A History Presentation by Author Joyce B. Lohse: “Mining for the Real Baby Doe Tabor” at Historic Tattered Cover LoDo Bookstore 1628 16th St. at Wynkoop in Denver Tuesday, June 7, 2011 at 7:30 p.m. A legendary pioneer woman, Baby Doe Tabor, provided us with one of the greatest rags-to-riches-to-rags stories in America’s western history. Award-winning biographer Joyce B. Lohse has written her biography set in Colorado’s days of boom and bust. The story appeals…
Publication date of my latest book, Baby Doe Tabor: Matchless Silver Queen, is fast approaching. As we struggle through final edits in an attempt to provide the most interesting and correct factual information possible, I am enjoying revisiting Colorado’s mining history as I have throughout the process. Just as I learned about railroads and their impact on our country’s western expansion during my work on General William Palmer: Railroad Pioneer, I have experienced a similar…
In 1880, former Union Army General and U.S. President Ulysses S. Grant visited Colorado. One of his hosts was Governor John L. Routt, a pal from Civil War days. As Grant’s host, Routt wished to show his friend the sights of Colorado’s mining districts, while attempting to recapture the excitement of their glory days. After a tour of the mining camp of Central City in the mountains west of Denver, Routt decided to play a…
Transitional shoulder months in Colorado are full of beauty and surprises. One minute, a blizzard sends you scurrying toward the hearth and a pile of quilts, then the sun pops out and lures you outdoors to linger among crunchy leaves and inhale the warm breath of Indian Summer. As shadows lengthen and the days grow shorter, activities related to collecting, preserving and enjoying pioneer history return indoors. During a recent snowstorm, I set aside research…
Nobody puts on a Western parade like Leadville, Colorado during Boom Days. This festival is a celebration of historic Leadville’s mining past as a boom town, at an elevation of 10,200 feet above sea level. The parade and festival, which take place during the first weekend in August, are the perfect excuse for the inner cowboy and cowgirl to come out and play in the cool, fresh mountain air. I was in town, with my…
Late winter is a great time to touch history in Colorado. I recently rode up to the mining community of Fairplay with my research pal, Christie. It was a little cold and windy that day, but the sun was out, and so were we. The road took us up Buckskin Gulch, to the Alma Cemetery, for some righteous walking and tromping through the snow, and a good photo shoot. This cemetery is special for its…