And Now for Something Different?

Post (c) by Doris McCraw

aka Angela Raines

Image (C) Doris McCraw

We all encounter the unexpected. Usually fun, sometimes irritating, and occasionally an interesting blessing. This post is about the third, and, I think, interesting blessing.

Doctor Josephine Dunlop was born on December 3, 1875, in Colorado. Died September 15, 1970, at the age of 94 in Austin, Texas. She was the widow of William Dunlop and practiced medicine in Pueblo, Colorado.  One source has her as a graduate of the University of Michigan Medical School in 1898 and receiving her Colorado license that same year. This same source lists her as president of the Pueblo County Medical Society in 1918 and as having retired from the practice of medicine in 1946.  From 1919 to 1920, she served as the second vice president of the Colorado State Medical Society.

Dr. Dunlop was one of the consulting pathologists for the Colorado State Hospital and the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company, both in Pueblo, Colorado.

The accomplishments of Dr. Dunlop fascinated me. It was as I researched her background that I found myself on a path I did not expect. Enter- the Unexpected. There I found her father, Charles H. Nachtrieb, an early settler in Colorado. Born in Germany on April 20, 1833, Charles came to the United States with his siblings. After settling in Colorado, Mr. Nachtrieb was a candidate from Lake County at the 1866 convention to establish a constitution to admit Colorado to the Union. (Colorado was not admitted until 1876). He was to have built the first grist mill west of the Mississippi and was one of the leaders in the Lake County War. (Which, according to records, was a particularly bloody conflict.) In 1879, he, along with Otto Mears and Issac Gothelf, filed an article of incorporation for the Poncho, Marshall, and Gunnison toll road, the object of which was to build a twenty-five-thousand-dollar toll road from Poncho Creek in Chaffee County to the Gunnison River.

An old school in Nathrop.

Charles Nachtrieb was also a rancher, having a large ranch in Gunnison County, Colorado. He and his family lived in Nathrop, Colorado (named for him), where he had a shop and was the postmaster. It was in Nathrop that, according to the newspaper report from the time, a man by the name of Burt (Bert) Remington shot and killed Charles on October 3, 1881. He was forty-nine. After searching, I have found no record of the trial or whether Remington was caught. But I have much more research to do. I did find a proclamation printed in the Daily Register-Call ( a Central City newspaper) on Thursday, October 6, 1881, which read.

The Governor’s Proclamation: Governor Pitkin, yesterday morning, made the following proclamation, offering a reward:

Wheras, On or about the third (3d) day of October, A.D. 1881, one Charles Nachtrieb was murdered in the county of Chaffee, and state of Colorado, and Wheras, Burt Remington has been charged with said murder, and, Wheras, said Remington has not been arrested, the proper officers have been unable up to the present time to find said Remington, Now, therefore, In pursuance of the statute in such cases made and provided, I do hereby offer the sum of three hundred dollars ($300) as a reward for the arrest and delivery to the sheriff of Chaffee, county, Colorado, of the aforesaid Burt Remington, so charged with the said murder.                                                      FREDERICK W. PITKIN, Governor.”

There is so much more to find out and research about this family, especially Dr. Dunlop’s father. I know I will be writing a great deal about her in the future. Her father’s story is a beautiful one of hard work and success, but ultimately a very sad one as well. In addition to Josephine, there were the wife, Margaret, and the children, Jake, Charles II, and Chris.

So you see, I was off down the ‘rabbit hole’ when I ran across Josephine Dunlop’s family tree. There is much more for me to find, and, as always, I love the unexpected pieces of history my doctor research is uncovering.

More about the war in another post.

Until Next Time,

Doris

Angela Raines - Amazon

Doris A. McCraw - Amazon

Dr. Kate Yont - A Life of Service

Post by Doris McCraw aka Angela Raines

Headframe - Cripple Creek/Victor Mining area
Photo (c) Doris McCrw

In 2014 a friend from the museum in Victor, Colorado, gave me the name Kate Yont. The museum had been given some of her items but they had no record of her in the area.  To me, that was like being given the keys to the kingdom. Off I went on the journey to find this woman and what connection she had to Victor. The following is what I found on the journey of exploration.

