Wellington embraced change in early 20th century
January 7, 2009
By JoAn Bjarko
The Wellington
The first production Model T Ford was assembled in Detroit on Oct. 1, 1908, and it didn’t take long for automobiles to find their way to Wellington (Colorado).
One hundred years ago, the purchase of a motor vehicle made news in The Wellington and its successor, The Wellington Sun. On June 24, 1909, Publisher John Pope reported that among the town’s 600 residents, there were seven automobiles.
By November, John Wich, the blacksmith, had added automobile repairing to his business services. Automobiles in town included a four-passenger Buick and a Cadillac 30.
By 1909, Wellington had been officially incorporated for four years, and it desperately needed a new town hall. The newspaper published this notice to voters on March 27: “Wellington has no public building to hold meetings, no jail, no fire house and nowhere to keep public records.”
In April, Wellington citizens voted 29–10 to spend $2,900 on a new town hall. A similar ballot measure had failed the previous year with 19 opposed and 18 in favor. In both years, community leaders pressed for votes by claiming Wellington needed a new jail for drunks and “toughs on the railroad gangs.” When steel cells for the jail were finally installed in November, the newspaper admonished, “Evildoers will please take notice.”
A town committee selected a building site south of Main Street (now Cleveland Avenue) on Third Street facing west. Plans called for a 36-by-58-foot building that would contain a council chamber, fireproof vault, jail and rooms for the hose cart and hook-and-ladder trucks.
The town board held its first meeting in the new building on Oct. 11. The chief topic for the growing town was the need for a new dump grounds.
Prospering town
An advertisement in the July 22, 1909, issue of The Wellington Sun gave this summary of buildings in town: 30 business houses, including three general stores, market, lumber yard and implement house; an elevator, a national bank, modern hotel, three livery barns and sale stables, two blacksmith shops, two barber shops and all other mechanical trades well represented; four churches, two school buildings, a weekly newspaper and a good representation of the various secret organizations. The schools had 192 students in all grades that fall.
Wellington also had a hospital. The newspaper reported on March 27 that Mrs. Flora McCullough of Fort Collins, a professional nurse, opened a hospital in the Miller house at the corner of Garfield and Fifth Street. Later editions reported on successful surgeries at the hospital.
The Wellington Sun also kept its readers informed of the progress of a new community being built 10 miles north of town — Bulger City. James Bulger of Denver, who owned several hundred acres, planned its location to be on the future Wellington-to-Cheyenne railroad line.
By October, the new village was thriving with two general stores, a hotel, a blacksmith shop, two liveries and several homes. Bulger was appointed postmaster. In December, the Wellington Orchestra played for the Christmas Ball at Bulger City.
That often-seen panoramic view of downtown Wellington (Cleveland Avenue and Second Street) was taken on July 22, 1909, by a traveling photographer using a “new-fangled revolving camera.” Several automobiles were positioned at the junction of the two streets for the event. The photographs, 8-by-48 inches, were printed in Greeley.
About 2,500 people attended Wellington’s second annual Harvest Jubilee on Sept. 22. Besides showing off the produce of the agricultural community, the event included pony races, foot races, polo games, a baseball game and two dances. Ladies of the churches served meals.
The Wellington Sun kept readers up to date on national and state news, along with opportunities for commerce and education in Fort Collins. The Colorado School of Agriculture offered a course for young men to learn the basics of all forms of agriculture. Tuition was free, but students had to pay an entrance and library fee of $5 a year.
Those who had completed eighth grade were admitted without examination. They were instructed in methods of handling the soil and practices of seed breeding; best methods of raising, harvesting and marketing crops; livestock management; dairying and poultry raising; along with English, mathematics, history, civics and the sciences.
A similar course provided women with practical training in housekeeping and homemaking. A published announcement specified the course would last three years, six months each year. Women’s studies included food preparation; making and mending clothes; keeping the family in good health and home nursing; practical information on the selection of a building site; plan and care of the cellar; and information on water supply, plumbing, drainage, heating, lighting and ventilation.
Town government apparently took a dim view of sloth during the boom years of the early 20th century. The Wellington Town Board of Trustees passed an ordinance that every able-bodied male resident, ages 21 to 45, was to work eight hours on streets, alleys or drain ditches, or in lieu of labor, pay the street supervisor $1.50.
The year ended with a tragedy when fire destroyed the Grable Mansion, a beautiful 5-year-old country home located southwest of Wellington. Faulty wiring may have caused the fire.
References: Amado “Junior” Gonzales’ collection of excerpts from The Wellington Sun newspapers and microfilm archives at the Fort Collins Main Library.
