, 1925-07-16
Difficulty, Wyo., July 49,

Difficulty, Wyo., July 49,
Word was received here the last of
the week, by friends of the Clay and
Jones families, who lived at Elk
Mountain in early days that Mrs. M. B
Clay had passed away at her home at
3143 Wyandott Street, Denver, Colo
RADIO and had been laid to rest at that
city. Old timers will remember that
forty years ago j. S. Jones and wife
operated the hotel, saloon, post office,
and road ranch, at the Elk Mountain
crossing. Mr.. and Mrs. Clay resided
on what is now the Hammond ranch
at Elk Mountain, Mrs. Clay and Mrs.
Jones being sisters. Mrs. Jones rails
ed a nephew, Ed Fisher, who is now
connected with the Colorado Fuel
and Iron company in Denver, and
after both Mrs. Clay and Mrs. Jones
were widows, they, together with Ed
Fisher, and Miss Mable Clay, daugh-
ter of Mrs. NJ. b. Clay, lived for many
years in Denver, hhving left Elk
Mountain during the eighties. Later
Ed Fisher married and moved to a
home of his own, and last winter
Miss Clay was welded to John Jeffrey
who Is a real estate and insurance
agent, and also moved to a home of
her own, thus leaving the sisters to
occupy their home together. Mrs.
Clay was n Of the real pioneers of
this part of the country, as fifty-two
years ago, she and her husband, Ran
dali Clay, lived in Medicine Bow,
where they were operator and agent
for the U. P. Mrs. Jones taught the
first school in the Elk Mountain coun-
try. This was one of the first schools
In Carbon County. This was during
the summer of 1877, The school
was a little log affair and stood on
the bank of Dry creek, near a grove
of Cottonwood trees. The following
summer Mrs. Clay taught this school.
She then lived on the Hammond
ranch, and walked to school from
there. Mrs. Clay taught school in
Carbon many years ago also, and it
was in Carbon that she married Ran
dali Clay. who was at that time oper-
ating a store in the old mining town.
In a letter to friends here not long
ago. Mrs. Clay expressed a desire to
return to this part of the world this
summer, and climb Elk Mountain
once again. The passing OF Mrs.
Clay is another step toward the OBJ
liberation Of the real poineers, and
causes deepest regrets, for with their
extinction the west of olden times is
changed, and becomes a land no diff
erent from any place else. The old
time generosity. free h~eartedness and
perfect faith in mankind will be de-
stroyed, and Wyoming will be as all
other states. The sympathy of all
the old timers here who remember
the Jones and Clay families is ex-
tended to Mrs. Jones, Mrs. Jefery
and Mr.. Fisher in their loss, which
is indeed a loss to us all.
Mr.. Dobbins and Mr.. Hoots, gov
eminent biologists. were Sunday
home is In Washington, ID. c., while
guests in Difficulty. Mr.. Dobbins
Mr.. Hoots calls California his home
state.
Frank Amoss left on Friday for
the Laramie Peak country where he
Is the guest of NJ. Park.
Lawrence Sullivan was able to sit
up for a while on Sunday and is now
improving slowly bht surely. His
many friends will be delighted to
know OF this.
Little Dorothy West has been the
guest OF her Aunt and Uncle Mrs.
and Mr.. II. West in Shirley Basin
for several days.
The Difficulty roundup gathered
at the Ellis ranch on Sunday evening.
and left the following morning to