NEWS REPORT THAT INSPIRED THE RESEARCH

Post by Doris McCraw

writing as Angela Raines

Below is a news report from the August 29, 1885, Gazette in Colorado Springs, that helped to start a rabbit hole of research on the killer "Joe Ward". There is much more to the story, and a paper on the subject has been written. But I thought some might find the early reports interesting. 

The headline read: Joe Ward, the slayer of Scheidler, riddled with bullets,

the career of a noted Colorado desperado terminated,

review of the crime committed by Ward in the city,

Early residents of Colorado Springs remember that on February 1879, Lafayette Scheidler, the young man eighteen years of age, was shot and killed by one Joe J Ward, who, when he came here, did not have a very enviable character. The circumstances of the case were these: Scheidler and two companions visited a house on the west side of the Monument, just north of Tejon street, which was occupied by a woman who had borne a bad reputation.

Upon knocking for admittance they were told by an occupant that the woman had gone to Leadville. Scheidler and his companions immediately turned back to town. After having gone from the house but a short distance Scheidler was shot in the back and after lingering nearly two days died.

It being ascertained that the shooting had unquestionably been done by Ward, the woman's husband, the officer searched the house, but the man was not to be found. Sheriff Dana, who was then Marshall of Colorado Springs, the same night detected and arrested Ward as he was coming in from the brush to take a horse from the barn with which to make his escape.

In the meantime, the news of the shooting had spread about town in a crowd gathered to lynch Ward. Scheidler was well-known and a popular young fellow, while Ward had an unsavory reputation and had frequently boasted of having killed his man in southwestern Kansas. Comparing this record with that of Scheidler the crowd were determined to make him pay the penalty of his crime but the officers very cleverly evaded them and place the prisoner within the stonewalls of the county jail. 

On April 22 of the same year Ward, who had been indicted by the grand jury, was arraigned before Judge Bowen of the fourth judicial District, now US Senator. The defendant was given a fair and impartial trial being prosecuted by CW Burris and defended by Gen. Danforth. As a result, Ward was committed to Canyon City for a term of two years.

In his sentence Judge Bowen said that the verdict was fully sustained by the evidence. At the same time, he considered the reckless and useless resort to firearms, but under the recommendations of mercy by the jury and the consideration of aggravating circumstances he would make the sentence two years.

Ward served out his sentence, and it was hoped that it would give him a lesson. Not so, however; for no sooner had he been released and he went to Leadville, where he was joined by the disreputable wife who had placed him behind the bars. Leadville was in those days very prosperous. The wife opened a dance hall and the husband lived off the profits. He lived liberally, made things lively with his six-shooter and occupied a cell in the city jail almost weekly. Finally, finding even the cloud city too warm for him, he departed for a more congenial climate, taking with him his wife and daughter.

When we next heard of Ward was last summer in Northpark, where he and his wife were keeping a sort of a tavern where liquors were disposed of without a license, and the husband and a few pals were occasionally raiding cattle ranches. Here the depraved wife by undue familiarity with a young cowboy aroused the ire of the husband. The result was he (the young man) was killed, in cold blood, one day on his way to Georgetown. A report of the shooting appeared in the Gazette at the time, and so indignant were the residents of that locality in consequence that Ward was lucky in escaping the country alive.

From Northpark we follow this desperados history to Gunnison County where it is reported that he with his ready shooter disposed of his man, but we cannot confirm the story.

Now comes the report that on Tuesday a body was found on an un-frequented road leading to Green River which was identified as that of Joe Ward. Beside him was lying his horse, that had fallen with two bullet holes in his side, and that was all that was left to tell the story of death. Upon examination, it was found that Ward had been shot five times, and his body was completely riddled with bullets. It is said that Ward had been having some trouble in that region, as in this, over his wife and that upon this occasion he started out to prescribe his favorite dose for a cowboy. Thus another Colorado outlaw with the record takes his departure.

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

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

Angela Raines - author: Where Love & History Meet

Books: Angela Raines Books

COWBOY POTATOES! by Cheryl Pierson

Hi everyone! I was thinking about how much I love fried potatoes tonight when I was making them for dinner. Those are a great “comfort food” to me, and one I don’t think I’d ever get tired of. But I imagine the cowboys of yesteryear grew sick of the fare they ate constantly–beans, chili, stew, potatoes, and the like–when they were on a cattle drive.

