Produced by Stephen Hutcheson and the Online Distributed
Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
[Illustration: PICTURE ON COVER--is part of one of the two remaining
fire walls still left standing at the Old Marble Mill Site in
Marble, Colo. Sheep Mountain can be seen through the door way and
White House Mountain at right. Jeep tours can be taken to the tops
of these peaks for very extensive sight-seeing trips.
--_Photo by_ Will L. Francis]
_Crystal River Saga_
LORE OF THE COLORADO ROCKIES
by THERESA V. FRANCIS
Price $1.25
CRYSTAL RIVER SAGA
_Come up a mile where the air is pure,
Where the skies are clear and blue;
Come up above the smoke and dust,
Where good health waits for you._
--Author Unknown
[Illustration: Western Slope of the Central COLORADO ROCKIES
Showing in Particular the FISHING STREAMS and RECREATIONAL AREAS of Famous
GUNNISON COUNTY
_Compiled by_ WILL L. FRANCIS]
INTRODUCING THE AUTHOR
Probably no town in the world has experienced more dramatic changes in a
lifetime, than has the quarry town of Marble, Colo. and one of the few
living persons who knows the story of each phase of Marble's history is
Theresa Herman Francis. She and her husband, Bill, now spend only the
summers (winters in Tucson, Ariz.) in the white and green house in
Marble that was her year 'round home for 33 years.
One of the town's active citizens during the 20's and 30's when the
population of Marble numbered in the thousands, Theresa changed her life
very little when Marble became a ghost town in 1945. Although living
alone in town most of the time, she did not become a recluse, but
remained the same cheerful, energetic, neighborly person she had always
been. By hard work and ingenious use of materials familiar to her
through the years of teaching arts and crafts in the Marble and other
schools, she established an independent living for herself. By patiently
and accurately answering dozens of questions thousands of times, and by
friendly help to all of the people who stopped at her roadside stand
every summer, Theresa has made many friends for herself and for Marble.
By her enthusiasm for, and faith in the future of Marble, she has done
more than any other person toward bringing her beloved town back to
life.
Half in fun, half in tribute, Loey Rinquist of Aspen, Colo. once began a
Christmas card to her, "Dear Mrs. Marble." It is "Mrs. Marble" herself
who has written the story of Marble for you. Her long teaching
experience, and her years of answering questions for tourists, have
prepared her to answer all of your questions, herein exactly as they
have occurred.
This booklet will serve as guide, and be an interesting and accurate
record of your trip through beautiful and historic Crystal River Valley.
Marian M. Paschal
Marble and Fort Collins, Colo.
La Paz, Bolivia, South America
[Illustration: CHAIR MOUNTAIN, CRYSTAL RIVER AND HIGHWAY--just above
Hays Creek Falls, nine miles below Marble. Lower road was the
Crystal River & San Juan railroad bed, converted to a road in 1945.
The upper road (Bunker Hill road) was used for general
transportation prior to this time. Beautiful Chair Mountain, covered
with snow, can be seen in the background.
--_Photo courtesy_ John B. Schutte, Glenwood Spgs., Colo.]
_Crystal River Saga
Lore
of the
Colorado
Rockies_
_Author_
THERESA V. FRANCIS
_in association with_
Will L. Francis
MARBLE _via_
Carbondale, Colorado
U. S. A.
COPYRIGHT © 1959
_by_
Theresa V. Francis _and_ Will L. Francis
MARBLE _via_
CARBONDALE, COLORADO
1st Edition, 1959, 5,000 Copies
2nd Edition, 1962, 5,000 Copies
3rd Edition, 1966, 5,000 Copies
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form
without permission in writing from the publishers, except by a reviewer
who may quote brief passages in an article to be published in a magazine
or newspaper.
[Illustration: HOME OF THE AUTHOR--She has lived in this house since
coming to Marble in 1923.
--_Photo courtesy_ Glen L. Gebhardt, Denver, Colo.]
Printed in the United States of America
POERTNER LITHOGRAPHING CO.
DENVER, COLO.
PRELUDE
I came to Marble, Colo. in 1923 while it was still a very active
thriving little city. My first husband, Theodore (Ted) A. Herman, worked
in the marble mill almost twenty years: then after a few years sickness
he died, and I remained a widow over eleven years, never leaving Marble
except for brief visits with relatives. Many times during these winters
I was the only person in town, yet I was never bored or afraid. The
telephone company kept my phone in good working order and I received my
mail three times a week. I had a good radio, loved to read, write
letters, and do my pyro-plastic work to sell at the stand (Ken's Pop
Stand) during the summers. This stand was started by my grandson,
Kenneth E. Herman, in 1948, as a nestegg for his college education. When
I quit teaching school in 1952, we ran it together until 1956 when he
graduated from South High School in Denver and felt he must find a more
lucrative job. I have run it alone since.
In late 1956 I married again and now spend my summers in Marble and
winters in Tucson, Ariz., where my husband is a Linotype operator on a
Tucson daily paper. It is our earnest desire to spend the rest of our
lives in Marble after he retires.
In attempting to compile a history of the Crystal River Valley I have
accumulated such a vast amount of interesting material that it would be
impossible to condense it into a booklet of 10,000 words. So I have
decided to write a brief history of the various locales and answer the
questions most often asked at the pop stand. Then after another year or
two of research I'll try to write a book containing a more detailed
history and memoirs of the many interesting people who have lived in the
valley, if I feel the public would like such a volume.
