Colorado Springs - 1907

Post (C) Doris McCraw

aka Angela Raines

Pikes Peak
Image (C) Doris McCraw

By 1907, Colorado Springs had grown from its founding in 1871 into a thriving 36-year-old community. In just over three decades, the city had undergone a significant transformation, shaping its identity through rapid growth, cultural development, and historic events.

1. It had been 101 years since Zebulon Pike had attempted his climb of Pikes Peak.

2. It had been 87 years since Dr. Edwin James had accomplished that feat as the first white man to reach the top of that mountain.

3. It had been 16 years since the Cog Railway, partially financed by Zalmon Simmons of the Simmons mattress company, had begun taking people to the top of Pikes Peak.

4. It had been 14 years since Katharine Lee Bates had taken a carriage and a mule ride to the top of Pikes Peak, which inspired her to write the phrase: "Oh beautiful for halcyon skies, for amber waves of grain."

5. It had been 33 years since the Colorado Deaf and Blind School was founded by the grandfather of the actor Lon Chaney.

In the Garden of the Gods
Image (C) Doris McCraw 

6. It had been 33 years since Colorado College was founded.

7. It had been 20 years since the trolley system began.

8. It had been 6 years since they buried the century chest to be opened in 2001.

9. It was the junction for six railways between 1870 and 1900: The Denver & Rio Grande, The Denver & New Orleans Manitou Branch, The Colorado Midland, Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe, The Rock Island, and The Colorado Springs & Cripple Creek.

10. It had been 34 years since Helen (Hunt) Jackson, the author of "Ramona" and "Century of Dishonor," had made Colorado Springs her home. (She died in 1885 and is buried here.)

11. It had been 4 years since the El Paso County Courthouse had been built.

12. It had been 41years since the creation of the Goodnight-Loving Trail that ran just east of Colorado Springs.

13. It had been 34 years since Isabella Bird, the Englishwoman who wrote "A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains, spent time in Colorado Springs

14. It had been 48 years since Garden of the Gods received its name.

A lot happened in the town William Jackson Palmer and his associates founded back in 1871 as a tourist and resort area for his European investors. So much history to draw from as I write, and I do use it a lot. It plays a large role in my soon-to-be-released "Isabella: Rocky Mountain Bride" in the National Park Brides series. You can pre-order it here:

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Until Next Time: Stay safe, Stay happy, and Stay healthy. 

Doris

Angela Raines - Amazon

Doris A. McCraw - Amazon

William and Helen (Hunt) Jackson

Post by Doris McCraw

aka Angela Raines

(C) Doris McCraw

      Together William and Helen with their respective talents were the first equally successful couple in the region. William a successful businessman and Helen a nationally known author, each in their own way had an impact on not only Colorado Springs but Colorado and beyond. As a 'power couple,' they were also the subject of conjecture and gossip.

     Helen H and William S. Jackson were in fact the first couple in the area whose careers expanded beyond the town in which they lived. William was the majority owner of the El Paso County Bank and treasurer of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, He also had financial ties to banks in Denver, and later was appointed the receiver of the Denver & Rio Grande when it it went into bankruptcy. Helen was an established poet, essayist, and novelist before arriving in Colorado Springs. She continued her career, publishing in magazines that were read here and in Europe.

Wm. S. Jackson
from Find a Grave

     When Jackson took over a failing bank and started his in 1873, the world was just beginning to feel the results of a larger worldwide depression. In the United States banks were failing. One bank, the Henry Clewes & Company bank in New York, had a domino effect on the Wm. B Young & Company, which William purchased after it failed. The 1873 depression has been called the long depression. Its primary dates of influence were 1873-1879. The great depression of 1929 only lasted until 1931. His business acumen, which did not necessarily make him popular, kept the bank and this region afloat at a time when other areas were failing. In a larger perspective, Colorado Springs was only two years old and this helped add stability to the area.

