CRITICAL BIBLIOGRAPHY

Documents

1,         Colorado Secretary of State, Proceedings of the  Constitutional Convention Held in Denver, December 20,1875,  Denver, Smith-Brooks Company 1907.

Consulted during preliminary research on Fremont
County history. Useful for names of delegates,
and to check story that Canon City was offered
the State University but preferred to become the
site of the State Penitentiary.

2.         Colorado Territory, General Laws, Joint Resolutions, Memorials, Private Acts, of First Legislative Assembly, Denver, 1872

This document was consulted to verify the Law of 1872 which dealt with requirements for mine development.

Newspapers

1.         Rocky Mountain News,   February 23, 1865 April 12, 1896.

The files of this newspaper proved to be my most valuable source of material, other than personal
reminiscence and family archives. Accounts of the
Cotopaxi Colony and the personnel involved are less
partial than family accounts and serve as a check
on the authenticity of the latter.

2.         Denver Jewish News, April 6 - April 25, 1925.

Today this newspaper is known as the Intermountain
Jewish News, but the issues cited were in a special
Anniversary Edition and included a two-page spread
on the Cotopaxi Colony. The April 25th issue contains a feature article on the Colony, newsworthy
then as a result of a 'Reminiscence Dinner' given
for the surviving members of the group.
 

3.          Intermountain Jewish News,    September 15, 1944,

Another more recent re-telling of the "Cotopaxi
Colony” story, written by Mosa Heller Hoffman of
the News staff.  It is a compilation of earlier
features, occasioned by the death at this time of
Ed Grimes, a prominent Denverite and one of the
colonists.
 

4.         Denver Republican, February 7-13, 1883.  Clippings in the Dawson Scrap Book, Colorado State Historical Society, XXXIII.)

The reporter for this paper seemed sympathetic to the plight of the Jewish colonists and used sharp words to describe Saltiel’s motives and methods.  He also took the opportunity to divulge information concerning Saltiel’s personal life, as well as other business ventures not at all connected with the management of the Colony.  He interviewed residents of Fremont County hostile to Saltiel, quoting them at great length, and was responsible for the “atrocity expose” which was so scathingly deflated by his rival paper, the Rocky Mountain News.  Senator Nathaniel Hill’s paper seemed about to ‘crusade’ in my ancestors’ behalf and was to be commended for its careful investigation of Saltiel’s activities.

5.                  Denver Post, March 31, 1931.  (Sunday supplement, Rocky Mountain Empire Magazine).  Clipping in possession of H. Mullins of Cotopaxi.

A feature article on this colony, using materials and pictures from the earlier Denver Jewish News accounts and statement from interviews granted by colonists then living in Denver.

6.         Jewish Messenger, July 21, 1882.  (Clipping in possession of Mrs. M. Milstein of Denver.)

                        This is main source of references to Julius Schwartz.

Directories

1.         Colorado Business Directory and Annual Register for 1877, Denver, J. A. Blake, Publisher, 1877.

            This, and the following business and mining directories, were consulted to check on the address and occupation of various of the people mentioned in the paper, particularly Saltiel, Thomas, Hart, Schwartz, Witkawski, Rudd, McCoy.

2.         Colorado State Business Directory for 1880, Denver, J. A Blake, Publisher, 1880.

3.         Corbett, Thomas B.,   Colorado Directory of Mines, Denver, Rocky Mountain Printing Company, 1879.

                        Most useful in presenting complete list of all

            Saltiel’s mine holdings, corporations, partnerships and smelting and reduction works.

4.         Corregan, Robert A. and Lingane, D F., Colorado Mining Directory, Denver, Corregan Printers, 1883.

5.         Hall, Frank, First Annual Report and Directory of the Denver Chamber of Commerce and Board of Trade, Denver, Brooks Printers, 1884.

6.         McKenney, E., Business Directory and Railroad Gazetteer, San Francisco, McKenney & Company, 1879.

            Though not a Colorado publication, this gives many references to Saltiel, Wulsten and other Fremont County residents.  Connects Saltiel with Denver and Rio Grande Railroad and cites property investments in Colorado Springs made by the latter.

