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c ~ .~:'~:.} . 3 . Explorer Colonel John C, Fremont passed through the Encampment Basin in 1844 on return from California. He remarked: "It is from this elevated cove and from the gorges of the surrounding mountains and some lakes within their bosoms that the Great Platte River collects its first waters and assumes its first form and certainly no r,iver could ask a more beautiful origin" (Routt National Forest 1965:7), In IH6~ Joseph Hahn made the discovery of gold in Hahns Peak Basin, Throughout the 1860's gold attracted newcomers, and in 1874 "the Purdy Mining Company, Hopkins, Harris, Dunbar and Co" Lambert, William Bell, S, D, N, Bennett and others, began extensive developments"(Routt National Forest 1965:12), One of the earliest freight roads constructed in Routt County, the Ellis Trail, was built in 1877 from the Hahns Peak gold area, through the Encampment River Basin (Hog Park), to Laramie (Routt National Forest 1965:12, 177, 180), The 1860's and 1870's were also characterized by an influx of homesteaders into the region. The rich pasturage of the Encampment River Basin--Hog Park, West Fork Meadows, etc,--was no doubt utilized by these early cattle ranchers, The cattle interests grew quite strong in the area, and the gradual intrusion by the wyoming sheepmen precipitated violent retaliations in the late 1800's (Routt National Forest 1965:47-50), Sheep were, however, grazed in the area shortly after the turn of the century, and the proportion of sheep to cattle steadily escalated, Homesteaders' fences, the elimination of foothill lands from cattle- grazing, and range depletion helped bring on this trend from cattle to sheep (Routt National Forest 1965:51-52), In 1938 the West Fork of the Encampment River was noted as suffering from range depletion (Routt National Forest 1965:53), The Park Range Forest Preserve was proclaimed by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1905, and its name was changed to Routt National Forest in 1908. One of the memorable events in the history of Routt National Forest was the Carbon Timber Company trespass, The Carbon Timber Company was a Wyoming corporation with headquarters at Hanna, Wyoming, It operated within the boundary of the Routt in the Encampment and Damfino dra.inages, presumably on private land, The land was undoubtedly gained fraudulently as Harry Ratliff reports that in 1901 and 1902, Andy Olsen, Dan Wilt and P. 0, Short hauled wagon loads of men to Steamboat Springs and Walden to file on timber claims just south of the Colorado line in the Encampment and Damfino areas. These claims