Pueblo County CO Archives History - Books .....Chapter 3 The City On The Boiling Fountain 1917 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/co/cofiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher http://www.genrecords.net/emailregistry/vols/00001.html#0000031 December 26, 2008, 11:44 pm Book Title: Pathbreakers And Pioneers Of The Pueblo Region CHAPTER III. THE CITY ON THE BOILING FOUNTAIN. The search for gold exerted a greater influence upon the early map-making of America than any other activity in which the early inhabitants ever engaged. The existence of the Spanish power in Mexico, the English in Virginia, the organization of the great state of California and its segregation from the slave holding interests, all were the direct results of the quest for gold. The political map has been influenced more profoundly, however, by the search for gold than by its discovery. It is to a group of gold seekers that the present City of Pueblo owes its origin. It came about in the following manner: In 1849 a band of Cherokee Indians, living at that time in Georgia, hearing of the gold strike in California, decided to visit that region and prospect for gold. Not finding things to their liking they returned. On this westward expedition they passed through the Cherry creek region and discovered strong indications of the presence of placer deposits. Some of their band desired to stop there and make a careful investigation. These Cherokees never forgot this location and in the year 1858, being located then in Southern Kansas, they determined to visit it again and make careful investigation as to the source of these placer deposits. Word was sent to some of their friends, living in Georgia, inviting them to accompany the expedition. In this way, Green Russell, a restless citizen of the South, learned of this proposed expedition and asked permission to join it with a group of his comrades. The request being granted, Russell and his party joined the Cherokee expedition, overtaking it forty miles west of Pawnee Forks in Kansas. The Indians were led by one of their number, George Hicks by name, an Indian of remarkable character. Accompanying this expedition was a Philander Simons, who is responsible for the details of this account. Green Russell was not the leader of the party, as has so often been stated, but occupied a subsidiary position under Hicks. The party wended its way up the Arkansas river past Bent's fort and to a point near the mouth of the St Charles river, but at this point the course was northwest, traversing what from that time became known as the Cherokee cut-off which connected with the Fountain river some ten miles north of Pueblo. Immediately upon their arrival at Cherry Creek these prospectors, whites and Indians alike, began washing for gold. After three days work with but a small quantity of gold to show for their labors, a cloud of gloom settled over the camp. The Indians, being averse by nature to hard work, soon abandoned the purpose which had led them there and began hunting antelope and deer on the present site of Denver. The white members of the party soon scattered in various directions and continued their search for gold. Being unable to locate the source of the placer deposits, most of these prospectors drifted back to the states, Russell remaining, however, throughout the year, "keeping up the excitement by reporting great discoveries and big strikes, which were never made." The unprecedented discoveries of gold in California had prepared the minds of the people for belief in the most fantastic tales of newly found wealth, hence the stories of Green Russell spread abroad in the Missouri river region, to the effect that a rich strike had been made and that this field could be reached without the dreaded journey across the mountains and the Great Basin, electrified the entire country. During this same year six quills of gold were exhibited in Omaha, which tended to confirm these stories, and in a short time the migration to the Pike's Peak region had begun. Our interest centers in a certain party which left St. Louis in the summer of 1858, bound for the gold fields of the Rockies. This party was composed of Josiah F. Smith, Otto Winneka, Frank Doris and George Lebaum. These men took the Santa Fe trail route and followed the Arkansas to the mouth of the Fountain river, at which place the trail forked, one branch extending south over Sangre de Cristo pass and the other extending up the Fountain and across the divide to Cherry creek. These men arrived at a point on the Fountain river, near its confluence with the Arkansas, on the 15th of September and finding it a pleasant location with plenty of grass and firewood, decided to halt for a time an<^ rest their animals. Here they were joined by Captain Wm. H. Green, Wm. Kroenig, Charles and George Peck, Robert Middleton, J. D. Miller, Stephen S. Smith and a few others. Finding that there was grave doubt as to the authenticity of the reports from Cherry creek, and fearing that they would not reach that region in time to make adequate preparation for winter, the party decided to pass the winter on the banks of the Fountain. Strange as it may seem, by the time spring arrived the little band had lost all desire to move on, the gold fever having in a great measure subsided. About thirty cabins had been erected of logs and adobe. Two Missourians, named Cooper and Wing, came and opened a store while two engineers, named Shaffer and