7.         Wallihan, S. S., The Rocky Mountain Directory and Colorado Gazetteer for 1871, Denver, Wallihan & Company, 1871.

8.         Western Mining Directory, Denver, Western Mining Directory Company, Publishers, 1898.

                        This work was most useful in discussing various mining and reduction techniques and devoted some chapters to the special problems involved in silver and zincblende refining, as well as material on Fremont County resources such as coal, iron, oil, mica and nickel.  This directory lists all mining companies by districts, date of discovery, discoverer, and amount of capital expended on development.

Personal Correspondence and Family Papers

1.         Milstein Papers

The bulk of these are in the possession of Mrs. Ethel Radinsky of Denver, a sister of Saul Baer and Benjamin and Isaac Milstein.  They include two letters, in Yiddish, from Jacob Millstein to his uncle, written about 1879, from New York City to Brest Litovsk, the naturalization papers for each of the three brothers, Saul, Benjamin and Isaac, as well as for their sons, Max, and Menashe, Mrs. Radinsky’s brothers.  There are deeds to property in Denver held by the above-mentioned in her

                        possession also.  She has a large collection of pictures and a family bible which lists the marriages and births, helpful in making a genealogical chart and in checking names.  (She is the writer’s great-aunt)

2.         Tarkoff Papers

Listed as such, because they are now in the possession of Mrs. Harry Tarkoff, of Denver, but include papers belonging to both the Milstein family and the Grimes family.  Mrs. Tarkoff’s father was Saul Baer’s third son and her mother was Ed Grimes’ sister.  She has translated the letters which were written in Yiddish and Russian and has made a collection of verbal anecdotes, in English.  She has her grandfather’s bible which shows the ancestry of the Milstein family back to the early 19^th Century, when the family migrated from Germany to Russia.

3.         Saltiel Letters

Two of these are known to exist today; one is located in a scarp book now belonging to the library of the Hebrew Sheltering and Immigrant Aid Society of New York, which inherited this from the earlier HEAS.  Other documents from this agency are in the private papers of Michael Heilprin and are not available, except as they are cited in the biography of Heilprin by Gustav Pollak.  The other is a copy which appears in the Spivak Report to HEAS in 1882.  This is located in the files of the Jewish Agricultural Society in New York.  HSIAS was established in 1902.

4.          Ornstein Papers

Private family collection in the possession of Mrs. S. Ornstein of Denver, Nettie Millstein’s daughter.  They include Jacob Millstein’s naturalization papers, copies of deeds to property, a bill of sale for farm to Savery Savory, a clipping from the New York Tribune describing Jacob’s accident and subsequent pension, a clipping from the Central City Register (no date or title remaining) showing marriage license issued to Jacob Millstein of Blackhawk.

Secondary Materials (Used primarily as source material for Part I and for background research)

1.           Anderson, George L., General William J. Palmer: a Decade of Colorado Railroad Building, 1870-1880, Colorado Springs, Colorado College Publication, 1936.

              This work was read to provide background material for the preliminary history of Fremont County, especially the Royal Gorge War, as well as for dates of railroad expansion as checks against the dates when Thomas, Saltiel and the colonists were employed or connected with the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad.

2.           Anderson, J. W., The Prospector’s Handbook, London, Crosby, Lockwood & Sons, 1900.

                          Handy reference for mining and refining terms, laws and usages.

3.           Baker, James H., and Hafen, LeRoy R., History of Colorado, II, Denver, Linderman, 1927.

Used as a general text of Colorado history, since the more recent Hafen work was not available in Detroit.  (Cf. No. 15 below.)

4.           Bancroft, Hubert Howe, Nevada, Colorado and Wyoming, 1540-1888, Vol. XXV of Bancroft’s Works, San Francisco, History Company, 1890.

