IT'S MINING TIME #history #ColoradoHistory

post by Doris McCraw
writing as Angela Raines

Pikes Peak - photo property of author

The 'Pike's Peak or Bust' gold rush began one hundred sixty years ago, when gold was found near Cherry Creek, in the now Denver Metro area. (Actually the gold was found in 1858, but the rush began in 1859). Now for those unfamiliar with Colorado's topography, Pikes Peak is actually around seventy miles south of the area where the gold was found.

So why "Pikes Peak or Bust'? Well, the peak sits the eastern most in the mountain chain that runs through Colorado. Additionally, it is a stand alone fourteener peak. The nearest at its elevation or higher is over seventy miles away. In other words, its the landmark you see first as you're heading west.

Mines on Battle Mountain in the Cripple Creek Mining District
USGS photograph

And by 1900 Colorado was providing more gold than any other area, including Alaska, most of it coming from the Cripple Creek/Victor mining district. (They're still pulling gold out of that mountain) But there was/is more than just gold in those mountains and the plains. Colorado, thanks to the area around Leadville, also produced large amounts of silver. The state also has provided the world with marble, zinc, lead, molybdenum, uranium, nahcolite (which produces baking soda and soda ash) in addition to gemstones.

If anyone had watched the weather channel show "Prospectors" you would know about the gemstone mining in the state. Here's a brief look: Prospectors Episode

Colorado also has diamonds, which have been mined up near the Wyoming boarder. Add to this coal mining which has occurred almost since Colorado was settled and you have a wealth of mining and mining history. Colorado Springs in the 1800s had fifty active coal mines in the area. Of course, Fremont county had numerous coal mines as did the southern part of the state where the Ludlow Massacre occurred.

The pulling of  'treasure' from the ground created stories of wealth, life, death, strikes and massacres. These stories are mined by myself and others for the books, papers, and novellas we write. One novella "Never Had a Chance" came from a piece I read in the Sandra Dallas book.

If you wish to discover more, here are some books that have great pieces of information:

Colorado Ghost Towns and Mining Camps - Sandra Dallas
The Portland: Colorado's Richest Gold Mine - Joe Vanderwalker
The Great Pike's Peak Gold Rush - Robert L. Brown
Killing for Coal: America's Deadliest Labor War - Thomas G Andrews
Hardrock Man: Whispers from the Cripple Creek Underground - Sylece Andromeda
The Trail of Gold and Silver: Mining in Colorado 1859-2009 - Duane A Smith

So do you want to do some mining?

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

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

Angela Raines - author: Where Love & History Meet

For a list of Angela Raines Books: Here 

Angela Raines FaceBook: Click Here

TO BUILD AN EMPIRE BY DORIS MCCRAW

Near the end of the Nineteenth Century Colorado saw one of the last great gold strikes. Into what became know as the Cripple Creek Mining District flowed the men and women who were searching for their pot of gold. Many of the names are lost to time, only a few like Stratton, Penrose and Moffat remain. One of the lost names is Woods. This family, father Warren, and sons Harry and Frank built an empire.

The Woods began their Colorado mining ventures in 1878 in the Leadville area where silver was king. They owned properties throughout the area, but were unable to continue mining and shipping when funds ran out. The family returned to the east with Harry going into the newspaper business and Warren and Frank to grocery and drug stores.

Ten years later in 1888 Harry returned to Colorado and invested heavily in mining in the Creede area, with varying degrees of success. He ended up in Denver where he established a brokerage house. When news of a promising property near one of theirs in the Leadville area, Harry made sure their interest were secure. Soon his father and brother joined him in Denver and the Woods Investment Company was born.

Shaft House for the Gold Coin

In 1893 they family purchased the Mt. Rosa Placer from J.R. McKinnie for $1,000 dollars. The platted this 160 acres and the town of Victor was born. The Woods promoted the lots by saying that all the lots were gold mines. They were not too far from wrong in their case. While excavating for the upscale hotel the family was building for the town, gold was found. This mine, the Gold Coin, was literally in the center of Victor. The hotel location was moved two blocks away, while work was done to make the strike pay.

Victor was always seen as second to Cripple Creek, which had given the district its name. While the owners lived in Cripple Creek and Colorado Springs, Victor was populated with the working man. This made sense since all the big and wealthiest mines were on Battle Mountain just to the northwest of Victor. So close was Victor to the mountain, that many considered the Gold Coin to be part of that group.

The Woods Investment Company continued to pursue their empire and by 1899 had holdings in seven mines and mining companies. 1899 also saw the fire that destroyed most of the town of Victor, including the Gold Coins shaft house. All totaled 12 city blocks were destroyed by the fire and the dynamite used to create a fire break. Another 25 blocks were severely damaged.

The Gold Coin Club as it looks today

The Woods, known for the generosity and good wages, set about rebuilding the Gold Coin. The mine shaft house was rebuilt with ornate pressed brick and the reading room that was in the original shaft house was improved upon with books and magazines for their workers. The shaft house also had stained glass windows. Popular legend says one miner refused to work in a place that reminded him of a church for he wouldn't be able to swear.

They also built an ornate club nearby for their employees. Build along the lines of the mens clubs in the east, this building was also used for visiting dignitaries. Theodore Roosevelt was one such visitor, and records seem to indicate he was there twice.

Underside of the Gold Coin Club staircase.

Jack Dempsey, the renowned fighter, also fought his first fight in the Gold Coin Club. Dempsey worked a doublejack at the Portland Mine. (The Portland story is another great story.)

The Woods attempted to consolidate their holdings after the fire, but the cost of rebuilding, which they wanted only the best possible, and over extension caused a collapse in the empire the family had built. They never did recover their glory and are almost forgotten today. Still what a grand time they must have had.

Doris McCraw has a passion for and writes about Colorado and Womens History. The book “Film & Photography in the Pikes Peak Region” contains her story of Karol W. Smith, the first state film commissioner in the United States. She recently finished a paper on the Cripple Creek volcano. Doris is also a haiku poet and recently returned to writing fiction.