The Beebe Legacy of Chincoteague Island

  By Tiffany Amber Stockton

Less than 3 months to the 100th annual Pony Penning Day celebrations, but I'll cover that in July. :) As I make plans to return to my favorite island and relive some fun childhood (and adulthood) memories, I'm reminded of a family with as much history tied to the island as my own.

If you missed last month's post about a legacy of horses and a direct-descendant of the famous Misty of Chincoteague, you can view it here.

A Legacy Family on Chincoteague

Thanks to the heart and hard work of the Beebe family, hundreds of thousands have met Misty—the little horse who put Chincoteague on the map.

But to understand their deep connection to the island, you have to start with Clarence Beebe, the grandfather immortalized in Marguerite Henry’s classic stories.

Clarence was born on Chincoteague Island in 1884. Four years later, his future bride, Ida Virginia Whealton, was born just down the way. They married in 1906, raised ten children (six survived past infancy), and lived their entire lives on the island they loved. They’re both buried there today.

Clarence was a horseman through and through. Folks called him the “Chincoteague Pony Man,” and for good reason. He and Ida once owned 100 acres of the island and ran a busy ranch, known for its gentle ponies brought over from nearby Assateague. Every year, he’d buy wild ponies during the famous Pony Penning and train them to be calm, friendly, and ready for new homes. He would definitely be called a "horse whisperer" today.

Now, in the books and movie, Paul and Maureen Beebe are shown living with their grandparents, but like a lot of novelized real-life stories, that part’s fiction. They actually lived with their parents but spent many sun-soaked days at the ranch with Grandpa Clarence.

When author Marguerite Henry visited the island and met the kids, she asked what they wanted most. “A pony of our own,” they said. Clarence had ponies, but they were all for selling, not keeping.

Then came Misty.

Clarence and Ida had already purchased her parents—The Pied Piper and Phantom. From them came the famous filly. Marguerite Henry, inspired by the family and the island's charm, struck a deal with Clarence. She bought Misty for $150 and took her to Illinois, where the young pony became a star before returning to the island at 11 years old.

By then, Clarence had passed, and Ida asked their son Ralph to take over Misty’s care. He and his wife Jeanette carried the torch, tending the ranch and raising Misty’s foals. Their son, Billy King Beebe, later opened the ranch as a museum in 1999.

In 2023, the Beebe Ranch almost became a mere piece of property to a real estate investor, but the existing owners and last remaining family members who own the ranch appealed to the Museum of Chincoteague to purchase it instead. Since the museum itself lacked sufficient funds, they made a plea to the public and hoped for the best. The ensuing support from fans all over the world kept the legacy alive!

Today, visitors still come each summer to see Misty’s stall...and Stormy’s too. Family photos, old saddles, and newspaper clippings line the walls, each of them pieces of a story that began with one island man and a dream.

And what a story it is!

NOW IT'S YOUR TURN:

* What family traditions or stories have shaped your own legacy?

* Have you ever read a fictionalized account of something that really happened? What was the book and what did the author change for the sake of the story?

* Have you ever read Misty of Chincoteague or visited the island to see the wild horses?

Leave answers to these questions or any comments on the post below.

** This note is for our email readers. Please do not reply via email with any comments. View the blog online and scroll down to the comments section.

Come back on the 9th of each month for my next foray into historical tidbits to share.

---

BIO

Tiffany Amber Stockton has embellished stories since childhood, thanks to a very active imagination and notations of talking entirely too much. Honing those skills led her to careers as an award-winning and best-selling author and speaker, while also working as a professional copywriter/copyeditor. She loves to share life-changing products and ideas with others to help them get rooted and live a life of purpose.

Currently, she lives with her husband and fellow author, Stuart Vaughn Stockton, along with their two children, three dogs, and three cats in southeastern Kentucky. In her 20+ years as a professional writer, she has sold twenty-six (26) books so far and has agent representation with Tamela Murray of the Steve Laube Agency. You can find her on Facebook and GoodReads.

In the Shadow of the Trail of Tears: The Love Story of John and Elizabeth Ridge

by Martha Hutchens

Major John Ridge, Father of John Rollins Ridge
Image from Smithsonian Open Access

John Rollins Ridge had a difficult start in life. He was born in 1827 to a Cherokee father and a white mother. His father, Major Ridge, was among the tribal leaders who signed the Treaty of New Echota—an agreement that ceded ancestral Cherokee lands and led to the Trail of Tears. Though Major Ridge opposed removal, he likely signed the treaty only when he believed it was inevitable and hoped that negotiation might secure better terms for his people. He moved his family to Oklahoma in 1837, two years before the forced removal.

