Conrad Frederick William Unfug (1850)

Born 5 Sep 1850 in Bielefeld, Westphalia, Germany

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Conrad Frederick William UNFUG born 5 Sep 1850 Bielefeld, Westphalia, Germany. Arrived Denver 1874. Married 4 March 1889 Pueblo, Colorado to Zerelda E. BOONE.

Conrad celebrated his 15th birthday on the high seas while enroute to St. Louis in 1865. Here he worked until the dream of finding his fortune in Colorado led him to the boom town of Denver, arriving there in 1874.

Hearing of the gold excitement in the Black Hills of South Dakota, he communicated with a brother, William and the two formed a partnership to establish a trading post to serve as an outfitting point at Cheyenne, Wyoming. The venture, however did not meet expectations and he returned to Denver the following year. When he reached Denver excitement was centered on California Gulch, which was later to become Leadville. There he went with high hopes, but after a years hard toil and disappointment he decided on making his stake elsewhere.

On 5 Feb 1879, Conrad and several others established the gold mining camp of Kokomo which was later to be in Park county. During the spring of that year hordes of miners swept over the range from Leaddville. The following year the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad was to make Kokomo its terminal and the camp thus became one of the embryo cities of the famous Ten Mile Mining District. Fire destroyed a large part of Kokomo during the winter of 1881. It was then that Conrad decided to come to Walsenburg, although he kept in touch with his mining interests in the years that followed.

In the meantime, during the '80s, he was engaged by the D& RG Railroad to help survey the lines being extended from Garland City (now Alamosa) to the points in the San Luis valley. With the completion of the work he returned to work with his brother in the UNFUG store. Later after his marriage in 1889, he moved to Pueblo where he engaged in business until 1904. He and his family then returned to Walsenburg to remain permanently.

Zerelda E. BOONE born 24 Apr 1852 at Westport (now Kansas City), Missouri. Arrived Colorado 1860. Died 25 Jan 1918, Walsenburg. Buried Masonic Cemetery, Walsenburg, CO.

A great granddaughter of the famed Daniel BOONE, a niece of one of Colorado's best known pioneer citizens, Col. Albert G. BOONE, and whose parents were pioneer builders of southern Colorado. Zerelda came west in 1860. Her father, Van Daniel BOONE, was urged to come west through his brother, Albert. The brothers settled on several thousand acres of land located about 20 miles east of Pueblo. Gradually a military post was developed and a small community flourished which was known as Booneville and the name changed later to Boone.

Zerelda's parents stayed until the following year when the family returned to Westpoint, MO because of the homesickness suffered by Mrs. BOONE. But conditions brought on by the Civil War caused the family to leave in 1862 and return to Colorado territory. Colorado remained their home.

Zerelda's mother Mary Ann and her father became prominent in the business and social life of early Pueblo and the Arkansas Valley. Her uncle Albert was to become one of the states most revered persons. He became well known and respected among the Indian tribes and served as Indian Agent for Colorado at Ft. Lyons. He was largely responsible for making the treaty with the Cheyenne and Arapahoe tribes for the relinquishment of their claims to Colorado and Wyoming.

Following Zerelda's marriage to Conrad UNFUG, she lived in Walsenburg several years. Later they moved to Pueblo where they lived until 1904. They then returned to Walsenburg for their permanent home. Children: Vernie B. (Mrs. H. HUTCHCRAFT) 1893-1964; and Mary H. (Mrs. Robert R. ROBERTSON) 1889-(no date).

Sources

1. ↑ Entered by Marie Mills, Jan 14, 2012