In 1873  Katherine Eliza Geiger was born in Jackson, Michigan to John and Mary (Ver Planck) Geiger.  She attended the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and graduated in 1896. She moved to Denver, Colorado in 1897. That same year she received her Colorado license #2514 to practice medicine. She was twenty-five at the time.  1897 also saw her marriage to Jesse Grant Yont, an 1895 graduate of the University of Michigan.

Jesse Yont, according to some records graduated with a law degree, but he also played football while in college and with two ‘professional’ teams in Denver: Bently football 1894

Around 1900 he was living in Victor. His family probably came with him. While there is no record of Kate practicing medicine in the area, there is a high probability she did in some capacity.

Jesse in a football uniform

The next time we hear of Kate is when Jesse fell about 60 feet in the Strong mine in the Cripple Creek/Victor area on June 6, 1903. The newspapers state he was scalped from the fall but did not crack his skull. There was some question about whether he would survive. He did recover but according to family stories, he was not mentally the same after. This was also the first record I found of Kate in the area.

The family returned to Denver and Kate resumed her practice. The couple separated/divorced around 1920. There were two children from the union and they both remained with Kate, however, family stories do say the son would. periodically visit his father.

While in Denver Kate was the assistant gynecologist at St. Anthony’s Hospital. She also was involved with the Flower Mission, a nucleus of the Visiting Nurses Association, worked as the resident physician at the Florence Crittenton Home, and was well-known to the Italian community for helping in their naturalization process.

She died December 7, 1943, in Denver. Colorado.

As I said, an unexpected journey and a story of an almost forgotten woman.

Until Next Time: stay safe, stay happy, and stay healthy.

Doris

How I Spend 'Free' Time

Post by Doris McCraw

writing as Angela Raines

Photo Property of the Author

One of my favorite places to spend time, prior to the 'lock-down', was the Special Collections at the local library. Oh, the hours spent reading microfilm of old newspapers or digging into the genealogy of someone whose name I found in the papers. Those were amazing times.

Although I haven't been as consistent as I was prior to the closing, I've been back a few times and if anything the time there is even more exciting.

 

Amazon

Lately, I've been perusing the 'stacks'. In addition to magazines such as Overland Dispatch: Smoky Hill Trail Association and The Colorado Magazine, the books I've come across are so full of information that takes me to some amazing pieces of history.

As I've been researching Colorado's History and the Women Doctors who were here in the early days, I've come across books like Mary DeMund's "Colorado Women Physicians". There's a book listing the applications of doctors to practice medicine from 1881 to 1967. Books on illness and cures, including the books by Dr. S. Edwin Solly, an early proponent of Colorado Springs and Manitou Springs as a place for recovery from Consumption. Of course, I can't leave out "Dr. at Timberline" by Charles Fox Gardiner.

Books about early pioneers to Colorado, including "Those Bassett Women" by Grace McClure and books on the Ghost Towns of Colorado. One of my favorites is by Sandra Dallas, "Colorado Ghost Towns and Mining Camps". 

I could go on and on, but I will include some of the books from the History Symposium Regional History Series the library has presented for over ten years. These include: "Film and Photography on the Front Range", "Disasters of the Pikes Peak Region" and "Massacre, Murder, and Mayhem in the Rocky Mountain West".   

Amazon

Until next time.

Doris McCraw

Bird Whisperer/Bird Killer?

 Post by Doris McCraw

writing as Angela Raines

Photo property of the Author

Charles Aiken. Have you heard of him? He presents an example of examing history through a modern lens, while still trying to understand the time in which he lived.

Charles E. H. (Edward Howard) Aiken was born September 7, 1850, in Vermont. The family was in Illinois by 1853 when the family had their daughter Katherine. After the 1871 Chicago Fire, which destroyed the family business, they moved to Colorado.

