Barnes - Estes Park

It is almost impossible to understand what brings people to the chronicling of history. It is definitely a community effort.

Primary thanks to my parents for leaving Iowa to make a life for themselves in the mountains of Colorado.

Lennie Bemiss, Ruth Deffenbaugh, and many volunteers created the local history index and the vertical file collection at the Estes Park Public Library in the early 1970s. Without their dedication and hard work, very little of the history of Estes Park would be so readily available. Current library staff members who are helpful include Kathleen Kase, Mark Riffle, Eric Srot, and Dan Kirkpatrick.

The Estes Park Area Historical Museum was established in 1964 as a repository for historical artifacts. Derek Fortini, current manager of the (renamed) Estes Park Museum, was generous with his time and computer expertise in making many of the photographs from the museum collection accessible for this project. Alicia Mittelman of the museum staff and volunteer Marshall Hesler also gave freely of their time and expertise.

Lulie and Jack Melton gave invaluable help with photographs from their personal collections and the collection of the Lula Dorsey Museum at the YMCA of the Rockies. In addition, I would like to thank them for the years of friendship and encouragement that we have shared since Lulie and I first met as children at a square dance or hymn sing at the Y Camp.

Individuals who contributed images and information include Betsy and Art Anderson, May Anderson, E. R. Andy Anderson, Will Citta, Linda Elmarr of the Stanley Museum, Byron Hall, Susan Harris, Bobbie Heisterkamp, Ken Jessen, Steve Mitchell, Laura Beth Miller, Jody Magnuson, Ann Pettit Fuller Morrow, Duke Sumonia, and Jean Weaver.

Jim Pickering has done the heavy lifting of producing the most recent wave of comprehensive histories of the area. You will find some of his publications listed in the bibliography.

John Meissner of the Estes Park History Rescue Project and Estes Park Archives has been an inspiration for his contributions to establishing accurate image dates and bringing local history programs to the community. His dedication encourages all of us to keep the flame of collecting and sharing historical information burning brightly.

Thanks also to Devon Weston, Jerry Roberts, and the production staff of Arcadia Publishing.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Anderson, E. R. A History of Trouthaven, Estes Park Colorado . Estes Park, CO: self-published, 2007.

Cassell, Colleen Estes. The Golden Pioneer: Biography of Joel Estes, the Man who Discovered Estes Park . Seattle, WA: Peanut Butter Publishing, 1999.

Frank, James R., and R. Paul Firnhaber. Magic in the Mountains: Estes Park, Colorado . Estes Park, CO: Our Natural Heritage Publishing, 2007.

Jessen, Kenneth. Estes Park: A Quick History Including Rocky Mountain National Park . Fort Collins, CO: First Light Publishing, 1996.

Jessen, Kenneth. Rocky Mountain National Park: Pictorial History . Loveland, CO: J. V. Publications, 2008.

Melton, Jack R., and Lulabeth Melton. YMCA of the Rockies: Reflections, Traditions, and Vision . Estes Park, CO: YMCA of the Rockies, 2006.

Pickering, James H. This Blue Hollow: Estes Park, the Early Years, 18591915 . Niwot, CO: University Press of Colorado, 1999.

Pickering, James H. Americas Switzerland: Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park, the Growth Years . Boulder: University Press of Colorado, 2005.

Ramsey, Jane, and Marty Yochum Casey. Early Estes Park Artists, 18701970 . Estes Park, CO: Alpenaire Publishing Inc., 2005.

Robertson, Janet. The Magnificent Mountain Women: Adventures in the Colorado Rockies . Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press, 1990.

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One

GROWTH OF A TOWN

An unidentified boy stands near the confluence of the Big Thompson and Fall Rivers looking east. Lumpy Ridge is to the north behind the cliff that overshadows the road visible in the middle left, which led to MacGregor Ranch. The MacGregors homesteaded on Black Canyon Creek in 1873. (Courtesy of Estes Park Museum.)

This is the view a tourist coming from Loveland would have seen after rounding the final curve of the Big Thompson Road in the early part of the 20th century. Prospect Mountain is to the left, and the bluff visible in the left middle ground will serve as the southern anchor of the Lake Estes Dam. (Courtesy of Estes Park Museum.)

The other eastern approach to Estes Park was from Lyons. This image from approximately 1916 shows a glimpse of the Front Range to the left and Old Man Mountain in the middle ground on the right. The bridge crosses the Big Thompson River, and the gate to the Stanley Hotel property is visible to the right. (Courtesy of Estes Park Museum.)

Here is downtown Estes Park in 1903. The identified buildings in this H. C. Rogers photograph are W. T. Parkes photography studio, under the tree and close to the river for access to water; the post office and general store on the south (left) side of Elkhorn Avenue; the first church and schoolhouse directly across the street; and John Cleaves home, also on the north (right) side. Cleave homesteaded the area and built the schoolhouse in 1888. It subsequently served as a theater, dance hall, and meeting space for the Odd Fellows fraternal organization, and was eventually used as a store. (Courtesy of Estes Park Museum.)

This is a closer view of the post office and general store constructed by John Cleave. The schoolhouse is the white building across the street. John Cleave was a carpenter who came to Estes Park to work on the construction of the English Hotel on Fish Creek Road. (Courtesy of Estes Park Museum.)

It is hard to tell from this 1902 photograph whether the stage is arriving at or departing from Cleaves store. The mail also arrived from Lyons once a day. Prospect Mountain and Davis Hill are visible in the background. (Courtesy of Estes Park Museum.)