Members of the Cherokee Nation levied a death sentence against Major Ridge, largely in response to his role in signing the treaty—a treaty many viewed as a betrayal. The forced removal, known as the Trail of Tears, resulted in the deaths of thousands of Cherokee people due to disease, starvation, and exposure. Though the Ridge family had already relocated voluntarily, many still held Major Ridge responsible for the suffering. The legal authority of the death sentence—even under tribal law—remains questionable. But on June 22, 1839, assailants dragged Major Ridge from his bed and killed him in front of his family. John, only twelve years old, witnessed his father’s death and was deeply traumatized. He suffered nightmares for the rest of his life. Soon after that night, his mother moved the family to northwestern Arkansas.

John met Elizabeth Wilson in Fayetteville, Arkansas, where she worked for a missionary who was teaching him Greek and Latin. He fell in love with her beautiful features, brilliant mind, and noble character. They married in May of 1847. Throughout their marriage, she frequently comforted him after nightmares. She accompanied him to Oklahoma.

While John had been away in Arkansas, many of the men who had participated in his father’s killing were themselves killed. When he returned, only four remained. One of them, David Kell, mutilated John’s stallion in a supposed attempt to provoke a fight. The two men confronted each other, and when Kell advanced, John killed him. It was ruled self-defense, but John no longer felt safe in Oklahoma. He and Elizabeth relocated to Springfield, Missouri, where they welcomed their daughter, Alice.

Image by Luftklick, Deposit Photos

John held several jobs as a clerk, but when news of the 1849 gold rush in California reached Missouri, he decided to head west. Knowing conditions would be rough, he left Elizabeth and Alice behind.

He found little success in the gold fields, but he began publishing articles in a local newspaper under the name “Yellow Bird,” a name given to him in youth by his Cherokee peers.

In 1853, John sent word to his mother that he was very ill. When Elizabeth learned of this, she left Alice with John’s mother and traveled west by stagecoach. Though John was near death when she arrived, her comforting presence and constant care helped him recover. Once he had regained his health, she returned east to bring Alice to California.

Image by ronstik, deposit photos

Elizabeth encouraged John’s writing, especially his poetry, which she noticed helped him cope with the lingering trauma of his past. In 1854, John was inspired by the story of a Mexican bandit who had turned to crime after the murder of his fiancée and the seizure of his land. Perhaps John’s own losses gave him a deep empathy for the outlaw. His resulting book, The Life and Adventures of Joaquin Murieta, the Celebrated California Bandit, became a literary success. John Rollin Ridge is now recognized as the first Native American novelist. Unfortunately, he never profited from the book, as his publisher went bankrupt. However, the book’s popularity helped him secure editorial positions at several newspapers.

John and Elizabeth lived in Grass Valley, California, for fifteen years before John’s health declined. He died in 1867 at the age of forty. In 1868, Elizabeth published a collection of his poetry—including several written for her, the woman whose love and strength helped him endure the lifelong trauma of witnessing his father’s death.

The Dust Bowl Take on NYC

 By Jennifer L. Wright 

New York City was dirty.

Fueled by rapid industrial and population growth, by the early 1930s New York City had swelled to almost seven million people. Immigrants seeking a better life, rural Americans seeking better pay, and hundreds of thousands of people from all walks of life seeking the fun, excitement, and culture of a city that never sleeps had the Big Apple expanding, expounding, exploding...and getting filthier by the day.

Waste from the thousands of shops and businesses (not to mention homes and apartments) flowed freely. The sanitation department was still primitive, decades away from the modernization we have now, and they simply couldn't keep up with the garbage and sewage. The city, for all its glamour and prestige, literally stunk.

And it wasn't just the streets: auto exhaust and factory emissions left a perpetual haze in the air, severe enough that many doctors began advising those with respiratory ailments to move west, out of the city and away from the rapid urbanization of the East Coast in general. On a typical day, the smog measured 227 particles per square millimeter, way above the recommended "healthy" levels of 50-100.

But, to the people of New York, it was normal. A small price to pay for the prestige and promise of the greatest city in the world. The Great Depression was here too but, if you had to suffer through times of want and need, why not do it where the streets still buzzed with the hope and hint of better days to come? The other problems of the 1930s--those rumors of drought and dust--were for other people, those backward bumpkins of the Great Plains who'd settled in the wrong part of the country.

