National Day of the Cowboy

Ernest Christison (Drawing by Katy Kinder from a photograph)

Today, July 26, is National Day of the Cowboy. I thought it an appropriate time to share this drawing of Ernest Christison with his horse and his dog. He doesn't look like much of an outlaw, does he? Artist Katy Kinder drew this from a photograph in which the horse was blurry and faded. The photo was likely taken in the late 1870's or early 1880's.

Born in Missouri in 1852, Ernest traveled west with his family to the Colorado mining camp of Cash Creek when he was 9 years old. His older brother, Leslie, followed his father into mining, but Ernest preferred horses and cows to picks and rocks.

His first brand was recorded in 1876, the same year he signed on to round up 175 head of cattle for the ranchers Leonhardy and Turkey and trail them from Buena Vista to Denver to sell. The cowboys arrived on April 23 and they held the cattle at a ranch near Denver until the sale could be made. Everything seemed to be going well until a spring blizzard blew in at noon on April 25 and stampeded the cattle. Two days and four feet of snow later, the cowboys proceeded to locate and round up the scattered cattle. Ernest became snow blind which made it impossible for him to continue with the round-up, but Henry Weber managed to locate the rest of 155 head of cattle, sold them, and returned to the Buena Vista with Ernest.

Ernest had a couple of cattle partnerships including one with Thomas Cameron and his son, J.B., before his partnership with Ed Watkins.

If you want to read more about the outlaw part of this story, click on The Cattle Rustling Story.

Freedom in January

Barry Ward recently released his new CD, Lonesome County Road. John and I are especially honored that Barry recorded the song we wrote, "Freedom in January." The song is a little bluegrass number telling the story of Ernest Christison's (my great-great-uncle) jail break in Buena Vista, Colorado in 1883.

Former Flying W Wrangler Joe Stephenson added the perfect fiddle part to the song for my fiddle-playing outlaw. And Ernie Martinez, nominated for the 2013 Instrumentalist of the Year by the Western Music Association, played the dobro, intoning a lonesome train whistle on the break.

"Freedom in January" tells the story of Ernest Christison who, along with ten other prisoners, knocked out a hole in the brick wall and "broke jail." The jail is now the school administration offices. At the back of the building, you can still see where the bricks were replaced.

The Buena Vista Democrat (http://ColoradoHistoricNewspapers.org)

Ernest Christison and Albert Sweeny ran half a mile to the Arkansas River. This photo was taken 126 years later on the anniversary of the jail break. Fortunately for the men, there wasn't snow on the ground so they couldn't be tracked. They crossed the river and hid on the hill a while, and then started walking south to Salida. They crossed the river again near Nathrop. Thinking of the men walking through the freezing cold water prompted the line, "Freedom in January is worth the frost."

Ernest and Albert made it to Thomas Cameron's home just north of Salida, where they found food, a Winchester, and a place to sleep. But Cameron's was being watched and the men were rudely awakened by "a shotgun barreled side by side" shoved in their faces. After they were captured, the men returned to Buena Vista on the train with an armed guard.


Lonesome County Road is available for order at http://BarryWardMusic.com/new-cd/  Be sure to check out Barry's schedule and see him in concert when he is in your area. 

The BLM Government Land Office Records Beta Website

Have you always wondered how to find out if your great-great-grandfather really did own a homestead like you've been told in that old family story? Or have you wondered who homesteaded the land you live on now? This information is available on the BLM Government Land Office Records website - one of my FAVORITE links to visit as a genealogist and a historian.

I happened to visit the BLM GLO Records website and discovered they have a Beta release of the 4th generation of their website. It now has map-based searches and I love it! Of course, it makes the workshop I gave at the Colorado Family History Expo obsolete since I went to much trouble explaining how to use Earthpoint and GoogleEarth to locate a homestead on a map, but I am thrilled! Here is the new homepage:


To test the site, I entered the name James Mahan in Chaffee County, Colorado in the search box. According to the story in Under The Angel of Shavano, in 1865 James Mahon traded a yoke of oxen to Wilburn Christison for his homestead on Cottonwood Creek (in the town of Buena Vista today). In the new website, I put a check mark in each box under "map" below Land Description and the land is marked as orange squares in the map below! The only problem I've found that I wish BLM would fix is it won't show allotments of halves, such as the north half of the soutwest quarter. When I check the first box, this message appears, "due to data limitations, we could not map the aliquots or lots of this land description." The map should show two more blocks west of the top block running south of County Road 350 and the west side is adjacent to County Road 353.

