Mountain Home maverick. [volume] (Mountain Home, Idaho) 1906-1911, 1907-09-26
EARLY DAY HISTORY
OF THE GEM STATE
Interesting ReCO||eCtionS of the DAYS When
the State Was In the
Making.

vi course ali THIS COuld not go on
without eventually creating a stir,
and the usual rush to the scene of
such discoveries set in Thunder
Mountain is one of the most out-of-
the way places in the United
States. 1t was $50 miles from a
railroad by the nearest route,
supplies and the hostaliities of
some of the Indians made it diff i
cult for any of these early settl G.
ments to prosper. When gold was
found it was different story.
The last gold excitement in
Idaho was She rush to Thunder
Mountain, Which occurred few
years ago, when the country was
electrif led by the story of a noun
tain of gold being uncovered in
the wilds. In the heart of an al
most inaccessible region, where
the earth is fearfully ripped and
slashed by those awful upheavals
which made mountains and the
dizzy canyons between them, the
Caswcll twins; rowing hunters
and gold seekers, stumbled across
place where there was a leak
from the hidden treasure chest of
nature. The Caswclls were easy
going chaps, more fond of chasing
later the Presbyterian missie n
aries, DR.. Marcus Whitmsn and
H. H. Spaulding, came to convert
the Indians. Jcsuitcs from Canada
had before attempted to found
missins, but they were not perman-
ent. Mormons from Utah made an
unsuccessful attempt to found a
town in the southern portion Of
the state. The rigors of the win
ters, the distance from the base of
which led over mountains almost
as steep as house-tops. Despite
this fact, the heart breaking trail
to the new Golconda became con-
jested with gold hungry men. To
scale these forbidding peaks was a
fearful strain on the muscles of
man ana beast, but they went over.
At the foot of a great rift in the
mountains huge snowdrift was
replaced by the white-toppcd
cabins of the town of Roosevelt.
Five Idaho towns, all about the
same distance from the new camp,
ente into the spirited rivalry to
secure the rich profit derived from
outfitting those who were starting
on the adventurous journey to the
foot of the rainbow. Now recruits
came in numbers, and the new
camp was soon struggling along for
three miles in its walled canyon.
Then the reaction set in. The
boom collapsed, with its back brok-
en- from its own weight. Those
who had rushed so franticslly in
took the back trail in a gallop.
The tri-weekly mail brought many
letters which had to be carried
back on the return trip-the chip
muks had the undisturbcd run
of many empty cabins, and the
chroniclers had to tell the disap-
pointing story of the bursting ot
another bubble.
Idaho politics has been of TIE
redhot tine variety from the be-
ginning of the territorial govern.
ment. At the very beginning ther.
was a great fight over the capita
the legislature having voted to re-
move it from Lewiston to Boise. tc
/ An injunction was procured
prevent the governor, Caleb Lyon
of Lyonsdale, from leaving tn,
state. At that season of the yea
it was impracticable to go out from
} Lewiston to Boise. except by 4;
long detour through Washington
and Oregon. The governor ac
} cepted the service of the writ, bu
he insisted that he had a righ
to go duck hunting. He got in +;
: skiff with his secretary and tn,
; current was SO rapid that they coult
!; not control the boat. 1t took then
: down the Snake river to a place
where by strange chance they
J found buggy which took them tt
Walla Walla, from whence tht
/ journeyed by stage to Boise. Thi.
} is how the capital was moved.