great majority of the farmers occupy good houses, and whatever mortgages may have encumbered their possessions have been wholly canceled, or materially reduced from the profits of the last two seasons. There are no evidences of poverty or destitution. They all feel that they have some- thing better than mines of gold and silver in their horticulture. As near as can be estimated there are now some 1,400 acres in fruit, and it is just at the begin- ning. There is a steady market in Denver, Trinidad, Pueblo and the mountain towns of the southwest for more than 12,000 tons of fruit each season. As yet but small provision has been made for canning and preserving such as can not well be shipped, hence many tons are literally wasted. Another year these economic auxiliaries will be provided and thereby add much to the profits of the trade. Most of the lands under ditches already built are occupied by fruit growers, and other immense canals are projected for the reclamation of 75,000 to 100,000 acres of land not now available. For twenty years we have been paying out millions to the horticulturists of California and other states; cvery carload we can produce at home will be so much money saved to our people for the enhancement of their welfare instead of enriching our neighbors. Therefore, every aid and encourage- ment possible should be extended to every section of Colorado where this industry has been or can be maintained. It is a matter that should engage the attention of our legislators and incite them to reasonable liberality in furthering the construc- tion of irrigating canals and other improvements. Our laws exempt mines from taxation. These fruit growers do not ask any such concession, but they should have fair recognition in expenditures from the internal improvement fund.

Asphaltum .- There are immense beds of this useful material, extending from the north line of Mesa county, on Grand river, across White river into Utah. They have not been much developed as yet. Some of it is unfit for paving, but there are places where it seems to be entirely free from impurities, and would undoubtedly make an excellent street paving. If fairly and fully tested, perhaps we should not be compelled to go to the West Indies for such material.

Coal .- At a distance of twelve to fifteen miles north of Grand Junction there are large deposits of coal, much of it along the standard gauge of the Denver & Rio Grande and the Colorado Midland railways. The late Governor Crawford's estate

222

HISTORY OF COLORADO.

has a tract of 320 acres, in which an eight-foot vein of good coal has been devel- oped, and upon the surface stands a young, thrifty orchard of 120 acres. The coal is semi-bituminous, not a good coking variety, but valuable for domestic use. It is found in the Uncompalgre plateau, the Grand Mesa, the Book Cliffs and other points. A cog-wheel railroad, built by W. T. Carpenter, runs from Grand Junction to the Little Book Cliffs coal mines, some thirteen miles distant. The well-developed mines of New Castle and Jerome Park are but a short distance away, hence fuel is both abundant and cheap. In addition there is much fire-clay and red brick clay near the town.

Silver Mines have been discovered on Coates creek, thirty miles south, on the mesa between the Dolores and the Grand. They were discovered in the sum- mer of 1890. Some of the ores are rich in copper. Three carloads shipped to Denver yielded about 60 per cent. of copper and carried 30 ounces of silver to the ton. The veins are in granite formation and appear to be true fissures.

Stock raising has been and is still a prominent industry. Range cattle are gradually disappearing and thoroughbred stock taking their place. There are many ranches where superior blooded horses and cattle are raised.

De Beque is situated on Grand river, thirty-two miles northeast of Grand Junction. It was laid out by the Curtis Town and Land company, George Arthur Rice, president, November 12th, 1889. It is a small but growing settlement, with evidence of value as a fruit-growing center.

Cleveland, adjoining Fruita, was established by the Cleveland Town and Mercantile Co., November 19th, 1890, by Joseph P. Keifer, president, and B. F. Keifer, secretary. As its situation indicates, it is in a superior fruit-growing section.

Schools. - By the census of 1890 Mesa county had a school population of 867 There were twelve school districts and a like number of buildings with pro- vision for 1060 sittings. The value of this property was $24.398. Fifteen were enrolled in the high school, 389 in the graded and 287 in the ungraded. The aver- age daily attendance was 396.7. The educational facilities are excellent. The people of Fruita have a good brick building: Whitewater, a neat frame: Plateau, two schools, one on Kannalı creek, the other on Roan creek, with good buildings.