You can zoom in on the land to get better detail:

Click on Terrain and you will see that Cottonwood Creek runs through this property:

The Satellite view will show the development in the town of Buena Vista that surrounds this land. This piece of land is under consideration for development at this time, which is sad when you see how pretty it is in the picture below.

Another feature I love in the Beta release is the ability to see who else owned the land patents on the other pieces of land in that section. Click on the Related Documents tab and it shows the list of land patents in that section:

Here is Wilburn Christison's homestead land he traded for a yoke of oxen. That's Mount Princeton in the background. Isn't it beautiful?

Ed Watkins and The Cattle Thieves Presentation

Join me on Sunday September 19 at 2:00 p.m. at the Salida Regional Library for an afternoon of storytelling about "Ed Watkins and the Cattle Thieves." The story of Ed Watkins and his cattle rustling gang (which included Ernest Christison) has been told for over 125 years in central Colorado. Watkins was hanged by a masked mob in Canon City on August 11, 1883, but the story didn't end there. Over the next year there were more arrests connected with the cattle thieving, a muder or two, a jail break, and court cases with surprising outcomes.

I will be telling the story my research has revealed at 2:00 p.m., and after a short break at 2:45, more details and a time for questions and discussion will continue at 3:00 for those interested in staying.

For more information about the story, click on the tab Cattle Thieves above this post.

The Escape

Last week I had the urge to visit Buena Vista again. 126 years ago on January 27, 1884, Ernest Christison, my great-great-uncle, escaped from the Buena Vista Jail along with ten other prisoners. You can read more about the jail break on this Black Sheep Sunday post. After breaking jail, Ernest and Albert Sweeny ran 1/2 a mile to the Arkansas River, crossed it and began climbing the hill on the others side.

The two men hid in the pinions and rocks watching the posse form and the search begin. In the photo below you can see the courthouse in the center of the picture viewed from the hill.

Christison and Sweeny walked south along the hills. Below Nathrop they crossed the river again and continued walking to Thomas Cameron's ranch near Salida, where they were captured early the next morning.

Today the area where Ernest and Albert Sweeny crossed the river is a park. There is a footbridge across the Arkansas and hiking trails up the hill. John and I walked up the trail to experience a little of what Ernest did. Can't imagine crossing the river with the ice and cold. My feet would be blue for a week! It was easy to picture Ernest and Albert scrambling up the hill during their get-away. It was 25 degrees when John and I visited on Friday, the 29th. There was a fresh layer of snow on the ground from the night before. Luckily for Ernest and Albert there wasn't any new snow in 1884!

Black Sheep Sunday

The old Buena Vista Jail, built in 1882. Now school administration offices.

Today is Black Sheep Sunday with GeneaBloggers. Since many of my posts have to do with my great-great-uncle outlaw, Ernest Christison, I haven't participated. However, today I thought I'd reveal one of Ernest's "black sheep" moments. And it's my last post about last week's trip to Buena Vista and Salida.

On January 27, 1884 Ernest escaped from the Buena Vista jail with 10 other prisoners. A fire in the town the previous night seemed to have distracted the guards and the prisoners removed bricks at the back of the jail and made their break. Ernest and another man headed to Salida and were captured the next day in Thomas Cameron's barn. Another escapee, Thomas Neinmyer (or Ninemyer), was the man who shot Salida Marshal Baxter Stingley and killed three other men on Memorial Day (read Baxter Stingley, Salida Marshal). Neinmeyer was never captured.

