History Lost & Found: The Search for Colorado’s Oldest Records

The discovery of the long-lost El Paso Claim Club record books represents a significant milestone in the exploration of Colorado's earliest land history. These records, some dating back to the late 1850s, are not only a testament to the perseverance and vision of Colorado's early settlers — men like Bott, Fosdick, Tappan, Whitsitt, and Wootton — they also provide invaluable insights into the formation of Old Colorado City, the precursor to Colorado Springs, and the Pikes Peak region in general during the Gold Rush era.

When settlers began pouring into the region during the late 1850s and early 1860s, the need for organized land management became apparent. The El Paso Claim Club emerged as a body for coordinating and managing land claims, ensuring that those who arrived to settle and mine had a means of establishing their rights to the land. In the 1930s, Colorado College Professor George Anderson discovered and transcribed one of the El Paso Claim Club’s original record books. Anderson assumed more records had survived, but his search for them proved fruitless.

After reading about Professor Anderson’s claim club research in The Colorado Magazine, the thought of finding those records intrigued me and I started asking questions. In 2023, with the assistance of the El Paso County Clerk & Recorder’s Office, we finally located those long-lost El Paso Claim Club record books! While those documents have been safeguarded by the county for many years, until recently their historical significance wasn’t fully appreciated. On March 10, 2026 I’ll be giving a presentation about this exciting discovery at the Western Museum of Mining & Industry, and I invite you to join us.

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