In 1868, at the age of eighteen, he began his study of birds. His method, shooting and collecting them. He continued his studies after the family moved to Colorado.

Photo from Find A Grave

Personally, the thought of killing an animal just for study purposes is like being back in high school biology class and dissecting frogs. I found that so creepy. Yet, in Aiken's time, that was the standard practice. Was that right or wrong? I think you might find people who would answer in the affirmative in both cases.

Yet, Aiken, because of his love of birds ended up making an impact on the knowledge of Birds of the West. Aiken not only studied birds but also mounted a number of them. AT the time of his death he had a collection of some 5,700 skins, mounted specimens, nests, and eggs.

According to the Audobon Society, his hearing was keen, he could recognize birds by their plumage, and could imitate many of them. For those who are interested, you can see an online version of his book "The Birds of El Paso County, Colorado. Bird of El Paso County

Headstone in Evergreen Cemetery

Aiken died in 1836 at the age of eighty-five in Colorado Springs, Colorado. His collection was purchased in 1907 by Colorado College. (Yes, I've seen a portion of it)

Here is an overview of his contributions: bionomia. Species identified by Aiken

So the question is, how do we look at Aiken and his contribution? Was he what we might call a 'bird whisperer? Where does his destruction of a bird fit in? There were no cameras, as we know it when he began his journey. That he made major contributions is undeniable. I still have not made up my mind about the questions. 

Photo property of Author

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in
Colorado and Women's History

Angela Raines - author: Telling Stories Where Love & History Meet

Books: Angela Raines Books

Website: Angela Raines - author

Angela Raines FaceBook: Click Here

Wanna' Learn History?

Post by Doris McCraw writing as Angela Raines

It's been a busy summer, and I've tried to keep up with my love of history and research. To help I've started making use of online programs and videos. They have become prevalent with the 'stay at home' of the last year. Add the sesquicentennial of Colorado Springs this year and it's been a great time. I've also thought, I shouldn't be selfish. I've shared some links, but with so much happening, I just have to offer the following. All are free and full of information.

Photo property of the author

The History Symposium is all online this year. The first session has aired, and there are three more to come. The main link is Pikes Peak Library District Symposium

Here is a link to Part 1, the topic and speakers: Part 1

Part 2, Saturday, June 26, 2021 will include: 

Susan Fletcher: Glen Eyrie at 150
10:10 – 10:30 a.m.

Tom Noel: The Broadmoor Hotel’s Beginnings: From Count James Pourtales to Spencer Penrose

10:35 – 10:55 a.m.

Eric Swab: Three Trails That Ring Cheyenne Mountain, Three Tales of Infidelity, Bribery, and Provocation

11 – 11:20 a.m.

Part 3: Saturday July 24, 2021

Leah Davis Witherow: A Story That Must be Told: Trailblazing Entrepreneur “Mama” Susie Perkins
10:10 – 10:30 a.m.

Eric Metzger: The McAllister House and its Place in 150 years of Colorado Springs History

10:35 – 10:55 a.m.

Greg Atkins: City Business: Colorado Springs and the Libertarian Party

Part 4: Saturday, August 28, 2021

Rick Sturdevant: Air and Space Forces in Colorado Springs: Their Bases and Memorable Characters
10:10 – 10:30 a.m.

Mark James: Edwin James, Pikes Peak, and the American West

10:35 – 10:55 a.m.

Kathy Sturdevant: The Quaker Trail: Moral Infiltration, Disintegration, and Revival in the Pikes Peak Region

11 – 11:20 a.m.

There are also many Youtube videos from the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum, Rocky Mountain PBS-Colorado Experience, and History Colorado.

Photo property of the author

As you can see, I love the history of my state and constantly search for new pieces of history I'd not heard of before. With the option of videos to add to reading the old newspapers and books, I'm in research heaven. I do hope some of you may find something to trigger a new story or piece to add to your current work. 

