Cripple Creek Colorado & The Victorian Mindset: By Dan Oelrich, edited by G.C. Stevens

                         

 All photos courtesy of Dan Oelrich, but many are to be found at Western Mining History Which is a website that well worth a visit.

Photo Essay

This is the first in series of photo essays, created by Dan Oelrich who is local historian from Colorado Springs Colorado. He is a regular contributor to the CSL&OHA blog. Many trails of the wild west trails lead to Cripple Creek Co. where the lure of gold and profit attracted many adventurer's and outlaws.  According to local Historian Dan Oelrich: The area "was certainly a most colorful era in our region and was jampacked with activity around the turn of the century. At one time or another, luminaries such as Groucho Marks, Wyatt and Virgil Earp, Bob Lee and the Sundance Kid, Teddy Roosevelt, William Jennings Bryant, world heavyweight, champion boxers – Jack Johnson and Jack Dempsey-all made their marks there. It might be very difficult, but perhaps possible to uncover ties to outlaws and the continued confederacy in the west. For sure there were entire mining companies that felt strong allegiances still. Bob Ford, the man who shot Jesse James almost made it into town, before being greeted by lawmen, who pushed him on to Creede, where he would meet his demise. For a while, he was a dealer in old Colorado City-which was to become the west side of Colorado Springs." A bit of a warning though – there have been many people, myself included, who become infected with the “Cripple Creek” bug, and obsession can easily set in.

 THE VICTORIAN PERIOD

Mark Twain's "Great Barbecue"

These photos will show you how obsessed with “perfect” architecture the Victorians were. First photo is the Gold Coin Mine, which bordered downtown Victor. It had a spotlight in the Observation Tower, above the enclosed head frame. Many miners didn’t like working here because they felt like it was a church.  (Because of the many stained-glass windows!) The Woods family founded Victor. While digging foundations for their new Bank, they encountered this vein. They tried to create a mining Monopoly and insisted on sparing no expense to impress investors. (I have to mention that they were very good to employees. Benevolent, like the more famous area millionaire-W.S. Stratton) So they created an electric Trolley line through the Mountain to transport Ore to their impressive Economic Mill. (I played at these ruins in my youth. I thought it must have been an old Spanish Fort! Newmont, buried this Site long ago under their pit mine.)

Second photo is of the Hoist house. Stratton spared no expense to make his employees feel classy. (Compare to the earlier horse-drawn Hoist. Notice the rather formal clothing for these miners. Victorian stylistic norms trumps functionality!)

Stratton’s Independence Mine, (just outside Victor), had this Mill, right on the grounds. Now, it’s a rather Apocalyptic scene today, of concrete foundations.

This is the Woods owned power station down from Skaguay Reservoir. One family lived here and operated the Plant. Only accessible via harrowing Mule trail. People and supplies used a tram to reach the bottom of the Canyon. This lavish brick design looks more in place in downtown Victor, than in a place where almost no one will ever see it. And this facility was only used a short time, as power from Canon City became cheap. This kind of exuberant spending did the Woods in. (Rags to Riches, to Rags) I can think of no better example of this Victorian insistence on architectural style for its own sake.