Dinner time at a cowboy’s camp, banks of the Yellowstone, Montana, U.S.A. Original source: Robert N. Dennis collection of stereoscopic views.

Here’s another awesome picture that is around 120 years old–Wonder what they’re having to eat? Chili? Beans? Maybe biscuits and gravy? Or…POTATOES??? These color pictures were produced using a method called photochrom. This is making colorized photos from black and white negatives through the direct photographic transfer of a negative onto lithographic printing plates.

It was invented in the 1880s and by the 1890s, was extremely popular (when this image was shot). Credit: Mediadrumimages/PublicDomain

Here’s a really good recipe for — what else? COWBOY POTATOES!
2 medium potatoes, scrubbed
2 tablespoons cooking oil
1/4 cup onion, diced
1/4 cup bell pepper (or jalapeno for spicier fare!), diced
salt and pepper
Peel potatoes, if desired or leave the peel on and cut into 1/2″ cubes.
Heat oil in large skillet. Add the potatoes, spreading into a single layer. Let them get brown on one side before stirring.
Stir the potatoes, and let them brown on another side. Stir once more, and add the pepper and onion. Cook until the onions and peppers are tender. If the potatoes are not done, reduce heat to low and cover the skillet until they’re done.
Add salt and pepper to taste, and serve.

YUM, YUM! Hope you enjoy these! Do you have a favorite potato recipe? PLEASE SHARE! I’m sure we have a LOT more variety than the cowboys did!

Western Bookshelves

One thing I like to do periodically is inventory my books. I enjoy having physical books on my shelves (though I do have quite a few e-books on my iPhone) and I enjoy the solid heft of a good book. I like the smell of a book as well, especially some of the older ones I’ve collected.

I thought you might like a virtual peek at my bookshelves, being authors yourselves. You’ve probably got much the same collection, but perhaps you’ll spot something that will strike your interest. I’d love it if you’d comment, too – what books do you have that I might like to read?

Here are some of my favorite non-fiction books about the Wild West:

Age of the Gunfighter; Joseph G. Rosa – a basic history of gunfighters and gunfighting

A Lady’s Life in the Rocky Mountains; Isabella L. Bird – the journal of a middle-aged English lady traveling alone in 1873 Colorado

The American Frontier: Pioneers, Settlers and Cowboys 1800-1899; William C. Davis – another basic history of the era

The American West; Dee Brown – a good all-around history book about the period

A Texas Cowboy, or, Fifteen Years on the Hurricane Deck of a Spanish Pony; Charles A. Siringo – autobiography of the man who later became a Pinkerton detective

Before Barbed Wire: Photographer on Horseback; L.A. Huffman – an excellent source of photographs from the era

Boudoirs to Brothels: The Intimate World of Wild West Women; Michael Rutter – a well-illustrated history of the madam and her working girls

Buckskin and Blanket Days; Thomas Henry Tibbles – the memoirs of a pioneer, scout, hunter and “friend of the Indians”

Card Sharps, Dream Books and Bucket Shops: Gambling in 19^th Century America; Ann Vincent Fabian – an interesting history of gambling

Children of the Old West; Russell Freedman – full of photographs of pioneer and Indian children during the era

Cowboy and Western Songs; Austin E. Fife – an interesting collection of songs from the era

Cowboy Culture; David Dary – a chronicle of cowboy life and legend

Cowboy Lingo; Ramon F. Adams – “A dictionary of the slack-jaw words and Whangdoodle ways of the American West”

Cowboys of the Wild West; Russell Freedman – an introduction to the cowboy

Daily Life in a Covered Wagon; Paul Erickson – this interesting book draws on actual diaries and letters

Days on the Road: Crossing the Plains in 1865: Sarah Raymond-Herndon – true story of a young woman who crossed the plains to start a new life

Early America at Work: A Pictorial Guide to Our Vanishing Occupations; Everett Broomall Wilson – an interesting history of old-time workers

Frontier Gambling; G.R. Williamston – a discussion of the seedier side of the frontier