If this little booklet has given you some pleasure and knowledge of this
marvelous valley, then it has accomplished its purpose and I am happy. I
am sure that once you have visited this portion of the western slope and
know its history you will love it as I do.
Theresa V. Francis
[Illustration: THE DEVIL'S PUNCH BOWLS--half way between Schofield
and Crystal City. The road is to the right, high above these falls.
--_Photo courtesy_ Colin L. Moore, Gunnison, Colo.]
_CRYSTAL RIVER SAGA_
One of the most beautiful rivers in Colorado has its source at Schofield
Pass high above Elko Basin and Schofield Park. It is fed by melting snow
and many crystal clear springs, hence the name Crystal River. And it
does not belie its name, as, excepting a few weeks in the spring when
melting snow along its lower tributaries gives it a roily turbulent
appearance, it is truly crystal clear.
_SCHOFIELD_
_The Flower Garden of the Rockies_
(_Elevation Approximately 10,000 feet_)
Schofield has been called "The flower garden of the Rockies" and rightly
so. It is carpetted with multifarious species of flowers, ranging from
the delicate snow flowers and Alpine mosses through several shades of
Indian paint brushes, blue and purple lupines, and wild roses to the
lusty sunflowers. It is especially beautiful in July and August when
there are literally hundreds of acres of blue, purple, lavender, gold,
and brown columbines.
In the early 1870s gold, silver, copper, lead, zinc, and galina were
found in this region, so naturally a mining camp mushroomed over night
into a village of 50 or 60 houses. These were the regular camp-style
buildings with no foundations, resembling huge packing boxes. There was
also a store, hotel, concentration mill, and several saloons. While its
population sometimes soared into the thousands, it was a transit, moving
people, living mostly in tents and always looking for better prospects.
Frank Hall's "State of Colorado," Vol. IV, page 150, date 1895, has this
to say about this mining camp:
"Schofield was surveyed and platted August 24, 1879, by J. Evans for a
company composed of Daniel Haines, S. H. Baker, B. F. Schofield (for
whom it was named), H. G. Ferris, Wm. Agee, E. D. Baker, A. H.
Slossen, and G. Edwards. It is located on Rock Creek (now called
Crystal River) between Elko Basin and Crystal City, eight miles
northwest of Gothic, and some 40 miles west of Gunnison. It never was
a camp of much importance, though a central station for a number of
prospectors."
General Grant is supposed to have ridden into Schofield on a white mule
when he was campaigning for the U. S. presidency. Some of the
prospectors tried to sell him some mining claims; being unsuccessful in
that, they attempted to get him into a poker game and lose a claim to
him so they could boast, "The President of the United States owns mining
property in Schofield." But they weren't proficient enough in "stacking
the cards" to deal him a winning hand. Wishing to show him the grandeur
of the canyon they took him where he could look down into the Devil's
Punch Bowls and told him it was called the "SOB Canyon." He agreed it
was appropriately named but suggested a name that would be even harder
to beat, "The Schultz Canyon." Schultz being his political opponent at
the time.
Schofield flourished for 12 or 14 years, then they decided the cost of
transportation was far more than the mineral mined warranted, so in 1886
practically the entire town was moved down the valley four miles and
Crystal City was started. Schofield became truly a "ghost town."
It has always been easier to enter Schofield from Crested Butte than
from Crystal, but now with the opening of a jeep road between Schofield
and Crystal City all that has been changed and today a new Schofield is
in the making. This time it is to be a 40-acre tract of modern buildings
containing a 24-housing unit, a motel, and a store. None of the
over-night constructed mining shacks this time, but modern log cabins
built to withstand the elements at this nearly 10,000 foot elevation.
Leaving Schofield, the Crystal River goes through some of the most
spectacular scenery in the world. It runs down a ravine 50 feet below
the road, over boulders, through crevices, always in a hurry, it plunges
over a ledge into the Little Devils Punch Bowl, then it cascades over
another ledge making an impressive waterfall as it drops into the Big
Devils Punch Bowl many feet below, where it seethes and swirls trying to
find a way out to go on down the canyon.
The trail above the river was used as a wagon road from the early 1880s
to about 1917. John A. Williams drove a team of mules over it in 1911
hauling supplies for the Williams General Store in Crystal. Anton Danni
drove a supply wagon over it in 1916. The following item was taken from
the _Marble Booster_ newspaper, Aug. 12, 1916:
"Tom Boughton, John J. Walsh, D. E. Dever, and Chas. Sisteg, elected
at a caucus to represent Marble as delegates to the Democratic County
Convention which convened at Gunnison Monday, left here early last
Sunday morning, via Crystal (Schofield Pass) driving (horses) most of
the distance and enjoying a motor ride the rest of the way."
These are the last authentic accounts of this wagon road being used I
can find; so presume it was closed by rock slides shortly after this
date. Over 40 years passed before this scenic part of Colorado was again
made available to travel, mainly through the efforts of Gunnison County
Commissioner Anton Danni and his road overseer who made several trips
from Schofield to Crystal City, on foot, to see if it were possible, and
feasible, to open a jeep road. They decided it was and on Aug. 5, 1958,
after many months of hard work, the first jeeps came through from
Crested Butte to Marble. In 1959 they hope to improve the road enough to
permit passenger cars to come down; but no vehicle without a 4-wheel
drive could make the trip up the canyon.
The first group to make the trip over the new road was composed of the
following people:
Mr. and Mrs. W. P. Cain Almont, Colo.
