The Roswell daily record. [volume] (Roswell, N.M.) 1903-current, 1908-10-08

Board of Town Trustees of Roswell,
when it was merged into city from
a town and when Hon. Nathan Jaffa,
now Territorial Secretary, was Pres
ident of the Board of Town Trustees,
which was the same office now held
by the mayor.
The firsk building contracted for
and built here by Mr.. Denning, was
the E. C. Kinds residence. two miles
east of Roswell. Then in 1900 he put,
up the Citizens National Bank build
ing and the Shelby Hotel He has
contracted for and erected many of
the largest blocks and business houses
of the city since locating here only
nine years ago. These include the
Barnett and James block, the mangni
ficent First Baptist church, the plant
of the Roswell Gas Company, the new
Dilley building, and many handsome
residences including the Johnson,
Price and Pruit homes and other too
numerous to mention. He has also
built two banks at Artesia and
number of residences, as well as a
banking house at Portales and num-
erous handsome residences there
From the phenominal record he
made five years ago at the present
town of Artesia, where with his bust
ness associates, John R. Hodges, J.
A. Cottingham and E. A. Clayton,
When they purchased the present
townsite of Artesia, $50 acres in all
for $1,000, or $4OO for each of those
interested, he can be looked upon as
not only one of 1.-The men who have
made Roswell the greater Roswell
but as one of the men who have also
made the Pecos Valley the Greater
Pecos Valley. The company realized
about $4,000 profit on their Artesia
investment. When they bought the
townsite five years ago next month
There was not a house on it except
the claim shack, and Artesia is to-
day a thriving, thrifty town of about
two thousand inhabitants, with
great future before it.
Messrs. Denning, Cottingham, Clay
ton and Hodges bored the first well
in the now plenty of water town."
in July four years ago on the little
strip between the original townsite
company and the Artesia Improve
ment Company's land. This well, at
a depth of 74O feet proved to be
gusher and scores of gushers have
gone down in the vicinity since then
and what five years ago was a bar
rem waste is now fine farms and alf-
alta fields. Surely no man can do a
greater work in the upbuilding of a
community.
Mr.. Denning is now engaged in
building the immense brick ware
house at Third street and on the
tracks of the Pecos Valley & North
eastern Lines for the Joyce-Pruit
Company. This great brick warehouse
will be the most thorough building
of this character in Southeastern New
Mexico. The building is 100 by 149
feet and faces on Third street and
the railroad tracks. There are three
large doors facing the track, two to
the north and two on the west side,
facing loading platform seven feet
wide and seventy-six feet long. There
are $4,000 feet Of lumber in the floor,
with 10000 square feet of floor space.
There will be when completed, 160,
900 feet of lumber in the entire build
ing. The roof will be of tar and grav-
el with two large sky lights. The base
ment with solid cement floor is so
by so feet, with a seven foot ceiling
and large elevator running from the
upper floor. The ceiling of the main
room will be fifteen feet high. The
office will be in the northwest corner.
The building will cost approximately
$500 and the plans were drawn
and submitted by Mr.. Denning.
Mr.. Denning is public-spirited cit
izen and is a member of the Roswell
Commercial Club of the knights of
Pythias, Woodmen of the World and
with his estimable wife is affiliated
with the First Baptist Church of Ros-
well.