Niwot Historical Society presents 1st lecture of the year

Larry Dorsey will present this year’s first Now and Then lecture hosted by the Niwot Historical Society (NHS) at the Left Hand Grange Hall, 195 2nd Ave.at 7 p.m., Wednesday, Feb. 27. Chronicling a dramatic event that was emblematic of difficulties plaguing the nation in 1911, Dorsey’s presentation is titled, “Shoot Out at the Superior Depot, An episode in Colorado Labor Wars.”

Dorsey, a retired Boulder Valley School District high school history teacher, chairman of the Superior Historical Commission, and a trustee for the Colorado Railroad Museum, has packed the Grange twice before with his lectures about the history of Colorado railroads.

His upcoming lecture hones in on the local historian’s passion for western lore and how our predecessors’ lives changed as a result of defining past events.

Established in the late 1800s, what became home to workers in the area’s primary industry - coal mining, the town of Superior was deeply impacted by what was dubbed the Long Strike. United Mine Workers of America miners walked off their jobs in 1910 with the hopes of inducing their employers to pay higher wages and provide safer working conditions. Little did the workers realize the strike would last four years and eight months before its resolution.

During that lengthy time, the presence of strikebreakers ratcheted up the emotions of the thousands of striking miners who were struggling to make ends meet.

“The miners were kicked out of their company-owned houses and made due with odd jobs and a little money from the union,” Dorsey said. “Some of the episodes in Colorado’s labor wars had national attention, even though it was a smaller area.”

In 1911, a Superior town marshal came face-to-face with a striking miner and a strikebreaker on the platform of the town’s train station. To find out who these men were, who fired their gun, which man died, and what a court of law did, you’ll want to attend Dorsey’s fact and photo-laden presentation.

“There are a lot of dimensions to this particular story,” Dorsey said. “You take something that was on such a grand scale in the United States, like this labor-management conflict and immigrant versus immigrant, and you can see that what was going on in our state really reflected what was going on nationally with heavy industry and working class and management class issues.”

Dorsey mentions that just over a 100 years ago, people worked in coal mines that are now covered by new homes. What preceded the ski industry, high tech industries, retail and restaurant establishments and the recreation that now fills our lives lies just below the surface.

Niwot Historical Society annual meeting and year in review

A short annual meeting of the Niwot Historical Society will be held just before the lecture from 6:50 to 7 p.m. to vote for NHS Board of Directors members. Anyone interested in learning more about joining the board of directors may contact Kathy Koehler at [email protected].

NHS’s annual report lists many accomplishments and acknowledges the hard work of numerous volunteers. Notably, there were four very well-attended public educational lectures.

High on the list was the huge amount of energy that went into maintaining and enhancing Niwot’s historical Little Fire House Museum. With the help of volunteers and funds the community donated, the grounds and exterior of the museum were updated and interior lights were installed for the first time.

Thanks to volunteers, there were also many opportunities throughout the year for the public and school-age children to enjoy the artifacts on display inside the historic building.

NHS funded A Little Free Library (LFL) for the museum. It was designed, made by hand, and mounted outside the museum by volunteer Kirk Stewart and is registered with the LFL national organization.

“2018 was a banner year for the Niwot Historical Society,” Koehler said “and fall lectures have already been confirmed for 2019.”

The lecture will take place on Wednesday, Feb. 27. Doors open at 6:30 p.m., for pre-lecture coffee, snacks, and conversation. The presentation begins at 7 p.m. Admission is free to Niwot Historical Society members and $5 for non-members. The hall is handicap accessible.

The Niwot Historical Society’s mission is to preserve, collect, and protect the history of Niwot and the surrounding area. To join the Niwot Historical Society, which is a 501(c)3 non- profit organization, an individual membership is $15 and families are $25. All donations are tax deductible. For additional information, please visit NiwotHistoricalSociety.org.