Rustic Beginnings
Prospectors who came to Colorado uprooted their entire lives in the pursuit of riches, bringing with them their families and belongings to establish settlements. The communities of Tarryall, Fairplay, and Buckskin Joe owe their origins to the minerals inhabiting the land surrounding the South Platte River. These were the first established settlements in the South Park area around 1859. The following decade would give rise to many more towns.[1]
“Lew and John Reed had both been in California and knew what gulch diggings meant. It seems from their talk that they had had considerable discussion relative to who was entitled to Discovery Claim. Little Ward, a member of the Reed Party said all they wanted was fair play.”
-Chas B. Basyc on the Reed Brothers and the creation of Fairplay[2]