Link to register: https://ppld.org/history-symposium

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in
Colorado and Women's History

Author of the "Agate Gulch" novellas and 

the "Kiowa Wells" novels.

Angela Raines - author: Telling Stories Where Love & History Meet

Books: Angela Raines Books

(c) Doris McCraw All Rights Reserved

 

HISTORY, STAGNANT?

 

Post by Doris McCraw

writing fiction as Angela Raines

Photo property of the author

For this writer/researcher I think a lot about history. In school, we learned names, dates, and big events. Let's face it, that can be boring and make one think that history is set in stone. For me, nothing could be further from the truth. History stagnant? I think not. Yes, dates, names, etc. do stay the same, but the surrounding information, the people involved seems to grow. New research techniques, new information, and re-examinations seem to add to our better understanding of what led us to where we are and what we know.

Photo property of the author

As Colorado Springs gears up for its sesquicentennial there has been a lot of offerings that can be shared with more than the people of this city. I offer up some of the links and other options in case anyone is interested.

https://www.cspm.org/exhibits/cos150/

https://www.cspm.org/scholarseries/

https://ppld.org/history-symposium

Some of these programs will be virtual, so my thought is, anyone can take advantage of the events. While the links don't do justice to their content, the post would be way too long if I but in the details of each.

I do confess, reading the book " Why Learn History (When It's Already on Your Phone)" by San Wineberg, also makes me rethink some of what I was taught in school. Also, please remember that was a long time ago. 

Additionally, a couple of online lectures have piqued my interest. One was from an associate professor at Adams State College: 

 War and Peace in Comanchería: Anza, Paruanarimuco, and San Carlos de los Jupes

Presented by: Dr. Charles "Nick" Saenz

In 1787, Comanche headman Paruanarimuco approached Juan Bautista de Anza, then governor of Spanish New Mexico, to request the establishment of a town at the confluence of the Arkansas and Saint Charles Rivers, just west of modern Pueblo. San Carlos de los Jupes, as the town became known, was an exceptional and ultimately short-lived experiment. This talk seeks to situate it in relation to Spanish and Native efforts to contain the expansion of the Comanche Empire through intercultural diplomacy and integration within an evolving system of trade.

Charles Nicholas Saenz is an associate professor of history at Adams State University in Alamosa, Colorado, and the former president of the Sangre de Cristo National Heritage Area. He holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Chicago and a graduate degree from the University of California, San Diego.

Photo property of the author

The other was a CSPM program which I am including the link on ' When the Civil War Came West': 

https://youtu.be/8T-z9PuBgHc

Hope you enjoy these pieces of history as much as I do. Happy listening and see you next month.

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in
Colorado and Women's History

Angela Raines - author: Telling Stories Where Love & History Meet

Books: Angela Raines Books

Post (c) 2021 by Doris McCraw

 

The Millionaire Maker - Verner Z. Reed

 Post by Doris McCraw

writing as Angela Raines

Millionaires, especially those in the Old West. There is something about the rags to riches story that seems to touch something inside of us. If they could do it, maybe we can too. Oh, the dreams. However, those dreams did become a reality for many, even those who helped make the multi-millionaires.

Verner Z. Reed and his wife Mary Dean Johnson Reed made quite a difference during their lives.

Reed, born 1862 in Ohio and raised in Iowa, worked on the family farm to help the family, which consisted of thirteen children. Originally, Reed began his career as a journalist in Chicago at the Times. He later moved to Colorado Springs, Colorado when his half-brother came seeking a cure for his TB.

Verner Z Reed
Image from Wikipedia

It was in Colorado that Reed flourished. He saw a need for housing in the new town of Colorado Springs and created a business, Reed Brothers, along with his father and brother to build houses. He also wrote promotional brochures for the city.