I visited the old jail and the old Buena Vista courthouse which now houses the Buena Vista Heritage Museum for the first time last week. As Bev and I walked around the building, I pointed out where the sheriff's office and jailer's office were in the front of the building from a diagram I have of the jail. Then the cells were in the back of the building. We turned around the back as I explained how the men removed the bricks and escaped. Then I stopped in wonder when I saw the place where the bricks and been removed and replaced! I never dreamed you would be able to see the exact spot the prisoners escaped through.

Then we went into the museum. Wendy Oliver, the museum manager, was very helpful and let me look at some of their manuscript and book collections. I had some great finds! The museum is wonderful and it was fun to see items from families whose names I recognize from my research. I look forward to having more contact with the Heritage Museum and their staff.

Baxter Stingley's Murder

"BRAVE BAXTER

MEETS HIS DEATH AT THE HANDS

OF A BAD CITIZEN"

shouted the headlines of the November 3, 1883 Salida Mail.

Five months after being shot by Thomas Neinmyer, Salida Marshal Baxter Stingley had recovered and was back on the job. He heard that Frank Reed and Ernest Christison were at the Arbour's Variety and Dance Hall. Stingley had an arrest warrant for both men for stealing cattle. Reed had told everyone he wasn't going to be arrested and lynched like Ed Watkins had been. So, when Baxter Stingley held his gun on Reed and said, "I have a warrant for your arrest," Reed pulled his gun out and shot Stingley. (Another report says Reed shot Stingley with Stingley's gun.) Reed ran for the back door with Stingley following him and both men were shooting. After Reed exited the back door, Stingley stopped and Mr. Arbour asked him if he was shot. Stingley said, "Yes, he has shot me three times." They laid him on a table, removed his boots which were filled with blood, and he died shortly after.

Frank Reed escaped and was never captured. Ernest Christison was arrested early the next morning and taken by train to the jail in Buena Vista.

Baxter Stingley's funeral was held at the Opera House. The funeral procession included the Knights of Pythias lodge and the fire company. Baxter Stingley's murder was also reported in the New York Times.

If you are related to any of the people mentioned in this post, please contact me at GayleGresham@gmail.com

Baxter Stingley, Salida Marshal

Watch That Saved Baxter Stingley's Life

On Memorial Day of 1883, Marshal Stingley and his deputy, James Brathurst, went to Bender's Saloon where a fight had broken out. As they tried to arrest Tom Evans, he lunged at Marshal Stingley with a knife. Both Stingley and Brathurst shot at Evans and he was killed. Then Thomas Neinmyer (or Ninemyer), one of the brawl participants, began to shoot as he left the building. He shot and killed Deputy Brathurst and Gannon (a bystander). He also shot Baxter Stingley, who survived with a punctured lung.

Neinmyer left on horseback and a group of men pursued him. Neinmyer shot and killed one of the men following him, W.H. Brown. Eventually the group, led by William Goring, overtook Neinmyer and captured him. Neinmyer was arrested and taken to the Buena Vista jail.

It took several months for Baxter Stingley to recover from his wound. J.S. Boon was appointed temporary Marshal with Eli Chenoweth as his deputy.

While Stingley recovered, he asked Henry Weber to visit him. During the visit, Stingley showed Weber the double-case silver watch that Weber had loaned him and that Stingley had been carrying when he was shot. According to Weber, "A bullet had struck it, and had crashed thru to the last case, which it dented badly. Stingley was carrying the watch in his vest pocket so it was very evident that it had saved his life." (Chaffee County CWA Writers Project p. 10)

Today the shattered watch is on display at the Salida Museum.

Notes: This story is found in Salida: The Early Years by Eleanor Fry; Under The Angel of Shavano by George G. Everett and Dr. Wendell F. Hutchinson.

If you are related to any of the people in this post, please contact me at GayleGresham@gmail.com

Colorado State Archives

Today I visited the Colorado State Archives again and sifted through five boxes of court records. Three of them held nothing of interest, the fourth is one I've used frequently, but the fifth box was a gold mine! I recognized many names in the court cases. I also found the court case of a gentleman who escaped from the Buena Vista jail with Ernest. This case even had a grand jury indictment for breaking out of jail which included all of the men who escaped. This defendant also had an original excuse for claiming he did not steal the horse for which he was sentenced to prison--he was too intoxicated by liquor at the time to steal anything.

