Alferd G. Packer Soldier, Prospector and Cannibal
by Ann Oldham ii Alferd G. Packer
Copyright 2005 by Allie (Ann) Oldham First Edition
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in review, without permission in writing from the author/publisher. ISBN 1-59196-902-6 Library of Congress Control Number: 2005901091
Printed in the United States of America by Instantpublisher.com. The cover designed by Ann and Leroy Oldham. Page layouts by Leroy Oldham. Other assistance by Terri House and Shari Pierce. DDDedicated to
Leroy, Carol and Mike, Shari and Buck, Terri and Todd, Jason and Kelly, Chris, Mike, Randi and Justin. Alferd G. Packer TTTable of Contents
Illustrations...... vii
Acknowledgements...... xi
Introduction...... xiii
Chapter 1 Packer Family...... 1
Chapter 2 Military Service...... 3
Chapter 3 Valley of Death...... 7
Chapter 4 Arrest, Escape and Arrested Again...... 19
Chapter 5 First Trial...... 29
Chapter 6 Supreme Court Decision...... 77
Chapter 7 The Second Trial...... 91
Chapter 8 Prison Life...... 115
Chapter 9 Freedom...... 131
Notes...... 137
Index...... 141 Alferd G. Packer IIIllustrations
1. Alferd Packer’s signature...... 1
2. LaGrange County, Illinois Courthouse...... 2
3. Recruiting poster...... 3
4. Camp Douglas, Chicago, Illinois...... 4
5. Alferd Packer’s discharge from the U. S. 16th Infantry...... 5
6. Prospectors...... 7
7. The Mining Districts of the Oquirrh Range...... 9
8. The Utah Desert...... 10
9. Chief Ouray and his wife Chipeta...... 11
10. Map – Compiled by 1st Lt. E. H. Ruffner, Engineers...... 12
11. Slumgullion Pass...... 14
12. Utes at Los Pinos Agency about 1874...... 17
13. The same area as it appears today...... 17
14. Scene of the tragedy...... 20
15. The remains of the murdered men...... 21
16. The burial site...... 22
17. 1885 Map of the area...... 26
18. Union Station, Denver, Colorado...... 29
19. Writ issued to bring Packer from Gunnison to Lake City for trial...... 33
20. Alferd G. Packer...... 34 viii Alferd G. Packer
21. Advertisement in the Silver World, April 7th 1883...... 35
22. Hinsdale County courthouse...... 39
23. Uncompaghre Peaks...... 42
24. Lake San Cristobal...... 52
25. Black Canyon...... 58
26. Copy of jury verdict...... 70
27. Hinsdale County courtroom...... 73
28. Poudrerie...... 79
29. Left to die...... 84
30. Writ of Error...... 87
31. Death Warrant returned unexecuted...... 89
32. Gunnison, Colorado 1879...... 91
33. La Veta Hotel, Gunnison, Colorado...... 97
34. Affidavit of Witness signed by Professor W. H. Plumb...... 105
35. Mule deer...... 108
36. Signatures of the Jurors on the guilty verdict of Alferd Packer on five counts of manslaughter...... 109
37. Alferd Packer’s first prison photograph...... 116
38. Alferd Packer’s Soldier’s Application for pension...... 118
39. Page from Packer’s pension file...... 119
40. Warden C. P. Hoyt, Colorado State Prison...... 121
41. Governor Bryant B. Brooks of Wyoming ...... 126 Illustrations ix
42. Governor Charles S. Thomas...... 129
43. Alferd G. Packer’s second prison photograph...... 130
44. Pensioner Dropped...... 134
45. Historical marker...... 135
46. Plaque at gravesite...... 136
47. Gravesite...... 136 Alferd G. Packer AAAcknowledgements
Thank you for your help and assistance with this book. Leroy Oldham; Terri House; George Maris; Shari Pierce; Colorado State Archives, Denver Colorado; National Archives, Washington, D. C.; and the following newspapers: Akron Weekly Pioneer Press, Colorado Springs Gazette, Durango Democrat, Durango Wage Earner, Gunnison Press-Review, Littleton Independent, Pagosa Springs News, Saguache Chronicle, Silverton Standard and Silver World. Alferd G. Packer Introduction
It continues to amaze me as to what the pioneers endured to settle in the beautiful, rugged and dangerous Colorado Rocky Mountains. To attempt to cross the snow covered mountains wearing moccasins, then after removing them to eat; wrapping their feet with strips of blankets and continuing their struggle to walk through the deep snow. I have attempted to document the life and events of Alferd G. Packer. In writing this story I’ve used the language of the day from newspapers, court records and his military file to get a feel of the day and time. All names, places and events are spelled in the book as spelled in the records and newspapers. Packer continues to intrigue people, articles continue to be written about him and the tragic events at the camp site on the Lake Fork of the Gunnison River, and his guilt or innocence continues to be debated. If only these six men so anxious to get to the precious minerals, had waited until spring to make the crossing, this book would have never been written.
