Castle Rock Writers - Chronicles of Douglas County, Colorado

Historic Douglas County Inc. created this commemorative coverlet to illustrate the historic structures of Douglas County. The purpose of the organization, according to its website is to expand and enrich public awareness of Douglas County history through education and communication, and through support and coordination among local historical organizations and other related groups. Historic Douglas County Inc. is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization. 1992.001.0678.001. Historic Douglas County, Inc.

Published by The History Press

Charleston, SC 29403

www.historypress.net

Copyright 2014 by Castle Rock Writers

All rights reserved

First published 2014

e-book edition 2014

ISBN 978.1.62584.637.2

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Chronicles of Douglas County, Colorado / Castle Rock Writers.

pages cm

Includes bibliographical references and index.

print edition ISBN 978-1-62619-179-2

1. Douglas County (Colo.)--History. I. Castle Rock Writers.

F782.D8C49 2014

978.886--dc23

2014025437

Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the authors or The History Press. The authors and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

To Derald Hoffman, teacher, mentor, and friend, for his many contributions to the Douglas County community.

The mission of Castle Rock Writers is to provide education and support to aspiring and published writers in our region and beyond, through ongoing critique groups, training events, workshops and writers conferences.

CONTENTS

FOREWORD

Douglas County has been many things to many people in its rather short history.

The earliest people in the county were transitory hunter-gatherers, moving from place to place in search of food and shelter. Those early people were mobile, not entirely unlike the population today. We build more permanent structures and live less closely with nature, perhaps, and though the opportunity to hunt woolly mammoths is limited, we still want to provide for our families.

Explorers came to Colorado to see what was out here on the other side of the Great American Desert, a phrase coined by Stephen Long, one of the earliest visitors to Douglas County. The term will be familiar to anyone who has driven through Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma or Texas toward Colorado, waiting for the glimpse of mountain that says not far now. We are still explorers, looking around the next bend in the trail or over the next rise in the road for something new.

Mountain men and gold seekers came to Colorado to find their fortune, to escape the stifling cities of the east coast and to begin again. They would be amazed that this stretch of land has become one of the wealthiest counties in the United States, as our gold rushes are found in technology, entrepreneurship, financial services and real estate development.

Pioneer farmers, ranchers and homesteaders turned this land into a productive agricultural center. We try to hold on to that agricultural past, which still exists in the echoes of places not yet been planted with sprouting houses, fenced with highways and tamed into commercial centers.

A side-effect of being one of the fastest-growing counties in the United States is that new people may not feel as connected as old timers to what a local place is about. Projects like this one by the Castle Rock Writers connect new residents with the history of a place that may seem as if it is without a history. This project has been a labor of love for the writers. They have researched the prehistoric origins of the area, interviewed longtime residents, gathered published accounts and then pulled them all together. They have created a work of many voices but captured one story.

As one of the books first readers, I hope you have as much fun reading it as I did.

SHAUN BOYD, ARCHIVIST

Douglas County History Research Center

Douglas County Libraries

Douglas County, Colorado

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Jean Jacobsen and Alice Aldridge-Dennis, project managers

Cherie Abbott, Douglas County Emergency Management coordinator

Mike Acree, former Douglas County sheriff

G. Larry Adams, head of the Remember Our Veterans (ROV) project

Susan Consola Appleby, author

Edwin Bathke

Barbara Belt, interviewer for Douglas County Libraries

John Berry, docent at Castle Rock Museum

Shaun Boyd, archivist, Douglas County History Research Center

Janet Brunger and Bill Brunger, U.S. Army Veteran

Debbie Buboltz, author

David Casiano, former Parker mayor

Cherry Valley Elementary School staff

Joseph M. Clements

Cory Cummings

Curt Cummings

Peggy Cummings

Mike Dennis

Carol and Chris Doubek

John Evans, Parker attorney and former Douglas County state senator

Amy and Dave Flanagan

Jackie Friesen

Blake Graham, assistant archivist, Douglas County History Research Center

Danna Hamling, Larkspur Historical Society

Jim Hansmann, curator of Castle Rock Museum

Bruce Hier

Angel Horvath, president of Castle Rock Historical Society

Joseph Chip Howard Jr.

Mary Ellen Howard

Steve Howard

Tim Howard

Jake Jacobsen

Dorothy Kelly, board member of Castle Rock Historical Society

Evelyn Kriek

Leeds and Jan Lacy

Helen and Joseph Lenda

Angie De Leo, executive director, Castle Rock Museum

Sue Luxa

Keith Mathena, Douglas County Emergency Management deputy

Kaye Marsh

Rose Menocal, president of American Federation of Human Rights

Betty Meyer

Ann Milam

Kenneth A. Miller

Tim Moore, Douglas County Bureau chief

Jack Muse

Stevie Ramsour Nelson

Bev Higginson Noe

Bill Noe, Larkspur Historical Society

May Palmer, Parker Area Historical Society

Robbie Hier Person

Steve and Gay Ramsour

Dave Rhodus

Alice Salazar, wife of George Salazar

George Salazar, U.S. Army veteran

Pat Salazar

Larry Schlupp

Libby and Dennis Smith

Adam Speirs, archivist, Douglas County History Research Center

Tony Sperling, Douglas County deputy sheriff

Sheila R. Stephens

Bob Terwilleger

Lora Thomas, current Douglas County coroner

Gordon Tucker, PhD

Laurie Marr Wasmund

David Weaver, Douglas County sheriff

Sandra Whelchel, Parker Area Historical Society & author

Lou Zoghby, U.S. Army veteran

WHEN DINOSAURS RULED

by Derald Hoffman

Seascapes viewed from property in Douglas County, a tropical rainforest covering the plains, lava flows and Jurassic Park in your back yard? These scenarios are not just possible: they are probable. Many residents of Douglas County will be thrilled to know that, at one time in the prehistory of the county, the area was beachfront property.

Douglas Countys prehistoric story began much like the rest of the places on planet Earth. About 13.8 billion years ago, a tremendous explosion occurred somewhere in space. Whether matter was created at that time or whether matter blew apart, no one knows for sure.