BLACKWELL STATION

Three men and the Santa Fe Railroad played an unforgettable part in the birth of Lamar, Colorado during May, 1886.

Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar, a southern statesman influential in reuniting North and South circa 1860's-70's, was Secretary of the Interior, 1885-1888, and later Associate Justice of the U. S. Supreme Court. Aware of the vast empire growing from Santa Fe's thrusts into the West, Lamar gave personal and departmental support to the rail lines building, particularly to the lengthening section across Kansas into Colorado's Arkansas River Valley.

Concurrently I. R. Holmes of Garden City, Kansas, prospering through real estate ventures along the Santa Fe in his state, organized a company with Santa Fe's A. S. Johnson. These men, with others, owned a deeded quarter of Section 31, Township 22, Range 46, and the group honored the Interior Department friend, Lamar, by giving the property his name, hoping also to have a Land Office here, which did come to pass.

Then there was A. R. Black, pioneer cattlemen and owner of much land on both sides of the railroad. The Santa Fe had placed a small two-stored depot, cattle pens, loading chute and wooden water tank plus side tracks at Black's ranch headquarters. The name--Blackwell--came from that of Black and that of his foreman, MacDowell, combining first and last parts respectively.

The MacDowells lived on the second floor of the depot. Black refused to have a town site on his ranch because of the loss of loading fees from cattle shippers using his station would result. When the Santa Fe threatened moving the station, Black threatened an injunction.

Holmes and company plus the Santa Fe, confident of Interior Department backing, made plans. Late, Saturday, May 22, a telegram called Black to Pueblo on "urgent" business. The Blacks caught the last train west. Evening saw a fully crewed work train, including flat cars, steaming from LaJunta to Blackwell station. In record time the cattle loading facilities, depot with Mrs. MacDowell and her children within, and crewmen walking along side, were on the flat cars and on their way to the new site--Lamar.

By Sunday afternoon, May 23rd, station and sidetracks were ready for expected crowds flocking in on "boom trains" from Garden City and other points east. Since no injunction could be issued on Sunday, lot sales which totalled more than $45,000 by day's end were well under way before legal papers could be readied on Monday. Lamar, Colorado, rose from Blackwell's transplanted chrysalis, on a beautiful May 24, 1886.