Helen (Hunt) Jackson
from Wikipedia

     Helen (Hunt), as stated earlier, was already an established author when she arrived. Her writings about the Colorado Springs area and a large portion of the state were responsible for the view many Easterners and those from Europe had of this region. Those views, in turn, helped spur the area's growth. When Helen took up the cause of the American Indian, she was responsible for helping to shine a light on the issue and bring a conscience to the general public. Like William, her views did not make her popular with some of the population. Still, that did not deter her from her stance on the subject. Of note is the discussion she had with William Byers, founder and former editor of the Rocky Mountain News, in the New York Independent on the subject of 'The Sand Creek Massacre'. Although William didn't believe as Helen about the Indians, letters between the two indicate that he eventually accepted her point of view.

     The Jackson's relationship was more equal than most of the time. Both followed their various careers, each traveling alone or together as the situation demanded. William and Helen together created a dynamic relationship that had a larger influence than most may realize. An example of their local influence, Helen was on the library board and William was one of the early board members for Colorado College. Neither sought notoriety for themselves, only their work. Both were fairly private people, which may be part of the reason their contributions are largely forgotten by the general public. Both were focused on their respective careers and as a result, their work was instrumental in helping this city, region, and a lot of Colorado. This helped make the state what it has become today. Had William not been able to restructure the Denver & Rio Grande we would not have railroading as we know it for Palmer might have lost it all. His banking acumen both in Colorado Springs and the state had an impact on the financial health of our region. Helen, in highlighting all that this state had to offer has left a legacy for future generations to remember how it was. She also was vocal about Colorado Springs and protecting the natural beauty of the area, which tourists can still enjoy today, Seven Falls and Cheyenne Canon to name two. 

Until Next Time: Stay safe, Stay happy, and Stay healthy. 

Doris

GLIMPSES

Post by Doris McCraw, writing as Angela Raines

Hazy view from Pikes Peak
photo property of the author

Glimpses by Helen (Hunt) Jackson

As when on some great mountain-peak we stand,

In breathless awe beneath its dome of sky,

Whose multiplied horizons seem to lie

Beyond the bounds of earthly sea and land,

We find the circles space too vast, too grand,

And soothe our thoughts with restful memory

Of sudden sunlit glimpses we passed by

Too quickly, in our feverish demand

To reach the height,--

So darling, when the brink

Of highest heaven we reach at last, I think

Even that great gladness will grow yet more glad,

As we, with eyes that are no longer sad,

Look back, while Life's horizons slowly sink,

To some swift moments which on earth we had.

From the book"Poems" by Helen Jackson

Little Brown and Company 1908

First appearance in publication September 19, 1872, New York Independent

Colorado Springs from Pikes Peak
photo property of the author

The thing I love about the poetry of Helen Hunt Jackson is the musicality it has when it's read aloud. Not read as one usually reads poetry, with the breaks and breaths at the end of the line, but read as prose. If you read this poem aloud, pausing at commas or reading through the complete thoughts the true beauty of this piece comes through. When you read this piece, read it through more than once to get the feel for what Helen is trying to say. Try different combinations of breaths and thought to combine and see what you get. The beauty is, each time something different arises out of the different combinations. I believe that true poetry never has the same story, the same meaning twice. You can read it at different times and it will touch a different chord each time you read through the poem.

Sometimes when I am reading, I try to hear the voice of a favorite actor or singer saying the words. Then, of course, I try using different voices or even singing the words. It is a way to keep learning, hearing, and understanding.

As you read this or any poetry, keep an open mind and heart. This is the poetry that was popular during the time period we write about. Helen was favorably compared to many of the poets of her time. According to stories, she was actually considered the best, male or female. I always found it interesting that Helen was so popular during her lifetime. It was so much so that she was able to make a living as a writer. Emily Dickinson, her childhood in Amherst, on the other hand, did not become popular until her death. Now the tables have turned and Emily is the better known of the two. Each had their own style, and each wrote beautiful pieces of work.

