The Indians of the Pike's Peak Region: Including an Account of the Battle of Sand Creek, and of Occurrences in El Paso County, Colorado, during the War with the Cheyennes and Arapahoes, in 1864 and 1868 — John Shaqi
The Indians of the Pike's Peak Region: Including an Account of the Battle of Sand Creek, and of Occurrences in El Paso County, Colorado, during the War with the Cheyennes and Arapahoes, in 1864 and 1868Howbert, Irving
History
The Indians of the Pike's Peak Region: Including an Account of the Battle of Sand Creek, and of Occurrences in El Paso County, Colorado, during the War with the Cheyennes and Arapahoes, in 1864 and 1868
Howbert, Irving
El Paso County, Colo. -- History; Indians of North America -- Colorado; Sand Creek Massacre, Colo., 1864
The principal Indian trail into the mountains from the plains to the
northeast of Pike's Peak came in by way of the Garden Ranch, through what
used to be known as Templeton's Gap. It crossed Monument Creek about a
mile above Colorado Springs, then followed up a ridge to the Mesa; then
it went southwest over the Mesa and across Camp Creek, passing just
south of the Garden of the Gods; from there it came down to the Fountain,
about a mile west of Colorado City, and there joined another trail that
came from the southeast up the east side of Fountain Creek. The latter
trail followed the east side of the Fountain from the Arkansas River,
and crossed Monument Creek just below the present Artificial Ice Plant
in Colorado Springs, from which point it ran along the north side of the
Fountain to a point just west of Colorado City, where it crossed to the
south side, then up the south side of the creek to the Manitou Springs.
From this place it went up Ruxton Creek for a few hundred yards, then
crossed over to the west side, then up the creek to a point just below
the Colorado Midland Railway bridge; thence westward up a long ravine
to its head; then in the same direction near the heads of the ravines
running into the Fountain and from a quarter to a half of a mile south
of that creek for two miles or more. The trail finally came down to
the Fountain again just below Cascade Cañon and from there led up the
Fountain to its head, where it branched off in various directions.
The trail I have described from Manitou to Cascade Cañon is the famous
old Ute Pass trail which undoubtedly had been used by various tribes of
Indians for hundreds of years before the discovery of America. We know
it was used later for many generations by the Spanish explorer, the
hunter, the trapper, and the Indian until the white settler came, and
even after that by occasional war-parties, up to the time the Indians
were driven from the State of Colorado. Marble markers were placed at
intervals along this trail by the El Paso County Pioneer Society in the
summer of 1912. This trail and those leading into it from the plains
were well-traveled roads and gave indication of long and frequent use.
Dr. Edwin James, botanist and historian of Long's expedition, who visited
the Pike's Peak region in 1820, says:
A large and much frequented road passes the springs and enters
the mountains running to the north of the high peak.
He says of the principal spring at Manitou:
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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