The county officers for 1801 were: Clerk, A J. McCune; treasurer, T. B. Crawford; county judge, W. A. Marsh; assessor, I. W. Smith; sheriff, Milton Cra- mar; coroner, L. F. Ingersoll; superintendent of schools, Ed. T. Fisher; sur- veyor, Edward Thompson; clerk of the district court, Arthur P. Cook; commis- sioners. J. W. Rose, J. P. Brown and C. P. Noland.

The total assessed valuation of taxable property for 1800 was $2,106,673. The increase has been steady and regular year by year. In the list we find 79,270 acres of agricultural land, and 88,949 acres of coal land. Of live stock returned there were 4,385 horses, 36,122 cattle 8,423 sheep, which illustrates, but in only a lim- ited degree, the extent of stock raising as a feature of its internal economy. For a county only seven years old and with less than six in which any considerable profits have been realized, we think the foregoing epitome presents a very flatter- ing exhibit. Whoever writes the history of the next decade will show a marvelous ehange in advance of present conditions. The five railways now centering there, the Denver & Rio Grande broad and narrow gauge lines, the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fé and the Rio Grande Western, give it a position of great importance, and these will undoubtedly soon be supplemented by other roads en route to the Pacific.

223

HISTORY OF COLORADO.

MINERAL COUNTY.

DISCOVERY OF MINES BY N. C. CREEDE-TREMENDOUS RUSH TO THE NEW CAMP-GREAT RICHES DISCLOSED-ARRIVAL OF THE RAILWAY-CONDITION OF THE REGION.

This county was organized under an act of the Ninth General Assembly, ap- proved March 27th, 1893. It was taken from Rio Grande, Hinsdale and Saguache counties, and the capital located at Wason. As it was created two years after the history of each of the counties of which it then formed a part had been prepared for the press, only the salient features of its settlement will be recorded in this chapter.

No one questions the fact that the first settler in the region to be described was Mr. N. C. Creede, or that all subsequent progress sprang from the discoveries made by him. He was a prospector of wide experience, possessing only a common school education and no scientific attainments whatever. It may be stated in pass- ing, that mines of gold and silver are seldom unearthed by scientists, but, almost invariably, the world over, by the poor, uneducated and generally poverty-stricken individual with sharp instincts in the pursuit of his calling. For many years Mr. Creede had ranged over the hills and valleys of Colorado searching for veins and deposits of mineral, and in several instances had found them, though in the final out- come he profited little thereby. Through long study of rock formations he had become familiar with the class which at the surface indicates the presence of lodes. He was one of the discoverers of Monarch district, in Chaffee county, which be- came a great producer of silver and lead. During the spring of 1890, while wandering over the mountains above Wagon Wheel Gap, he found certain traces of mineral "float " or "blossom." In May of that year he exposed, by digging, a promising vein and called it "The Holy Moses," from a commonly used exclamation in the miners' vernacular. Sinking a shaft upon it disclosed a large body of ore between well-defined walls. The next step was to ascertain its value by assaying. The results gave $80 and upward per ton, which assured him that he had made an important find. Realizing the necessity of procuring means for further develop- ment, after satisfying himself of the full strength and permanency of the deposit, he applied to Mr. David H. Moffat at Denver. The latter becoming interested, sent his manager, Mr. Eben Smith, with instructions to examine and report. The result being favorable, Mr. Moffat paid Creede $1,000 and, taking a bond and lease for the remainder ($64,000), associated with himself in the enterprise Capt. L. E. Campbell of the U. S. army and Sylvester T. Smith, then general manager of the Denver & Rio Grande railroad company, who organized the Holy Moses Mining company. The property thus bargained for was at once put under systematic operation with a view to ascertaining its future possibilities. Meanwhile, however, Creede had dis- covered another vein calling it Ethel, which was included in the purchase. Active work began on these mines by the corporation just mentioned, in October, 1800. Convinced that other veins might be found in the vicinity, Mr. Creede was employed

