Boulder's Sesquicentennial Celebration

Founding of Boulder, February 10, 1859

2008-04-29T17:25:00.004-06:00

From the City of Boulder web site.

Gold seekers established the first non-native settlement in Boulder County on October 17, 1858 at Red Rocks near the entrance to Boulder Canyon. Less than a year later, on February 10, 1859, the Boulder City Town Company was organized by A.A. Brookfield, the first president, and 56 shareholders. Four thousand forty-four lots were laid out at a purchase price of $1,000 each, a price that was later lowered in order to attract more residents.

At this time, Boulder was apart of Nebraska Territory and remained so until February 28, 1861, when Colorado became a territory.

Flatirons Photo - 1950's

2008-04-28T09:40:00.009-06:00

One of the most photographed areas in Boulder include the Flatirons. I was born in Boulder and could not begin to count how many photos of these beautiful rocks in our Rocky Mountain foothills that I have seen. Yet, there are no two photos of the Flatirons alike. Send me your photos of the flatirons and we will post them on our blog. This photo is a post card that my mother had purchased in the 1950's. She loved sending postcards of Boulder to our family from out of town. So send a post card to your loved ones and invite them to Boulder for our Sesquicentennial Celebration!

How did Pearl Street get it's name?

2008-04-28T09:25:00.002-06:00

Positively Pearl St. Sylvia Pettem 2007
From "Introduction: Who was Pearl?"

For as long as anyone can remember, residents and visitors in Boulder, Colorado have asked, Who was Pearl? In 1859 when Boulder's main thoroughfare was named, a collection of a few log cabins was a frontier town for gold prospectors in the mountains to the west - not a likely place to find a gem from the sea.

The prospectors were all men. At the time, the wives of the original party remained in the East or Midwest. In February of 1859, prospector A. A. Brookfield wrote a letter home to his wife Emma. He stated, "We thought that as the weather would not permit us to mine, we would lay out and commence to build what may be an important town."

Pearl Street is the heart of our very important town, Boulder, Colorado. To date, it is unknown who Pearl Street is named for. Do you know? Please e-mail us if you do.

Bouder's Beginnings 1858

2008-04-26T07:24:00.005-06:00

Boulder, Evolution of a city. (Revised Ed.) Silvia Pettem. 2006
From the forward by Liston E. Leyendecker, 1994.

Boulder received it's start in the late fall of 1858 when gold rush participants erected log cabins for shelter just below the mouth of Boulder Canyon. In January of 1859, these newcomers ventured 12 miles further west and 3,000 miles higher up to locate the mining camp of Gold Hill. Their tiny settlement at the canyon's entrance served as a supply point for people entering or leaving the newly found gold region.

Posted by Donlyn A. Arbuthnot, descendant of Carson Arbuthnot, 1859 Gold Hill Miner

Boulder's First Officials

2007-09-18T22:37:00.000-06:00

From the Boulder Daily Camera, 28 June 1933:
County Judge 1861 - 1863, P M Housel
County Clerk and Recorder 1861 - 1863, Amander Barker
County Treasurer, 1861 - 1862, G W Chambers
County Sheriff, 1861 - 1862, William A Corson
County Assessor, 1861, E S Glotfelter
County Superintendant of Schools, 1863 - 1864, Amos Widner
County Commissioner, took office 13 Dec 1861, Darius P Walling
County Commissioner, took office 18 Dec 1861, H N Coffey
County Commissioner, took office 21 Dec 1861, T J Graham

1867 Petition to move the County Seat to Boulder

2007-09-09T22:38:00.000-06:00

From the Colorado State Archives, in 1867 hundreds of Boulder citizens petitioned the County Clerk to move the county seat to Boulder. Among the petitions was a request to create a polling place in Valmont as the current polling place at John H Hughes' place was nearly 3 miles away.

Coal Discovered in Marshall in 1859

2007-08-30T19:29:00.000-06:00

From "Walking Through History on Marshall Mesa," by Joanna Sampson, City of Boulder Open Space Department:

"In 1859 William Kitchens discovered coal in the area. He named his discovery the Washington Lode, and it was used as a wagon mine by early settlers. A wagon mine was just what the name implied: clients drove their teams and wagons to the mine, loaded the coal they needed for domestic use, and hauled it home to burn in heating stoves and kitchen ranges.
Joseph Marshall and wealthy associates saw the potential in developing a lucrative mining operation. Marshall purchased the Washington Lode from William and Nancy Kitchens in 1866 and then applied for ownership of the remaining coal lands. In 1868 he obtained a United States Land Grant, signed by President Andrew Johnson, that gave him legal rights to all coal lands around Marshall."