There is a story that Helen wanted Emily to publish her work, but Emily was hesitant. Helen persisted and there is an anonymous poem written by Emily that Helen had a hand in getting published. Helen suggested that Emily make her the executor of the poems so that she could make sure they were published in case of Emily’s death. Unfortunately, Helen preceded Emily by nine months and three days.

The next time you are looking for something do to, search online for some of Helen's poetry, or better yet, find a book of her poems, and start reading. To me, the gift of the poet is the joy of finding something new every time I read their work. Give poetry, especially Helen’s, a try. It never hurts to try something new and different. Reading the older writers doesn’t make it good or bad, it is what you receive from the gift of the author. To me, that is why poetry will never grow old.

I challenge you to read a poem and then write one of your own or give cento poetry a try. For those who don't know, Cento poetry is taking lines from other poems and using them to create something new.

Of course, I couldn't let a post pass without mentioning how the classics play into my own writing. In my latest 'Lockets & Lace' novel, "The Outlaw's Letter", my heroine is passionate about Homer's Odyssey.  Here is a short excerpt:

      To Hetty's mind, Boggs was the worst kind of human. He seemed to take pleasure in tormenting her, knowing she couldn't leave; the ropes securing her had seen to that.

     "Mighty pretty rainbow," his voice whispered in her ear. "I always loved rainbows."

     "I don't believe you," Hetty spat. "How could someone who does what you do…"

     "See, you judge so harshly," Boggs interrupted, adding, "Just so you know, I have you here so Grant will see you, so he knows…"

     "Knows what? How do you know he's coming?"

     Boggs didn't make sense. There was no convincing him that holding her hostage was a waste of time.

     Hetty closed her eyes, shutting out the vision of freedom. What would Odysseus do in this situation, the hero she revered from Homer's Odyssey, Hetty wondered. "Who am I kidding, he would not be tied up in a mountain cabin."

     She must've spoken out loud for the voice continued in her ear. "You never know, Grant could find himself in your situation, except I've found out he's worth a lot more dead."

     At hearing Boggs' statement about Grant being worth more dead, Hetty started to panic. The more Boggs said, the more frightened Hetty became.  

　

Purchase book here

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in
Colorado and Women's History

Angela Raines - author: Where Love & History Meet

For a list of Angela Raines Books: Here 

Angela Raines Facebook Group

LYRICAL DESCRIPTION #WomenAuthors #SweetAmericanaSweethearts

For many writers description can be painful or enjoyable. For me, it's a bit of both. When I read a beautiful passage I think, will I ever paint a picture as beautiful as that?

As I continue to research women from the 1800s I find myself transported by the writing of those early women. Is is verbose? Sometimes it is, yet there is a beauty to those words I admire. This post is composed of examples that have stuck a chord in me. All were written in the early 1870s as these women traversed the area between the Mississippi River and the Pacific Ocean. I hope you  enjoy them as well.

From Isabella Bird in her book "A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains"

There was a most curious loneliness about the journey up to that time. Except for the huge barrier to the right, the boundless prairies were everywhere, and it was like being at sea without a compass. The wheels made neither sound nor indentation as we drove over the short, dry grass, and there was no cheerful clatter of horses hooves. The sky was cloudy and the air hot and still. In one place we passed the carcass of a mule, any number of vultures soared up from it, to descend again immediately. Skeletons and bones of animals were often seen. A range of low, grassy hills, called the Foot Hills, rose from the plain, featureless and monotonous, except for streams, fed by the snows of the higher regions, had cut their way through them. Confessedly bewildered, and more melancholy than ever, the driver turned up one of the wildest of these entrances, and in another hour the Foot Hills lay between us and the prairie sea, and a higher and broken range, with pitch pines of average size, was revealed behind them.