All of that began to change on May 9, 1934. Thousands of miles from the heart of New York City, and even further from the minds of its inhabitants, the winds above the plains of the Dakotas and eastern Montana began to swirl, kicking up mounds of red and black dust. The next day, loaded with millions of tons of prairie soil, the winds shifted their course east, combining with the jet stream to gain strength before descending over the Midwest. In Chicago alone, the storm deposited twelve million pounds of dust, coating the walls and floors of every building and forcing pilots trying to land at Chicago Municipal Airport to abort, many of them having to climb to an altitude of over 15,000 feet to get above the storm.

Photo Credit: newspapers.com

By the following morning, the storm had moved over Pittsburgh, creating a haze so thick that visibility was reduced to only a mile, and Scranton, where initial reports of snow in May turned out to be dust. By the time it reached the eastern seaboard, enveloping cities like Boston, Washington D.C., and New York in darkness, the storm had traveled over 2,000 miles and was over 1,800 miles wide, carrying an estimated 350 million tons of dust. Washington Post reporter George Will described it as a "great rectangle of dust," which stretched from the Great Plains to the Atlantic.

The wall of dust blocked out the sun, casting an eerie shadow over the city like that of a solar eclipse. Streetlights in Manhattan flickered on in the middle of the day. Automobiles needed headlights to navigate through the fog. Tourists enjoying the view from the top of the Empire State Building were aghast at the sudden change in the scene below them; instead of miles and miles of skyscrapers and streets, they saw nothing but a cloud as thick as soup.

The New York Times reported that "dust lodged itself in the eyes and throats of weeping and coughing New Yorkers," sending thousands to area hospitals in a panic. Air filters in buildings were changed hourly, but still the dust seeped in, laying a layer of fine brown film over balconies, windows, and floors. In a city accustomed to un-breathable air, May 11, 1934 brought in the worst air quality reading it had ever seen: 619 million particles per square millimeter, over six times the normal "healthy" limit.

In the harbor, dust shrouded the Statue of Liberty and turned the water gray. Ships bobbed blindly, unable to dock due to lack of visibility. Even boats over two hundred miles out at sea reported dust collecting on their decks.

Photo Credit: New York Times

The storm lingered over New York for five hours and over the region for two days, spreading southward to fall on the National Mall and infiltrating the White House and the Capitol building where, ironically, President Roosevelt and members of Congress were debating measures of drought relief for the Plains. The next day, the New York Times declared it to be "the greatest dust storm in United States history."

It wasn't, of course. Many more storms had plagued the Great Plains over the past few years, some of them bigger, more fierce, and carrying more dirt. But, to the people of New York and the entire East Coast, this storm was a real taste of what the "rest" of the country was dealing with on a daily basis. The drought and the dust were no longer a rural problem, a Plains problem, or even just a farmers' problem--they were America's problem. Forced with a firsthand account of the enormity and devastation dirt can havoc, public outcry and concern spurred Roosevelt into action. "Waiting out the drought" was no longer an option, not for the Plains, not for Washington, and not for the East Coast. 

A solution was needed, and it was needed now. 

But what could that solution be? 

PART TWO COMING NEXT MONTH

J

Jennifer L. Wright grew up wanting to be a reporter, but it only took a few short months of working in journalism for her to abandon those aspirations for fiction writing instead. She loves to reimagine and explore forgotten eras in history, showcasing God's light amidst humanity's darkest days. Her books have won multiple awards, including Golden Scroll and Angel awards. She currently lives in New Mexico with her husband, two kids, a couple of hyperactive dachshunds, and an ever-growing herd of guinea pigs. 

Sweetheart Jewelry During WWII

The Great War or “The War to End All Wars,” sent young men across the globe to fight. In addition to letters, many of the soldiers sent keepsakes home to families and girlfriends. Dubbed “sweetheart jewelry,” the items were often handcrafted while in the trenches. Twenty years later, the world was again at war, and the custom of sending these pieces flourished. By this time, a large percentage of the items were machine-made and sold to US soldiers.

Despite the moniker, sweetheart jewelry wasn’t given to just girlfriends. Mothers and sisters also received items from sons and brothers. Brooches, pendants, and bracelets were the most popular pieces, but with many base metals being tightly rationed, the jewelry was manufactured with Bakelite (a resin), celluloid, wood, mother-of-pearl, shell, ivory, rhinestones, enamel, and sometimes wire. Because sterling silver wasn’t rationed, the metal became popular among jewelers. Rarer pieces were made with platinum, silver plate, brass, gold plate, gold-filled, and even solid gold.

There are three main reasons the jewelry was popular.

