Chivington's Revenge!

There has been a lot of local interest stirred up in Colorado Springs since April when we of the Old Colorado City Historical Society reprinted the classic 300 page 'Memories of a Lifetime in the Pike's Peak Region' by Irving Howbert. It was first published in 1935, and had been out of print for 37 years. We have already sold over 200 copies at $20 apiece. It is a hot property for those really interested in local history.

And we were honored by the appearance, remarks, and book signing the day we brought it out, by the 91 year old still living and active grandson of the author, Irving Howbert. Even the Gazette Telegraph did a front page, illustrated story about the most controversial topic in the book which reverberated all the way back to Washington DC in 1864 - the Massacre (or was it a legitimate 'Battle?') of Sand Creek. The two day battle 150 miles out in eastern Colorado between Plains Indians who had themselves been running around butchering and scalping settlers and disrupting travel and the 3d Colorado Volunteer Cavalry from Colorado City led by the infamous Colonel Chivington.

Irving Howbert, a towering pioneer of both the original Colorado City which went through the Indian Wars, and early Colorado Springs (which didn't) was there as a Corporal at Sand Creek, as were 18 other men from early Colorado City, including Anthony Bott, and Henry Templeton.

What first got my attention 30 years ago while I was first bringing back the Westside from a century of neglect by revitalizing 'Old Town, researching the roots of early El Paso County, and creating the Old Colorado City Historical Society, was that book by Howbert.

Now if you or your kids went to school in Colorado Springs, as I did 70 years ago, you were taught, when learning Colorado history, that Sand Creek was a 'massacre' of innocent Indians by the greedy gold seekers, reckless gun slinging settlers backed up by the US Cavalry, and that bad actor Chivington.

But if that were so simply so, why did Irving Howbert, who was hardly a gun slinger, glory seeking cavalryman like Custer, or pontificating early politician, devote a whole section of his book to exonerating Chivington, questioning the motives of his critics and hearing witnesses, and refusing to consider it an unjustified massacre?

Howbert, the son of a Methodist Minister whose family farmed right alongside Cheyenne Canon Creek, became arguably the most prominent pioneer of Colorado City, keen observer of the Indians, both good and bad, whose peaceful Utes he befriended inside Colorado City, and became second only to General Palmer, the most influential businessman, civic, and public official in early Colorado Springs. A city which was founded in 1871 - well after the Civil War Colorado City lived through, and the Indian Wars that killed local settlers were over.

Well guess what? A lot of recent scholarship agrees with Howbert! In fact our History Society is becoming a gathering place for locals and academics who refuse to bow to the liberal political correctness of the age, which blames the evil white man for all the sins of America, pities the 'poor Indians', (like fired Professor Ward Churchill of Colorado University), and ignores both the facts and circumstances leading up to, and in the aftermath, of Sand Creek - which took place November 29 th, 1864.

In fact if you come to the Old Colorado City History Center at 2PM, Saturday, August 25 th, you can listen to a free public lecture by Professor Jeff Broome on the "Indian Depredations in Colorado." All the unjustified killings, scalpings, and 'massacres' the Cheyenne, Arapaho inflicted on the settlers and their families - and other Indian tribes. Broome, a Colorado native, is a Professor at Arapahoe Community College in Denver, and has written gripping books about the Indian Wars - the 'Dog Soldiers' and articles on the Hungate Massacre.

I, as a descendent of early Colorado settlers - east of Kiowa and Castle Rock in 1898, have a particular interest. For right on Comanche Creek where we homesteaded, pregnant Henrietta Dieteman and her 5 year son were killed and mutilated by the Arapahoe Indians in 1868. We bought a section of land from her surviving relatives.

We are SO interested we of the Society are planning a series of History Tours - in 15 passenger Vans - to both the 1864 Sand Creek battle site, and the Glorieta Pass (New Mexico) Civil War battle sites, where Chivington's leadership saved Colorado Territory for the Union in 1862 before encamping in Colorado City on the way back.

If you are interested, let me know. Details will be on our http://history.oldcolo.com web site and here on the Hub.