Retro Salida: Short Histories from the Archive

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The history of Salida, Colorado, is rich and varied, beginning with its inception in 1880. Retro Salida is filled with tales of murderers and lawmen, railroaders and miners, hidden treasure, the miracle of a library, one very good dog, and one of the greatest moments in Salida's history. Some tales are funny, and some are sad, but they all weave together to form the history of the town of Salida and the surrounding region.

“Drawing from Salida Regional Library’s archives, curated by Joy Jackson; Retro Salida is a comprehensive history of Salida and the surrounding area. Jackson includes detailed accounts from local sources with accompanying photographs and wry humor.
From a Spanish treasure buried near Mr. Princeton to the fiery bad luck of Peter Mulvany to Salida’s first airplane flight and subsequent crash; Jackson will regale you with all the tales you need to know to be in the know in Chaffee County and beyond.
I highly recommend Jackson’s book to everyone that calls Salida home and to anyone who just appreciates the sordid, colorful, and triumphant history of any 1800’s western town.” — T. Brown

- The Eclectic Book Club’s June 2022 Book of the Month choice -

Introduction - The Ute People - Hidden Treasure of the Spaniards - The Denver & Rio Grande Company - A Founding Family of Salida - A Trip to Gothic - Salida's Fire Boys - The Richest & Unluckiest Man in Town - The Capital Contest - Rise of the Cattle Thieves - The Lynching of Lauren 'Ed' Watkins - The Murder of Baxter Stingley - Charles Rush's Memories of Leadville - The Cochetopa Forest - Granite's Early Days - Ghosts of the Alpine Tunnel - Electric Salida - E.D. Cowen, Newspaperman - Mineral Wealth in Chaffee County - The Poet of the Rockies - Being Black in Salida - Salida's Wheelmen - Vigilante Justice - Disorderly Salida - The Innkeeper & the Ambassador - The Footbridge - Salida's Music Teacher - The Tenderfoot Magazine - It Is Worthwhile - Salida Red Cross - The Beginning of a Tradition - Salida's First Flight - Burning Crosses on Tenderfoot - The Making of Spiral Drive - The 1929 Air Circus - The Hermit of Arbor Villa - Leonidas and his Spartans - A Spartan Tragedy - Salida Ski Train - The Miracle of Television - Chaffee County Opus.