Hardscrabble, Colorado

Nestled in the rugged landscape of what is now Colorado, the story of Hardscrabble is a testament to the enduring spirit of pioneers, traders, and families who sought to carve out a life in a challenging and untamed territory. This short-lived settlement, born in the 1840s, stands as a poignant reminder of the hardships and hopes that shaped the early American West. Its history is interwoven with the threads of Mexican land grants, Native American presence, fur trading, and the relentless pursuit of opportunity.

The initial seeds of settlement in the Hardscrabble area were sown around 1843 when Charles Beaubien, a prominent Mexican landowner residing in present-day New Mexico, ventured north. He established a small agricultural community called San Buenaventura de Los Tres Arrollos, situated near the meeting point of Adobe, Hardscrabble, and Newlin Creeks. Approximately five miles northeast of Fort LeDuc, this nascent settlement was populated by farmers and their families brought from Taos, New Mexico, seeking fertile land and a new beginning. However, the dream was fragile. Constant threats from various Native American tribes, who had long frequented the area, forced Beaubien to abandon the settlement, and he returned to the relative safety of Taos.

Almost concurrently, Matthew Kincaid, an enterprising individual, established a cattle ranch about six miles upstream from the abandoned Mexican settlement, near the mouth of Hardscrabble Creek. Kincaid built a sturdy house of upright logs, which served as the headquarters for his ranching operations. This marked the beginning of a more permanent presence in the area, setting the stage for the emergence of Hardscrabble as a trading hub.

The true genesis of Hardscrabble as a recognizable settlement occurred in 1844. Three traders from El Pueblo, located approximately 23 miles to the east, recognized the potential of the location. George Simpson, Joseph Doyle, and Alexander Barclay, these enterprising men, arrived at the deserted Mexican settlement and established a trading post. The name "Hardscrabble" was soon adopted, reportedly due to the difficulty of cultivating crops in the area’s gravelly soil. George Simpson himself is quoted as saying it was "hard scrabbling to get in a crop." The name aptly captured the challenging conditions and the demanding labor required to eke out a living in this frontier environment.

The geographic location of Hardscrabble played a crucial role in its history. The area had long been favored by various Native American tribes, including the Ute, Cheyenne, Sioux, Kiowa, and Arapaho. These tribes utilized the area for hunting, gathering, and as a seasonal camp. The establishment of a trading post at Hardscrabble created a point of interaction, both peaceful and contentious, between the Native American population and the incoming settlers.

Recognizing the ever-present danger of Indian raids, the traders constructed a fortified plaza. The architectural design incorporated thick walls and flat-roofed adobe houses, forming a protective enclosure. This plaza served as a defensive structure and the heart of the settlement. Within its walls, a trading post was established, alongside a dozen or so adobe rooms. These rooms served various purposes, housing the families of Simpson, Barclay, and Doyle, as well as providing space for storage, trading activities, blacksmithing, dining, and cooking. Hired hands and other residents constructed their dwellings near the creek, creating a small but vibrant community centered around the plaza.

The social fabric of Hardscrabble was as complex and interwoven as its physical layout. Alexander Barclay, one of the founding traders, lived there with his wife, Teresita Sandoval, who had previously been in a relationship with Matthew Kincaid. George Simpson, another trader, had earlier married Teresita’s daughter, Juana Maria Suaso. In the same year that Hardscrabble was established, Joseph Doyle married Maria De La Cruz "Cruzita" Suaso, another of Teresita’s daughters. These relationships highlight the interconnectedness of the early settlers and the blending of cultures that characterized the frontier.

Hardscrabble witnessed the birth of Maria Isabel Simpson on June 2, 1844. She was widely celebrated as the first white child born in Colorado, bringing a sense of hope and permanence to the fledgling settlement. Other children were born at Hardscrabble, including Joseph Robert Simpson in 1846 and Elena, daughter of Marcellina Baca and his Pawnee wife, in the same year, further solidifying the community’s presence.

While the trading post was the central commercial enterprise, most residents of Hardscrabble made their living through agriculture. It was one of the first places in Colorado to be cultivated, irrigated, and settled. However, the unforgiving environment presented significant challenges. The area was prone to drought, and the land soon suffered from overgrazing, threatening the community’s long-term sustainability.

A vivid description of Hardscrabble appeared in a St. Louis newspaper in the early summer of 1845, offering a glimpse into the lives of its inhabitants: "Hardscrabble: This is the name of an agricultural settlement on the waters of the Arkansas River, near the base of the Rocky Mountains. It consists of about 25 families, old trappers, and hunters who have built houses and devoted themselves to agriculture. They all have Indian wives of the Snake tribe, and they are much preferred to the Indians of the plains, who are nearest to them. They raise considerable quantities of corn, which they trade to the Indians for furs, robes, and other articles. The Indians parch the corn and bruise and pound it into meal in skin bags and then make bread out of it. The settlers in Hardscrabble have no mills except a few indifferent hand mills, with which they grind corn for their use. These men are very expert riflemen, well-practiced in Indian usages and warfare, and consider themselves against all the Indian tribes of that region if they should attack them. They live a rough, hard, romantic life but are hospitable to those who visit them or pass through their settlement." This account paints a picture of a rugged and self-reliant community, deeply connected to the land and its resources.

In 1845, expedition leader John C. Fremont passed through the area and referred to the settlement as "Pueblo of S. Charles," distinguishing it from El Pueblo further east. This brief encounter provides a snapshot of Hardscrabble’s existence within the larger context of westward expansion and exploration.