Brown, who arrived at the same time, were employed to survey the site of the new town which it had been agreed to establish. The site was duly surveyed and platted by these gentlemen, and the name Fountain City was given it The town was situated just east of the Fountain river, the main street running east and west near what is now known as Damson street. Eighty lodges of Arapahoe Indians were camped near by during the winter and carried on a trade in furs, skins, etc. The two years, 1858 and 1859, gave birth to a notable group of towns in the Pike's Peak region, namely, Denver, Boulder, Idaho Springs, Golden, Nevada City, Central City, El Paso-later called Colorado City-and Fountain City, which was soon to give place to Pueblo. The Pike's Peak region was roughly bounded by the Arkansas river on the south and extended as far north as any one cared to extend his prospecting endeavors, which was seldom beyond Clear creek, but in some instances as far north as the head waters of the Cache la Poudre. The river, upon which the new town was situated, had been known from the earliest times by the French and Spanish, and later by trappers and traders, as the Fontaine qui Bouille, or the Boiling Fountain, its name being derived from the carbonated waters which issue from its source at the present town of Manitou. The region at the mouth of the Fountain river had been long known to the Indians and Mexicans as highly suited for agricultural pursuits. The inhabitants of the old Pueblo fort had carried on farming operations at this place and had, according to reports, succeeded in raising a considerable supply of corn, Mexican beans, pumpkins, etc. It is not surprising, therefore, that the founders of Fountain City were attracted by the promise of rich returns from this little valley and that they chose to remain here and engage in agricultural pursuits, rather than to engage in that more hazardous occupation of gold-seeking. In the spring an old irrigation ditch, which had been formerly used by the Mexicans, was repaired and a small tract of land in the immediate vicinity of the settlement was placed under irrigation. This ditch was taken out of the Fountain near what is now East 12th street and extended south almost to the present site of the old brewery. Later it rounded the point and furnished water for the Goldsmith ranch. A large acreage of vegetables and some corn were planted, which experiment proved a real "bonanza" to these erstwhile prospectors. The season in the Arkansas valley being about two weeks earlier than in Denver, gave these newly-arrived agriculturists of Fountain City a very decided advantage over the farmers of the Cherry creek region. The products of their gardens were hauled to Denver where they arrived ahead of similar products in that locality and fabulous prices were received. Much of their produce, however, was sold to gold-seekers passing through the town on their way to Denver. It is singular that these men were contented to remain here on the banks of the Fountain when there was a constant stream of humanity passing by, bound for Denver. The explanation offered by one of the founders of Fountain City to the writer may help to a better understanding of their action. "It was so easy to live in those days," said he, "that there was no desire on our part to push on. Buffalo, venison and fish were so plentiful that very little effort was required to procure meat; corn and vegetables were raised with ease, and as for clothing, there were plenty of canvas sacks to be had, which, with a little ingenuity, could be fashioned into crude clothing. Our land and houses cost us nothing and our living being assured, we were not anxious to leave this place for the hurly-burly of a mining camp." These men were not at all times immune to the gold-fever, however, for in the spring of 1860 when the secret of the great strike in California Gulch, now Leadville, was disclosed, the temptation was too strong for these farmers to resist and a grand exodus from Fountain City took place. But the announcement of the discovery of fabulous wealth at that place was premature by a period of seventeen years, hence these Fountainites along with about 6,000 others silently withdrew, wiser but not wealthier. Most of those who left Fountain City at this time returned in the fall. It is difficult to form any adequate conception of the seething mass of humanity that started pell-mell across the plains when the Pike's Peak excitement was at high tide. During the summer of 1860 there occurred one of the largest migrations that ever took place in the history of the country. During the month of May it was estimated that there were 11,000 wagons on their way to the gold regions of Colorado, vast numbers of which moved by way of the Santa Fe trail and the Fountain river. The soil upon which Fountain City was located was a part of Kansas Territory, but the people of the entire Pike's Peak region soon began to take steps looking toward a more effective government than could be given them from the almost unorganized territory of Kansas. These hardy pioneers, led by a small group of men in Denver, decided that a new territory should be organized embracing this new region. Accordingly, in the fall of 1859, even before there was any assurance that there was anything in this region to support a permanent population, and when there were not more than two thousand people in the entire Pike's Peak region, an election was held to