• First and perhaps foremost, it was fashionable. With rationing restricting the ability to purchase
  
  new clothes and accessories, sweetheart jewelry allowed an individual to “bling” up their old outfits.
• Second, sweetheart jewelry allowed individuals to display their patriotism. Many of the pieces featured military insignia and other icons related to a loved one’s branch of service, with the flag and the American eagle most often depicted. Uncle Sam’s top hat, bows mimicking ribbon of the stars and stripes, and the victory “V” were also favorite designs. Several of the costume jewelry manufacturers of the time, including Trifari and Coro, made patriotic-themed pieces. Unsurprisingly, red, white, and blue were the most often used colors in jewelry.
• Third, sweetheart jewelry was popular because it reflected a sense of service. Women proudly wore the pin version of a man-in-service flag, the blue star in the center on a white background with a red border, to indicate a son or husband in service. The service pins, more rarely, could have two or three stars, and rarer yet, could contain a gold star to indicate a death in service.

Economic hardships had gripped the country for nearly a decade. The price of jewelry and related items made of sterling silver could be somewhat expensive. Additionally, the government levied a luxury tax on jewelry, adding to the cost; however, sales didn’t seem to suffer. It was more important for the women who received these items to create a connection with their loved ones thousands of miles away.

_____________________

Spies & Sweethearts (Sisters in Service, Book 1)

She wants to do her part. He’s just trying to stay out of the stockade. Will two agents deep behind

enemy lines find capture… or love?

1942. Emily Strealer is tired of being told what she can’t do. Wanting to prove herself to her older sisters and do her part for the war effort, the high school French teacher joins the OSS and trains to become a covert operative. And when she completes her training, she finds herself parachuting into occupied France with her instructor to send radio signals to the Resistance.

Major Gerard Lucas has always been a rogue. Transferring to the so-called “Office of Dirty Tricks” to escape a court-martial, he poses as a husband to one of his trainees on a dangerous secret mission. But when their cover is blown after only three weeks, he has to flee with the young schoolteacher to avoid Nazi arrest.

Running for their lives, Emily clings to her mentor’s military experience during the harrowing three-hundred-mile trek to neutral Switzerland. And while Gerard can’t bear the thought of his partner falling into German hands, their forged papers might not be enough to get them over the border.

Can the fugitive pair receive God’s grace to elude the SS and discover the future He intended?

Purchase Link: https://books2read.com/u/m0Od9l

Linda Shenton Matchett writes happily-ever-after historical Christian fiction about second chances and women who overcome life’s challenges to be better versions of themselves.

Whether you choose her books set in the Old West or across the globe during WWII, you will be immersed in the past through rich detail. Follow the journeys of relatable characters whose faith is sorely tested, yet in the end, emerge triumphant. Be encouraged in your own faith-walk through stories of history and hope. Visit her at www.LindaShentonMatchett.com

Photos: Courtesy of the Wright Museum

WWII Smit-van der Heijden Escape Line: Part Two - German Infiltrators; An American Airman's Experience

By Mary Dodge Allen

In April 1942, two men in the Netherlands organized an escape line for Allied fliers: Karst Smit and Eugene van der Heijden. Part One of this four-part blog series appeared last month on April 5th. It describes the beginning of Dutch and Belgian Resistance efforts and how this escape line was established. To read Part One click this link: Part One

Karst Smit, Left Photo;  Eugene van der Heijden, Right Photo (Public Domain)

Karst Smit, age 24 was a member of the Marechaussees (Dutch border patrol) stationed in the Dutch village of Hilvarenbeek, near the Belgian border. Eugene van der Heijden was a 25-year-old Dutch teacher who lived in Hilvarenbeek.

In the Spring of 1942, Smit and van der Heijden began working together to help Jews and POWs who had escaped from Germany. They found local safe houses to provide food and shelter, until Smit could arrange for them to cross the border into Belgium.

Months later, as they began encountering Allied airmen seeking to avoid capture, Smit and van der Heijden expanded their escape line operation. They established contacts with trusted Resistance members in Belgium, to shelter Allied airmen and place them into the hands of larger escape lines that could guide them to freedom, through France and into Spain. 

The Dutch-Belgian border near Hilvarenbeek (recent photo, Bruce Bolinger)

The Dutch-Belgian border near Hilvarenbeek was heavily-forested. Karst Smit, along with fellow border officers he’d recruited, knew hidden paths they could use to guide the POW’s across the border. Sometimes they would dress an airman in the upper half of a police uniform, and then drive him across the border, seated in the sidecar of their one and only BMW police motorcycle. (The officers mostly patrolled the border on bicycles.)

