History of the State of Colorado Volume III
by Frank Hall
Frank Hall is renowned for four volumes of Colorado history published in 1889, 1890, 1891, and 1895, respectively. So extensive is this work, which covers the state's "prehistory" to 1895, that it is still considered a primary resource on Colorado for professional and amateur historians, alike. Hall's History of Colorado is definitive in scope, not only covering the Colorado gold rush "boom days" that began in 1859, but also including material on prehistoric and historic Native Americans; Spanish, French and American explorers; the lives of early trappers, traders, and pioneers; the Sante Fe Trail; and commercial and social expansion in the mountains and on the plains.
- Published
- 2008
- ISBN
- 9781932738568
- Pages
- 684
- Category
- Reprints
- Place
- Colorado
- Publisher
- Western Reflections Pub. Co.
- Listed at
- $75.00
Publication details from Open Library. The price shown is the last one on record and is historic, not a current offer.
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About this book
Volume III is where Hall turns from events to institutions and people. It opens with a review of Colorado politics from 1861 into the 1880s, taking each governor and administration in turn, and sketches the careers of senators and lawyers such as Henry M. Teller. Then come chapters on the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad, on four Denver daily newspapers, and on the banks and bankers who handled the gold.
The book does not shy from darker material. A chapter titled Leaves from the Criminal Calendar tells of Alfred Packer, the man eater, and of Billy the Kid. Elsewhere it records the Denver uprising against Chinese residents, which Hall mentions in the first chapter.
The second half is a run of county histories, including Arapahoe, Boulder, Clear Creek, Costilla, Douglas, El Paso, Fremont, Gilpin, Huerfano, Jefferson, Lake and Pueblo. It is a handy reference for anyone working on a particular Colorado county, and the catalogue lists the volume at 684 pages.
What is inside
Political history
Chapters review the executives from Gilpin to Pitkin and the political events of the early 1880s.
Statesmen and lawyers
Hall profiles Teller, Nathaniel P. Hill, T. M. Patterson, C. S. Thomas and others.
Railroad and press
Separate chapters cover the Denver and Rio Grande and the News, Tribune, Times and Republican.
Banks and the mint
The text traces early bankers, the Clark and Gruber mint and the first United States branch mint.
Criminal calendar
A chapter recounts the Alfred Packer case and the exploits of Billy the Kid.
County histories
Twelve county histories close the volume, from Arapahoe to Pueblo.
Who it is for
Volume III is the reference volume of the set for anyone researching a Front Range or southern Colorado county. Local historians, family researchers and librarians will turn to its county sections first. Newspaper historians will find the sketches of Denver's four daily papers useful, and readers who like the rough edges of frontier life will go straight to the Packer chapter. Because it deals in politics and personalities, it also rewards anyone curious about how early Colorado was governed.
About the author
Frank Hall had been Secretary of Colorado Territory from 1866 to 1874, so the political chapters came from someone who had worked inside the system. The Online Books Page lists him as living from 1836 to 1917. Our author page for Hall has more on his life, his archive at History Colorado and the other volumes.
The place and the period
Hall's third volume appeared in 1891, after volumes in 1889 and 1890. Its political chapters range across the territorial governors and the years of statehood, including a turbulent uprising against the Chinese in Denver, and mention the reelection of Henry M. Teller to the Senate. A chapter on Denver journalism reviews the editors and managers of the News, Tribune, Times and Republican.
The banking chapters begin with the early gold brokers and the Clark and Gruber mint, then follow the founding of the United States branch mint and the First National Bank. Hall also gave space to the Denver and Rio Grande and to General William J. Palmer. His county histories note geological features, first settlers and organization dates, and several, such as Lake and El Paso, run across multiple chapters.
Source: Hall, History of the State of Colorado, Volume III (Internet Archive)
Good to know
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