The highlight of my day happened when a gentleman walked by my table and asked how my research was going. Then he introduced himself as Terry Ketelsen. I immediately recognized the name of the State Archivist and I was thrilled to visit with him. He asked about what I was researching and asked me about the story when I told him I am writing a book. He was interested in the types of sources I am using and where I am finding them. He also asked me how I got started in my interest in Colorado history and in this story. We had a very enjoyable conversation.

Meeting interesting people is one of the benefits of writing this book. What an adventure!

Whispers of the Valley

Driving to Salida and Buena Vista reminded me again of my connection to the Upper Arkansas Valley; a land where I’ve never lived, never even stopped over for more than a four or five day camping trip, but as soon as I drop into the canyon of the Arkansas River and start melding into its curves, I know I am going home. It is the same sense I have when I return to Colorado from a road trip to North Carolina and turn onto Highway 86 just west of Limon driving into the high plains seeing the gentle rolling hills with the prairie grasses blowing in the wind. I watch in anticipation for my first glimpse of Pikes Peak—the blue mountain that stands guard duty over the high plains, the mountain with gentle shoulders that has watched over me like God since I was one-year old. The high plains are the home I’ve known all my life, but the Upper Arkansas River Valley is the home I’ve known in my soul, the home knit into my very being almost 150 years ago when my great-great-grandparents settled into its bosom.

What is it about the Upper Arkansas Valley that whispers to me? Is it the awe of walking over the same rocks and trails where the feet of my ancestors tread so many years ago? Is it their stories that have merged into my being and made me one with the land? Or is it simply my memories of riding in the backseat of an International Scout in my early childhood while my parents explored ghost towns and ancient trails as my Dad listened to the whispers of the valley in his soul?

No one place in the valley holds my heart captive. I feel the energy of the Arkansas River, the lifeline of the valley with its rushing waters that burst over rocks and flow unfettered to the plains of Colorado. Did its energy captivate my ancestors? In the center of this valley lie the meadows of Gas Creek, an oasis of cool, green grasses that refresh my soul. In places, the high desert is the front yard of the majestic mountains, a front yard where rocks and small boulders are scattered like marbles tossed by a child interspersed with clumps of native grasses. The rawness of this land stirs my individualism, my desire to be a person who can survive and thrive in this rugged land. The mountains are familiar. Mount Princeton towers like my Pikes Peak. Its shoulders are not quite as broad, but it still gives me the sense the mountain can envelope me in its arms and has the strength to carry my burdens. Looking at the mountain, I know the promise of cool mountain air scented with pine and I can almost hear the flutter of aspen leaves and the rushing waters of Cottonwood Creek.

While visiting last week, I had an overwhelming urge to put our house on the market and buy a house near Buena Vista. I wanted to view the vistas and draw strength from the land every morning. Feel the connection to my roots every day. Return to the sacred spaces of my ancestors. But then I drove home to Elbert and felt the familiar tugging in my heart when the tires of my truck hit the dirt roads and I saw the green pastures, Ponderosa Pine trees and Pikes Peak to the southwest. My home is as beautiful as the Upper Arkansas Valley. It’s the land of my heart, the home of my immediate family and the home of seven generations of my husband’s family. Someday, my great-great-grandchildren will visit Elbert, Colorado and know in their souls this is home. And then they may drive to the Upper Arkansas Valley, listen to the whispers of the valley, and know this home was knit into their being as well.

Trip To Salida and Buena Vista

Arkansas River between Canon City and Salida

Last week I drove to Salida and Buena Vista for three days of research. And, it was a productive three days! This week I will put up several postings with pictures and tell you about my newfound treasures. So, check in frequently! The Arkansas River is running high from the incredible snow run-off. It is amazing to talk to the people in Buena Vista to hear how much snow they had this winter. They spoke of plowing their driveways with the snow already piled up 14 feet high on each side. And Fairplay had it much worse.