Sale of the Arbuthnot & Sons' Gold Mines, 1864

From the collection of Samuel Arbuthnot.
Unknown mine and the men are not identified.
Boulder photographer, Joe Sturtevant
(aka Rocky Mountain Joe) titled this a "Slim Meal"

For an unknown reason in 1864, Carson W. Arbuthnot give Power of Attorney to his son William. Then sent William along with his Brothers to the Boulder County Courthouse to give Power of Attorney to sell off several discoveries and gold claim lodes up in Gold Hill (Boulder County, Colorado) area. There are several interesting clues held in these documents. First of all are all of the holdings of Arbuthnot & Sons.  The Fanny Lode was most likely named for Carson's wife (and the boy's mother), Mary Frances "Fanny" Jones Arbuthnot.  I wonder who Jennie was.  I also wonder if any of these lodes are a part of any current gold mines that are still active now.  And one wonders too, how much did Graham & Patterson get for these mines.

The following two pages were transcribed by me, form the original (microfilm) in the Grantee/Grantor books located in the Department of Records, Boulder County, Boulder, Colorado.

The documents appear here in the order that they were entered into the Boulder County Record Books, Boulder County, Colorado Territory.

Grantee/Grantor Book A, Page 464. 

Known all men by these presents: That we C. W. Arbuthnot by his attorney in fact William Arbuthnot, Samuel Arbuthnot, and James Arbuthnot of the County of Boulder & Territory of Colorado have this day made constituted and appointed and by these presents do make constitute and appoint Thomas J. Graham and A. O. Patterson of the aforesaid territory our true and lawful attorneys for us and in our names to sell and make executive and deliver a good and sufficient deed. Sufficing to convey the following described property lying and being situated in the County of Boulder and in the Territory of Colorado and more particularly described as follows to wit: Nos One (1) Two (2) and Three (3) East on the John Lode Nos Three (30 Four (4) and Five (5) NE on the Snow Load. The Discovery on the John Lode, Nos Four (4) Five (5) and Six (6) SW on the Jefferson Lode. Nos Four (4) Five (5) and Six (6) on the SW on the Cider Lode. Nos Two (2) Three (3) and Five (5) North East on the Fanny Lode. The Discovery on the Jennie Lode and the West half of number eighteen (18) West on the Horsfall Lode all in the Gold Hill District. 

To such person or persons and such sum or sums of money as my said attorneys or either of them may think proper and generally to do all act or acts for us and in our names as our attorneys in fact the same as if we were personally present and acting for ourselves. Provided they the said Graham and Patterson or either of thus our said attorneys in fact shall sell the aforesaid property on or before the 11 ^th day of September AD1864 and further we hereby agree to satisfy and confirm all acts thus being the sale of the above described property which our said attorneys or either of them shall legally do in the premises. In testimony whereof we hereunto to set our hand and seal this 11^th day of May AD1864
Carson W. Arbuthnot by L. S.
his Attorney in fact William Arbuthnot
Samuel Arbuthnot L. S.
James Arbuthnot L. S.
Territory of Colorado, County of Boulder; on this 11^th day of May AD
[Can not read the final line of this page, it would have the signature of the County Recorder, R. Culver]


Grantee/Grantor Book A, Page 465

1864 Personally appeared before me Clerk of Boulder County duly qualified to take acknowledgements C. W. Arbuthnot by his attorney in fact William Arbuthnot and Samuel Arbuthnot and James Arbuthnot personally known to me to be the identical persons who subscribed the foregoing Power of Attorney and acknowledged the signing and sealing of the same to be this voluntary act and deed for the purposes therein set forth
Witness my hand and the seal of said County of Boulder hereunto affixed this 11th day of May AD1864
L. S.
Robert Culver, Clerk of Boulder County, Col. Ter.
Filed for Record May 11th 1864
R. Culver, Recorder


Know all men by these presents that I Carson W. Arbuthnot of the County of Boulder in the Territory of Colorado do hereby appoint and constitute William Arbuthnot of the same county my true and lawful Attorney to do and transact all business of any kind whatever to buy or sell to transfer and convey any property now owned by me or in any way belonging to me to collect any money due me and receipt for the same and I do hereby consent and agree that all the business which he the said William Arbuthnot may do for me shall be as binding upon one in all respects as though I myself had done it.
Witness my and seal this eighth day of December AD1863. ($T.Stroup)
Carson W. Arbuthnot L. S.
Territory of Colorado
Boulder County 