224

HISTORY OF COLORADO.

by Moffat, Smith and Campbell to continue prospecting, under an agreement that he should be entitled to a one-third interest in all the workable mines he might dis- cover, they to furnish capital for development. During the summer Mr. Charles F. Nelson, a native of Denmark, entered the field and also began prospecting, locating the Solomon, Ridge and other claims which he subsequently sold to ex-Senator Thomas M. Bowen of Del Norte. From these beginnings originated reports that produced much excitement over the state, causing throngs of prospectors to join the pioneers in this apparently richly favored district.

The fact that Moffat, Smith and Campbell had invested there was a sufficient guaranty of its value, therefore it was not long before a settlement arose in the narrow winding canon of Willow Creek, which was called Creede. By this time, however, winter had set in with considerable severity. The mountains being thickly covered with snow, but little work beyond the building of cabins could be done. Merchants from Alamosa and Del Norte, with a number from Denver and Pueblo, crected temporary quarters and filled them with merchandise suited to the locality.

The first cabin after those by Creede and Nelson was erected by Capt. Camp- bell, superintendent of the Moses, for office uses. He soon had many neighbors; stores, saloons, shops, gambling dens and dance houses followed. As time passed, toward spring, the gulch became crowded with rude buildings and dense masses of people. In the spring of '91 an overwhelming rush was made, when the demand for the extension of the Rio Grande railroad from Wagon Wheel Gap to the new camp became imperative.

The district was christened at the beginning "King Solomon's Mines," from Rider Haggard's story of that name, but almost universally was called Creede. It occupies a lofty position on the Continental Divide, about nine miles northwest by north of Wagon Wheel Gap, and is shut in by mountains ranging between 13,000 and 14,000 feet in height. Travelers went by the D. & R. G. R. R. to Alamosa, and thence by a branch of the same up the Rio Grande river to Wagon Wheel Gap, thence by wagon conveyance, or on foot, to Creede.

Mr. Moffat, then president of the railway company, realizing the urgent need of extending the line, appealed to the directors in New York for funds to build it, but was denied. He then resolved to build it himself, and did so at a cost of $70,000. It was completed in October, 1891, but not opened to general traffic until No- vember. It was subsequently purchased by the D. & R. G. R. R. company. Mean- time an event occurred which firmly established the future of the camp. In the lower part of the valley, Ralph Granger and Erl von Buddenbock had opened a meat market and were making money. One day a prospector named Theodore Renniger happened in, and said if they would "grub stake" him he would prospect for them on shares. They accepted the proposition, and in company with a comrade named Julius Haas he started out to explore for indications. In August they found on what is now Bachelor mountain a well-established outcrop, and began to work upon it. Soon afterward Mr. N. C. Creede came that way and stopped to examine it. His well-trained cyc told him that a great find had been made, though the discoverers were unconscious of it. He asked Renniger to define and stake his claim, which he did, naming it "The Last Chance." Creede immediately staked off a claim adjoining on the outcrop for Moffat, Campbell and himself, and named it "The Amethyst." In course of their development these two properties became the largest producers of rich ore in that district, and except- ing the New York Chance, near by, discovered and opened some time afterward, were the only ones that returned large profits to their owners.

The interest of Julius Haas in the Last Chance was purchased by his partners for $10,000. In November Renniger and Von Buddenbock sold their interests to Jacob Sanders, of Leadville, Henry R. Wolcott, Senator E. O. Wolcott and others for $65,000. When the great wealth of the mine came to be known, these

225

HISTORY OF COLORADO.

parties offered Ralph Granger $100,000 for his interest, but he refused it, and thereby realized a handsome fortune from continuous and large dividends.