              Chapters XII and XIII of this volume are invaluable as contemporary sources of Colorado county history, and with Baskin, are practically the only source of collected data on Fremont and Custer Counties.  Bancroft advances several interesting theories as to the reasons for uneven development in this region, which are cited in this paper.

5.           Baskin, O. L., Publisher, History of the Arkansas Valley, Colorado, Chicago, O. L. Baskin & Company, 1881.

              This work is the most frequently cited reference in the paper, particularly for general background in Part I.  Written by prominent localities, the county histories are clear, detailed, and very informative.  Anecdotes and vivid description enliven the statistics and pictures and illustrations alternate with maps and charts.  Specific reference to the cited chapters by Irwin and Rockafellow will be found under ‘Articles’, below, (Cf. No. 6 and No. 14),

6.         Binckley & Hartwell, Editors, Southern Colorado, Historical and Descriptive of Freemont and Custer Counties, Canon City, Binckley & Hartwell, 1879.

Rockafellow and Irwin, the contributors to Baskin, do the same for a local publication, with basically the same material.

7.         Block, Benjamin, Colorado, Its Resources and Men, Denver, Kistler, 1901

An old book, biographical in nature, with interesting sidelights on well-known Colorado person-ages.  Includes a chapter on A. Gumaer, of Florence, who bought Saltiel’s reduction and smelter works.

8.         Brockett, L. P., Our Western Empire:  The New West Beyond the Mississippi, Philadelphia, Bradley & Company, 1881, pp. 637-661.

            Includes a handy break-down of mineral output of counties in Colorado by year and by metal, and was consulted for references to the British in Wet Mountain Valley.

9.         Denver and Rio Grande Railway Company, Associate Enterprises, Pamphlets and Circulars, II, 1874-1878, Colorado Springs, Weistbrec Publishers, 1880.

            Mentions development of station along the Arkansas River known as ‘Saltiels’.  Connects the Mica and Porcelain Corporation of Saltiel with members of the railroad.

10.       Farmer, E. J., Resources of the Rocky Mountains, Cleveland, Leader Press, 1883.

Provides contemporary material for mining and political background of Fremont County history and refers to early development of zinc and silver lodes around Cotopaxi.

11.       Fossett, Frank, Colorado, New York, Crawford, 1879.

A well-known early account of mines and mining camps with vivid descriptions of Fremont and Custer strikes.  Used in background chapters and basic research.

12.       Frazier, S. M., Secrets of the Rocks, the Story of the Hills and Gulches, Denver, Hall & Williams, 1905.

            A unique account of Colorado mining techniques and discovery methods from an experienced prospector’s viewpoint.  Argues the theory of heavy metals washing downstream, which was believed by Henry Thomas, but later disproved by scientific investigation.

13.       Gaynor, Lois M., “History of the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company, 1872-1933,”  Boulder, M. A. Thesis, University of Colorado, 1933.

            This thesis comprised the main source of information for sections on the development of the coal and iron deposits in the section on mining history of Fremont County.

14,       Hafen, LeRoy R., Ed.,  Colorado and Its People, II, New York, Lewis Historical Publishing Company, 1948.

            General work used while in residence in Boulder for broad background reading in such allied subjects as agriculture, stock raising, water rights and irrigation.

15.       Heilprin, Angelo, and Heilprin, Louis, Pronouncing Gazetteer of the World, Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott Company, 1931.

Standard work for unusual place names and their origins throughout the world.  Supplied the description of the original Cotopaxi in Ecuador.

16.       Hollister, Ovando J., The Mines of Colorado, Springfield, Mass., Samuel Bowles’ Company, 1867.

            One of the earliest accounts of general Colorado mine developments, together with the Bowles descriptions, which set contemporary opinion on the richness and accessibility of the various camps and boom towns.  Hollister seems confident that the ‘Arkansaw River Kanyon’ would prove a very rich area for gold prospecting.  He believed the tremendous pressures generated in the narrow gorge would carry down the heavy metals and that the gorge’s mouth would become a fabulous placer and fluming center.

