On Highway 133, near Redstone, Colorado, a memorial plaque reads: This monument stands in tribute to the miners of Coal Basin, who confronted adversity and proved themselves resourceful, innovative and intrepid. We honor their achievements and their sacrifices, remembering in particular those brave, good men whose lives were lost in the mines … Placed with […]
Sue Gray
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Historiography: The Politics of Water
Turn on the tap, water pours out. We take it for granted. But our water was hard-fought in the early 20th century by some of the Roaring Fork Valley’s legendary champions of water rights. In the late 1880s, Glenwood Springs attorney Edward T. Taylor dealt mainly with cases involving land and water issues. Particularly concerned […]
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Historiography: The last picture show
“Carbondale History, 1887-1976,” by the Carbondale Study Club (1976): In the early days of the town, there was a motion picture theater on the north side of Main Street [351 Main, now The Pour House]. Every week there was a show … on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Admission was 10 cents for children and 15 or […]
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Historiography: Summer Christmases of years past
Trail and Timberline (Denver), Jan. 1, 1927: Due to an inconsiderate spirit as far as Father Winter has been concerned, we are all lamenting a lack of snow up to the present time. In the late 1800s, Norwegian immigrants introduced America to snowshoeing, or skiing as we call it today. Ever since, annual snowfall has […]
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Historiography: Bountiful ladies of Carbondale
Alma Osgood, the wife of mining magnate John C. Osgood, founder of Redstone, was known as “Lady Bountiful” by the town’s residents because she lavished them with gifts, especially during the holidays. Carbondale’s equivalent was Mary Jane Francis, a wealthy widow from Philadelphia who bought the Bull Dog Mine on Avalanche Creek. She helped found […]
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Historiography: We shall fall as the leaves
The Meeker Massacre, as it is known in Colorado history, was the final straw for the U.S. Government in its territorial struggle with the Ute tribes, leading to expulsion from their Colorado homeland. Famously, the “Meeker Incident” as it’s referred to by the Utes, culminated in a small band of rebels taking women and children […]
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Historiography: Carbondale, King of Spuds
The Glenwood Post, Oct. 9, 1909: Carbondale is … announcing that her people will hold a mammoth “Potato Show”… on Saturday, October 23. She promises great times for all … and says she will have a grand barbecue … potato races, a [lady’s] nail-driving contest, pony races and dancing … Since Carbondale leads the world […]
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Historiography: Colorado’s queer history
The Gilpin Observer, Dec. 5, 1907: Trinidad, Colorado — Katherine Vosbaugh, an eccentric Frenchwoman of brilliant attainments, died here the other day at the age of 83, after masquerading for 60 years as a man. The woman donned trousers when a girl and had a horror of skirts up to the time of her death […]
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Helping pollinators and reducing water use at Thompson House Park
Editor’s note: Sue Gray is a member of Bee Friendly Carbondale. The bees are busy in the new 1,600-square-feet demonstration pollinator garden at the Thompson House Museum History Park in Carbondale. Along with a plethora of honeybees, several species of wild bees, wasps, moths, beetles, butterflies and hummingbirds are visiting their favorite pollen-producing plants, which […]
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Historiography: Teddy Roosevelt — The Conservation President
For over a century, big game hunters have been coming to the rugged mountains of Western Colorado to escape their stressful everyday lives and lose their cares in the primal pursuit of deer, elk, sheep, lion and bear. In 1905, Jake Borah was a successful hunting guide in the Glenwood Springs area. Most of his […]