In the 1890s as Cripple Creek was booming he took on promotional duties there. He also worked with Winfield Scott Stratton. It was with Stratton that Reed’s life took on new aspects. Reed helped broker the sale of Stratton's 'Independence' mine to an English syndicate. As a result of his efforts, Reed garnered one million dollars for his work. Building on that initial million, Reed soon invested in mines, while continuing to help Stratton invest also. When Stratton helped the founders of the Portland Mine, which is still producing gold, it was Reed who helped in the purchases of nearby mines.

The year of the sale of the Independence, 1893, Reed married Mary Dean Johnson who had moved from Ohio to Colorado Springs. At the time of their marriage Mary was eighteen and Verner had just turned thirty. The couple had three children.

Mary Dean Johnson Reed Image from Find A Grave

The couple spent much of the early part of the twentieth century in Europe but returned to the states around 1912. The settled in Denver. Reed continued to invest in real estate, oil in Wyoming, and was appointed by President Woodrow Wilson in 1917 to the Special Mediation Commission. The Commission was developed to deal with the industrial labor trouble.

Below is an article from the July 14, 1917, Denver Labor Bulletin

After his death in 1919 he left an estate worth around twenty million. Mary donated money to various philanthropic endeavors. Even with all she'd done, it was said she added another six million to the estate by the time of her death in 1945.

Reed also was an author with such books as: Lo-To-Kah, 1897, Tales Of The Sunland, 1897, and Adobeland Stories, 1898 based on his interest and study of the mythology of the Indian Tribes, primarily the Utes and Pueblo Peoples. You may still be able to find these books online or in libraries. The views of someone who lived at this time in history are fascinating.

Mary and Verner Reed left their mark on their world. This short post only touches on a small part of their lives. So much for further study.

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in
Colorado and Women's History

Angela Raines - author: Telling Stories Where Love & History Meet

Books: Angela Raines Books

Post (c) Doris McCraw

Colorado Holiday Traditions Through the Years

 Post by Doris McCraw writing as Angela Raines

So what do you do to celebrate the holidays? Of course, this year is a bit different, but all traditions morph over the years. 

On December 26, 1866, the Colorado Transcript -from Golden City ( Golden CO) had this memory they shared:

By 1876, the year Colorado became a state, the following was found in 'The Colorado Banner', Boulder, CO in the December 28th issue.

I could not pass up this short piece from the 'Crystal River Current' Crystal, CO. of December 4, 1886

And in 1896 'The West Side Citizen', Colfax, Villa Park, CO on December 25, reported a new tradition from an old in New York.

So as you can see by the examples, Holiday traditions are ever-changing. I admit I miss getting up on Christmas morning to see what 'Santa' had left under the tree, but the joy of spending time with family, friends, or at work, is what the season is about for me. Sharing my life and joys with those I care about, even if we are not in the same physical place. They are always in my heart.

Wishing everyone a blessed, joyous season for you and all those you love and care about. See you in 2021 for more stories, history, and just plain fun.

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in

Colorado and Women's History

Angela Raines - author: Telling Stories Where Love & History Meet

Books: Angela Raines Books

THE LAKE COUNTY WAR IN COLORADO

Post by Doris McCraw
writing as Angela Raines

Sharing again.

Church in Nathrop, Colorado
Wikipedia

The Lake County War, full of vigilantes, traveling preachers, judges, criminals, and chaos. To this day the true story isn't fully known. Into this mix is Charles Nachtrieb, an early settler in the area. While I knew of the Lake County War, I was unaware of Nachtrieb until research on his daughter, Dr. Josephine Dunlop, brought his story to my attention.

Mr. Nachtreib, born April 20, 1833, in Germany, arrived in the Lake County area around 1859. He was a candidate from Lake County to the convention to admit Colorado as a state in 1865, which was approved by the voters. Although a constitution was adopted, President Andrew Johnson rejected the petition in 1866. (Colorado was not admitted as a state until 1876, becoming known as the Centennial State)

In addition to having a business along with being postmaster in Nathrop, Colorado, Nachtrieb also owned land in Gunnison County where his large ranch was located. (Nathrop is an Anglicized version of Nachtrieb). He is also credited with having the first grist mill west of the Mississippi.