17.        Holt, A. H., American Place Names, New York, Holt & Company, 1938.

Used to verify origin of the name Cotopaxi.  This work does not refer to Henry Thomas by name, but

does state that the Colorado town was named for its resemblance to a town near the volcano Cotopaxi in Ecuador.

18.       Legard, A. B., Colorado, London, Chapman & Hall, 1872.

This Englishman’s diary of his experiences in Fremont County offered the most interesting contemporary account of the early 1870’s.  His observations concerning the likelihood of this area’s becoming an agricultural center are most acute and accurate.  He refers to many of the persons cited in this paper and Legard himself was a personal friend of Reginald Neave, the British gentleman who first considered the Wet Mountain Valley a proper spot for Englishmen.

19.       Logan, Paul Stewart, “History of the Denver and Rio Grande Railway, 1871-1881,” Boulder, M. A. Thesis, University of Colorado, 1931.

            This thesis was used, together with the Anderson (see No. 1 above) work on General Palmer, to verify statements concerning the railroad and the men who ran it, when track was laid, methods and amount of wage payment and problems of labor procurement.

20.       Mathews, A. E., Canyon City, Colorado and Its Surroundings, New York, Classic Publishing Company, 1870.

            A very valuable illustrated volume on Canon City, its political and social history, which contains a detailed description of the Royal Gorge and Grape Creek Canyon.

21.       Morrison, R. S., Mining Rights in Colorado:  Lode and Placer Claims, Possesory and Patented, Denver, Chain & Hardy, 1892.

            A handy reference for mining terms, legal terms and rules, both Federal and State, and some discussion of local regulations in Fremont County.

22.       Rudd, Anson Spencer, “Early Affairs in Canon City,” Bancroft Manuscripts, University of Colorado Historical Collection, Boulder.

            A typewritten copy of the interview with Rudd by the Bancroft historian contains much information on early days in this area, with Rudd’s own opinion of colonizing attempts.

23.     Rust, Collection of Clippings on Mineral Resources in Colorado, Boulder, University of Colorado Historical Collection.

          These clippings from the Mining Graphic and the Central City Register are not as yet dated, but the writer judged them to be news of the years 1878 and 1879.  They contain several references to Henry Thomas and Carl Wulsten.

24.       Steinel, Alvin T., and Working, D. W.,  History of Agriculture in Colorado, 1858-1926, Fort Collins, Colorado Agricultural College, 1926.

            One of the best histories of Colorado agriculture available anywhere, and certainly the most complete.

25.       Wilcox, L., Irrigation Farming, New York, Judd Company, 1895.

An older work, but useful for description of special problems involved in this area and the techniques employed at the time.

26.       Willard, J. F., and Goodykoontz, Colin B., Experiments in Colorado Colonization, 1869-1872, University of Colorado Historical Collections III, Colony Series II, Boulder, 1926.

            This work contains the most complete history of the German Colony at Colfax, together with edited an annotated excerpts from contemporary accounts.  It suggested various sources of regional newspapers for use in this paper.

27.       Wulsten, Carl, The Silver Region of the Sierra Mojada and Rosita in Fremont County, Colorado:  Its Geography, Topography, Geognosy, Oryktognosy, Natural and Argentiferous Resources, History, Development and Commerce, Its Mines and Works with Topographical Map of Same, Denver, Tribune Steam Printing House, 1876.

            This is a very old and priceless pamphlet from the Western History Collection of the Denver Public Library, which is thought to be one of the very few copies in existence.  Wulsten herein expounds his on original geologic theories on the region and defends his position.

Secondary Materials (Used as source material for Part II and III)

1.         Bernheimer, Charles S., The Russian Jew in the United States, Philadelphia, John C. Winston Company, 1905.

            A somewhat outdated work of a general nature, with brief reference to Jewish agricultural activities and the colony movement.  A somewhat defensive, ‘nationalistic’ bias is apparent.