At the period under consideration, many very large enterprises were inaugu- rated, great tunnels begun, immense quantities of machinery purchased and placed upon the mines. Long and expensive iron tramways stretched between the leading mines and the railway for the transportation of ores, etc. Some highly promising discoveries were made on Bachelor and other mountains, and thousands of dollars were expended in exploiting them, but, as already stated, only three really great dividend payers have yet been brought to light. Between the summer of 1891 and that of 1893 many of the wild scenes which marked the primitive times in Leadville were witnessed in Creede. The later arrivals, finding all available space occupied in the upper town, went down a mile or so where the valley is much broader and founded "Jimtown." The new town site was surveyed and platted by Mr. L. M. Stoddard and the plat filed November Ist, 1891. Then came a heated controversy over the right of possession, the land belonging to the state, but then leased to Mr. M. V. B. Wason. Omitting details for want of space, the state land board assumed possession, directed the state engineer, Mr. J. P. Maxwell, to survey and plat the town site, and finally sold the lots at auction. The demand being extremely brisk, a large number were disposed of at good prices, thereby realizing a generous sum for the public school fund. The new town prospered and grew to be an important center of traffic. There were many business houses, a bank or two, scores of saloons, gambling and dance houses, etc. It had scarcely been built before it was almost wholly destroyed by fire.

A newspaper correspondent writing of Creede in January, 1892, thus epitomizes the situation there: "The train when it comes is a sight to behold, the smoking car being an especial marvel. It is jammed. Men sit on one another, and on the arms of the seats, stand in the aisles and hang on to the platforms. Pipes, blankets, satchels form the major part of their equipment. At night there are no policemen to interfere with the vested right of each citizen to raise as much Cain as he sees fit, and it is a reasonable estimate to say that fully three-fourths of the population are of that kind which does see fit. The quiet party goes to bed and dreams of being an icicle; the noisy majority goes out and imagines itself a whale. The saloons and dance houses are in full blast, and such dance houses as they are, and such discarded remnants as the old fairies who flaunt around in them never were seen before. Along in the morning, when the wheezy accordeon lets up, the time is occupied by a riot. Nobody bothers. Drunken men come out occasionally and empty their revolvers into the air or somebody's legs. The latter process indicates a cultivated softening of the old brutal habits. There are a few bad men in Creede, and many who are reckless."

From the completion of the railway in the fall of 1891 to midsummer, 1893, Creede was one of the liveliest communities in the state. It never was and never will be a pleasant place to live in, but, with an advance in the price of silver, the three principal mines would pay large profits to their sharehoklers, and it is prob- able that, from the great number of prospects here and there on the mountains, some would be brought to the paying stage. Here, as in all the other mining sections of the West, the people are waiting and praying for the free coinage of silver at the ratio established by the fathers. Will their prayers be answered? Possibly after 1896; unquestionably not before.

15-iv

226

HISTORY OF COLORADO.

MONTEZUMA COUNTY.

HOMES OF THE ANCIENT CLIFF AND CAVE DWELLERS-HOW THE COUNTRY WAS SETTLED-THE KILLING OF SETTLERS BY UTE INDIANS-FOUNDING OF CORTEZ- GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY-SOME GREAT IRRIGATING CANALS- THE AZTEC INDIANS.

This county, which appropriately bears the name of the historical king of the Aztecs, was created from the western part of La Plata by an act of the General Assembly, approved April 16th, 1889. It is bounded on the north by Dolores, south by the Territory of New Mexico, east by La Plata, and west by Utali Ter- ritory. Its area is 2,640 square miles. According to the census of 1890 its popu- lation was 1,529. The county seat, where the major part of its inhabitants are concentrated, is the town of Cortez, situated just south of the center. For some years prior to the date given above, the Montezuma valley was occupied as a winter grazing range for numerous large herds of cattle from the regions round about, the hills and valleys being well grassed, the climate mild, and all conditions favorable. The Montezuma valley proper is in form approximately an equilateral triangle, in area about 150 square miles, the Hovenweep region forming the western boundary, the divide between the Dolores and San Juan river watersheds form- ing the northeastern boundary, and the Mesa Verde, the Aztee divide between MeElmo and San Juan watersheds and the divide between the Mancos and MeElmo, the southeastern, the last named stream carrying the water of the valley out north of Ute Peak to the San Juan river. Separated from the Montezuma valley by the Aztee divide, and running southwesterly between the Mesa Verde and the Sierra El Late to the San Juan river, is a narrow but very fertile body of agricultural land drained by the Aztec Springs creek, and known as "the Aztec valley."