Ann Oldham 269 Oldham Place Pagosa Springs, CO 81147
111 PPPacker Family
Was Alferd G. Packer, a man wrongly accused, persecuted and prosecuted? If a dying man’s confession is to be taken as truthful, then Alferd G. Packer’s death bed statement, “I am innocent of the charge,”1 spoken in the presence of Mrs. S. A. Van Alstine, his care giver during his final illness, and Mr. and Mrs. Charles Cash, her daughter and son-in-law, could be considered to be the truth. We take a brief look back at Alferd’s family and life. The James Packer family lived in Beech Creek, Pennsylvania, where the three oldest daughters, Alvinah, Alferd Packer’’’s signatureee... Mary Jane and Adaline2 were born. James worked as a carpenter to support his family. The family moved briefly to LaGrange (established in 1836), LaGrange County, located in northern Indiana, where another daughter, Marion, was born. She died at the young age of 1 month and 12 days on February 4, 1840.3 The following year another daughter, Melisa, was born on July 12, 1841.4 The family made the long arduous journey back to Pennsylvania, this time to Allegheny County where Alferd G., the 6th child and first male was born to James and Esther on Monday, January 21, 1843-48.5 The family decided to return to LaGrange to make their home. Two more children were born to James and Esther, Marshall and Eleanor. Eleanor died at the age of 5 months and 6 2 Alferd G. Packer
LaGrrrange County, Illinois Courthouse... days, another tragic loss to the family.6 The Packer family lived about “two miles east” of LaGrange. James and Esther were actively involved in 1843 in the Methodist Episcopal Society and were charter members. They and others worked under the direction of Reverend William J. Forbes to build a large church. James “was the first class leader.”7 Before 1860, James was making cabinets and his son Alferd, now 15 years of age, was a shoemaker’s apprentice.8 Alferd lost parts of two fingers in a terrible accident “at or between the 2nd and 3rd phalanges”9 on his left hand. All the children were gone from home when James and Esther moved again before 1880, to the nearby village of Bloomfield, where James farmed.10 222 MMMilitary Service
A deafening shot fired from a howitzer at Fort Johnson, a Confederate post, late on Friday afternoon, April 12, 1861, soared over Fort Sumter, a Union post, situated on a man-made island in the picturesque harbor at Charleston, South Carolina, and echoed across the land and harbor. This would have horrible ramifications for the people across the nation for years and generations to come. A little over a year from this event, Alferd Packer, now in Winona, Minnesota, situated on the banks of the Mississippi River, answered his country’s call to arms. He went to the office of Captain A. W. Stanton and enlisted in Company F, 16th Regiment of the U. S. Infantry on April 22, 1862, under the command of Captain Bidwell to serve 3 years. His first duty stations were at Camp Thomas, Ohio and Camp Cook, Illinois for about 3
RRRecruiting poster... 4 Alferd G. Packer
CCCamp Douglas, Chicago, Illinois... months each before moving on to Camp Douglas in Chicago, Illinois. This duty station would change his life forever.1 Camp Douglas, originally a training site for Union soldiers, was transformed into a prisoner-of-war camp for the Confederate forces. The camp was poorly situated. Substandard living conditions for both the prisoners and the Union forces, especially with bad water and sewage removal problems, created extremely unhealthy conditions for everyone. Smallpox, typhoid and other diseases ran rampant, turning this place into “eighty acres of Hell”. A very sick and feverish Private Packer entered the “camp hospital” in July 1862. The doctors diagnosed him with the dreaded typhoid fever. Packer felt this was “caused by constant prolonged and unnecessary guard duty”.2 After the high fever broke, he was affected with epileptic seizures, “partial loss of eyesight and general debility”. Private Packer was transferred to Fort Ontario, Oswego, New York and placed in Massingail’s Recruits where he was still unable to perform any of the duties assigned to him. Major Sidney Military Service 5
Alferd Packer’’’s discharge from the U.S. 16th Infantryyy... 6 Alferd G. Packer
Coolidge filled out a “CERTIFICATE OF DISABILITY FOR DISCHARGE.” Packer’s description was given as “twenty years of age, five foot 8 ½ inches high, light complexion, blue eyes, light hair, and by occupation when enlisted a shoemaker.” Charles G. Smith, Acting Surgeon, signed the certificate and “Epilepsy” was given as reason for the discharge. Private Packer was “incapable of performing the duties of a soldier” and he was discharged on December 29, 1862. Determined to serve, civilian Packer enlisted again to serve 3 years on June 10, 1863, at Ottumwa located in southeastern Iowa. Packer was now twenty-two and working as a saddler. Private Packer was placed in Captain Aron Penney’s Company L of the 8th Iowa Cavalry. He provided information of his illness at the time of enlistment.3 The regiment left Iowa and made its way to Waverly, Tennessee. They participated in about 8 battles there and in the general area, then went on to fight at Pleasant Ridge in Georgia. The Regiment arrived at Cleveland, Tennessee and participated on, April 15, in another battle. Unfortunately Private Packer’s epilepsy was very active and again he could not perform his duties as required. When Charles A. Crawford, 2nd Lieutenant filled out Packer’s “CERTIFICATE OF DISABILITY FOR DISCHARGE”, he stated, “To my certain knowledge this soldier has been unfit for duty Sixty-days in consequence of Epilepsy. This Soldier was subject to attacks of Epilepsy prior to his enlistment....The Paroxysms occur once in 48 hours and sometimes as often as two and three times in 48 hours.” Private Packer was again discharged, this time at Cleveland, Tennessee on April 25, 1864,4 just 10 days after arriving in Cleveland. Private Packer served a total of 1 year, 6 months and 22 days in his combined enlistments. The military clerks erroneously recorded his name as Alfred Packer in his files.