Grace Greenwood from her book "New Life in New Lands: Notes on Travel"

I suppose these lands of the Platte Valley can hardly be called "plains"; but though not arid and desolate, they are sufficiently lonely and somber. We learn that this was the very "Valley of the Shadow of Death" to thousands of poor immigrants in the early days of California emigration, and in the fearful cholera times. It may be that before the locomotive came to invade with irreverent noise and hurry this haunted ground, to mock at poor perturbed spirits, and whistle them down the wind, a seer might have beheld, any dreary, starlit night, ghostly trains, moving silently, slowly along by this low, dark river. Might have seen white, still faces looking out of ghostly wagons, drawn by ghostly horses and oxen, noiselessly treading over the old track — over the lonely graves.

Helen (Hunt) Jackson from her book "Bits of Travel at Home"

As I looked up the ford to the mouth of the canyon, I was reminded of some of the grand old altar-pieces of the early centuries, where, lest the pictures of saints and angels and divine beings should seem too remote, too solemn and overawning, the painters used to set at the base, rows of human children, gay and mirthful, leaping and laughing or playing viols. So lay this sunny belt of sparkling water, glistening sand, and joyous blue blossom, at the base of the picture made by the dark mouth of the canyon, where two great mountains had recoiled and fallen apart from each other, leaving a chasm, midway in which rows a smaller mountain of sharp rocks, like a giant sentry disputing the way. Forests of pines fill the rift on either side of this rock, and their dark line stretch high up, right and left, nearly to the top of each mountain. Higher and ruggeder peaks rise beyond, looking as if they must shut the canyon sharply, as a gate closes an alley; but they do not. Past them, among them, in spite of them, the creek took its right-of-way, the mountains and rocks yielded, and the canyon winds.

Each of these authors has a unique style, yet, you get the sense of being there with them. While most would find the excerpts too wordy, they each have a beauty of their own. For more about the amazing lives of these women, you can read about them here. Isabella Bird  Grace Greenwood  Helen (Hunt) Jackson

While perhaps not as lyrical, here is an excerpt from the novella "Angel of Salvation Valley", the story of a man who has made a deal to get out of prison, only to have second thoughts.


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Now here he was, looking at a piece of heaven. If he'd had something like this, he wouldn't have been riding around searching, in the wrong place at the wrong time, and ended up in prison. He'd do anything to have a place like this. Maybe someday, when all this was over he thought.

Moving back from the entrance, he headed for higher ground to get a better view of the whole valley. If he didn't strain too much, Drew knew he's make it to the top. A slow five days since leaving prison as they traveled over the mountains, avoiding towns and people. Drew puzzled over that, but figured Luke knew what he was doing. Fortunately the additional time gave Drew the chance get most of the poison Old Harold had given him out of his system. The intervening hours between the ingestion of the poison and his leaving prison, were one remaining mystery. Drew was not sure he'd ever know the truth. The pieces of memory didn't make sense. Luke, telling Harold that he's might have wrecked everything by his actions. The bump of his head against the walls. Harold screaming he was sorry as he burst into flame. None of these made any sense and only made the pain in Drew's head worse. Drew finally gave up trying to remember, and putting a damper on those thoughts when they surfaced.

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in
Colorado and Women's History

Member of National League of American Pen Women,

Women Writing the West,

Pikes Peak Posse of the Westerners and

Western Fictioneers

Angela Raines - author: Where Love & History Meet

For a list of Angela Raines Books: Here 

Photo and Poem: Click Here 

Angela Raines FaceBook: Click Here

AN INTERVIEW WITH HELEN (HUNT) JACKSON #SweetAmericana #history

For this post I thought it might be fun to 'interview' Helen Hunt Jackson using her own words. Helen was born in 1830 and died in 1885. She began writing in earnest around 1865. Enjoy the interview. 

You traveled a great deal, as we know. What were your observations on your trips west?

