Special to the HT MEEKER| Many longtime residents remember the Happy Landing Pool east of Meeker along County Road 8 near the White River. It was a popular local spot for years. Research by Kay Bivens of the Rio Blanco Historical Society notes a roadside marker for that site is[Read More…]
Tag: Meeker History
HISTORY LESSONS: On gardens and gardening
Special to the HT RBC | Redneck No. 1: “You gotta plant radishes. Radishes keep out the wolverines!” Redneck No. 2: “What wolverines? We don’t have any wolverines.” Redneck No. 1: “See … the radishes really work!” My wife, Tracy, has the green thumb. Mine is brown. Still, I’ve picked[Read More…]
HISTORY LESSONS: LeCompte, Frontier Doctor — Part 2
RBC | Lydia Wells was born in Salt Lake City, Utah 1856. She planned to marry Edward P. LeCompte in May of 1880. The ceremony was postponed when the Army transferred Edward to the Camp on the White River. E.P. LeCompte was posted at the Camp on the White River[Read More…]
HISTORY LESSONS: LeCompte, Part 1
RBC | Doctors could be adventurers too. The 1883 incorporation papers of the Meeker Townsite company include “E. P. Lecompte” as a member. I was able to track him down as Dr. Edward Palmer LeCompte. He lived in the White River Valley several years but didn’t stick around to become[Read More…]
HISTORY LESSONS: U.M. Curtis, Pt. 2
RBC | In the aftermath of the 1879 Ute uprising, U. M. Curtis was involved with the 1880 Congressional investigation and the 1880 Ute treaty which created two Ute Agencies to distribute goods and educate the bands. Curtis was once again listed on the document as interpreter and signed as[Read More…]
HISTORY LESSONS: U.M. Curtis, Pt 1
RBC | Uriah Martin Curtis was appointed government interpreter to the Utes by Agent Simeon Whiteley in 1863. Whiteley opened his agency for the Northern Utes at Hot Sulphur Springs, now in Grand County. The Utes had been camping there in the winter for many years. I am not sure[Read More…]
GUEST COLUMN: Why knowing our history matters – Understanding the White River Valley before us
Special to the HT RBC | Today, as we enter into America’s 250th birthday and Colorado’s 150th, the echoes of those events remain part of our local story. But understanding this history requires more than simply remembering dates or repeating familiar stories. It asks us to look deeper: at the[Read More…]
HISTORY LESSONS: The Stagecoach
RBC | The Union Pacific Railroad established a depot in Rawlins, Wyoming, in 1868, the same year as the Ute treaty that pushed the tribe into western Colorado Territory. The first White River Agency was established in the area where the river leaves the canyon. Nathan Meeker relocated the agency[Read More…]
HISTORY LESSONS: The Powell Expedition
RBC | There were several reasons that many military men and former military men became western frontier explorers, miners, cowboys, lawmen and outlaws. Veteran campaigners were familiar with traveling long distances, often without regular meals or water. Veterans of the Indian Wars had a healthy respect for the Native American[Read More…]
The land remembers: Honoring the full story of Rio Blanco County
RBC | As Rio Blanco County reflects on America’s 250th anniversary and Colorado’s 150th anniversary, we are invited to do more than celebrate. We are invited to remember. Long before Colorado achieved statehood, this region was home to the Ute people, who maintain deep ancestral ties to the White River[Read More…]
HISTORY LESSONS: The grain scale and bushel basket
RBC | No, it’s not a fancy wash tub like Ma Kettle washed the clothes and kids in. Terry Mobley tells me that his tub was used to measure a bushel of grain by volume. The traditional wash tub had crimped seam and a flat bottom. Terry says his tub[Read More…]
HISTORY LESSONS: Earthquake!
RBC | Robert Haag, in his book about the early years of Rangely, Colorado, references an earthquake in 1882. In Haag’s account, Charles Porter Hill and Joseph Studer had arrived at the White River and had camped for the night just upstream of Douglas Creek. Today it is known as[Read More…]