The present reservation occupied by the Southern Ute Indians cuts across the southern boundary, as is more fully described in the history of La Plata county, this volume, hence that strip of valuable land, although included by the county, is not presently available. The estimated area of good agricultural land in the county, that is to say, lands that may be irrigated by canals already constructed and projected from the Dolores river, is 250,000 to 300,000 acres.

In 1885 there were only ten white persons in the Montezuma valley. In July, 1873. Capt. John Moss and his company of California miners reached the point where now stands the town of Mancos, where they remained a few days. In the fall of that year, Richard Giles and others of the party built a rude shelter there, and the Giles and Merritt ranch was located, probably the first in the present limits of Montezuma county. In the spring of 1874, Capt. Moss, on his second return from California, brought wagons, agricultural implements, seeds, etc., when his comrades took up a number of ranch claims, but made few improvements. No considerable attempt to cultivate these lands occurred until four years later. The

227

HISTORY OF COLORADO.

first actual settlers in the Montezuma were William Wooley and Louis Simons, who located there with their families in 1881. The next was a man named Gentry. In the spring of 1886 the latter was killed by the Utes under the following cir- cumstances, as related to me by Mr. James W. Hanna, who obtained his account from Mrs. Gentry: Several bands of Utes had obtained permission from their agent to leave their reservation for a hunting expedition on Beaver creek, about sixty miles from the head of Montezuma valley. While in camp six Indians, one squaw and a boy aged fourteen were attacked while asteep in their tepees by a mob of cowboys, and all except the boy killed, and he, though wounded, con- trived to make his escape. Proceeding as swiftly as he could to the reservation, he met en route another party of his tribe going into the valley, to whom he related the story of the massacre. They, bent upon revenge, came at length to Mr. Wooley's place, which they plundered, driving out the family, but, strangely enough, did not slay them. The next place on their route was Gentry's, a mile or so below Wooley's, where they arrived after dark. He had a good log house and fine improvements. His family consisted of his wife and three children, the youngest an infant. Gentry and the children had retired for the night, but his wife sat up reading. About eleven o'clock she smelled burning wood from the outside, and in her apprehension of danger called her husband. He soon dis- covered that his house was on fire. Asking Mrs. Gentry to hand him a bucket of water, he opened the door and was instantly shot by the Indians who lay in wait for him. He shouted back to his wife: "Indians; save the children!" then fell and immediately expired. Mrs. Gentry seized the youngest child, and bidding the others follow, fled out of a back door, but instantly received a terrible wound in her shoulder. She managed to conceal herself till daylight in a thicket some distance from the house, then, the savages having departed, she made her way to Mr. Wooley's cabin, whence she was taken to Durango for treatment, and finally recovered. The Indians sacked the house and burned it, together with the body of her husband. This tragedy came near precipitating a general war with the Utes, for they were deeply excited, and the young men were only restrained by the wiser judgment and imperative orders of Chief Ignacio. The affair was amicably adjusted in due course, and the danger of a bloody conflict thus avoided.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of the State of Colorado, Volume IV, Part 33

Author: Hall, Frank, 1836-1917. cn; Rocky Mountain Historical Company Publication date: 1889-95 Publisher: Chicago, Blakely print. Co. Number of Pages: 791

Author: Hall, Frank, 1836-1917. cn; Rocky Mountain Historical Company
Publication date: 1889-95
Publisher: Chicago, Blakely print. Co.
Number of Pages: 791