Walsenburg
1883: An assay by the Phelps, Dodge and Company found no evidence of tin in the ore submitted from the tin mines on Williams Creek.
1888: William Dick married Miss Mary O’Brien, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Patrick O’Brien.
1893: The school board elections resulted with D.H. Muir, James Hill and Archie Patterson being elected in District 19, Walsen, and George Peart, T.H. O’Brien and John McCartney in District 30, Pictou.
1898: The second annual commencement for Walsenburg’s high school will be Thursday in Mazzone Hall. Admission is 25 cents.
1903: The water committee appointed by the town board went out Saturday with the water expert from Denver and secured a rain the first thing. Now quit your kicking and plant your cucumbers.
1908: The first class to graduate from Huerfano County High School did so in commencement exercises last Friday in Mazzone’s Opera House. Anna Wilson gave the valedictory address and Virginia Agnes the salutatory.
1913: The Guynn Mercantile Company at 610 Main Street is beginning its going out of business sale.
1918: The party who found a pair of handcuffs had better return them to the sheriff’s office and get the reward.
1923: “A slow, though steady, march toward increased business and relieved financial conditions has now begun”, according to James E. Tressler, manager of the Walsenburg Land and Development Company.
1928: Dr. S. Julian Lamme has been appointed chief surgeon for the Alamo, Barbour, and Oakdale Coal Company camps.
1933: With this issue [Friday, May 19], the publishers of the Walsenburg World and The Independent wish to announce the two papers will be hereafter combined and published every week day.
1938: A rock wall being constructed around city lake is expected to increase storage capacity to easily take care of Walsenburg’s summer demand of a million gallons a day.
1943: There will be a 30-minute state wide blackout alert Sunday at 4 p.m. No one except official watchers will be allowed to be outside their homes and no telephone calls may be made.
1948: Monty Woolley, who skyrocketed to fame in “The Man Who Came to Dinner”,
stopped at Smith’s Grocery in Walsenburg Monday for a cold beverage en route across country with his chauffeur and secretary and visited with Gene Benine while in the store.
1953: Sen. Sam T. Taylor, Walsenburg, a member of the state industrial advisory committee, has been appointed to the Colorado workman’s compensation fund advisory council.
1958: Special awards recognizing seniors were given during the commencement exercises and included: to Joseph Bill Murray for having the highest scholarship achievement, to Joyce Giro, Irene Kimbrel and Gloria Salazar, shorthand, to Irene Kimbrel, bookkeeping, and to Betty Vicic, citizenship.
1963: More than 20 people attended the second annual Hospitality Workshop sponsored by the Huerfano County Chamber of Commerce to assist them in dealing with tourists.
1968: William B. Schafer has sold his Schafer Packing Company to Dan and Martha Guadagnoli after the family had it for more than 50 years. Andrew Schafer started it in 1912 when he purchased Henry Esser’s share of Schwab and Esser located in the Brunelli building on Seventh Street where the school superintendent has his office now.
1973: Walsenburg’s Neighborhood Youth Corps (NYC) has been funded to employ 52 young people from 16 to 21 years old for an additional nine weeks.
1978: Walsenburg’s municipal swimming pool will open Saturday, May 27 for the season with Gary Strubel, coach and teacher, as manager and Judith Fini, assistant. Guards will be Pam Crump, Marci Hudson, Darwin Smallwood and Karen Crosson.
1983: Gardner Community Corp received a $15,000 grant for the expansion of La Clinica.
1988: Jim West won the Walsenburg Golf Club Championship for the second time, Brian Musilli was second and Larry Noga, third.
1993: Craig Martinez is valedictorian at John Mall High School and Preston Tripp, salutatorian. There are 44 graduates.
La Veta
1880: Rancher and postmaster J. Dexter Colvin married M. Savitta LaPorte, also of La Veta.
1885: James Dodgeon and his wife of the upper Cucharas at Nunda are new members of the La Veta Baptist church
1890: Married May 18, William Hibben Woodruff and Ella M. Arnold. The groom is well known as a rustler in the mercantile business and the bride is the daughter of Mary Arnold and sister of Asa.
1895: The post office met with a loss Monday when a dog jumped through a window and shattered the glass.
1900: This time last spring the Denver and Rio Grande had two operating lines, the standard gauge over Middle Creek and the narrow gauge over Veta Creek passes, but last November abandoned the 15 miles of narrow gauge.
1905: The new fire bell was received and will be mounted on a tower in the alley behind the Masonic Hall.
1910: A very popular organization in La Veta is the “Never-Sweat Club” and as members are forbidden to do anything that will raise perspiration, the membership is increasing very rapidly. Never-Sweat has always been prevalent in La Veta, but not until lately has it been systematically controlled.
1915: Jap, Green, Will, George and Rene Bruce went up onto Silver Mountain Monday to work their claims but the snowstorm Tuesday drove them back home.
1920: The La Veta Automotive Company has orders for 21 Ford passenger cars which shows money must be plentiful but the editor wishes some of it would find its way into his pockets.
1925: Dr. Blair has a new and commodious bath house under construction at Sulphur Springs, with four baths and a rest room. Three new rental cabins are under construction while the old ones are being repaired, and plans are to build a 48 by 72 foot pavilion.
1930: The town is trying plain dirt to fill up the chuck holes on Main Street but it seems it is as rough as ever again a few days after surfacing.
1935: Good showers daily are falling and the outlook for summer crops is much improved. Even eastern Colorado is receiving some rain where just weeks ago travelers reported they could not see other passengers in the same car during the dust storms.
1940: Twenty-four members of the junior class and the 14 seniors attended the annual banquet and dance Friday evening. Gilbert Arnold was the toastmaster for the evening.
1945: La Luna Excelsior Company has the foundation in for a new building to house machinery for making excelsior which has not been produced since the disastrous fire two years ago.
1950: Frontier Power Company began its rural electrification project up Wahatoya Canon yesterday.
1955: Forty-two inches of snow fell on La Veta and Cuchara camps this week.
1960: Harry Willis was awarded the contract to furnish the new 1,245 square foot building to house the post office which will lease the premises.
1965: The Chuck Wagon at Cuchara is now open for the season under the management of Nick Morelli of Walsenburg.
1970: The graduates this year are Judy Mae Dean, Dee Ann Disert, Dale Edward Duzenack, Maurice Eugene Heikes, Norman Wayne Lupton, Donald Edward Magnino, Larry Morris Pittman, Floyd Stephen Robino and Wayne Sanford Underwood.
1975: Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Sawyer are moving to Kansas with their daughter Linda.
1980: Born, Chad Robert to Don and Barbara Andreatta and Kristal Gean to Maurice and Irene Heikes.
1985: Michelle “Mitch” Hickey was elected president of the La Veta Re-2 School Board, Jerry Geiser, vice president, Bob Pierotti, secretary and Maurice Heikes, treasurer.
1990: The Timbers in Cuchara will have KSPK Disc Jockey Ken Weeks spinning hits from 1950s, ’60s and ’70s this weekend for a dance in the restaurant’s lounge.
1995: This year’s graduating class of 31 is the largest ever for La Veta High School. Kim Bressan is valedictorian and Zac Brgoch and Lea Geiser are co-salutatorians.