Mrs. Felipe Ledoux’s visit to Hardscrabble around 1846, along with further details from Mrs. George Simpson, provides additional insights into the settlement’s inhabitants. At that time, Joseph Doyle and George Simpson still resided with their families in the plaza, while Alexander Barclay had constructed a house slightly above the plaza, opposite a house owned by Valentine "Rube" Herring. John Burroughs and Calvin Briggs, brothers-in-law married to Snake Indian sisters, shared a jacal cabin. Marcellina Baca, a relatively affluent Indian trader, lived in a house situated on a rise of ground southwest of the plaza. The Tafoya family lived near the plaza, as did B.A. Jones, who worked for Doyle. Other employees, traders, and ranch hands lived in cabins along Hardscrabble Creek, between the plaza and Kincaid’s ranch house.

During Mrs. Ledoux’s stay, a tragic incident occurred. Tom Whittlesey, a resident of Hardscrabble, suspected his partner, Candelaria Sena, of having an affair with La Fontaine. In a fit of rage, Whittlesey murdered La Fontaine and dismembered Candelaria. The community was horrified by these acts, leading to a revolt and Whittlesey’s flight to Pueblo. This event highlights the volatile nature of frontier life and the challenges of maintaining law and order in a remote settlement.

In December 1846, Lancaster Lupton, the former owner of Fort Lupton, arrived in Hardscrabble. He established a store in a building rented from Alexander Barclay. Lupton’s account books provide valuable information about other individuals living in the area, including Estes, Garnier, William Howard, and John Brown. Lupton’s arrival coincided with the beginning of the settlement’s decline. The demand for beaver pelts had sharply decreased, replaced by the trade in buffalo hides. Hardscrabble’s location was unfavorable for the buffalo trade.

By 1847, tensions between the Ute Indians and the Arapaho, Cheyenne, and Sioux tribes had escalated. A battle between the Ute and an Arapahoe-Mexican alliance took place near Kincaid’s ranch. During the battle, women in the Hardscrabble plaza listened anxiously to the sounds of gunfire. The Ute emerged victorious and demanded a celebratory feast. The women of Hardscrabble prepared a meal with bread, buffalo meat, and corn. After the feast, the Ute departed and ceased trading with Hardscrabble.

The combination of hostile Indians, the decline of the fur trade, and poor crop yields led to the gradual abandonment of Hardscrabble. In the summer of 1847, Matthew Kincaid left his cattle ranch and joined John Brown, Jim Waters, and other settlers from Hardscrabble and Pueblo on a journey to California, hoping to find wealth.

In the same year, Turley’s Mill, a prominent distillery near Taos, New Mexico, was destroyed during the Taos Revolt. The trading post at Hardscrabble had relied on alcohol sales to the Indians for a significant portion of its profits, further impacting the settlement’s economic viability.

Marcellina Baca and his Pawnee wife relocated to a small settlement in the Greenhorn Valley. Simpson, Barclay, and Doyle spent the winter of 1847 in Pueblo before moving on to build Fort Barclay on the Santa Fe Trail in northeast New Mexico in the spring of 1848.

The end of the Mexican-American War in 1848 and the increasing importance of the Santa Fe and Oregon Trails shifted the flow of traffic away from Hardscrabble. The settlement was left isolated and economically irrelevant.

By this time, only a few settlers remained, including Lancaster Lupton, Calvin Briggs, John Burroughs, Valentine "Rube" Herring, a man named Noverto, and a handful of hired hands.

In November 1848, John C. Fremont, during another expedition, stopped in Pueblo to hire guides for a mountain crossing. Old Bill Williams and Richens "Uncle Dick" Wooton were among those hired. Fremont and his men arrived at Hardscrabble, which he described as "a miserable place containing about a dozen houses, corn cribs, and corrals. It is the summer resort of the hunters – the houses are built of adobe and are very comfortable – they seemed like palaces to us, as we enjoyed the luxuries of table & stools…" Lancaster Lupton sold a large quantity of corn to Fremont’s expedition.

The expedition faced severe challenges as it moved up Hardscrabble Creek and into the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The harsh winter conditions led to the deaths of ten men and many mules. Benjamin Kern and Old Bill Williams were later killed while retracing the expedition’s path. Fremont eventually reached California via a southern route.

Lancaster Lupton was likely the last person to leave Hardscrabble, departing for California with his family in 1849.

In 1852, Spanish-speaking families attempted to settle around the Hardscrabble plaza but were driven away by Ute Indians. The following year, Lieutenant Edward Beckwith, a member of the Corps of Topographic Engineers, passed through Hardscrabble and found it deserted.

The adobe buildings of the plaza remained standing in 1859, but were soon dismantled by other settlers for their adobe bricks, erasing all traces of the settlement. The site eventually became part of a ranch.

Today, a historical marker located seven miles south of Florence, Colorado, commemorates the location of Hardscrabble, serving as a reminder of its place in Colorado’s history.

The words of Alexander Barclay, in a letter about life in Hardscrabble, resonate even today: "Indeed, the men who have located here are all those whom the wreck of the mountain trade and hunting parties have left on the surface, unfitted to return to former haunts or avocations, with minds alienated by new convictions from home and early friends, and habits transformed by constant excitement and daring adventure from the dull plodding of the sober citizen to the reckless activity and thrilling interest of a border life, open to the aggression of the savage and the pursuit of free will, free trade, and free thinking." This quote encapsulates the spirit of the individuals who braved the hardships of Hardscrabble, seeking a life of freedom and opportunity in the untamed West.