Mr. and Mrs. Bart Cox Almont, Colo.
Mr. and Mrs. John Ramsey Almont, Colo.
Mr. and Mrs. R. A. Gauby Santa Monica, Calif.
Mrs. Jane Schmidt Almont, Colo.
Mrs. C. Haase Almont, Colo.
Mr. and Mrs. I. Fifer Lake Forest, Ill.
Mr. and Mrs. O. W. Shumate Milwaukee, Wis.
Leaving the punch bowls the river runs another mile and a half before
the North Fork from Lead King Basin joins it. This tributary drains
another scenic valley. Snowmass Peak (14,077 ft. El.), Maroon Peak
(14,158 ft.) and Hagerman Peak can be seen in the background. Beautiful
trails wind through the various draws leading to Geneva Lake and the
Maroon Belles where fishing is at its best. This is also a highly
mineralized valley: silver, copper, lead, and zinc predominating. The
Copper King, 20th Century, Winchester, El Negroero and half of the
Richardson, all located in this basin, belong to Lee Sperry of the
Ragged Mountain district.
[Illustration: CRYSTAL CITY MAIN STREET--Crystal Club, printing
office, and hotel are some of the buildings still standing.
--_Photo courtesy_ John B. Schutte, Glenwood Spgs., Colo.]
_CRYSTAL, The Miners' Ideal Camp_
(_Elevation Approximately 9,000 Feet_)
One half mile beyond the junction of the North Fork with the Crystal
River it reaches the little hamlet of Crystal City, magnificently
located in a small dale surrounded by several lofty peaks: Sheep
Mountain, Mineral Point, Crystal Peak, Bear Mountain (the one covered
with tall pines), White House, and Treasure Peaks. Crystal City was
another typical mining town of 70 houses, several general stores, a
school house (still standing), Crystal Club (still standing) and several
other saloons, a newspaper--_The Silver Lance_ followed by _The Crystal
River Current_ (still standing), a concentration mill and a smelter. The
peak of its population was about 650 inhabitants (some say 2,000). While
a railroad was never completed from Crested Butte, a telegraph line was
installed. John Davisson, now of 855 Elm St., Grand Junction, Colo.,
patrolled this line on snowshoes as "trouble shooter" during the Winters
of 1906-'07-'08.
The demonitization of silver in 1893 and the inability to get adequate
means of transportation for lead, zinc, and other ores, the town of
Crystal City was practically depopulated soon after the turn of the
century until 1916. Then it again looked as if the prospectors' dream
might come true: the population again rose to several hundred; the Lead
King mine, the Black Queen mine, and the Sheep Mountain tunnel were
reopened; the smelter and concentration mill were reconditioned; a
blacksmith shop, cook house, and bunk houses were located two miles
above Crystal City on Rock Creek. But by the middle of 1917 everything
again shut down and the people drifted away.
Aug. 25, 1917, _Marble Booster_ newspaper:
"Crystal mines are in their infancy. It would take a million men a
thousand years to exhaust the hills up that way of their silver,
copper, lead and zinc."
Many interesting stories are told of the early days in Crystal City by
some of its first settlers. One told by F. W. (Dad) Reyland was that one
wintery day when the snow had drifted above the doors of many of the
buildings, they decided to liven things up a bit by having a dance. Now
the dance hall was one of the buildings completely covered by snow. So
they decided to tunnel in to the door, making niches in the sides of the
tunnel in the snow every few feet in which to anchor candles to guide
the guests to the dance hall. The dance was a huge success and stirred
the town out of its boredom.
Another was told by one who was working in the Colorado Trading &
Development Co. store at the time. During the winter months the mail was
brought up from Marble by a carrier on snowshoes, who as a rule could
get through with very little trouble. But once when a very deep feathery
snow had fallen he was unable to get through for over a week. The egg
supply at the store was exhausted; so they decided to send a man down to
try to get some. He made it down all right but had to wait several days
for the snow to crust over before coming back. Then he carried the case
of eggs strapped on his shoulders the six miles back to Crystal City. In
the meantime the price of eggs soared.
In 1938 Emmet S. Gould of Aspen came to Crystal City looking for ore to
run through a recently purchased mill. He became interested at once in
the area not only for its potential mineral wealth, but also its wild
beauty. He bought several mining claims and city lots with their cabins.
[Illustration: DEADHORSE MILL--just below Crystal City. One of the
earliest mills built on the Crystal River.
--_Photo courtesy_ John B. Schutte, Glenwood Springs, Colo.]
[Illustration: SNOW BRIDGE--across the Crystal River below the
Devil's Punch Bowls. It usually melts by September, but has been
known to stay the year 'round. It is caused by slides on each side
of the Canyon.
--_Photo courtesy_ John B. Schutte, Glenwood Springs, Colo.]
He made an effort to open the Lucky Boy and the Lead King mines, but
unfortunate circumstances once again kept the mines from paying.
His daughters, Mrs. Dorothy Tidwell and Mrs. Helen Collins, and
granddaughters, Maxine Fowler and Carolyn Lodge, all of California,
still come with their families and friends, and make up a part of
Crystal City's 20 or 30 summer residents.
The Welcome J. Neals who also own mining claims and a house in Crystal
City, come every year from Mooresville, Ind., and bring their friends
and relatives for a delightful summer's vacation where the weather is
just right, the scenery unsurpassable, and the elusive trout waiting to
match his skill against that of the tourist.
