Colorado Ghost Town Books/Maps
Books and Maps I would
recommend for the Loyal
visitors to the site,
I know some of you are always looking for good reference books to help in your search for Colorado Ghost towns or perhaps just some old west reading.
New Books available at a discount May 2010... Available with a discount at http://columbineink.com/ Look under the tab for Affiliate Authors. Use use the prmo code “FAIRPLAY” to get your discount as a visitor from the Rocky Mountain Profiles web site.
These by fair are the most recent and best documented guides to Colorado Ghost Towns. A must buy for the serious Colorado Ghost Towner. A series of four books by Kenneth Jessen.
A new release from Kenneth Jessen – “Ghost Towns: Eastern Colorado” profiles the plains Ghost towns of Colorado.
Nearly 1,000 abandoned sites in eastern Colorado are documented in Kenneth Jessen’s newest book, Ghost Towns: Eastern Colorado. Covering counties from the Colorado foothills eastward, this is a history of ghost towns on a sea of grass—from stage stations, military forts, and once-thriving towns along the cattle trails to agricultural communities and railroad-financed towns. It is a tale of homesteaders hoping for the return of prosperity they once enjoyed during the wet years; the story of one wave of settlers forced out by drought only to be replaced with optimistic newcomers, until the Dust Bowl of the 1930s dealt the final blow for many of these towns and communities. 624 pages • over 500 photos/illustrations/maps
New Books -
November 2009
My Personal favorite
"A Fair Distance" or "Lois Boblett's Western Memoir, 1844-1922." Available with a discount at http://columbineink.com/ Make sure to use the code “FAIRPLAY” to get your discount as a visitor from the Rocky Mountain Profiles web site. Also check out their new Ghost town books and calendar for 2010. What is so special – Not only do you get a look at some real pioneers but the book ties in historical events and how those events influenced these pioneers.
In her memoir spanning more than seven decades, Lois Whitcomb Boblett (1844-1925) writes of the day-to-day struggle
to settle the West. Lois and her family homesteaded in Iowa and Nebraska, prospected for gold in Colorado's Pike's Peak
Rush, contributed to the formation of the New Mexico Territory during the Civil War, ranched on the edge of the Arizona frontier,
traveled through California, homesteaded in Washington Territory, searched for silver in Idaho, and stampeded to the Klondike.
Lois and Ed Boblett returned to Whatcom County, Washington, where their impact is still recognized today.
Through meticulous research and a wealth of detail, Western Historian L. Darlene Spargo positions the Whitcomb and Boblett
families in the movement West and adds context to their decisions and actions. Spargo adds numerous historical photographs
and maps to illustrate Lois's story. How Lois and her family dealt with life on the Frontier is a fascinating story of survival.
Order A Fair Distance, Lois Boblett's Western Memoir, 1851-1922, by L. Darlene Spargo on our shopping cart!
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A complete life of Soapy Smith by his
great Grandson –Jefferson Randolph Smith II - 
http://www.soapysmith.net/id50.html
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Previous entry's
I recently worked with a couple of very nice ladies that took upon the task of updating and publishing some Ghost Town materials that were out of print. They bought the inventory of John Aldrich and are in the process of publishing all of his books and maps.
For those of you that are not aware John K. Aldrich did much research on the state of Colorado and then in the early 1980’s he published a series of books covering the state.
A total of 15
books and a topo map for each one. I have spoken to John on several occasions
and I have used his books for reference for 20 years. He did a great job. To see
the books come back to print is a great thing. Mine are getting pretty tattered.
For all of you interested in Ghost Towns and especially Colorado Ghost towns
these are must get books.
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May 2009 - Some sad news.
Aldrich, John Kenneth 63, died May 3, 2009. He was born in Hollywood, CA, the son of John Hudson Aldrich and Vera Evelyn Crittendon. An Eagle Scout, John grew up loving the ocean and the cliffs along the California Coast. He graduated from CU Santa Barbara with a Master's Degree in Geology. He began his career in Denver as a geophysicist. His career took him to all oil producing states, as well as Canada, Mexico, Kenya, and Seychelles. In 1983, John and his wife purchased Centennial Graphics in Denver. He turned his interest in old mining towns into a second career. He wrote and photographed material for 15 books on Colorado 'Ghost Towns, published by Centennial Graphics. John was a voracious reader. He was knowledgeable on many subjects. He traveled the world extensively following his retirement. He enjoyed sailing Lake Meredith and to Catalina Island. He toured all of the California Missions. He loved his mountain cabin, The Barcoe, near Fairplay, CO. He took particular interest in the Bigfoot sightings in that area. A memorial service will be held there in June. He is survived by a daughter, Cindy Servais, a son, John Aldrich, both of Tulsa, two step-sons Jeff Cline and wife, Joanna, and Greg Cline and wife, Sharon, of Denver, eight grandchildren and one great-grandchild. Donations may be made to the Arapahoe County Humane Society
Rocky Mountain Profiles Colorado Ghost Towns and Colorado Photos – Niwot Colorado