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Description

Rare birdseye view letter sheet of Pueblo, Colorado, based upon a larger birdseye view.

The original Glover/Strobridge view of Colorado is a view drawn from the north-east, looking south-west and includes a key to mountains, public buildings and manufactories. The oversall size is 53 x 67cm. OCLC locates only 3 known examples (Colorado Historical Society, Colorado Special Library and Denver Public Library).

The present view is a near exact reduced size reproduction, prepared in letter sheet format, of which OCLC locates only a single example in the collection of the DPL, an "Informal family letter from Mary Jane to father & mother, brothers & sisters. Written on letterhead of J.J. Thomas, wholesale and retail dealer in coal, lime, brick, etc.."

The present letter is written November 27, 1874, by the writer to his brother Philander, which is written from Del Norte in the San Juan Counttry (175 miles west of :Pueblo). The writer informs his brother of the loss of $25,000 in Pueblo (in connection with the losses of Jay Cook), which forced him into involuntary Bankruptcy. The writer now reports that his fortunes seem improved in the mineral and agricultural booms associated with the fortunes of the San Juan region. The writer goes on to express regret that he cannot be with their mother, but that his wife is well and his children are fairing well in both the San Juan region and California.

Del Norte, Coloado was founded in 1871 as a service center for the gold mining activities going on in the area and quickly became the supply and financial center in the western part of San Luis Valley. Rio Grande County was formed in 1874 with Del Norte as the county seat. The Rio Grande's full name is "Rio Grande del Norte." The writer was one an early visitor to this boom town, driven here by the apparent failure of his business, which was related to the Panic of 1873, caused by the failure of Jay Cook's bond financing scheme of the early 1870s to construct the Northern Pacific Railroad.

A fabulous piece of Colorado frontier visual and personal history, providing a very personal look into the fortunes of this particular western family.

Condition Description
Rare Birdseye View and letter sheet
Eli Sheldon Glover Biography

Eli Sheldon Glover (1844-1920) was one of the great viewmakers of the golden age of American bird's eye views. He began his career working for Albert Ruger in Ypsilanti, Michigan in 1866. He was primarily a sales agent for Ruger but probably also helped him in the actual production of city views. Two years later Glover went to Chicago to become a printer and publisher under his own name, but his Merchants Lithographing Company was shortlived; it was destroyed by the 1871 Chicago Fire after only three years of operation. The Great Fire caused Glover to look farther afield, and he began making views in Ontario and Kansas. Slowly he made his way west, producing Colorado views in 1873-'74. In 1874, while based in Salt Lake City he traveled the Rocky Mountains and produced views in Montana, Utah, and Wyoming. In 1876 and '77, the Glovers lived in Los Angeles and Eli produced a total of 16 views of California cities. In the last period of his active career, he focused on views in Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia. His second to last view was in Alabama, and his final view, in 1912 after a long hiatus, was Port Arthur, Texas.