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• <br />r~ special r\ct of Congress, approved March 3rd, IS73, provided for disposal of coal <br />lands by ordinary private entry or by preference right based on priority of possession and <br />improvement. Under this act, tracts were limited to I60 acres for individuals and 320 acres <br />for associations; tl~e sale price was $10 00 per acre if more than fifteen miles from a <br />completed railroad and $20.00 per acre if within that distance. <br />When it was disclosed that the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad intended to extend <br />their narrow gauge line into the coal rich valley of the North Fork of the Gunnison River, <br />where they owned a large block of coal land, many individuals Flocked to the area to take up <br />coal claims while the land was available for $10.00 per acre. <br />The Juanita Coal and Coke Company was incorporated May 16th, 1902 by H.B. <br />King, C.M. Nforris and A.S. Farrow; directors named then were C.W. Gill, Dr. A.T. King, <br />C.M. Morris, f LB. King, George H. Whitelaw and J.W. Douglas. On May 22, 1902, a <br />meeting was held in Pueblo, Colorado to organize the company and officers elected were <br />C. M. Morris, President; Dr. A.T. King, Vice-President; A.S. Farrow, Treasurer; and !. W. <br />Douglas, Secretary. <br />The company purchased coal lands six miles east of Paonia in the Nortlt Fork Valley. <br />C.NI. ivlorris was the first general manager and Ii.B. King the second. The mine later took its <br />• name from King and Itis brother. Harry Mallot was the first mine superintendent; it was <br />believed that the company name, "Juanita," was for his daughter. <br /> <br /> <br />IrI- <br />1; <br />5~ <br />is <br />~~ <br />~~ <br />~~. <br />t <br />:~ <br />Entries were driven in four locations; three were on the north side of the river. The <br />fourth, on the south side of the river was abandoned because tl~e coal had to be hauled much <br />fiirtlter and involved a river crossing to reach the railroad. The third location proved to have <br />tl~e highest quality coal and was selected for further development. <br />Many of the first stock holders were from the Pueblo area, among them N(ahlon D. <br />Thatcher, who was president of the First National Bank of that city. Pursuing his interest in <br />coal lands, Mahlon lead met Alexander Bowie in 1880, when Bowie .vas employed at <br />Rockvale, south of Canon City. Alexander lead first started mining work at a colliery in <br />Scotland at the age of 10. At 20, in 1366, he and Isis father, William, emigrated to Nova <br />Scotia. After several months there, they moved on to the coal fields in Ohio, Pennsylvania <br />and West Virginia. During this time he studied engineering and earned a mine inspector's <br />certificate; in 1877 he was appointed the first mine inspector of Pennsylvania. He met and <br />married Elizabeth Whinnie, also an emigrant from Scotland. With a growing family, he came <br />west in the early 1850's, working in Rockvale, Colorado, Carthage, Ne~v Mexico, Topeka, <br />Kansas, Gallup and ivlonero, New Mexico. in 1836-87, he worked at the Bell Mine near <br />Gallup and in 1887-89 at Monero. He returned to Gallup, and the family settled there. in <br />I S83 Alexander organized the Caledonian Coal Company, serving as general manager and <br />later as president. <br />32 <br />_J <br />