The Marechaussees (Dutch border patrol officers) at Hilvarenbeek: #1 - van Gestel; #2 - Albert Wisman; #3 and #4 - unknown; #5 - Karst Smit; #6 - Gerard Schrier; posing on the station's only BMW motorcycle with sidecar (Identification obtained by Bruce Bolinger)

A German Imposter – Discovered:

The Germans were always searching for ways to infiltrate the escape lines and close them down. In September 1943, a man who had parachuted into the Netherlands was brought to Smit. To explain his accent, he claimed to be a French-Canadian RAF flier, with German parents. 

Smit was suspicious. He gave the man a questionnaire designed for RAF fliers, which included technical terms and general questions, such as: “What do you write on the back of the leave form?” 

The man couldn’t answer them. He changed his story several times during interrogation, which convinced Smit and other members the man was a German infiltrator. By this time, he had met too many people in the escape line, so they had to eliminate him. Months later, Smit learned the “Canadian” RAF flier was actually a German agent called “Captain Kopp.”

Tom Applewhite’s Escape Story:

The last Allied flier to be assisted by this escape line was Tom Applewhite, a 22-year-old U.S. Army Air Corps B-17 bombardier, from Memphis, Tennessee. 

Tom Applewhite, U.S. Army Air Corps, circa 1942 (Public Domain)

On November 11, 1943, Tom’s B-17 bomber named “The Wild Hare” was returning from a bombing mission over Germany, when it was shot down. It crashed in a field near a Dutch city known by the locals as Den Bosch. 

Crew of "The Wild Hare" taken in 1943: Tom Applewhite, bombardier, Front row, Far Right; John McGowan, pilot, Front row, Far Left; Nello Malavasi, top turret gunner/engineer, Far Left, standing   behind the pilot; other crewmembers, unknown. (Public Domain)  

As Tom bailed out, he counted chutes and saw that everyone else had also bailed out. (Tom would find out later that one crewmember was killed as he landed, and the rest were captured by the Germans - except for himself and top turret gunner/engineer Nello Malavasi.)

Tom was knocked out when he landed. As he regained consciousness, he realized he was being carried away from the field by two farm workers. He was taken to a farmhouse, revived, and fed brown bread sandwiches, while workers disposed of his parachute and flight suit. Tom was then hidden in a remote barn outside the village, because German troops were searching the area.   

Field where Tom landed (recent photo by Bruce Bolinger)

Another local farmer, Peter “Peek” de Noo, had seen the crash and came to Tom’s aid. At dusk, he guided Tom to his farmhouse, located outside the nearby village of Well. Peek de Noo and his wife Nellie sheltered Tom for two nights and provided civilian clothes and wooden shoes. Members of Peek’s family visited Tom and provided meals for him.

On Left: Peter "Peek" de Noo and his wife, Nellie with their children

On Right: Peek's brother, Adriaan de Noo, a chauffeur for a local surgeon (Public Domain)

German troops began searching house-to-house in Peek’s village. Tom had to be moved. Peek’s brother Adriaan de Noo was put into contact with Arnoldus “Nol” van Dijk, who knew the local contacts for the Smit-van der Heijden escape line – brothers Fons and Jacques Raaijmaakers.

The Raaijmaakers brothers: Fons (Left) and Jacques (Right) (Public Domain)

On November 13th Peek’s brother Adriaan guided Tom to a field outside the village of Bokhoven, where Fons and Jacques were waiting. Nol van Dijk was also there, to personally verify Adriaan de Noo’s identity to the two brothers.  

Tom traveled with Fons and Jacques on bicycles for several miles, to a rendezvous with a pair of new guides. Tom cycled behind these new guides for several more miles, until they arrived at a tavern after dark.

Jan Naaijkens (Public Domain)

At the tavern, Tom met Jan Naaijkens, a teacher who worked at the same school as Eugene van der Heijden. They set out on bicycles, with Jan cycling several feet ahead. It was cold, drizzling and dark, well after the German curfew. The two men had agreed to alert each other if they saw any sign of danger, by whistling a certain tune. The tune “Anchors Away” turned out to be the only one familiar to both of them.

After both bicycles broke down, they walked late into the night, until they reached the outskirts of the village of Hiivarenbeek. Jan delivered Tom to a safe house - the van der Heijden family home. 

Elisabeth van der Heijden (Public Domain)

Eugene van der Heijden’s mother, Elisabeth served Tom a hot meal. Then one of the Marechaussees (thought to be Albert Wisman), arrived and took Tom to a chicken coop that was hidden and insulated by bales of hay. Tom spent the rest of the night there. The coop was also being used by Dutch university students in hiding, to avoid being sent to Germany as forced laborers. 