Dick CarScadden of Aspen spends his summers in Crystal City conducting
tourists on hiking trips: the food and camping equipment being carried
by huskies.
Just what the future holds for Crystal City, none can say. The people
who own it prefer to keep it as it is, a cool, peaceful relaxing haven.
But with the road over Schofield Pass connecting Crested Butte with
Marble and Carbondale open, and with the known mineral deposits there,
it may again become a thriving mining center.
The Crystal River continues on its way through its narrow canyon,
sometimes on a level with the highway, sometimes hundreds of feet below
it.
Half way between Crystal City and Marble the river passes Lizzard Lake,
one of the most beautiful in Colorado. It is supposed to be the crater
of an old volcano. It is quite shallow around the edges for several feet
out, then drops abruptly to unknown depths. The Game & Fish Department
keeps it well stocked with trout and even amateur fishermen can land
their legal limit. This is one of the highly mineralized spots in the
valley: gold, silver, copper, etc.
[Illustration: THEODORE (SGT.) JACKSON--ready to start on a
pack-trip from Schofield Park into the high country.
--_Photo courtesy_ Theodore (Sgt.) Jackson, Delta, Colo.]
[Illustration: DICK CarSCADDEN--packed and ready to start from
Crystal City on one of his guided treks into the wilderness.
--_Photo courtesy_ Dick CarScadden, Aspen, Colo.]
_MARBLE, A Lovely Little Hamlet_
In a Lovely Glen, named for a Lovely White Calcium Carbonate--Marble
(_Elevation 7,950 Feet_)
The Crystal River next reaches the valley where the town of Marble is
located. The Spanish explorers, Escalante and Dominquez, may have come
into this territory in 1541, but they left no permanent records. The
"Forty-Niners" were supposed to have come this far off their beaten
trail on their way to California; gold pans and other mining equipment
were found near Prospect Ranch by Bill Gant who trapped beaver in this
valley in 1859. Benjamin Graham prospected in the Elk Mountains in the
early 1860s. These early explorations are legendary and no accurate
information is recorded.
Neither the Ute Indians who silently followed the trails of mountain
sheep, elk, deer, and bear through the parks and meadows, green with
succulent grasses and gay and fragrant with wild flowers, nor the early
prospectors who tramped the mossy banks of the limpid streams, snaring
the sunning trout from their pebbly beds, tracking the beaver and marten
for their warm pelts, or roaming the mountain peaks in search of
precious metals, realized that the white rock that stood out on
precipitous mountain sides was more valuable than all the animal pelts
and precious metals they sought.
George Yule, a prospector who came into Gunnison County in 1874, is
supposed to have been the first white man to discover and assume the
value of the white marble up Yule Creek which still bears his name. He
was the first elected sheriff of Gunnison County, served two terms,
1878-'82. However he did not prove up on his claims, and they were taken
over by Wm. Wood and W. D. Parry in 1882.
The first prospectors to attempt a permanent settlement in the valley
were John Mobley and W. F. Mason who located their settlement east of
Carbonate Creek and called it Clarence; and William Wood and W. D. Parry
who made their camp near the mouth of Yule Creek and named it Marble.
When the settlements reached a population large enough to warrant a post
office, it was located west of Carbonate Creek, and Marble was the name
chosen for it.
Sizable amounts of lead and zinc had been discovered in this treasure
vault of the Rockies and the ore was being packed out on burros to
Crested Butte. This being a very slow means of transportation as well as
very expensive, attempts were made to locate a smelter nearer. Finally
in 1897 the Hoffman Smelting & Reduction Co. built one just across the
Crystal River south of Marble. It ran until 1900.
But the town of Marble did not boom until the value of marble was fully
realized. The first quarry was opened on the east side of Yule Canyon in
1892 by J. C. Osgood and one block of marble was taken out at a cost of
$1,700 to be sent to the World's Columbian Exposition (1893) in Chicago.
In 1895-97 some blocks were hauled to Carbondale to be shipped east by
freight. But it was not until the beginning of the 1900s that the Yule
Quarry was opened on the west side of the canyon. Besides the pure white
marble there is a great amount of Colorado cloud marble (a smoky mottled
grain), serpentine (mottled green), pink, blue, and black (mottled with
white and green), found up this canyon.
About this same time two more quarries were opened on the east side of
Yule Canyon: the Strauss, by a company of eastern stockholders who built
the broad gauge Strauss railroad from Marble to the foot of their quarry
on Treasure Mountain; and the White Marble Co. owned by the Mormon
Church. While all the development work was completed, no commercial work
was ever done by either company and the railroad was never used.
In 1905 a road was cut out on the west side of the canyon and Yule
Quarry was started. At first they hauled the marble out on burro pack
trains which unloaded their burden in Marble and proceeded seven miles
to the Placita mines where they were loaded with coal to be delivered
and used at the quarry. There were two of these trains, each composed of
40 burros; one was in the charge of Walter Webb, the other was handled
by John Davisson.
Mr. Davisson told me of the above incident; also told another good tale
about the early days in Marble. It seems they had a town marshal by the
name of Schuyler Hodson who stood "ace-high" with the workmen. Whenever
they imbibed a little too freely and became troublesome, he didn't throw
them in jail but tried to get them to go home peaceably and sober up. If
they refused to do this, he would take off his badge and gun, and giving
them a good thrashing until they agreed to do as he asked.
