18K GOLD CARTOUCHE

The interpretative display beside the Elbert County Courthouse, Kiiowa, Colorado, tells a bit more of the county's history. Hordes of Fifty-Niners streamed through this area on their way to Pike's Peak, which can be seen rising majestically above the plains many miles to the west. The Smoky Hill Trail through Elbert County was the shortest route to the gold fields but also the riskiest. It came to be known as the "Starvation Trail".

The first white settlers to the area of Elbert county were attracted by the large forests of Ponderosa pine growing along the divide, recognized as a source of lumber for the mushrooming town of Denver. Several sawmills were established within Elbert County in the early 1860's.

Homesteaders staked their claim to land here in the mid to late 1800s, and today there are several farms and ranches in Elbert County that belong to the the descendents of those same families. The railroad also played a vital role in Elbert County's growth.

HORDE OF WORMS from Islington. Hamilton Deathfest 2008 at the CASBAH on king street west Saturday July 5th, 2008