Dutch students cooking breakfast in their chicken coop hide-out (Public Domain)

The students cooked breakfast on the morning of November 14th. Shortly after Tom finished eating, Euguene van der Heijden arrived. He would take Tom across the border into Belguim and then guide him to the safe house in Brussels. 

Eugene didn’t have a false ID for Tom, because the escape line felt pressured to move him as soon as possible. Tom’s B-17 had crashed only twenty-five miles from Hilvarenbeek, and local German authorities were looking for him and another crewman still at large - Nello Malavasi, the top turret gunner/engineer on “The Wild Hare.”

Nobody was prepared for what was to happen the following day, November 15th, as one of the Smit-van der Heijden guides, Willem Schmidt, was escorting airman Nello Malavasi through Belgium. Schmidt would make a disastrous decision that would expose the network and lead to arrests.

Stay tuned for the third installment of my four-part blog on June 5th; WWII Smit-van der Heijden Escape Line: Part Three – A Network in Danger; Airman Tom Applewhite’s Experience. 

_____________

Mary Dodge Allen is currently finishing her sequel to Hunt for a Hometown Killer. She's won a Christian Indie Award, an Angel Book Award, and two Royal Palm Literary Awards (Florida Writer's Association). She and her husband live in Central Florida. She is a member of American Christian Fiction Writers and Faith Hope and Love Christian Writers. 

Website: www.marydodgeallen.com

Recent release, anthology devotional: El Jireh, The God Who Provides

Mary's story, entitled: A Mother's Desperate Prayer, describes her struggle with guilt and despair after her young son is badly burned in a kitchen accident. When we are at the end of all we have, El Jireh provides what we need. 

Click the link below to purchase on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/El-Jireh-God-Who-Provides/dp/1963611608

Mary's novel: Hunt for a Hometown Killer won the 2022 Christian Indie Award, First Place - Mystery/Suspense; and the 2022 Angel Book Award - Mystery/Suspense.

Click the link below to buy Hunt for a Hometown Killer at Amazon.com:

Hunt For A Hometown Killer: A Novel: Allen, Mary Dodge: 9781952369704: Amazon.com: Books

Link to Mary's Spotlight Interview:   Mary Dodge Allen Author Spotlight EA Books

How Tourism Contributed to Colorado's Western Expansion

By Donna Wichelman

The rise of the mining industry in the Colorado Rockies during the 1860s made way for western expansion and ushered in the Gilded Age for the Territory of Colorado. Georgetown’s unique and colorful setting enticed entrepreneurial enterprise and lured people from every walk of life. Many stayed to make their fortunes in the gold or silver industry. Others came to experience the spectacular beauty and fresh mountain air and then went home to tell about it.

The New York Public Library. "Georgetown, Colorado." The New York Public Library Digital Collections 1850 - 1930.

According to historian Christine Bradley in The Rise of the Silver Queen, “The town’s early rustic appearance gave way to fine homes, level sidewalks, a few trees, and elegant fences … The streets of Georgetown were packed with new arrivals from every point of the globe …” including Cornish, Welsh, and German miners, Italian retailers, Irish workmen, and the Frenchman Louis DePuy, who turned a small bakery into the elegant and now historic Hotel de Paris. It was also a town where formerly enslaved people could earn a living and invest in mines. 

All these elements coincided to create an international flair and intrigue as people descended upon Georgetown to make their mark in the mining community. It also brought people from near and far and across the world to marvel over the place where creativity and optimism had sprung to life in a setting of natural beauty. Thus, the tourist industry took off, bringing overwhelming numbers of people with their tourist dollars as early as 1872.

The famous Englishwoman Isabella Bird, whose travels took her across America, visited the region and described Georgetown as "the only town I have seen in America to which the epithet picturesque could be applied."

"The life of Isabella Bird (Mrs. Bishop) : snapshot taken of Mrs. Bishop at Swatow by Mr. Mackenzie." The New York Public Library Digital Collections.

 "Isabella Bird Bishop [three portraits]." The New York Public Library Digital Collections.