The following is a copy of a letter received from Mr. Davisson:
855 Elm Street, Grand Junction, Colo.
Oct. 14, 1958
Dear Mrs. Francis,
In reply to yours of Oct. 10th. I had charge of the telegraph line
from Crystal to Crested Butte from 1906 to 1908 inclusive.
I ran the jack train from 1905 until 1908. It might interest you to
know I packed a 6-hole range to the top of Whitehouse Mountain; had
two jacks, 2x6 timbers lashed to the saddles and the stove in between.
It was a zigzag trail and it took three men to turn the jacks on each
turn. They said it couldn't be done, but we did it.
I am sending you a list of some of the old timers and what they did.
You might want to use some of it. I have forgotten a lot of them;
after all it was over fifty years ago.
Joe Fausson ran a saloon
Bob Aahern ran a saloon
Frank Tracy ran a saloon
Schuyler Hodson ran a saloon and was town marshal
Dan Barnes road overseer
Al Hodges stage driver from Placita to Crystal
Henry Kirk teamster, jack train owner
Charles Bemis teamster, jack train owner
Jack Clayton teamster
Dr. Fuller Confederate Civil War veteran
Editor Evans put out paper when sober
Jim Downing hunter, kept lion and bear dogs
Frank Dickens hunter, kept lion and bear dogs
Henry L. Johnson photographer
Hope this will help a little. Sorry I haven't a picture of the jack
trains.
Good Luck,
(_Signed_) John E. Davisson
[Illustration: ALONG THE CRYSTAL RIVER--Scene two miles below Marble
near the airport.
--_Photo courtesy_ John B. Schutte, Glenwood Spgs., Colo.]
The broad (standard) gauge railroad was extended from Placita to Marble
in 1906. The first train came up to Marble November 3, 1906. By this
time they were using a donkey engine to bring the marble down from the
quarry.
In 1908 Wm. McManus was brought in to assist Homer Harrington, general
superintendent of construction, in installing a hydro-electric power
house northeast of Marble. Three water pipelines were run into the
plant: one from Crystal River, one from Yule Creek, and the other down
Lost Trail Creek. They installed a transformer house half way up to the
quarry to convert electricity from direct to alternating current. High
tension lines were run to the mill and to the quarry, and all the
company houses were wired for electricity. Upon the completion of all
this, work was really in production.
It took the trained mind of an engineer, Commodore A. J. Mitchell, to
see value in the calcium carbonate (marble) deposits that had taken eons
to form and place in such a position that man could extract large blocks
from their beds; it took the indominable courage and optimism of a man
like Col. C. F. Meek to see the possibilities of developing an industry
that would make Colorado famous; it took the foresight and energy of the
promoter, the engineer, and the mechanic; it took the architect, Harry
Bacon, to see the possibilities of erecting a monument of the
translucent white marble from the Yule quarries to the memory of the
great statesman, Abraham Lincoln.
During the years 1908-16 Marble was really a lively little city. It
boasted five general stores, a drug store, a drygoods store, two hotels,
two large school buildings, two barber shops, two weekly papers--_The
Marble City Times_ and _The Marble Booster_--picture show, Masonic Hall,
two pool halls, and six saloons. I have talked to many of the really
"old timers" about the probable population at that time, and the number
varies from 1,500 to nearly 10,000. According to the "Company News"
column printed each week in the _Marble Booster_ newspaper the pay roll
varied from 700 to 850 names. So taking into consideration the number of
women and children who must have been here, the population could easily
have been several thousand.
On the morning of March 20, 1912, a big snow slide came down Mill
Mountain. As it occurred after the night shift had gone home and before
the day shift had come to work, no lives were lost but the property
damage was very heavy. The _Marble Booster_ newspaper in writing about
the slide had this to say:
"While the slide was very bad, so well had the cleaning up and repair
work been done, that within three days every worker was again plying
his trade."
The _Marble Booster_, Sept. 14, 1912:
BAD SMASH ON TROLLEY
Four Persons Meet Death as Result of Runaway Train on the Highline
Four persons met death as a result of an accident on the trolley line
here last Friday a few minutes before noon.
The dead are:
George Healy, motorman of the train.
Robert P. Lytle, a brakeman.
Atansio Negrete, a Mexican passenger.
Mary Tonko, a Polish girl.
In some manner Healy, the motorman, lost control of a heavily loaded
train at a point on the line near the old smelter, half a mile from the
yard at the mill. Doubtless the airbrakes failed to work. Before the
hand brakes could be set the train attained a frightful speed. W. C.
Goodwin, a mill employee who was riding on the train, jumped and landed
without a scratch. The others stayed on the train.
Just before reaching the bridge over the Crystal River two of the cars
in the train left the track and smashed into a rock cliff at the side of
the track. Lytle, the brakeman, was on one of these cars. He was thrown
with terrible force into the face of the cliff and death was mercifully
quick.
Healy, the motorman, stayed with the balance of the train, as did the
Mexican and the little girl. The runaway cars held the track until the
turn at the loading station in the yards, when everything turned over on
the curve and smashed into splinters. Healy was caught beneath a huge
block of marble and was crushed to death. He probably never knew what
struck him. The Mexican was slammed onto the ground with such force that
death was instantaneous. The little girl, eight years old, was alive
when rescuers reached the scene and was hurried to the hospital. She
died at six o'clock that evening.