Prairie, unfenced, undivided, unmeasured, unmarked, save by the different tints of different growths of grass or grain; great droves of cattle grazing here and there; acres of willow saplings, pale yellowish green; and solitary trees, which look like hermits in a wilderness. These, and now and then a shapeless village, which looks even lonelier than the empty loneliness by which it is surrounded, - these are all for hours and hours. We think, “now we are getting out into the great spaces.” “This is what the word ‘West’ has sounded like.”

You talk about the places you have traveled, the beauty and grandeur, but lower elevations seem special to you also. Why is that?

I think that true delight, true realization, of the gracious, tender, unutterable beauty of the earth and all created things are to be found in outlooks from lower points—vistas which shut more than they show, sweet and unexpected revealings in level places and valley, secrets of near woods, and glories of every-day paths.

 

You are quoted as saying there are nine places of worship in Colorado Springs. What are they?

There are nine “places of divine worship” in Colorado Springs, -- the Presbyterian, the Cumberland Presbyterian, the Methodist, the South Methodist, the Episcopal, the Congregationalist, the Baptist, the Unitarian, and Cheyenne Canyon.

Do you enjoy winters?

... winter..... memory and fancy will have their way; and, as we sit cowering over fires, and the snow piles up outside our window sills, we shall gaze dreamily into the glowing coals, and, living the summer over again, shall recall it in a minuteness of joy, for summer days were too short and summer light too strong. Then, when joy becomes reverie, and reverie takes shape, a truer record can be written....

Now, if you don’t mind, I would like to spend some time with questions about your work for the Indians in the late 1870's and early 1880's.

First, in your article 'Oldest House' you mention the fate of the people who lived in the area prior to the Spanish residence in Santa Fe.

When Coronado explored Mexico in 1540, he found many Indian pueblos on the Rio Grande River, and speaks of several which must have been near the present location of Santa Fe. The one which it is generally supposed was on its precise site at the time stretched along its river-banks for six miles. Colorado reported that he found here a beautiful and fertile valley, under high cultivation by the Indians. It is hard to realize...that a race which, over three hundred years ago, had reached comfort and success in agriculture and pastoral occupations, should be today an abject, supine, wretched race...is a melancholy comment on the injustices they have received.

Those are pretty harsh words. It is obvious you have strong feelings about the issue.

The book, Century of Dishonor, as its title indicates,..gives a sketch of the United States Government's dealings with some of the..tribes.

Right sentiment and purpose in a senator..representative here and there, are little more than straws which make momentary eddies, but do not obstruct the tide.

a..states representative argued in Congress that is is very hard if the government will not for..advantage, break a few treaties when it has broken so many for the advantage of other states....what a logic of infamy...because we have had one century of dishonor, must we have two?

What, if anything, do you think can be done?

The only thing that can stay this is a mighty outspoken sentiment and purpose of the great body of the people. ...for the American people, as a people, are not at heart unjust. If there be one thing which they believe in more than any other,...it is fair play. As soon as they understand....they will rise up and demand it...

Thank you Mrs. Jackson, for taking the time to share some of your thoughts and words with us.

I hope you enjoyed a bit of insight into this interesting, complex and fearless woman. Helen seemed to have no problem with stating her opinion, regardless of what others may have thought. She was a woman to be remembered.

(The 'interview' were from the writings of Mrs. Helen Jackson, also known as HH. The use of the name Helen Hunt Jackson was used primarily after her death in 1885.)

Helen’s words about the West help to influence why own writings. Both my haiku, novellas and the two novels "Chasing A Chance" and "Josie's Dream" came to fruition by her influence and determination to write and tell the story.

Enjoy this excerpt from “Chasing A Chance” and you may see Helen’s influence:

The closer Edwin came to his destination, the more nervous he felt. What if Mary weren't there,

or worse something had happened her? She hadn't deserved the hand that life dealt her. Edwin

felt guilty, for not being there to help her through. He cut his thoughts short. He'd enough of 

self-pity. He was doing what he could now, whatever that might be. But, what if she didn't want

help? The thoughts and questions fought each other as Edwin moved closer to his destiny.