Be it known on the eighth day of December AD1863 appeared before me P. M. Housel a Justice of the Peace in and for the County of Boulder C. W. Arbuthnot to me well known to be the identical person whose name is and scribed to the foregoing instrument and acknowledge that he signed the same for the intent and purposes as these set forth.
P. M. Housel J.P.    L. S.
Filed for Record May 11, 1864
R. Culver, Recorder

This was not in Boulder County, but not far away at the Gregory Diggings,
near Central City.  This etching is excellent showing a placer mine and panning.
It was published in the book,
Beyond the Mississippi, Albert D. Richardson, 1867

Related link:  More information on Rocky Mountain Joe.

Filbert Ice Cream

It's cold outside!  Yep, it's time to make ice cream! "What?" you say, "But it's Winter!"

Yes it is winter, and when the icicles were big and dripping from the roof of the house, that's when our family would make ice cream.  Just as mom's grandmother had done with her, mom would send us out with a broom to break down the big icicles.  We'd smash them up and gather a bucket full to bring into the basement where the old ice cream maker sat.  The crushed icicles were used to pack around the canister of cream that was in the center of the wooden bucket.  Rock Salt was layered in with the ice and we knew that after a lot of cranking (churning the cream), we'd all be enjoying something wonderful.

Here is an old recipe that was a favorite!

Filbert Ice Cream (1880)

You'll need one quart of good, thick cream and one pound of nuts.
Make a sugar syrup out of 20 ounces of sugar and 10 ounces of water.
[Heat the sugar and water together just until the sugar has dissolved.  Let cool while you do the next step.]

Break the nuts and roast over a low hot fire. Sprinkle some cream on them and pound them. Mix the cream, nuts, two beaten eggs, and syrup over a medium heat, stirring until you've got a custard. Strain and cool. Freeze [churn in an ice cream maker until frozen].  Pack the frozen cream in a mold and pack the mold in ice until ready to serve.

A Hand-Crank Ice Cream Churning Machine

Mines in Gold Hill, Colorado Territory, acquired by the Arbuthnot men in 1862

In the Boulder County Court House the Grantee/Grantor Books are housed for Boulder County.  In Book A (the first record book for this area), on pages 94 and 95, are transactions where the Arbuthnot men acquired lodes (gold mining claims) on the Horsfal Mountain.  The first major gold discovery was on this mountain on January 15, 1859.

A Grantee is the person who is receiving something, such as a title or a deed.
A Grantor is the person who is giving up something, such as the seller of a mine or land.

In this first transaction, Arbuthnot & Sons (Carson W. Arbuthnot, his sons Samuel, William, James, Charles) purchased portions of the Horsfal mine sold by C. W. Chambers for the price of $15,000.  This transaction took place in the last half of C. W. Arbuthnot's term as the Constable of Sugar Loaf Mining District and the Gold Hill Mining District.  Fifteen thousand dollars is a great deal of money back in this day, and I believe this indicates that Sheriff Carson Arbuthnot must have been a very busy Sheriff at this time to amass such a fortune.  His sons probably chipped some of their gold from their other lodes as well.   We will never know if they were able to recover their investment in this particular claim.

C. W. Chambers

To

C. W. Arbuthnot & Sons

Quit Claim Deed

Gold Hill, January 25, 1862

For the consideration of fifteen thousand dollars in hand paid the recipient of which is here by acknowledged I have sold and do here by transfer unto C. W. Arbuthnot and sons all of my rights; title and interest in and to the East fifteen feet of claim No. 5 west and the west fifteen feet of claim No. 4 west both on the Horsefall Lode in Gold Hill District, Colorado Territory.  In testimony where I have set my hand and seal, day and year above written.

C. W. Chambers, L.S.

Attest W. Y. (?) Dodd

Recorded Feb 8, 1862 In Book (?) Page 268

E. S. Glotfelter, Recorder

Filed Feb. 11 at 12 M.

In the next transaction, a couple of weeks after the above transaction, Carson W. Arbuthnot is in partnership with John M. Squires for a portion of the Horsfal Mine.

