Mary Peace Finley
Award-winning author of books for young people
THE MIDNIGHT RIDE OF BLACKWELL STATION closely follows the true
story of the "booming" of Lamar, Colorado. At midnight on May 22, 1886,
Santa Fe Railroad Engine #345 pulled into Blackwell Station with empty
flatcars and work cars filled with men. The workers, hired for $10, dinner,
a dance, and all the beer and whiskey they wanted when the work was
done, loaded the two-story station onto the flatcars then walked three or
four miles holding the load to keep it from falling off. The workers
unloaded the station on a side rail, reconnected the telegraph lines, and
by the second day, land sales had begun. In the first day of sales,
$45,000 worth of lots were sold.
Raephy McDowell and her family lived above the station. Her mother
Emily was the station master and telegrapher. Her father John was the
foreman of the ranch belonging to cattleman A. R. Black that surrounded
the station. Amos Black, Captain Cooper, and all others named in the
story were actual people. Their personalities, conversations, and the
details of the roles they played in the events are creations of the author,
but the events actually happened.
© Mary Peace Finley 2012
Newspaper Headlines
It was a black day for A. R.--
Station stolen for dinner and
a dance
YOUTHFUL LAMAR WINS
COUNTY SEAT FIGHT
Santa Fe assists Lamar's
beginning
Engine No. 345 Whisked
Blackwell Station to Lamar
Lamar Colorado and "The
Purloined Depot of Blackwell"
