How Gunbarrel Got Its Name

In 1859, gold drew 100,000 people into the Pike's Peak Region in pursuit of their fortune. Thirty-nine-year-old Alonzo N. Allen was among them, and he was quick to realize that prospecting was a hard way to make a living.

The version of the story relayed by Dorothy Large ("Old Burlington") says Allen was actively seeking a place to homestead.

The oral history from "They Came to Stay" places Allen...