In 1873, Arch Marvine, geologist with the Hayden survey team wrote: "Marshall Mine on the east side of the valley of the South Bowlder (sic) Creek about 5 miles SE of Bowlder City was amont the earliest worked in Colorado."

An Early Death in Boulder

2007-08-25T21:10:00.000-06:00

From "A Look at Boulder from Settlement to City," by Phyllis Smith, 1981.

In 1852, the John Snodgrass family of KY was overtaken by indians en route to Oregon. Indians killed Mrs Snodgrass and kidnapped her daughter Josephine who was called "Gypsy" or "Gyp" by her family. She escaped near the green rocks at the mouth of Sunshine Canyon but she was cut down by an arrow before she could reach safety. Her name "Gyp" is carved on the rock and and can still be seen today.

Early Forts near Boulder

2007-08-25T21:07:00.000-06:00

From "A Look at Boulder from Settlement to City" by Phyllis Smith, 1981:

Four fur-trapping and trading forts were built along the South Platte River

1835 - Fort Vasquez was established by Louis Vasquez and Andrew Sublette
1836 - Fort Lupton established by Lancaster P Lupton
1837 - Fort Jackson established by mountain men Henry Fraeb and Peter A Sorby
1839 - Fort Lookout, later Fort St Vrain was established by Ceran St Vrain

Early Stage Stop Established

2007-08-25T20:54:00.000-06:00

George Henry Church established an Overland Stage stop near present day 104th and Wadsworth in 1864. He built a 12 room house to meet the needs of travelers. President Grant and his daughter Nellie stayed there on their way to Central City. Wells Fargo discontinued the stage route to Churches Crossing in 1868, but they continued to serve the "bull whackers" -- the ox team drivers coming through the area.

-- Gem of the Mountain Valley: a History of Broomfield by Laura L Spitler and Lou Walter, 1975.

Early Boulder Facts

2007-08-16T21:10:00.000-06:00

My latest contribution to the calendar comes courtesy of Ghost Towns Colorado Style by Kenneth Jessen:

15 Jan 1859, in Gold Hill was the first gold strike by James Clouser, James Aiken and three others.

23 July 1859, the Horsfall lode was discovered by William Blore, M L McCaslin and David Horsfal.

2007-08-13T19:33:00.000-06:00

Here are some examples of other city's Sesquicentennial logos:

Establishing Towns in Boulder County

2007-08-12T12:59:00.000-06:00

I thought it might be interesting to see when the different towns in Boulder County, so from the "Atlas of Colorado Ghost Towns," by Leanne C Boyd and H Glenn Carson, we have:

Allen's Park, est 1870 on Alonzo Allen's Homestead
Altona, shown in the census of 1860
Balarat, est 1875 along with the Smuggler Mine
Bloomerville, no date, mining camp south of Camp Frances
Bluebird, no date, mining camp NE of Caribou
Boettcher, no date - a RR stop 2 mi N of Longmont
Boone's Stage Station, no date on Boulder Creek halfway between Church's station in Jefferson Cty (near Broomfield) and St Vrain Station (near Longmont)
Boulder City, est 1859, became the county seat in 1861, incorporated 1871
Boulder Diggins, no date, near Gold Hill
Broomfield, granted a Post Office (P.O.) 1890
Burlington, granted P.O. 1862
Burke, no date, SE of Valmont
Burns, no date, RR Junction NW of Broomfield
Camp Albion, est 1861
Camp Enterprise, no date 4.5 mi W of Jamestown
Camp Frances, no date, S of Ward
Camp Jimtown, first cabin 1861
Camp Lyon, no date, near Sunshine in Sand Gulch
Camp Providence (aka John Day Camp), est 1875, 3 mi SW of Jamestown
Canfield, platted in 1875, granted P.O. 1878
Capitol Hill, platted 1907, 1 mi SE of Lafayette
Cardinal City (aka Old Cardinal), est 1870, 2 mi below Caribou
Caribou (aka Caribou City), est 1868
Chapman, no date, RR stop 2 mi NW of Hygiene
Clarkston, platted 1887, along the DU&P RR line
Clifton, no date, a RR stop on the Union Pacific line 6 mi E of Boulder
Cooper City, on an 1887 map
Copper Rock, no date, 1890s mining camp and RR stop
Crescent, no date, W of Eldorado Springs
Crisman, est 1874 (The Logan Mine in Crisman was the County's richest)
Davidson, platted 1874, near Louisville
East Lake, no date, between Broomfield and Lafayette
Eldora (aka Eldorado City, Eldorado Camp, Happy Valley), est 1896
Eldorado Springs (aka Hawthorne), est 1904
Eversman, no date, RR stop on the Burlington Northern about 3 mi S of Lafayette
Fisher, no date, RR stop on the DU&P about 5 mi S of Longmont
Fort Chambers, no date, E of Valmont, established during the Indian uprising of 1861-1864
Fourth of July Camp, est 1875, NW of Eldora
Glendale, est 1880, in Left Hand Canyon 2 mi beyond Jamestown
Gold Hill, est 1859 (considered the state's first permanent camp)
Gold Hill Station, no date, just beyond Mt Alta, RR was never built to the station
Gold Lake, 1860s, planned as a resort, but never built
Goodview, 5 mi east of Boulder near Valmont, no date
Grand Island, no date, 3 mi beyond Hessie on Boulder Creek
Gresham, no date, NW of Jamestown
Hessie, no date 2 mi W of Eldora
Highland, no date, RR stop on the C&S about 6 mi N of Longmont
Honeymoon House, no date, on a date between Sunset and Gold Hill
Hygiene (aka North Pella), est 1861
Irvington, platted 1905, near Lafayette
Jamestown, (aka Elysian Park), est 1864
Lafayette, est 1888
Lakeside, platted 1923, on C&S RR between Boulder and Broomfield
Lakewood, no date, near Nederland
Liggett, no date, RR stop on the Union Pacific about 6 mi E of Boulder
Longmont, est 1871
Lost Lake Camp, no date, SW of Hessie near the lake
Louisville, est 1878
Lyons, est 1882
Magnolia, est 1875
Marshall (aka Langford, Gorham), est 1878
Mary City, 1890s, S of Eldora
Mitchell, no date, RR stop on the DU&P about 1 mi S of Erie
Moray, no date, RR stop on C&S about 3 mi N of Longmont
Mount Alta, no date, RR stop on Switzerland Trail
Nederland (aka Middle Boulder, Brownville), est 1877
New Cardinal, no date, near Cardinal City
Newmarket, no date 2 mi W of Jamestown
Niwot (aka Nawat, Modoc), est 1872
Noland, platted 1890, just W of Erie
Orodelfan (aka Orodel, Maxwell's Mill, Hortonville, Hunt's Concentration Works), no date
Peabody's Hot Springs (aka Springdale), 1870s, resort at the top of the gulch near Springdale
Pella, 1860s, near Hygiene
Pinecliffe (aka Gato), est 1900
Primos, no date, gold camp 2 mi NE of Lakewood
Puzzler, no date, RR station E of Ward
Quiggleyville, no date, E of Ward
Raymond (aka Raymond Ranch, Raymonds), est 1895
Red Rock, abt 1858, first mountain camp in the Boulder area
Rowena (aka Rockville), no date, near Gold Hill down the Lickskillet Gulch
Ryssby, est 1872
Saint Vrain Stage Stop, late 1850s, a stage stop on the Overland Stage
Saint Vrain, platted 1887
Salina (aka Camp Salina), est 1874
Sugarloaf, est 1860
Sulphide Flats, no date, near Eldora
Summerville, no date, between Salina and Gold Hill
Sunset, heyday in the 1890s, no establishment date given
Sunshine, est 1873
Superior, platted 1895
Switzerland Park, no date, resort and mining camp N of Boulder Creek
Tellurium, no date 1 mi from Sunshine
Tolcott, no date, E of Ward near Quiggleysville
Tower Junction, no date, RR stop on Burlington Northern 1 mi SE of Lyons
Tungsten (aka Steven's Camp, Ferberite), now mostly covered by Barker Reservoir, no date
Valmont, est 1859, granted P.O. 1865
Wall Street (aka Delphi), 1860s
Ward (aka Columbia, Columbia City), est 1896, although Miser's Dream Mine was established on the site in 1860
White Rock, no date, RR stop on the Union Pacific about 7 mi E of Boulder
Williamsburg (aka Switchville), 1870s, RR station below the Peak to Peak

Boulder establishes a Chamber of Commerce

2007-08-10T19:12:00.000-06:00

Calendar contribution:

On Feb 23, 1872, the Boulder Chamber of Commerce was established with the Honorable J P Maxwell, Chairman, the Honorable T J Graham, Secretary, and members Captain D H Nichols, Judge Seth Terry (President of the Chicago-Colorado Colony), the Honorable J H Wells, and Alpheus Wright. At that time, they established a Board of Immigration. Yes, they were looking to influence more people to come to the Boulder Valley to live and work. Boulder County News

Welcome to the Boulder Sesquicentennial Blog

2007-08-08T11:27:00.000-06:00

Hello Committee,

I thought that we might all make use of this blog to gather information for the 150th celebration. Here's a place where we can share ideas, leave tidbits of information, list items that need followup, etc.

Here's my first contribution to the calendar: On 17 Feb 1869 the Boulder Baseball Club was formed with members E J Anderson, Capt., Henry Green, T J Graham, D A Robinson and G H Tourtellot.

Dina