Grantee/Grantor Book A, Page 95

Load Claim

Arbuthnot & Squires

Gold Hill District, February 5, 1862

This is to certify that I have received the necessary evidence by the Powers invested in me by the laws of this District C. W. Arbuthnot & John M. Squires to be the rightful owners of fractional Quartz Claim eleven feet and six inches which lies between number four and five west on the Horsefall Lode by right of preemption given under my hand and seal given this the fifth day of February 1862.

Charles Dabney, Resident

E. S. Glotfelter, Recorder

Filed Feb. 11 at 12M

Many thanks to Chellee Courtney for this wonderful photo of an old mine up on Horsfal Mountain, Gold Hill, Colorado.

W.D. Goudge Collection, 
courtesy Chellee Courtney, Horsfal Mountain,
Gold Hill, Boulder County, Colorado

Related links:  Gold Hill Town Site

News from Gold Hill, April 23, 1859

Published in Denver, back when it was Kansas Territory, in the newspaper Rocky Mountain News on April 23, 1859, the following was published after visiting with a Gold Hill miner.  Gold Hill was only three months old at the time this was published, yet already, there were many men who had come to take the gold from this mountain.  Here is what the article reported...

Mr. O. P. Goodwin has just shown us a parcel of quartz gold, which he states was dug by himself about 8 miles west of Boulder and some 35 miles north of Cherry creek.  

These specimens are intermixed with particles of quartz rock, similar in appearance to that of California.  The largest specimen weighs 32 cents, and the parcel is worth something over $50.  Mr. G. states that he obtained it from a vein of decomposed quartz, six or eight inches in thickness and lying about three feet below the surface of the ground.

Gold Panning
After the silt and sand is washed away, flecks of gold remain.
Panning helps the miner locate where more, bigger gold may be found.

Quartz-Gold is quartz rock with gold in the quartz rock.
After locating where gold might be using panning,
then miners would start to dig to find larger amounts of gold.
Extracting the gold from the quartz was difficult and dangerous.
Extraction required the use of mercury after the rock was crushed.

Article 4, Gold Hill Mining District No. 1 - Laws

In January 1859, high in the Rocky Mountains before there was a Boulder, Colorado, gold was discovered.  The first miners there created the Mining District no. 1 of Nebraska Territory which became to be known as Gold Hill.

These men understood the implications of their discovery and wanted to get control of the situation before things got out of hand.  They held a gathering and created a "Book of Laws".   Below is Article 4 that I transcribed directly from the original law book that was created by the Gold Hill miners.  The book is housed at the Carnegie Library for Local History, a branch of the Boulder Public Library.  Article 4 contains the laws that my Great-great-grandfather, C. W. Arbuthnot, would have upheld as Sheriff in Gold Hill.

Any word that I could not decipher in the original I have indicated with [?] in the transcription.

Article 4 - Of Offenses

Offenses against Society

1.  Any man committing or attempting to commit crimes against the laws of society shall have a fair and impartial trial by jury, and if found guilty shall be dealt with as the people assemble in public meeting shall direct.

Of defacing or removing stakes

2. It shall be unlawful for anyone to obliterate or deface or remove or in any way alter any mark from any stake or tree marking the boundaries of any claim or claims and upon any conviction thereof, he shall forfeit all right or interest in the claim or claims, the mark or marks of which may be so altered or removed.

Of claiming a higher fee than is legal

3. Any officer that shall be found charging more than his lawful fees shall be fined at least ten dollars for the first offence and if convicted a second time shall pay a fine of twenty five dollars and his office shall be considered vacant.  An election for a new officer shall be called.

Of the sale of liquors

4. No one shall be allowed to sell intoxicating liquors within the boundaries of this district except for medicinal or medical purposes.  And upon convection of so doing, shall pay for the first offence a fine of not less than $25. Not more than $50.   And for the second offence a fine of not less than $50. Nor more than $100.  And for the third offense a fine of not less than $150.  And a like sum for every subsequent offense that shall be proven against the person or persons.

Mode of collecting fines.

The fines to be collected the same as other fines to be collected in the District.

5. Any persons who shall sell or give spirit-[?] liquors to any Indian shall receive 40 lashes on their back.

Process in [? - hole in paper] of liquor vendors

6. The President or Justice of the Peace of the District shall upon anyone filing a complaint with him, that he believes any one is guilty of violating the above resolutions, issue a warrant to the Sherriff or Constable for the  arrest of the party or parties so offending, commanding them to be brought before him immediately for trial.