Frontier Slang, Lingo and Phrases; Kathy Weiser-Alexander – another useful dictionary

The Gunfighter: Man or Myth?; Joseph G. Rosa – truth and legend of the Old West’s gunfighters and their influence on American culture

The Gunfighters: How the West Was Won: Bruce Wexler – truth and legend about some of the famous gunfighters of the era and their weapons of choice

Guns of the Wild West; David Kennedy – showcases more than 50 of authentic weapons from the Cody Firearms Museum of the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, Wyoming

Home on the Range: A Culinary History of the American West; Cathy Luchetti – a chronicle of American frontier cooking from anecdotes, writings and photographs

How the Wild West Was Won: A Celebration of Cowboys, Gunfighters, Buffalo Soldiers, Sodbusters, Moonshiners, and the American Frontier – Bruce Wexler – a comprehensive history

How to Write Western Novels; Matt Braun – a good basic writing “How-To”

I Do: Courtship, Love and Marriage on the American Frontier; Cathy Luchetti – compiled from journals, letters and reminiscences

The Look of the Old West: A Fully Illustrated Guide; William Foster-Harris – basically a picture dictionary of Old West tools, culture and fashions

The Log of a Cowboy; Andy Adams – the story of an 1882 cattle drive from Mexico to Montana

Men: A Pictorial Archive from Nineteenth-Century Sources: Harter – a good picture dictionary for clothing and hairstyles

Men of the West: Life on the American Frontier; Cathy Luchetti – compiled from letters, diaries, journals and photographs

My Sixty Years on the Plains: Trapping, Trading and Indian Fighting; W.T. Hamilton – a simple reflection from a man of the era

The Old West: National Geographic – an excellent history of the era with lots of good photographs

The Old West Day by Day; Mike Flanagan – 15,000 chronologically-arranged events with descriptions, sidebars and photographs

The Prairie Traveler; Randolph B. Marcy – an 1859 guide for settlers

Reflections of Western Historians; John A. Carroll – the history of the era by 16 historians

Seeking Pleasure in the Old West; David Dary – the amusements available to the average Westerner during the era

Shoes, Hats, and Fashion Accessories: A Pictorial Archive; Grafton – a good picture dictionary of fashion from around 1850

Stagecoach: Rare Views of the Old West; Sandor Demlinger – almost 300 rare photographs

Time-Life Old West Series – a great encyclopedia with many useful photographs

Trail Driving Days; Dee Brown with Martin F. Shcmitt – tales and photographs of the men and their animals during the heyday of the cattle drives

The Way West: A.B. Guthrie, Jr. – a novel about a frontiersman’s return to the untamed West in 1846

We Pointed Them North: Recollections of a Cowpuncher; E.C. Abbott – the story of “Teddy Blue” Abbott, a cowboy from the heyday of the era

Western Words: A Dictionary of the Old West: Ramon Adams – an excellent dictionary

The Wild West How the West Was Won; Bruce Wexler – another history of the era

Women: A Pictorial Archive from Nineteenth-Century Sources; Harter – a good picture dictionary of fashion and hairstyles

Women of the West: Cathy Luchetti – a good look at the women who settled the West, from memoirs, diaries, letters, journals and photographs

Write a Western in 30 Days: With Plenty of Bullet-Points!: Nik Morton – an interesting “How-To” book for the Western writer

Writing Historical Fiction: A Writers’ and Artists’ Companion; Celia Brayfield and Duncan Sprott – reflections on writing the genre

The Writer’s Guide to Everyday Life in the Wild West: Candy Moulton – an interesting basic guide to writing the era

Your Travel Guide to America’s Old West; Rita J. Markel – a travelogue describing fashion, accommodations, foods, customs and local transportation

Comment with your own favorites!

J.E.S. Hays

www.jeshays.com

www.facebook.com/JESHaysBooks

WEAVING HISTORY'S STORY

Post by Doris McCraw
writing as Angela Raines

Photo property of the author

I have been watching the PBS documentary by Ken Burns, "Country Music" when time and schedule allow. As a student of film, writing, and history, I am enthralled by the way stories of the stars and growth of the industry are interwoven with each other.

It also brought to mind how both fiction and nonfiction writers tell the story of history.

