Dust to Dust: a History of Dearfield, Colorado
Vincent M Gladu
History 1110
Professor Rucker
08/01/2011
Dust to Dust: A History of Dearfield, Colorado; and Future Considerations for Historical Discovery
Dearfield is now known today as a ghost town, however, in the early twentieth century it was a major black community in Weld County, Colorado. The town was established by O.T. Jackson who wanted to establish a settlement for African Americans. In 1910, Jackson, a thriving entrepreneur from Boulder, filed a claim on 320 acres, which sealed the deal launching the township of Dearfield into existence and started to publicize advertisements to recruit settlers. Dearfield was one of about 15 black settlements in Colorado and among dozens across the United States (Chandler, 2008). The name Dearfield was proposed by one of the township 's settlers, Dr. J.H.P. Westbrook, a former resident of Denver. The word dear was selected as the basis for the settlement 's name because of the loved value of the land and area to the town 's immigrants (Taylor, 2010). The first migrants to Dearfield experienced many difficulties farming the nearby fields as the soil was very sandy. Thus at first they experienced many seasons of sparse yields. According to Jackson, during the first winter in Dearfield only two of the seven families “had wooden houses and the suffering was intense.” He said “buffalo chips and sagebrush was our chief fuel. Three of our horses died from starvation and the other three were too weak to pull the empty wagon”(Hill, 2011).They ate mostly potatoes one early winter, and slept in caves dug into the hills; but by employing dry-land farming techniques, they began producing bountiful crops (Chandler, 2008). Nevertheless, by 1921, hundreds of people lived in Dearfield and the township 's net worth was estimated at $1,075,000 (Chandler, 2008). Following several thriving years, the Great Depression hit the township and agricultural business considerably decreased.
History 1110
Professor Rucker
08/01/2011
Dust to Dust: A History of Dearfield, Colorado; and Future Considerations for Historical Discovery
Dearfield is now known today as a ghost town, however, in the early twentieth century it was a major black community in Weld County, Colorado. The town was established by O.T. Jackson who wanted to establish a settlement for African Americans. In 1910, Jackson, a thriving entrepreneur from Boulder, filed a claim on 320 acres, which sealed the deal launching the township of Dearfield into existence and started to publicize advertisements to recruit settlers. Dearfield was one of about 15 black settlements in Colorado and among dozens across the United States (Chandler, 2008). The name Dearfield was proposed by one of the township 's settlers, Dr. J.H.P. Westbrook, a former resident of Denver. The word dear was selected as the basis for the settlement 's name because of the loved value of the land and area to the town 's immigrants (Taylor, 2010). The first migrants to Dearfield experienced many difficulties farming the nearby fields as the soil was very sandy. Thus at first they experienced many seasons of sparse yields. According to Jackson, during the first winter in Dearfield only two of the seven families “had wooden houses and the suffering was intense.” He said “buffalo chips and sagebrush was our chief fuel. Three of our horses died from starvation and the other three were too weak to pull the empty wagon”(Hill, 2011).They ate mostly potatoes one early winter, and slept in caves dug into the hills; but by employing dry-land farming techniques, they began producing bountiful crops (Chandler, 2008). Nevertheless, by 1921, hundreds of people lived in Dearfield and the township 's net worth was estimated at $1,075,000 (Chandler, 2008). Following several thriving years, the Great Depression hit the township and agricultural business considerably decreased.
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