An article in The Colorado Miner on January 14, 1873 titled At Least One Million Dollars From Tourists in 1872 had this to say: "Visitors to Colorado last summer paid hotels bills to the amount of $200,000 in Denver alone. Add to these figures the amounts expended at the Hotels in the mountain and southern towns ... [it]will represent not far from one million dollars cash. And so it will be seen that the beautiful scenery and health-inspiring atmosphere of Colorado is the source ... all because the press of the Territory and ... the entire press of the U.S., have advertised our beauties and wonders ...." See the Colorado Miner, January 14, 1873

A second article in The Colorado Miner on January 9, 1873, spoke to the many visitors to the mountain towns in Clear Creek County. "There were 14,000 arrivals recorded in the register books of the six principal Hotels in Clear Creek County in the year 1872. These figures, which are decidedly respectable for a remote mining county ... do not include the regular guests of the hotels. The Hotels to which we refer, are the Barton, Girard, and Ennis Houses in Georgetown ... and it is appropriate to remark ... that these Hotels are kept in superior style and are pleasant and comfortable ... for tourists ...." See the Colorado Miner, January 9, 1873.

The Barton House, to which the last article refers, gained widespread notoriety. According to the History of Clear Creek and Boulder Valleys in Colorado, published in 1880, the Barton House was known for being one of the most well-known, beloved, and lavish hotels for its comfort, elegance, and modern accommodations. Its owner, Mr. William E. Barton, enjoyed a reputation for exceptional hospitality, and an ad in the July 29, 1873 Colorado Miner boasted its "elevation overlooking the entire town." From there, tourists could enjoy the romantic scenery in the mountains ... See The Colorado Miner June 27, 1873.

Barton House: As Seen in an Ad in the Colorado Miner in June 1873

Green Lake became one of the most visited tourist destinations in the mountains above Georgetown. It was an easy day's carriage drive up a narrow canyon and provided recreational opportunities, such as boating, fishing, and picnicking on the shores of a crystal clear mountain lake. 

"Green Lake, looking south. "The New York Public Library Digital Collections 1850 - 1930.

 

       

"Green Lake, 3 miles above Georgetown." New York Public Library Digital Collections 1850 -1930

Green Lake Georgetown, Colorado 2015 ID 57686598 Dreamstime 

In August 1877, the Colorado Central Railroad completed its track to Georgetown, and by the end of May 1878, Georgetown gained the title of the "handsomest city in the Rockies," as people flocked to the region by train and made their way up the canyon and over the Guanella Pass to Green Lake. A new luxury hotel under the ownership of French-born Louis Dupuy had opened, the Hotel de Paris, which replaced the Barton in first-class luxury. Today, the Hotel De Paris Musuem is considered one of the best preserved Gilded Age luxury hotels in the United States.

Hotel De Paris, Georgetown Colorado: Donna's Gallery, December 2019

Today, Georgetown thrives on tourism and still welcomes visitors from across the world. Recognizing Georgetown as a uniquely preserved nineteenth-century Victorian silver mining boom town in 1966, the National Park Service designated Georgetown, Silver Plume, the intervening Loop Valley, and the surrounding mountainsides the Georgetown Silver Plume National Historic Landmark District. Four years later, on May 7, 1970, members of the community formed the Georgetown Society, which eventually became Historic Georgetown, Inc., to begin a historic preservation effort that continues until now.

In addition to an ordinance specifying building design reviews, there are numerous museums and properties that have been under renovation. These include the Hamill House Museum 1867/79, the Kneisel House 1870, the Bowman-White House 1892, the Tucker-Rutherford Cottage 1870s, 1880s, 1890s (used as my cottage for Anna Sullivan in A Song of Deliverance), the Hotel De Paris, the Georgetown Firefighting Museum, Alpine Hose No. 2, and others.

The Tucker Rutherford Housem, aka known as Anna Sullivan's House in A Song of Deliverance

Donna's Gallery, August 2024

 

Hamill House Museum: Donna's Gallery, August 2024

Weaving history and faith into stories of intrigue and redemption grew out of Donna's love of travel, history, and literature as a young adult while attending the United World College of the Atlantic--an international college in Wales, U.K. She enjoys developing plots that show how God's love abounds even in the profoundly difficult circumstances of our lives. Her stories reflect the hunger in all of us for love, belonging, and forgiveness.

Donna was a communications professional before writing full-time. Her short stories and articles have appeared in inspirational publications. She has two indie-published romantic suspense novels, Light Out of Darkness and Undaunted Valor, in her Waldensian Series. Her Gilded Age historical romance, A Song of Deliverance, released on December 3, 2024.

Donna and her husband of forty years participate in ministry at their local church in Colorado. They love spending time with their grandchildren and bike, kayak, and travel whenever possible.

Vehicles Forbidden. Shall We Hoof It Or Ride?