           The two traveled in silence, each deep in their own thoughts about what was to come. The miles\

drifted by, heat waves rolling off the ground as they slowly made their way through the high

plains east of the mountains, barely visible off in the distance to the west.

           Taylor watched Edwin. He was wondering what it was that was pushing the man toward trouble 

instead of away.

Purchase Here

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in
Colorado and Women's History

Member of National League of American Pen Women,

Women Writing the West,

Pikes Peak Posse of the Westerners

Angela Raines - author: Where Love & History Meet

For a list of Angela Raines Books: Here

Photo and Poem: Click Here

Angela Raines FaceBook: Click Here

Popular Poetry of the 1800s

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However, on my scheduled blog day, I want to share the other side of history and writers. 
April is National Poetry month. In honor it seemed appropriate to share some of the more popular poems from the 1800s. 

Christina Rosetti is a favorite of mine. Here is her poem 'Echo'

Echo

Come to me in the silence of the night;

   Come in the speaking silence of a dream;

Come with soft rounded cheeks and eyes as bright

   As sunlight on a stream;

      Come back in tears,

O memory, hope, love of finished years.

Oh dream how sweet, too sweet, too bitter sweet,

   Whose wakening should have been in Paradise,

Where souls brimfull of love abide and meet;

   Where thirsting longing eyes

      Watch the slow door

That opening, letting in, lets out no more.

Yet come to me in dreams, that I may live

   My very life again tho’ cold in death:

Come back to me in dreams, that I may give

   Pulse for pulse, breath for breath:

      Speak low, lean low,

As long ago, my love, how long ago.

Of course you can't talk about 1800s poetry without mentioning Emily Dickenson. Here is her poem ' Sometimes with the Heart'

Sometimes with the Heart
Seldom with the Soul
Scarcer once with the Might
Few - love at all. 

Anytime you speak about poets of the 1800s you usually include Tennyson. Here is a poem some of you may recognize:

Lullaby - Poem by Alfred Lord Tennyson

Sweet and low, sweet and low, 

Wind of the western sea,
Low, low, breathe and blow,
Wind of the western sea!
Over the rolling waters go,
Come from the dying moon, and blow,
Blow him again to me;
While my little one, while my pretty one, sleeps.

Sleep and rest, sleep and rest,
Father will come to thee soon;
Rest, rest, on mother's breast,
Father will come to thee soon;
Father will come to his babe in the nest,
Silver sails all out of the west
Under the silver moon:
Sleep, my little one, sleep, my pretty one, sleep. 

I will leave you with a favorite of mine from Helen (Hunt) Jackson:

Last Words

Dear hearts, whose love has been so sweet to know,

That I am looking backward as I go,

Am lingering while I haste, and in this rain

Of tears of joy am mingling tears of pain;

Do not adorn with costly shrub, or tree,

Or flower, the little grave which shelters me.

Let the wild wind-sown seeds grow up unharmed,

And back and forth all summer, unalarmed,

Let all the tiny, busy creatures creep;

Let the sweet grass its last year's tangles keep;

And when, remembering me, you come some day

And stand there, speak no praise, but only say,

" How she loved us'! 'Twas that which made her dear! "

Those are the words that I shall joy to hear.

Here's to the beauty of poetry. When you get a moment, stop by and read some of the other poets who were creatiing pictures and emotions with words. Poetry was enjoyed by many and you might be surprised by who was writing and what they wrote about. 

Until next time.

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in
Colorado and Women's History

Member of National League of American Pen Women,

Women Writing the West,

Pikes Peak Posse of the Westerners

Angela Raines - author: Where Love & History Meet

For a list of Angela Raines Books: Here 

Photo and Poem: Click Here 

Angela Raines FaceBook: Click Here