Col. C. F. Meek owned controlling interest in the Colorado Yule Marble
Co. composed of stockholders from Philadelphia and other eastern cities,
and was the president and general manager. Knowing how to handle men as
well as finances he was very popular with the company employees. Under
his management orders came pouring in and soon Colorado Yule marble was
being used all over the United States: From Houston, Tex. to Chicago,
Ill.; from Washington, D. C., and New York City to Portland, Ore., Los
Angeles and San Francisco, Calif.
[Illustration: INTERIOR OF QUARRY--One of the "rooms" with floor
space--30,000 square feet--producing 3,000 cubic feet of marble per
day.
--_Photo by_ Henry L. Johnson, Marble, Colo.]
Col. Meek especially loved his home and family, and managed to spend
much time with them regardless of other interests. In addition to being
a good manager he was very liberal and considerate of his employees and
the town in general. Although a Protestant himself he did donate two
lots on Park Avenue to the Catholic Church and was donating marble with
which to erect the building, the company employees were donating their
labor. The corner stone was laid Oct. 12, 1912, and the church was named
"Saint Columbus Catholic Church of Marble." Father Carrigan of Glenwood
Springs officiated at the dedication. Father was a personal friend of
Col. Meek and was always entertained at his home on his visits to
Marble. He often said the colonel was the best read man he ever knew,
always being interested in literature, music, and art, and could
converse intelligently on all subjects. The colonel was seriously
injured August 10, 1912, on a runaway trolley car coming down from the
quarry and died four days later. The new management, not being quite so
liberal, would not donate the marble to complete the building so work
stopped. After a few years a small wooden structure was built on the
front half of the foundation, but green lumber was used and it was
poorly constructed; so after a few years it sagged, was condemned, and
taken down in 1924. But the marble foundation still stands, a memorial
to one of the greatest philanthropists Marble ever had.
J. F. Manning was elected president and general manager of the company
Oct. 1, 1913. While he was still eastern sales agent for the company he
learned that a memorial to the memory of Abraham Lincoln was to be built
in Washington, D. C., and went after the contract. This took
considerable doing as samples of marble from all over the world were
being sent to Washington.
"To determine the question, whether or not this marble was
artistically superior to others, Secretary Garrison referred the
matter to the National Fine Arts Commission, which on January 22, 1914
reported as following:
"'The Commission of Fine Arts at their meeting held today, gave
careful consideration to your letter of Jan. 17, 1914, requesting
their advice upon certain questions arising in connection with the
selection of marble suitable for the construction of the Lincoln
Memorial. The Commission made a careful inspection of all samples
submitted and have the honor to transmit the following:
"'The artistic qualities of Colorado Yule marble as compared with
others submitted, in the opinion of the Commission of Fine Arts, fit
it pre-eminently for a structure of the character of the Lincoln
Memorial.'"[1]
[Illustration: BLOCK OF MARBLE--for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
being brought down from the quarry on electric train Feb. 3, 1931.
--_Photo by_ Henry L. Johnson, Marble, Colo.]
[Illustration: PILLARS AND BLOCKS--support pillars for crane tracks
and blocks of marble left in the yard when Colorado Yule Marble Co.,
branch of Vermont Marble Co. ceased operations in 1942.
--_Photo courtesy_ John B. Schutte, Glenwood Spgs., Colo.]
[Illustration: BLOCK OF MARBLE--for the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
loaded on a flat car to be shipped east. This is the largest single
block of marble ever quarried in the world.
--_Photo by_ Henry L. Johnson, Marble, Colo.]
The contract for the Lincoln Memorial was obtained March 10, 1914, and
was to be completed in two years. It was finished late in 1915, several
months ahead of time. During this time several other large buildings
were also completed. (See listing of buildings made of Colorado marble.
pp. 46 & 47.)
The following information was obtained from "A Statement to the
Stockholders of the Colorado Yule Marble Company by J. F. Manning":
World conditions in 1916 coupled with the huge indebtedness accumulated
when opening the quarry, building the mill, buying the necessary
machinery, building and equipping the power house, extending the
railroad from Placita to Marble, and the vast amount of accrued
interest, put the company in very bad financial straits. Then World War
I coming on, contracts could not be obtained, so the Colorado Yule
Marble Co. went into the hands of a receiver July 16, 1916, and remained
closed until April, 1922.
The property was then divided into four parts: the mill, the quarry, the
power house, and the railroad. Eventually it was put up for sale and was
bought by different parties all interested in one thing, forming one
company and putting it on a paying basis. Through the efforts of
Commodore A. J. Mitchell the Carrara Yule Marble Company was formed and
work was resumed in 1922. On July 24, 1924 the Colorado Consolidated
Yule Marble Co. (CCYMC) was formed and was again put up for sale.
On November 18, 1924, Mr. J. B. Jones of the Gray-Knox Marble Co. of
Knoxville, Tenn., purchased the stock of the CCYMC and leased the
Crystal River & San Juan Railroad with option to buy. Then the name was
changed again; this time to Tennessee-Colorado Marble Co., and as such
was operated until July 2, 1926, at which time arrangements were made to
return the plant and properties to the CCYMC.
This reversion was brought about in a large measure due to the fact that
the fabricating plant was partially destroyed by fire April 6, 1926. The
loss in machinery and equipment in shops Nos. 3 and 4, and mill B,
together with the building was appraised at sound value by disinterested
engineers at approximately $531,000.00.
About half of the part destroyed was immediately rebuilt and operations
to complete their contracts were resumed.
