FREMONT COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY NEWSLETTER NOVEMBER 2015 VOLUME 13, ISSUE 6 `WEBSITE: fremontheritage.com WE ARE ON FACEBOOK, TOO: Fremont County Historical Society - Colorado YOU ARE INVITED TO THE PROGRAM ON SUNDAY -NOVEMBER 15, 2015 – 2:00 P.M. Dr. Mark Gose, retired USAF Shepherd of the Hills Lutheran Church, 801 Sheridan Avenue, Cañon City Lt. Col., Professor of History and Political 2:00 p.m. – Public Welcome Science at CSU-Pueblo, presents A Discussion with Colonel Benjamin Grierson: Champion of Refreshments served the Buffalo Soldier. Ride back to the 1870s with Col. Grierson, Tenth Cavalry commander, in this IN THIS ISSUE: Page 1: Speaker Dr.Mark Gose will present Colonel Chautauqua -style presentation. While on the trail of Apache renegade, Victorio, Col. Grierso n Benjamin Grierson and his Buffalo Soldiers discusses the controversies and politics of the Page 2: Membership information; Bylaws and Buffalo Soldiers, as seen through the eyes of Constitution update; Charles Walcott and the Spirits; Board of Directors. their leader. His military career -- and reputation after his death -- suffered for his advocacy of the Page 3: Colorado Volunteers in the Civil War. Buffalo Soldier. Dr. Gose participates in Page 4: 1915 – 100 YEARS PROHIBITION was numerous encampments and reenactments voted in by the Colorado Legislators 100 yrs. Ago.. Page 5: Prohibition, continued. Geology Club throughout the southwest. Page 6: Advertisers who help send this newsletter to you! Colonel Benjamin Grierson: Champion of the Buffalo Soldier (Continued on Page 2) " Colonel Benjamin Grierson, Union FREMONT COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY NEWSLETTER fremontheritage.com facebook: Fremont County Historical Society - Colorado Dr. Charles Doolittle Walcott and the Spirits of MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION the Past – Boarded the train to entertain and The Bylaws and Constitution of the Society educate the many passengers on the Rio Grande Route train to Parkdale. have been updated and revised. You should have received a copy in the mail or email prior to this meeting in November. Please be prepared to comment, and vote on the newly revised Bylaws and Constitution. We include an envelope for your convenience in returning the membership dues for 2016 before January 1, 2016. Please take a moment to send that to us, we depend on our membership dues for projects. Thank you. FCHS BOARD OF TRUSTEES: Helene Blake Cindy Smith Above Right: Curt Sorenson, Dr. Charles Doolittle Mary Chamberlain Margaret Storm Walcott; Center: Millie Wintz as Mary White; Dorothy Cool as Mrs. Raynolds; Beverly Harris Gloria Stultz below: Tom & Rita Wilhelm as Mr. and Mrs. David Kit Kederich Christina Taylor Gibson; Dee Stubbs as Bird Millman; Carol McNew as Larry Linscott Carol McNew Julia Mack. (Local Landmark Plaque upper left) Pat Nelson Continued from Page 1 The Colonel: BOOSTERS FOR THE JAIL PROJECT ARE: Colonel Benjamin Grierson lived a very extraordinary life--band director, Civil War general and hero, and commander of the Tenth Cavalry during the Indian Wars. Created after the Civil War, the Tenth Cavalry Regiment, known as the “Buffalo Soldiers,” was one of the few black regiments in the US Army, serving throughout the southwest. These regiments were all led by white officers, most of whom saw this duty as less than desirable. However, Col. Grierson embraced his role as their commander and used it to further the cause and perception of the black soldier. Nonetheless, Col. Grierson would pay a price for his advocacy of the Buffalo Soldier – his military career suffered during his lifetime and since his death, his name and achievements in western history have been understated. 2 FREMONT COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY NEWSLETTER Colorado Volunteers in the Civil War Cañon City’s Involvement Colorado Territory, created by an act of Congress on February 28, 1861, was inhabited by a large number of people who were sympathetic to the Southern cause. While most people continued to hope that a peaceful solution to the nation’s political differences could be found, the country was on the brink of civil war. The first Colorado Territorial Governor, William Gilpin, who arrived in Denver City on May 29, 1861, to establish a civil government noted what he described as “a strong and malignant secession element” in the territory. Governor Gilpin believed that immediate action was required to secure Colorado for the Union. That action included sending military aid to New Mexico to defend against a Confederate invasion from Texas. An article published in the Canon City Times on October 7, 1861, called for “able-bodied men between the ages of 18 and 45, and otherwise fulfilling the requirements of the War Department” to serve for three years or during the war. As a result of that effort, two companies of volunteers were recruited in and around Cañon City and were the first to leave the territory to serve the Union. They were known at that time as “Captain ‘Jim’ Ford’s Independent Company” and “Captain Dodd’s Independent Company.” Dodd’s company left Cañon City on December 7th for Fort Garland where it was mustered into the United States service for three years, provisionally designated as Company A of the Second Colorado Infantry. Ford’s company departed Cañon City for Fort Garland on December 12th where it was mustered into service for three years, provisionally designated as Company B, Second Colorado Infantry. Both companies participated in the battle of Glorieta Pass (March 26-28, 1862), which was considered the decisive battle of the New Mexico campaign and was significant for both the Union and the Confederates. The Union forces marched from Denver, over Raton Pass to Fort Union, and then to Glorieta Pass, a distance of 400 miles covered in 14 days. The fighting began shortly after their arrival, leaving little time to recover from that ordeal. The Union was led by Colonel John P. Slough of the 1st Colorado Infantry, with units under the command of Major John M. Chivington. The first engagement was on March 26. There was no fighting on March 27, but on that date reinforcements arrived on both sides. The main battle was on March 28. Total strength of the Union was about 1,300 men and the Confederate forces reached about 1,100. The turning point was when Chivington’s force attacked and looted the Confederate supply train. With no supplies to sustain their advance, the Confederates were forced to retreat to Santa Fe, and then back to Texas. The success of the Union forces in stopping the advance of the Confederates at Glorieta Pass prevented their capturing the gold stores in the West, the possible expansion of the Southern cause as far west as California, and protected Fort Union which contained large military stores and was the stronghold along the route over Raton Pass. A book entitled The Colorado Volunteers in the Civil War lists the names and companies of the soldiers killed and wounded at Valverde, Glorieta and Peralta. Although he acknowledged that the numbers may not be exact, the author cited total casualties of the Colorado volunteers during the New Mexico campaign of less than three months as 147; 113 of those killed and wounded were at Glorieta. One of the courageous Colorado volunteers who lost his life at Glorieta Pass was John McDonald Griffin, a member of Captain Ford’s company. John Griffin was the eldest son of Benjamin Griffin, one of Cañon City’s earliest settlers. The companies of Captains Dodd and Ford remained in New Mexico Territory until the following year, serving at Fort Craig, Santa Fe and Fort Union. Late in the spring of 1863, the two companies returned to Colorado, resuming their places in the Second Regiment of Colorado Volunteer Infantry. At that time Ford’s company became Company A and Dodd’s became Company B, reversing their designations when mustered into the service in December of 1861. Researched and written by Barbara Hobson, October 2015. (Sources: Royal Gorge Regional Museum and History Center; Wikipedia; and The Colorado Volunteers in the Civil War, the Battle of Glorieta Pass in New Mexico, March 1862, by William C. Whitford, published 1906. Page 3 FREMONT COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY NEWSLETTER fremontheritage.com facebook: Fremont County Historical Society - Colorado This historical perspective was written by Tom I. Romero, II, Western Legal Studies Fellow, University of Colorado-Boulder: [email protected]. New Year’s Eve, 1915, marked the end of an era in Colorado. At midnight 1916, Colorado became one of the first states in the nation to go dry [Chap. 98, Sess. Laws of 1915, amended in 1916 under Chap. 82, Sess. Laws of 1917, and by the so-called "Bone Dry Act," Chap. 141, Sess. Laws of 1919, initiated and passed by Colorado citizens in November 1918]. Mourning not only the ready availability of fine spirits, but the closing of the Western saloon as a central community institution, patrons of Denver’s Heidelberg Café sang "Last Night Was the End of the World," as the barkeepers tapped their last glasses on December 31, 1915. The two-decade-long struggle to prohibit the sale of alcohol ended what many perceived to be the central force driving lawlessness and lewdness in Colorado. As a major component in Colorado's civic life, alcohol and its prohibition encapsulated notions of "American idealism, progressive hopes for a better society, and widespread prejudice against the sorts of people" that did not quite fit a casual definition of a Coloradan or American citizen [Thomas J. Noel, The City and the Saloon: Denver, 1858- 1916 (Niwot, CO: Univ. Press of Colorado, 1996) at 111]. The legal effort to prohibit the sale and consumption of alcohol began almost as soon as Colorado became a state. For example, early farming and ranching towns enacted ordinances mandating that real estate titles and deeds needed to carry a provision that property would revert to its former owner if liquor were sold on the premises.
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