Do you like to drive? Daily? On road trips? I am grateful for the ability and freedom to drive, though by and large I would rather not. Where we live, Uber isn’t an option. We do not have a subway or an L. While we can walk to the vintage downtown replete with shops, restaurants, and a cheese monger (yum), we do not have a grocery store. One must have a car here and in most of the United States, or at least some other mode of transportation besides our own two feet.

One of the reasons I love traveling in Europe is due to the walkable cities and public transportation. If you are a step counter and have traveled there, you probably reached 20K steps daily without blinking. This is especially helpful for health and the ability to consume delightful regional dishes.

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My husband and I would like to live in a walkable area for a time to give it a try. In case you would as well and are wondering where, Walk Score touts these cities as the top five in the US: San Francisco, New York, Boston, Chicago, and Washington D.C. Stats also exist for transit and bike friendly cities.

It is one thing to choose not to drive. It is entirely another not to have the choice. We have relatives who are unable to do so for health reasons. It is a sad transition of losing independence. On the flip side, did you know there are also areas of this country where driving cars is forbidden for everyone? Seriously. It is true. A friend and I visited one such site. You can bet I would like to visit others on this list. Such history to appreciate. Links included in case you would like to virtually explore. While not inclusive, these are a few of the no drive zones:

• Bald Head Island, North Carolina – A long history exists from Native American inhabitants to explorers and pirates. With the first lighthouse of 1789, this island changed names multiple times. Now attainable via ferry, it is a hot spot for outdoor activities and has a conservancy for loggerhead turtles. 
• Daufuskie Island, South Carolina – Rich history abounds, much like Bald Head. Descendants of the Gullah people still live on land belonging to their families since just after the Civil War. Boats are the mode of transportation to this island.
• Fire Island, New York – A whaling center in the 1700 and 1800s, Fire Island dates to 1653. The only way to step on these dry shores is via ferry or seaplane.
• Halibut Cove, Alaska – Scandinavian fisherman ran a Halibut fishery there in the early 1900s. Ferries are also the means to access this location.
• Island of Monhegan, Maine – Europeans first visited in 1603. With a large nature preserve and an attempt to maintain atmosphere, only businesses may use trucks on occasion.
• Mackinac Island, Michigan – Horse drawn carriages and bikes permitted today.
• Supai, Arizona – The Havasupai Indian Reservation longs to preserve and protect the environment. Town is accessible by two feet or four hooves (of the horse persuasion).

If you read my prior posts, you will know the answer to this question. Which location above did we visit?

Or you might have guessed it - Mackinac Island. Next question, what modes of transportation existed on Mackinac in the early years? In a prior post we discussed the fact that the British left Fort Michilimackinac and established a fort on Mackinac island. They dismantled portions of the original and moved the sections via horses. Did the horses swim? Not for that task. Ice at that time of year allowed horses to walk across the expanse pulling portions of buildings from one location to the next. Horses remained on the island through today.

So, did automobiles ever traverse that bit of earth? Yes, indeed they did. The late 1800s rolled in with automobiles used by residents, many purchased from the Michigan Oldsmobile manufacturing plant. Disputes arose over concerns that the horses would be scared by the new contraptions. The horse and carriage, as the original means for transportation, tours, and carrying supplies faced danger. In 1898, a ban prohibited automobiles from that time forward. 

Notice the image at the top of this post and these below replete with bicycles for visitors. Horses are offered to ride for a fee or horse and carriage as an alternative. The only vehicles on the island are reserved for electrical repairs and emergencies. This restriction on vehicles lends nostalgia - akin to stepping back in time. Except for directly behind the horses. I jest but do mind your step on the streets. Small price to pay for the ensuing peace.

To access the island, early residents and visitors traveled by boat and ferry. Captain William H. Shepler realized the business potential in 1945 and his vision continues today via his descendants with Shepler's Ferry as one of the services. Patrons can board at St. Ignace or Mackinaw City. 

Are you interested in visiting a no drive zone? Which would you choose?

As a child, Rebecca loved to write. She nurtured this skill as an educator and later as an editor for an online magazine. Rebecca then joined the Cru Ministry - NBS2GO/Neighbor Bible Studies 2GO, at its inception. She serves as the YouVersion Content Creator, with over 130 Plans, in 44 languages on the Bible.com app.

Rebecca lives near the mountains with her husband and a rescued dog named Ranger. She is a proud mom of an American soldier and a college senior. If it were up to Rebecca, she would be traveling - right now. First up, trips to see their two grown sons. As a member of ACFW and FHLCW, she tackles the craft of fiction while learning from a host of generous writers. 

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