When we write fiction, myself included, I am thrilled when those pieces of history about an area in my stories that can be seamlessly added, thus fusing elements of authenticity to the story. I also enjoy reading stories that use elements of the past. I become so excited reading the authors who use history's elements, and I am aware of them, is almost like the story becomes even more real for me.



When growing up most of my history classes were names, dates. and places. The stories of those names, the people behind those names, were left out. That ended up making history very boring, although I still found it fascinating, it seemed to be lacking. As a student during the Vietnam era, a contentious time in our country, I had a world history/civics teacher who had colored pictures of the soldiers both living and dead and the surrounding countryside plastered upon the walls. Whatever his thoughts about the right or the wrong of that conflict, I appreciated his evenness in simply telling the story of the men and women on, of the background that led to that conflict, and both sides of the argument that was occurring in our country. It was through him that I fell in love with the stories of the people who made history.

Now, when I tell the stories both fiction and nonfiction I remember his evenness, his ability to not draw conclusions and allow his students to draw their own. I try for that same evenness when I tell the stories of the people I research. Sometimes it's difficult to keep my personal and modern thoughts from the words I write. At the same time, I try to weave a story that will imbue the excitement I have for the subject to the people who are reading it.

Photo property of the author

This is also true of fiction writing. Although I am relatively new to having both my fiction and nonfiction published, I am always reminded of the power of story to engage the hearts and minds of people. In that respect, I have a lot to learn from the way Ken Burns and his production company tell the stories of the subjects he is presenting. He weaves history's story into a tapestry that is beautiful and constantly challenging the watcher to find the truth they need to know.

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

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

For a list of Angela Raines Books: Here 

Top 10 Western Websites, Blogs and Newsletters 2019

Did you know that our own Western Fictioneers blog is #1 in the Top 20 Western Fiction Blogs, Websites and Newsletters to Follow in 2019?

I was surfing the net, as a writer will do, looking for new and interesting information on our favorite topic, and I came across this article.

This gave me an idea for a useful blog post of my own, so I present my …

Top 10 Old West Blogs, Websites and Newsletters (in no particular order):

The Wild West 

A good bit of information about Native Americans and cowboys, including a list of good museums you can visit. I’m a little disappointed that they’ve let their YouTube video channel lapse, but you can browse the written material on the site for inspiration.

Western Fiction Review 

A UK-based website whose author enjoys reviewing Western fiction. They review around three books a month, and it’s a good place to get a taste of what’s new in Western fiction.

Legends of America 

A huge website with sections about American History, Destinations, and even Ghost Stories. This is often my first stop when I’m researching the Old West.

True West Magazine 

With sections like Inside History, True Westerners and Heritage Travel, almost anyone can find something of interest on this website. They post about 14 times a week.

Rough Edges 

Our own James Reasoner gives us information about books, movies, and other matters of Western-related interest. 

Chronicle of the Old West

“We use print, internet, radio and television to give you the experience of the authentic Old West.” This is a rather eccentric website that reminds me of a rummage in your Grandma’s attic. For $30 (USA) or $50 (other countries), you receive 12 twenty-page newspapers composed of actual articles from the 1800’s. You can also purchase an e-subscription for $20 a year, listen to radio shows on CD, and even order some Arbuckles Ariosa coffee. 

50 Westerns from the 50’s

This is a blog dedicated to Western movies and books from the 1950’s. The author is writing a book with the same title, endeavoring to bring to light 50 of the less-well-known movies of the period. Interesting reading.

Life in the Old West 

“True stories, tall tales, and memorabilia of the Old West.”

Henry’s Western Round-Up 

“The blog that brings you the latest news about Western movies, TV, radio, and print.” 

Historical Novels Society: The Old West

These folks have another huge website, but it covers all historical fiction, from the prehistoric era to the 20^thCentury. They have a good section with information about Western fiction.

If I’ve left out your favorite website or blog, please leave me a comment with a link so we can enjoy yours, too!