2.         Davidson, Gabriel, Our Jewish Farmers and the Story of the Jewish Agricultural Society, New York, L. B. Fischer, 1943.

            The best and most recent treatment of this subject, with a special supplement devoted to the 19^th century colonies, complete with analyses of why they failed—or succeeded.  Despite Dr. Davidson’s possession of the rare Spivak Report (see Supra, p. 36, ff.)  there is very little mention of the Colorado colonies.

3.         Dubnow, S. M., History of the Jews in Russia and Poland, 1825-1894, II, Philadelphia, Jewish Publication Society, 1918.

            This volume has been most frequently consulted for general Russian history and Jewish background.  There are other works in this field, but Dubnow is acknowledged to be the best in translation and the most complete authority.

4.         Joseph, Samuel, History of the Baron de Hirsch Fund, Philadelphia, Jewish Publication Society, 1935.

            This book contains the best history of HEAS and the situation confronting the charitable organizations in the 1870’s and 1880’s.   It was also helpful in tracing further the progress of agricultural settlement for Jewish immigrants, and in ascertaining the extent to which these groups profitted from the experiences of earlier colonies.  It was useful in verifying statements made in the paper concerning Heilprin, Gershal, Isaacs and Schwartz.

5.         Levitats, Isaac, The Jewish Community in Russia, 1772-1844, New York, Columbia University Press, 1943.

            A sociological study consulted for background of Jews in Russia.  Explains motives for large migration to Western Russia following Napoleonic Wars.  A recent, up-to-date, factual account which supplements the Dubnow works.

6.         Nathanson, D. B., Ed., Beer Isaac, Letters of Isaac Baer Levinsohn, New York, Charles Scribner’s Son, 1902.

            Collection of letters, well annotated, with special reference to philosophy and religion of this important figure in Jewish history.  The title, explains the editor, is a play on words, since ‘Beer’ means ‘well’ in Hebrew, thus alluding to Biblical story of Isaac’s well.

7.         Pollak, Gustav, Michael Heilprin and His Sons, New York, Dodd, Mead and Company, 1912.

            An excellent biographical work, including reprints of important letters and documents.  Contains references to early plans for Cotopaxi Colony and to Julius Schwartz.  Gives complete history of founding and activities of HEAS and reasons for its dissolution in 1883.  Consulted frequently for background material and cited often in Parts II and III of paper.

8.         Russo-Jewish Committee, Persecution of the Jews in Russia, Wertheimer, Lea and Company, 1890.

Detailed explanation of the May Laws and their interpretation and execution.  Contains good maps and graphs.

9.         Stiles, W. C., Out of Kishineff, New York, G. W. Dillingham, 1903

A book dealing mainly with effects of May Laws and later pogroms. Some analysis of adjustment of refugees to life in America.

10.       Wilkinson, Samuel, The Evangelization of the Jews of Russia, London, R. W. Simpson and Company, 1905.

            A most unusual book concerning the little-known attempts on the part of Protestants to convert the unhappy Jews of the Russian Pale.  Contains sections on the history of the various segments of Jewish religious and secular components.

11.       Wischnitzer, Mark, To Dwell in Safety:  One Hundred Fifty Years of Jewish Emigration, Philadelphia, Camden Press, 1949.

            The most recent treatment of Jewish emigration with special reference to the United States.  Dr. Wischnitzer is much interested in the colony experiments and has written several helpful letters to the writer.  Someday the story of the Cotopaxi Colony will fit in the total picture of Jewish settlement in America.

Articles

1.         Batchelder, George F., “Mining Industry of Colorado”, Magazine of Western History,  XI, April, 1890, pp. 632-635.

            This publication, used for background for both mining and farming, contained a different perspective in a contemporary style, as well as citations for the region desired.

2.         Chauvenet, Regis, “Preliminary Notes on the Iron Resources of Colorado”, Annual Report, Golden, Colorado School of Mines, 1885, pp. 13-28.

