Colorado Governor Pitkin Describes Ute Indians as “Savages”
I’m a Colorado history buff and go back in time to my grandfather arriving in America in 1865. He homesteaded 30 miles north of Meeker in 1887 under the Homestead Act. Meeker was a frontier town named after Nathan Meeker, the Indian Agent killed at the White River Indian Reservation, September 29, 1879.
I’m a subscriber to The Meeker Herald-Times, circa: 1885, and for the past year this newspaper has been publishing a series of letters from The White River Museum written by Indian Agent Meeker to Hon. N. A. Hayt, Commissioner of Indian Affairs in Washington D.C. Meeker describes his plight in attempting to teach 700 Ute Indians how to farm and had success with only about 30 workers. He complains regularly that the Indians like their old way of life, hunting and riding their horses across thousands of acres of their vast reservation lands.
Summing up his frequent letters, they paint a dismal picture of rich farmland along the White River but with primitive farm equipment and lack of funds and workers. Meeker is often frustrated and describes how the Indians created forest fires to obtain winter firewood from the charred trees. A majority of the Indians have left the reservation and traveled northward across the Yampa River to North Park where the town of Walden is today. North Park is over the mountain range from the rich gold fields in the Kansas territory of what will become Gilpin and Clear Creek Counties. An estimated 20,000 gold miners poured into the area seeking fortunes started in 1859. While the Indians scouted out these miners, they primarily leave them alone with the well-armed miners protecting their mining claims. Some fur, food, and horse-trading occurred with the miners, but little violence reported in 1862 early day Weekly Register-Call.
Meeker and the Governor’s requests eventually led to troops from Ft. Steele in Wyoming traveling to the area to round up the Indians that lead to a major confrontation at Milk Creek 20 miles Northeast of the White River with the troops led by Major Thornburgh. This is one of the last incidents in the Indian wars in U.S. history in which 13 troopers were killed and 44 wounded, along with many Indian deaths. The end result was the removal of the White River Ute Indians to a Utah reservation and the loss of their vast lands. Settlers and cattle herds poured into the area and the town of Meeker arose from Meeker’s untimely death and the open range boom.
Last year a Federal Commission renamed Mount Evans because Gov. Evans was governor at the time of the Sand Creek Massacre. The massacre happened Nov. 27, 1864 and was led by Col. John Chivington who had connections in Gilpin County.
Mount Blue Sky is the new moniker for Mt. Evans. Evans founded The University of Denver and Northwestern University in Chicago, and the name was changed to placate and honor today’s Indian culture. Evans was in Washington when the massacre unfolded at Sand Creek but was he was Governor at the time.
The Meeker Herald-Times has obtained the letters from The White River Museum and two letters published in the May 15 edition are quite interesting and set the tone of the Indian warfare. The latest letters were from Frederick W. Pitkin, Governor of Colorado, written from Denver on July 5, 1879. Colorado had become a state in 1876, and gold mining was booming in Gilpin and Clear Creek counties.
Pitkin writes: “TO: HON. N.A. Hayt, Commission of Indian Affairs, Washington D.C. Reports reach me daily that a band of White River Utes are off their reservation destroying forest and game, near North Park and Middle Parks. They have already burned millions of dollars of timber and are intimidating settlers and miners. Have written Indian Agent Meeker twice, but fear letters have not reached him. I respectively request you have a telegraph order to send troops at the nearest post to remove Indians to their reservation. If the General Government does not act promptly, the State must. Immense forests are burning throughout Western Colorado, supposed to have been fired by Indians. I am satisfied that there is an organized effort on the path of the Indians to destroy the timber of Colorado. The loss will be irreplaceable. These savages should be removed to the Indian Territory where they can no longer destroy the finest forests in the State.” Signed: FRED W. PITKIN, Governor.
A second telegraph is sent to E.J. Brooks, Acting Commissioner of Indian Affairs, Washington D.C., dated Denver, Colo. July 8, 1879.
The second letter is shorter as follows: “Letter from Indian Agent Meeker dated July 2, just received, asks me to appeal to military, and says the commander at Ft. Steele pays no attention to his repeated requests to keep Indians where they belong. He says Chief Douglas has sent scouts to recall his band, but the other Indians belong to nobody. I have no information whether they have started home. The Utes have burned more timber the last few weeks than white settlers have cut in twenty years.” Signed; FREDERICK W. PITKIN, Governor.
Troops were eventually sent, triggering the Meeker Massacre that occurred at The White River Agency September 29, 1879. The battle occurred as the troops, led by Major Thornburgh, approached Milk Creek, 20 miles Northeast of Meeker where the fighting occurred.
It does appear that Gov. Pitkin [notably Pitkin County, probably named after him] was not fond of the Ute Indians.
Maybe Pitkin County should acquire a new name. It is apparent that at this time in history the gold rush was on, and Indians were not very popular, losing their happy hunting grounds.
These interesting letters reveal some sentiment at that time in history.