J.E.S. Hays

www.jeshays.com

www.facebook.com/JESHaysBooks

Have Gun – Will Travel — Television Debut 1957 by Kaye Spencer #classicwesterns #classictelevision #westernfictioneers

Have Gun – Will Travel – September 14, 1957

During my growing-up years, I watched reruns or as-they-aired episodes of what are now classic television westerns: Bonanza, Gunsmoke, Lone Ranger, The Big Valley, High Chaparral, Rawhide, Laredo, The Virginian, Sugarfoot, Cheyenne, Maverick, Wagon Trail, Tales of Wells Fargo, Branded, Wyatt Earp, Johnny Yuma, Laramie, Broken Arrow, Guns of Will Sonnet, Zorro, Lancer, Cimarron Strip,Yancy Derringer... The list goes on and, no doubt, you have your favorites, too.

It just so happens that one of my favorite classic western television shows is celebrating its premiere date this week.

The adventures of a gentlemanly gunfighter for hire.

Sixty two years ago, the television-watching population enjoyed the premiere of the thirty-minute, Saturday night western show Have Gun - Will Travel starring Richard Boone as the somewhat mysterious soldier of fortune, but always a gentleman, Paladin. The premise of the show was Paladin worked as a gunfighter-for-hire who traveled the west c. 1875 offering his special kind of problem-solving skills. He was a high-dollar gunman—$1000 per job wasn’t unusual—but he also provided his services for free to those with a worthy cause who couldn’t afford him otherwise. However, violence by gun-play wasn’t his only weapon. He was a pugilist and dueling champion of some renown in his former life.

General Trivia

• The word ‘paladin’ derives from the knights in Charlemagne’s Court, who were champions of worthy causes.
• Paladin was a Union cavalry officer and graduate of West Point.
• His residence is the luxury Carlton Hotel in San Francisco.
• When not riding about the countryside doing good deeds—dressed as the original “Man in Black”—he lives the life of a cultured businessman who wears custom-made suits, consumes fine wine, plays the piano, and attends the opera. He also has a weakness for women.
• With just a sip, he can determine a particular bourbon’s distillery.
• Paladin is an expert chess and poker player, an accomplished swordsman, and possesses skill in Chinese martial arts having studied under a Kung Fu master.
• His level of education is such that he quotes classical literature, philosophy, case law, and he speaks several languages.

• Paladin’s weapons: 1) custom-made, single action .45 Colt (Army cavalry model) that he carries in a black leather holster adorned with a platinum chess knight symbol, 2) lever action Marlin rifle, and 3) concealed derringer.
• He has a signature calling card/business card. In Paladin’s words:  “It's a chess piece, the most versatile on the board. It can move in eight different directions, over obstacles, and it's always unexpected.”

• The show’s four note opening motif was done purposely to create a musical memory akin to other popular television shows at the time: Highway Patrol, Dragnet, Twilight Zone, and Perry Mason.

• The show closes with the song, “The Ballad of Paladin”, which was written by Johnny Western, Richard Boone, and Sam Rolfe. Johnny Western sings the ballad.

• The show ran from 9/14/1957 to 4/20/1963 with 225 episodes.
• A radio version began in 1958 with actor John Dehner portraying Paladin.

From 1974 to 1991, a trademark lawsuit against the concept of the show moved in and out of court culminating with a substantial settlement. You can read the details here: HGWT Website

Hollywood Trivia

Notable Episode Writers:

• Gene Roddenberry (Star Trek)
• Bruce Geller (Mission Impossible)
• Harry Julian Fink (Dirty Harry)
• Sam Peckinpah (directed a plethora of western movies)

Unusual for the era, many episodes were filmed outdoors and not on the Old West film lots – Bishop and Lone Pine, California – Paladin Estates between Bend and Sisters, Oregon – the Abbott Ranch near Prineville, Oregon.

Notable Guest Stars:

• Angie Dickinson
• Ben Johnson
• Buddy Ebsen
• Charles Bronson
• Dan Blocker
• DeForest Kelley
• Denver Pyle
• Dyan Cannon
• George Kennedy
• Jack Elam
• Jack Lord
• James Coburn
• Johnny Crawford
• June Lockhart
• Ken Curtis
• Lee Van Cleef
• Lon Chaney, Jr.
• Pernell Roberts
• Robert Blake
• Suzanne Pleshette
• Vincent Price
• Werner Klemperer

Who was Paladin?