On December 20, 1927, a rental lease and purchase agreement was made
between the company and Mr. Jacob F. Smith of New York and a little
later he sold to the Vermont Marble Co. who (to this date, 1959) still
own the quarry.
While the City of Marble never reached its former status, it was a
thriving place, employing several hundred men and marble was once again
being shipped to all parts of the United States.
The contract for the block of marble suitable for the tomb of the
Unknown Soldier was obtained in 1930, and the largest block of marble
(100 tons) ever quarried in the world was cut out early in 1931. It was
moved out onto the floor of the quarry and sawed down to specifications,
56 tons plus one ton to be taken off in the finishing. It was lowered
down the tramway guided by huge cranes, to the trolley track at the foot
of the mountain. Then with one trolley in front (Elmer Bair, motorman)
and another behind (Johnny Fenton, motorman) weighted and tied together,
it was skidded on the rails down to the mill; taking three days to go
the 3.9 miles, arriving at the mill February 3, 1931. Special night and
day guards to prevent souvenir hunters from chipping it for momentoes,
were stationed near the block the four days it was in the yard. Then it
was placed on a flat car, crated, braced and started on its way to
Proctor, Vermont. There it was trued to perfection with surveyor's
instruments and sent to Arlington Cemetery, Washington, D. C., where the
company sculptors carved the designs on it.
The Vermont Marble Co.'s branch, Colorado Yule Marble Co., continued to
operate both the quarry and the mill until the rumblings of World War
II, 1941 were being heard. Some of the employees were going back to
Europe, some were volunteering to go into the service here in the United
States, all steel was going into defense, and contracts could not be
obtained, so there was nothing to do but close down again.
August 9, 1941 was a hot sultry day, dark ominous clouds covered the
heavens, and a few big drops of rain began to fall. There were several
deafening claps of thunder and zigzagging streaks of lightning crossed
the sky. Then it all seemed to pass away. I was going about my work as
usual when one of my neighbors, Mrs. George T. Harris (nee Anna
Reheuser) hurried through the back door. "Oh, Mrs. Herman," she
screamed, "the town is being washed away."
"Oh, go on with you," I answered, "it isn't even raining."
"I'm not joking, there's been a cloudburst up Carbonate Creek and the
whole town is being washed away."
The cloud had burst about three miles up the canyon and the water had
backed up behind some beaver dams and log jams which had been unable to
withstand the pressure and it had all come down at one time, cutting a
swath a block wide through the entire town, north to south, to the
Crystal River. The property damage was heavy, but no lives were lost.
Another cloudburst occurred July 31, 1945, in very much the same way and
approximately at the same time of day. While this one did carry more
water and spread over a greater area, the damage had been done four
years previous, so we didn't feel so badly about it.
The mill closed November 15, 1941, and the last payday at the quarry was
January 15, 1942. The company had decided that this time instead of
keeping caretakers here to look after their property, they would sell
everything but the quarry, and when conditions warranted their reopening
they would come with new buildings and new machinery and do things the
modern way instead of as they were done when the quarry first opened in
1906.
The marble scattered along the right-of-way between Marble and
Carbondale are not the result of railroad cars overturning, but were
deliberately placed there as ballast to prevent the river undermining
the tracks. They are mostly the trimmings cut from building blocks, and
the larger pieces are rejects, pieces with fissures, points of flint, or
streaks of lime in them.
The single grave two miles below Marble to the left going out, is that
of John C. McKee who contracted pneumonia in Schofield. His friends,
thinking he just had a severe cold, were attempting to take him on
horseback to a doctor in Carbondale. There was no road between Marble
and Carbondale at that time, just a horse trail. He died when nearing
Marble. It being a hot day and realizing they couldn't possibly reach
Carbondale for two more days, they decided it best to bury him there.
The little cemetery farther down the road to the east was not there at
that time. It was started much later. Many ask if there had been an
epidemic here at one time: so many baby graves. No, according to the
oldest residents of Marble there had never been an epidemic here to
their knowledge. The many infant graves there belonged to foreigners who
considered childbirth an every day occurrence and no necessity for
calling a doctor. So the infant mortality was very high.
The huge piles of marble near town are not rejects, neither were they
washed there by floods. Marble doesn't wash; and the floods never came
near them. They are the old stock yards where marble was stored until
needed in the mill.
[Illustration: BEFORE--Colorado Yule Marble Mill as it was in 1942.
It was 1,700 ft. long and from 100 to 150 ft. wide. At the time it
was built (1906-08) it was the largest marble fabricating plant in
the world, employing nearly 1,000 workers.
--_Photo by_ Henry L. Johnson, Marble, Colo.]
[Illustration: AFTER--Old Mill Site as it is today after the huge
building had been dismantled and torn down in 1943. The machinery
had been sold to Morse Bros. Reconditioning Co., Denver, Colo., and
the building to Holly Campbell, Grand Junction, Colo.
--_Photo courtesy_ John B. Schutte, Glenwood Springs, Colo.]
The tall marble columns in the mill yard are not supports for the
building, but were supports for the crane tracks used when moving large
blocks.
Elmer Bair is another person who has great faith in the valley. He went
to work for the Colorado Yule Marble Co. in 1927 as a sawyer; after six
months he was given the job as motorman on one of the trolleys. He held
this position for four years--excepting the winters of 1929 and 1930
when he carried the mail on snowshoes and skis up to the mines on
Schofield Pass.