(Source No. 5)

Pickled Watermelon

Every Christmas it was a joy to go down into the cellar and get the jars of Watermelon Pickles that my Mom had canned in the summertime.  These little red and green jewels meant that Christmas was here and our family would be together with our cousins.  While this is a very old recipe, made with the oil of cloves and cinnamon that were purchased at the pharmacy, not the grocery store, I recommend giving this recipe a try today.  Especially if you are an experienced canner, you will be rewarded.

Watermelon Pickles

7 lbs Watermelon Rind 

3 ½ lbs Sugar

1 pint [Cider] Vinegar

½ teaspoon Oil of Cloves

½ teaspoon Oil of Cinnamon

Cut the green skin off the rind; leave some pink fruit (no more than a ½ inch) on the rind.  Cut rind into one-inch cubes.  Cover with hot water and par boil until rind can be pierced with a fork, but be careful not to let it get too soft.  Drain water off rind.

This should be about 7 lbs of fruit.

Bring sugar, vinegar, and oils to boil and pour over rind.  Let stand in kettle over night.  In the morning, drain off syrup, reheat [syrup] and pour back.  Sit over night.  The third morning, heat to hot both the rind and syrup.  Seal in jars.

Makes 8 pints.

Horace Greeley Comments on Pikes Peak June 1859

On June 3, 1859, an article was published in the Rockford Daily News in Rockford Illinois.

(Page 3).  New York Tribune, a newspaper founder and editor Horace Greeley, for which the town of Greeley Colorado is named for, had a great deal to say about the gold rush to Pike's Peak.  He knew how to sell newspapers with the sensationalism of the day!  No doubt, this is the kind of talk that encouraged my family to come and seek gold.   They arrived in Boulder on June 20th, 1859.   

Here is what was published...  

Horace Greeley on Pike’s Peak 

Under date of May 22, Mr. Greeley writes from Leavenworth, Kansas, to the Tribune respecting the gold region, in a tone which shows that he has caught the fever in its worst form. It is evident that the white coated philosopher has been sadly humbugged by someone.

Here is what Mr. Greeley says:

1. There is gold at Pike’s Peak.
2. Very little has yet been dug.
3. A considerable though very inadequate amount of prospecting had been done up to the 10^th inst., which is the date of our latest advices.
4. A great deal more will soon be done, as the snow only begins to be fairly melted out of the gorges of the Rocky Mountains, where the rich mines or placers must be found, if anywhere.
5. As yet this prospecting has not yielded enough to pay the board of those employed in it.
6. Yet a few, who have had extra luck, would seem to have done pretty well, and some of them (unless they lie outrageously) are now making $5 to $8 per day to the hand. The board of a rugged, hard-working miner in that region ought to cost $2 per day.
7. It is known to this hour that any extensive placer has been found, and nearly every miners still prospecting for better digging. (sic)
8. Hundreds of those who rushed madkly off on a gold hunt across five hundred miles of uninhabited, foodless country, in February and March, have either died outright of starvation, or have suffered and been famished to the last limit of mortal endurance. And all who have started in their track with but a few days’ provisions and scarcely any other resource but the clothes on their back have probably suffered, or will suffer, everything short of death, and some of them will probably die.
9. There is  as much uncertainty and distrust in the Gold Region as here, and many who have reached Denver City or Auraria have turned back in disgust, which others would do if they could do it in safety.
10. Many who had gone part way have been discouraged by the reports of those they met and are heading towards the States again.
11. There is no demand for labor in any part of the alleged Gold Regions, and many are there idle, who would gladly be hired and set to work.
12. It is not yet decided whether any considerable amount of Gold can be mined with profit in the new Gold Region. Months more of patient and well directed labor may be required to settle that point.
13. As yet, less than $10,000 in all, has been received on this frontier, in Gold, the product of the Pike’s Peak region.
14. It is highly desirable and proper that the capacity of the new Gold Region should be tested and ascertained. Those who are rationally employed in this work deserve well of the country. But there are people enough now in or near the new Gold Region for all reasonable purposes – far too many for the amount of food that now is or can soon be placed there.
15. It is not merely folly – it is criminal madness – to rush off to Pike’s Peak Gold Hunting without ample provision in the shape of food, clothing, blankets, mining implements, and money. He who goes without rushes on a suicide’s fate. H. G.

Related article:  Mr. Skinner hears Mr. Greeley speak at Fort Laramie