Paladin was a West Point graduate, a Civil War cavalry officer, and his base of operations was the Hotel Carlton in San Francisco, California. While it's been too many years since I've watched these episodes, I've read that in the episode entitled "Fandango", Paladin encounters a sheriff who knew him from their Civil War days. The sheriff calls Paladin 'Bobby' and goes on to say, "It's been a long time since Bull Run." Maybe Paladin's real first name was Robert.

Generally, though, the consensus is his real name is never revealed. However, Paladin’s backstory is shown in flashback sequence in the first episode of the last (6th) season, “Genesis”, which aired September 15, 1962. This episode explains how Paladin came by his pseudonym and his subsequent mission to champion the causes of the less fortunate. It isn't his shining moment. Through his actions, another man dies, and Paladin takes on the dead man's identity and mission as a type of penitence to atone for his own actions.

 Read the episode details at the HGWT Website link above.






Until next time,
Kaye Spencer
Writing through history one romance upon a time

Stay in contact with Kay via these venues:

Amazon Author Page | BookBub | Blog | Twitter | Pinterest





Sources:


Tagline - IMDb website: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0050025/

Have Gun, Will Travel website: http://www.hgwt.com/

Have Gun, Will Travel Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Have_Gun_%E2%80%93_Will_Travel

Image: Richard Boone - By CBS Television (eBay item photo front photo back) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/0e/Richard_Boone_Paladin_1962.JPG
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ARichard_Boone_Paladin_1962.JPG

Image: Paladin - By Source, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=33548427

Image: Calling Card - By CBS Publicity; http://www.thrillingdetective.com/paladin.html, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15170596

Image: John Dehner - http://blogs.pjstar.com/mindingbiz/2013/12/23/before-he-was-mr-wilson-he-was-mr-radio-10-tv-stars-who-made-it-big-on-radio/

LIVING AT 14,000 FEET

Post by Doris McCraw
writing as Angela Raines

Okay, unless you live in Peru, Tibet or China, most of us don't and probably wouldn't consider living at 14,000 plus feet. In the United States, there are few mountainous areas that even would qualify or have ground enough for living quarters. Those problems didn't stop the Army Signal Corps from giving it a try in the 1870s.

Yes, Colorado had towns at high altitude. Even today the towns of Alma, Blue River, and Leadville are over 10,000' in elevation.  In 1894 the town of Altman in the Cripple Creek Mining District had an elevation of 10,630', almost 300' higher than Alma. (Altman sat on the south side of Pikes Peak)

Altman, CO. from Western Mining History.
If you look closely you can see the top of Pikes Peak
 in the background.

Alma, CO 1870
courtesy Wikipedia

Although many lived at these altitudes, in 1873 the US Army Signal Corps decided that the top of Pikes Peak would be a great place to build a signal station and have it manned year-round. This would place the men at least 3 to 4000 feet higher than the highest town. To say that Colorado Springs, at the base of the mountain was excited is an understatement. The local paper, The Gazette Telegraph on Oct. 4, 1873, had this to say, "There is every prospect that the new station on Pike's Peak will be in working order within six weeks; as it is hoped that the delay arising from the chief office, misapprehending the difficulties attended on this location, and thereby failing to secure an adequate appropriation, will be quickly remedied.
Once, however, established, it's importance as the highest station in the world cannot be overestimated; and its records and observations will be anxiously scanned by the meteorologist of all countries."

Oh, how the thought of having such a place in their own backyard, so to speak, was exciting to this new town, which had been established two years earlier in 1871. They were excited and wanted bragging rights when the wind at the Mt. Washington station in New Hampshire, with an elevation of only 6,288' only about 200' higher than the town of Colorado Springs, reported one-hundred mph winds. Of course, the paper of Sept. 27,1873, had this to say: "The signal Corps report high wind on the peak on Thursday — the highest they have experienced there. The velocity was fifty miles an hour. The signal Corps on Mount Washington have been reporting a wind of one hundred miles an hour, but our boys intend to beat them yet, even if they have to "blow" themselves."

So excited were the citizens arrange a celebration on the peak to begin Oct 11, 1873. The Gazette published the following program in the Oct 4. 1873 issue:

The following program has been arranged for the ceremonies attending the opening of the signal station on the summit of the peak next Saturday.