            Contemporary account of iron deposits with much information on Fremont County as a leading producer of this metal.  Used in background chapters on mining history.

3.         Davidson, Gabriel, “Agricultural Colonies”, Universal Jewish Encyclopedia, III, New York, 1941, pp. 294-295.

            Davidson has headed the JAS for many years and is the foremost authority on Jews in U. S. agriculture.  His material here is condensed but is generally similar to his book, Our Jewish Farmers.

4.         Dunbar, Robert G., “Agricultural Adjustment in Colorado in the 1890’s”, Agricultural History, XXI, pp. 944-952.

            Justifies the suppositions made earlier in certain areas that grain crops, etc., were not suited to high-altitude farming, that horticulture was better suited to the Fremont County area, etc., and gives  statistics on types of crops and yield in the 1890’s, the period when the former Cotopaxi colonists were also adjusting to land conditions elsewhere in Colorado.

5.         Ihlseng, Magnus C., “Report on the Oil Fields of Fremont County”, Annual Report, Golden, Colorado School of Mines, 1885, pp. 75-93.

            Used together with Chauvenet’s article for material included in chapters on mining history of Fremont County.  This is one of the rare listings for special articles on Fremont County.

6.         Irwin, Richard, “History of Custer County”, in Baskin, History of the Arkansas Valley, Chicago, 1881, pp. 689-764.

Main reference for information on Custer County, particularly for material cited on the English Colony at Ula and Westcliffe.

7.         Marshall, Thomas M., “Miners’ Laws of Colorado”, American Historical Review, XXV, April 1920, pp. 426-439.

            Condensed and well-arranged for quick reference, but not as complete as Morrison and DeSoto.  Used in chapter on mining history and to check Saltiel’s compliance with filing and development regulations.

8.         McCoy, C., “Irrigation in the Arkansas Valley”, Irrigation Review, VI, Denver, 1895, pp. 47-51.

            McCoy was an irrigation lawyer in Salida and wrote from personal experiences.  The work discuses problems of engineering and finance as well as the peculiar topographical situation in this region.

9.         Pearce, Richard, “Refining Gold and Silver in Colorado,” Magazine of Western History, XI, November 1889, pp. 67-73.

An article devoted solely to problems of refining, reduction and smelting, with some discussion of the leading refiners in the various regions of the State.

10.         Philipson, D., “Max Lilienthal in Russia, “ Hebrew Union College Annual Report, 1938, pp. 825-839.

              A description of the early efforts to spread ‘enlightenment’ and ideas of political assimilation among the Jews of Russia.  It is mainly a biography of Lilienthal, but contains references to Baer

              and Shneor Zalman, as well as the movement known as “Haskalah”.

11.      Reizenstein, Milton, “Agricultural Colonies in the United States”, Jewish Encyclopedia, I, pp. 256-262.

           Brief history of Cotopaxi Colony is included in this volume, with the usual explanation of its failure attribute to aridity and poor land.  Refers to Cotopaxi as “the only attempt in Colorado”, thus ignoring the other attempts in Atwood and Derby.

12.       Richards, Clarice E., “Valley of the Second Sons”, Colorado Magazine, IX, July 1932, pp 140-144.

Unique account of the British ‘remittance men’ in the Wet Mountain Valley.

13.       Roberts, Dorothy, “The Jewish Colony at Cotopaxi”, Colorado Magazine, XVIII, July 1941, pp. 124-131.

            The article is somewhat incomplete, due to the inaccessibility of family materials, and the fact that much of this material was not then translated from the original Russian and Yiddish.  The names, nativity and ages of the colonists are somewhat erroneous.

14.       Robinson, L. G., “Agricultural Activities of Jews in America:, American Jewish Yearbook, 5673 (1912), PP 411-423.

                        This article contains statistics not given in other articles.

15.       Rockafellow, B. F., “History of Fremont County”, in Baskin, History of the Arkansas Valley, Colorado, Chicago, 1881, pp. 543-687.

Chief source of background material for history of this county.  Excellent contemporary account.