In 1879, Nachtrieb, along with Otto Mears and Issac Gothelf filed article of incorporation with the state for the Poncho (Poncha), Marshall and Gunnison toll road. The toll road was expected to cost twenty-five thousand dollars and run from Poncha Creek in Chaffee County to the Gunnison River. Apparently, there was a verbal agreement between Mears and Nachtrieb that Mears would build from the Gunnison side to the top of Poncha Pass and Nachtrieb would build from the Lake County side. This arrangement came about due to the above-mentioned grist mill and the farming, especially wheat, along with the higher price paid in places like Oro City and other mining communities in the area.

Otto Mears
Wikepedia

On October 3, 1881, according to newspapers of the time, a man named Burt (Bert) Remington shot and killed Nachtrieb in his store. Some reports say he was a disgruntled former employee. Remington escaped and the search was on. On Thursday, October 6, 1881, Governor Pitkin issue a proclamation and offered a reward of $300 dollars for the arrest of Remington. Nachtrieb was forty-nine at the time of his death.

How does the Lake County War fit into all of this?

In 1874 Elijah Gibbs and George Harrington quarreled over property, fencing, and water. About fifteen days later, one of Harrington's outbuildings was set of fire and when he went to deal with the blaze he was shot and killed. Due to the quarrel, Gibbs had with Harrington, he was the prime suspect. Tempers and gossip fueled the incident and soon Gibbs was marked for a lynching. Cooler heads prevailed and they were bound over for trial. With emotions running so high, a change of venue put the trial in Denver. There Gibbs and his hired hand McClish were found not guilty. McClish left the area, but Gibbs returned to his home in Lake County (Now part of Chaffee County).

Things appeared to return to normal, but in January of 1875 the vigilantes got a warrant for assault, for the first quarrel, and went after Gibbs. Gibbs, along with others made a run over South Park and ended up in Colorado City. The sheriff secured warrants and followed them to Denver. Gibbs and his cohorts left the Denver hotel, where the sheriff allowed them to stay, due to implied lynching stories put out by the papers in Denver.

Collegiate Peaks
Photo property of the author

At the end of January of that year, the Committee of Safety organized in response to Gibbs and the Regulators he was purported to be a part of. This Safety Committee, composed of most of the prominent men in the region, including Nachtrieb, intended to rid Lake County of all suspected murderers, cattle thieves, land grabbers, and any other undesirables. In following through with their agenda, the flames grew greater. Anyone coming into the area was questioned, and if they were determined to be 'undesirable' they were asked to leave. One of the men questioned was Judge Elias Dyer, son of the itinerant preacher 'Father' Dyer. He took exception to being told to resign when he told his inquisitors he believed Gibbs was not guilty. Dyer eventually returned to the area and while holding court was shot and killed. There were those who said Dyer, by his actions, brought about his own demise, while others said the opposite.

Judge Dyer, in writing his thoughts in the matter, indicated that the man who killed Charles Nachtrieb was the nephew of Mr. Harrington, the man whose murder started the whole affair. To this day, the who, whats, and wherefores are hidden in time and memories. Story after story offers conflicting information. In the end, was Charles Nachtrieb killed over 'wages' or the 'war'. We may never know. The Lake County War, a year-long, impacted the lives of so many. Like the death of Charles Nachtrieb, we may never know the whole true story.

What I've shared is just a small part of the story of Charles Nachtrieb and the Lake County War. For more on the War, the book by Don and Jean Griswold, “History of Leadville and Lake County Colorado” is a good place to start. There is additional information by Gayle Gresham, whose great great grandfather was also involved, in the book “Rush to the Rockies” published by the PPLD as part of the Regional History Series.

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in
Colorado and Women's History

Angela Raines - author: Telling Stories Where Love & History Meet

Books: Angela Raines Books

Photo and Poem: Click Here 

Angela Raines FaceBook: Click Here