Friday, — invited parties expecting to attend the dedication of the US Signal Station, will please meet at 8:00 AM at the Colorado Springs hotel. At 9 AM, starting; arriving at the summit at 5 PM. Tea. Ladies to stay on summit — Gentleman at Camp Howgate the S.S. camp near timberline.

Saturday, — Breakfast. Dedication of the building. Presentation of flag. Photographic view of the ceremonies. Dinner. Remainder of the day employed in amusement and conversation. Tea. Ladies remain on the summit — Gentleman at Camp Howgate overnight.

Sunday morning, — start for Colorado Springs, arrived toward evening. 

The photograph shows Albert James Myer, holding binoculars, and another man standing outside a stone observation station on Pikes Peak, Colorado
Library of Congress photo.

 Of course for the men who would be living there, well that was yet another part of the story. They lived in a building 40'x40' with one wall 11 feet high and the other 9 feet, creating a sloping roof. There was also a 10'x12' foot storeroom built onto the original station. The original staff consisted of six people. There were three in the first crew on top of the mountain and two more in Colorado Springs, and another who had the job of handling supplies. Originally, the weather reports were to be sent using their flashes, but the unpredictable visit ability at the top of the mountain a telegraph line was built.

Although the sun would shine, there were days when the thermometer told another story. In November 1880 a Mr. F. L. Jones, the signal officer stationed at the peak, said that one Tuesday night was one of the coldest ever experienced by him on the peak. The thermometer showing a minimum of 36° below zero during the entire night and at 5 o'clock yesterday morning it was 31° below.

Two left under clouds of suspicion of fraud, while others simply moved on. Of course, one cannot tell the story of the signal station without mentioning O'Keefe. With the aid of a conspirator in Colorado Springs, O'Keefe told some amazing tales about the top of the peak that were printed worldwide. They even went so far as to stage a funeral and headstone to the child of O'Keefe and his wife lost to the large rats that ate the child. Of course, O'Keefe was a bachelor. I did find an interesting article written years later that tells of death at the station. From Dec. 31, 1933, Gazette, the following information was shared from stories told by the early construction workers.

"All went well at the new station during the first few months of occupation. Following the Christmas holidays, the pair reported 'snowing continuously. Wind blowing a perfect gale.' These reports did not vary from day to day. The monotony and steady grind were upon the boys on the peak. About the middle of January Sgt. O'Leary reported his companion as being a very sick man and growing worse. They had been provided with a medical kit, but nothing so far administered had been of any effect and in the daily reports he grew fearful and apprehensive. Sgt. Lamont called in a well-known physician of Colorado Springs and advised with O'Leary what was best to do. O'Leary grew fearful and called for immediate help, admitting at the same time that no man could live long in the blizzard constantly raging on the mountain. Reports from the peak were discouraging; the stricken man had now developed pneumonia and was rapidly sinking. At 3 o'clock one morning O'Leary called up Lamont and sent a cryptic message,' he is dead.' Little was heard from the peak the days following. O'Leary's hand on the key lack the firm touch of his former self. He was evidently laboring under a great mental strain as his nervous spasmodic touch of the key indicated. When asked what he had done with his companion his brief reply was that he had been buried "military." The story went on to say that they had difficulty getting O'Leary down from the top of the mountain. "The three beef hides were lashed together and he was wrapped in blankets and brought down on an improvised sled. At one point the sick man was shot off the sled but without injury." O'Leary's story ended by saying "O'Leary improved physically and mentally, but never became his former self and shortly afterward died in a federal asylum for the insane."

Second Summit House/Cog Railway station
from Wikipedia

The experiment of the signal station ended around 1888. There are still people who travel to the top of the mountain today and you can see the remains of the second signal station building, but no one lives up there year-round.

For those who would like to know more, the early editions of the Gazette and other Colorado Springs publications can be found at Pikes Peak Newsfinder on the PPLD.org website. There is also the book "Weather Pioneers" by Phyllis Smith along with mentions in various older publications found on Google Books and other such sites.

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

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

For a list of Angela Raines Books: Here 

Photo and Poem: Click Here 

Angela Raines FaceBook: Click Here