Quoting from a letter received from Elmer Bair:
"The year the company purchased the electric snowplow Bus Long was the
motorman and he was afraid to come off the hill with the big plow so
it was left standing on the side track until mid-winter and the road
was snowed in. The company asked Pop Sampson to open the road. He took
the car crew and 12 other men with shovels to go get it out. I was one
of the 12. When we got there and shoveled out the plow and side track,
Pop asked me if I would run the fan on the plow. Everyone was tense
and excited. The motorman most of all. The plow had never been tried
out and no one knew whether the brakes would hold or not; and the road
between the quarry and the town was known to be the 'steepest,
slickest, smoothest railroad in the world.' Captain Bill Hafner showed
me an article in a magazine called Rock of Ages, published somewhere
in the east, making that assertion.
"We got along pretty well until we got on top of the hill at the
rotary station, the motors were warmed up, the brakes were hot, and
everything in excellent shape if we had only kept coming down. But the
hill looked pretty steep and the motorman welcomed a chance to relax;
so we all went into the station, ate our lunch, and rested about an
hour. The plow was chained to the rail and the brakes were set, so we
were sure everything was alright. We stayed just long enough for those
hot brakes and wheels to form ice and freeze hard. I started the fan
and Long unchained the plow and started releasing the air a little at
a time until the air was all gone or released, and there we stood on
the brow of that steep hill. The grade immediately ahead was 17 per
cent.
"Bus next applied one notch of electricity, or juice, as we called it.
It just stood there and hummed. Then he gave it two notches, and it
still hummed. He then applied three notches and it broke loose--all at
once! And we were over the hill at a fast speed. Being excited the
motorman applied all the brakes we had, and set all the wheels. We
were in a dangerous runaway; the outfit completely out of control.
"There was only one door and that was on the uphill side. Pop gave
orders to jump to save our lives, and he led the way. As one would get
ready to jump--a tree, or a trolley pole, or a ledge would show up
right in the face of the one trying to find a space wide enough to
make a safe landing. The snow was deep and jumping at that rate of
speed made some comical sights; some landing on others and rolling
down the hill together. I, having a greater sense of humor than good
common sense, was having the laugh of my life until only two of us
remained.
"Bus was like a chicken with its head off, running from his controls
in front, to the door in the middle of the car. He, being the motorman
naturally wanted to be the last man off. He yelled in my ear and said,
'Hurry up and jump, so I can.' I said, 'Go ahead and jump. No-one is
holding you.' I was having too much fun to miss seeing him take his
spill. Each jump was more comical on account of the increased speed.
"After I was left alone in this mad race that looked as if it might
end in death, I began to see the more serious side of things and
decided it was time for me to act in some way to save myself. The
least I could do before making my exit would be to shut off the motor
that ran the fan. After doing so the snow, not being able to go
through the plow, began to pile up in front; within seconds the snow
was piled high as the plow and the speed began to slacken off. No one
but me, will ever know the feeling of comfort and relief that came
over me.
"Then Sampson and the boys came running--some limping--down the track,
expecting to find me and the plow piled at the bottom of the hill,
instead there I sat with my feet hanging out the door, still laughing.
They did not know that there had been a spell of soberness between
then and the time they had left me.
"Bus Long was through being motorman and I was drafted to that
position. After I quit in the fall of 1931, Frank Morse, who had been
continuously with the company through all their operations, told me I
was the only motorman who had run the trolley car any length of time
without having at least one crackup in a runaway.
"When the big marble block for the tomb of the Unknown Soldier was
taken out, there were two motormen who brought it down. I was the head
motorman hooked to the front, and Johnny Fenton was hooked on the back
with his motor."
(_Signed_) Elmer Bair
Elmer Bair left the company employment Sept. 30, 1931, and leased all
the company's range land and ran sheep in 1932. He purchased the
Chidester, Cookman, Barnes, and Baroni places--approximately 1,000
acres--in 1935. And in 1952 he bought approximately 1,700 acres from the
company and now runs 2,100 sheep in this area every summer.
Our tourists with very few exceptions are awed and thrilled by our
magnificent scenery. George Rosenberg, managing editor of the _Tucson
Daily Citizen_, Tucson, Ariz. is no exception. He and his family
vacationed in Marble and Carbondale for the first time in 1958. His
enthusiasm for Marble is recorded in a story with pictures, he published
in the _Citizen_, Aug. 2, 1958, where he says:
"If you haven't taken your vacation yet, and if you think you can talk
the little monsters out of going back to Disneyland ... if either of
these shoes fits, then take my advice ... head for the Hills of
Marble."
John Chapman, dramatic critic (New York _Daily News_), whose hobby is
vacation travel, wandered through some ghost towns in his native state
of Colorado, took pictures, and wrote an article extolling the grandeur
of the Crystal River Valley. This article together with colored pictures
appeared in _Sports Illustrated_, Oct. 7, 1957.
Mrs. Robert J. Hall is another short story writer who visited in Marble
in the fall of 1958. She wrote an article which appeared in the _Weekly
Star Farmer_, Kansas City, Mo., Jan. 21, 1959, describing the beauty and
resources of the Crystal River Valley in general and Marble in
particular.
After the Vermont Marble Co. pulled out, things were rather dull for a
few years, then it began to forge ahead as a tourist attraction. Good
fishing and hunting, a delightful summer climate, and scenery that can
not be duplicated, bring in more and more people every year and it is
fast becoming one of the better resort sections of the western slope. It
is often referred to as "The Swiss Alps of the United States."