Famous Folks of Cripple Creek, CO

Being the “happening” spot in the West, Cripple Creek, CO and the surrounding towns were visited and inhabited by many famous people of the early 1900's. The Cripple Creek Mining District made such a large impression in a short amount of time people from every where in the World came to the area to either strike it rich or visit. Some grew up in the area and then became famous later, but there were a large amount of famous people that visited Cripple Creek whether just to check it out or to work or perform in the area.

         The famous “bad guy” Bob Ford after shooting outlaw Jesse James in the back of the head for a bounty, tried to make his way to Cripple Creek. While he was in Colorado City, the town was tipped off and the Sherriff met Ford at the city limits and asked him very nicely to turn the other way. The famous Wyatt Earp and the gang the Wild Bunch also were said to have made their way through the “2 Mile High City.” Famous writer and radio personality Lowell Thomas grew up and made his career start in Victor, CO. Boxer Jack Dempsey started boxing in the many opera houses of the area under the name Kid Blackie. Famous Colorado Governor Ralph Carr graduated from Cripple Creek High School and worked as a lawyer in the town before his stint in Denver. Charles A. Lory the well known President of Colorado State University worked as the principal of Cripple Creek High School early in his career. The famous “booze hater” Carrie Nation tried her “saloon smashin” thing in the town but word has it she was kept out of the bars and forced to preach on the street until saloon owner Johnny Nolan bought her a train ticket out of town perhaps saving her from the pro-alcohol miners. Another famous person was ran out of town for having unpopular views.

         During the 1900 election, Vice Presidential nominee “Teddy” Roosevelt came to the area to discuss how silver coin production could help boost the economy. Seeing as how the Cripple Creek District made its wealth mining gold Mr. Roosevelt's opinion was not a popular one. After taking the trip on the Short Line from Colorado Springs, CO to the district “Teddy” described that the trip was so beautiful that it “bankrupts the human language.” After his scenic adventure Mr. Roosevelt arrived in Victor, CO to give his first speech. He barely finished his speech when he was rushed by the angry mob. They were prepared and had the Vice-Presidential nominee surrounded by bodyguards. The bodyguards were just able to fight of the mob and get “Teddy” back on the train. He then traveled on to Cripple Creek, CO where he was treated better. Local Attorney J. Maurice Finn offered to put him up and built a large mansion just for Mr. Roosevelt. Unfortunately, after touring an underground mine and giving another unpopular speech Mr. Roosevelt ran out of time and only made it onto the front porch of his custom built mansion called “The Towers”.

         One famous woman came to the Cripple Creek District as a young lady with her father and step mother. Susan Anderson's father became a successful businessman and sent the young lady to medical school at the University of Michigan. After a little while Susan's bitter step-mom had her dad cut her off financially. She borrowed money from classmates, still graduated, then returned to the Cripple Creek area and lived with her grandparents. There she opened up her own practice, being the only female doctor in town it was said that Doc Susie was not real popular and mostly treated prostitutes. She then left Cripple Creek and traveled around rural areas of the West and treated many Colorado pioneers. The television show “Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman” was loosely based on the life and work of Dr. Susan Anderson. When the famous doctor passed away she was buried at Mt. Pisgah Cemetary.

         Many famous entertainers of the time made their way into the exciting gold camp district. One famous actress and performer Texas Guinan grew up in the small mining town of Anaconda. As a young girl Texas Guinan moved to the small mining town with her mother. She grew up in Anaconda and started as an organ player during Sunday school in the district and moved on to be a famous performer and actress.

         Another famous performer to make his way through the infamous gold district was Groucho Marx. When he was a young man he formed a stage group with him and two other performers. One a singer and the other one a tap dancer. Him and the other singer sang while the dancer tap danced. Their first show of the tour in Grand Rapids, Michigan the tap dancer flung a shoe into the crowd injuring an audience member causing the venue to charge the trio a fee and cut into the group's profits. They traveled from Michigan to Denver performed a semi-successful show in the mile high city and then headed south to find more places to perform. When the group was unable to book anything in Colorado Springs or Old Colorado City they ended up getting booked at a theater in Victor, CO. They performed in Victor to a rather disappointing small audience and Groucho Marx awoke the next day to an upsetting surprise. He woke up a little late that morning in a local Victor hotel only to realize that the other to members of his traveling trio were gone. He later found out that the $8 he had stashed away during the failing tour was missing from his jacket pocket.

          With nothing left to his name he realized he was stuck in the mountains but was able to find a job in the striving mining district delivering ice and other goods for a local grocery store. After a few months of driving an ice wagon between Victor and Cripple Creek, and almost wrecking it, Groucho Marx decided that high altitude living was not for him. After a short time surviving the “harsh conditions” and almost dumping his employer's grocery delivery wagon off a 1000ft.+ cliff Groucho Marx decided to make a phone call home and talk his mother into sending him enough money to buy a train ticket home to New York. Once he got home he formed a group with his brother and afterward they became famous as the “Marx Brothers.” Once fame had struck this performer he returned to Cripple Creek, although a little bitter towards the area, signed a photo of himself and his original performing trio and dedicated it to the city. This authentic signed photo now resides at the local Cripple Creek District Museum.

         Among the famous people that made their way through the mining district there are some stories of people visiting the area that cannot be confirmed. Astrology writer Linda Goodman did reside in the area years after the gold boom and supposedly started the rumor that Nicola Tesla had once stayed in her home. There is one account that Tesla's famous experiment in which he stuck light bulbs into the ground during a thunder storm, lighting them up, was conducted at Mt. Pisgah. Neither of these stories have solid evidence backing them up. Many historians claim that the famous “wizard” never stepped into the mining town. Writer Mark Twain spent some time in Colorado during the gold rush days working in mines. He wrote accounts of his hard working days mining at a mine near St. Elmo, CO. Although there is no known account perhaps Tom and Huck's creator also made his way into the booming Cripple Creek District.