form a provisional government and to select a set of officers for the new Territory of Jefferson. It is stated by an early writer that so enthusiastic did the citizens of Fountain City become over the possibility of "home government," that although there were but twenty-five legal voters in the town, when the ballot box was opened there were 1,500 ballots cast, all for one set of candidates. Much as the citizens of the Pike's Peak region desired to form a government of their own, it was not until 1861 that Congress gave heed to their importunities and authorized the organization of the Territory of Colorado. These people, soon numbering high in the thousands, would have been left practically without a government, had not that ancient Anglo-Saxon instinct for self-government asserted itself. It was not possible for these hardy pioneers to await the slow action of the federal government to provide a code and a set of duly appointed officers, but with the true colonial spirit inherited from their pre-Revolutionary ancestry, these men stood ready to substitute what was lacking in the general code. People's courts sprang up in every locality, meting out stern justice to law breakers and effectively safeguarding the rights of society. It is true, that in some instances the hand of lawlessness held sway for a short time, but eventually law and order prevailed. Probably no other people on the face of the globe could have met under similar circumstances and have established law and order so effectively and with such apparent ease as did these resolute frontiersmen. The stern purpose of these men is indicated in the following extract from the constitution of a nearby town, organized in 1860: "Whereas, it sometimes becomes necessary for persons to associate themselves together for the purpose of such as the protection of life and property; and as we have left the peaceful shades of civilization- left friends and homes for the purpose of bettering our own condition, we therefore associate ourselves together under the name of the 'Arkansas Valley Claim Club' and adopt the following constitution." The serious determination of these men would brook no interference in their endeavor to establish such institutions here in the west as would guarantee them the same happiness as had been theirs to enjoy before leaving "the peaceful shades of civilization." Their emergency courts were not harassed by the technicalities of our modern courts of justice and from their decisions there was no appeal. The principle which governed these men of the Pike's Peak region, and which was the basis of action of the Oregon pioneers and the California gold seekers, was set forth by W. N. Byers in one of the earliest numbers of the Rocky Mountain News: "We claim that any body or community of American citizens, which from any cause or under any circumstances is cut off from, or from isolation is so situated as not to be under any active and protecting branch of the central government, have a right, if on American soil, to frame a government, and enact such laws and regulations as may be necessary for their own safety, protection and happiness, always with the consideration precedent, that they shall at the earliest moment when the central government shall extend an effective organization and laws over them, give it their unqualified support and obedience." No clearer or more logical statement of the rights of the people to inaugurate democratic governments could be made, than that quoted above. Fountain City is described by Stephen S. Smith, one of its founders, as consisting of a group of houses composed mostly of adobe, situated on one single street extending directly west from the base of what is now known as "Sugar Loaf" hill, which was the "washed rock" of Fowler's description. This historic landmark known as "Sugar Loaf," deserves to be better known to Pueblo citizens than it is. It was probably very much higher almost a century ago when Jacob Fowler camped at its base, as its formation indicates that it is undergoing rapid erosion. Fowler often used it as a lookout post to guard his camp against attacks by the Indians. He suggested that the table land nearby would be an excellent location for a fort. The residents of Fountain City used this rock for an entirely different purpose, according to Mr. Smith. A board would often times be hung on the west face of its summit as a target and the idlers on the streets would try their skill with long-range rifles, often shooting from as far west as the banks of the Fountain. Mr. Smith assured the writer that there were not a few among their number who could "hit the bulls eye at 400 yards." Fountain City, the "oasis of the desert," refused to grow; with the opening of 1860 its population began to dwindle, and although a few of its original inhabitants lingered on for several years, the town was doomed to an early death and in a few years it existed as a mere memory in the minds of Pueblo citizens, the constantly overflowing of the Fountain river having obliterated the last vestige of this "City on the Boiling Fountain." Additional Comments: Extracted from: Pathbreakers and Pioneers of the Pueblo Region Comprising A History of Pueblo from the Earliest Times By MILO LEE WHITTAKER THE FRANKLIN PRESS COMPANY 1917 File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/co/pueblo/history/books/pathbrea/chapter329nms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/cofiles/ File size: 16.6 Kb