Settlers in the Big Thompson Valley were scattered on small farms along the banks of the river. To the west of the present-day city of Loveland was a community started in 1858 by Spanish-speaking Mariano Medina. Medina ran a trading post and operated a toll bridge over the Big Thompson River. The small settlement went under various names including Miraville, Merival, Big Thompson and Mariano’s Crossing. In 1862, it became a stage stop on the Overland, and in 1868, a post office was established under the name Namaqua.

Another settlement near Loveland was located about a mile to the southeast. It took the brand name of the flour produced by a mill constructed in 1867 by Andrew Douty and was called St. Louis.

When David Barnes and his wife, Sarah, lived in the boomtown of Golden, they became friends with the incomparable William Austin Hamilton Loveland. Loveland was a merchant, one of Golden’s founders, a member of the Territorial Legislature and President of the Colorado Central Railroad. Loveland invited David and Sarah Barnes for the first trip over the Colorado Central between Golden and Denver.

In 1873, Barnes and his family moved to a 320-acre farm north of the Big Thompson River and began raising wheat. In 1877, Barnes was delighted to hear that Loveland had secured the money to extend the Colorado Central from its terminus Longmont to Cheyenne. The survey for the railroad went through their wheat field.

Barnes reacted immediately to the news by platting a new town on an 80-acre site. Some suggested that it be called “Barnesville,” but Barnes picked the name “Loveland.” Barnes also donated the land for the railroad’s right-of-way.

After he harvested his wheat in November, Barnes laid out Loveland’s streets. The Fort Collins Courier boldly announced, “Loveland has risen from a bare field of stubble in 77.” The Boulder County News wrote, “Loveland – Prospects of New Town – Wonderful Wheat Land – Light Taxes.”

In October, a couple of Colorado’s pioneer merchants, Lewis Hertizinger and S. B. Harter, took a gamble on the new town and purchased lots 22, 23 and 24 in Block 14 from David Barnes for $350. Hertizinger and Harter immediately began work on a substantial two-story brick building, the first such structure in Loveland. On the ground floor, they opened a mercantile business in January 1878. They sold dry goods including hardware, clothing, furniture, stoves and some groceries. Built at a cost of $4,500, the two merchants grossed $29,000 during their first year of operation. The second story of the Hertizinger and Harter building was purchased for $1,000 by the Grangers for use as their Grange hall. This old store is still standing on the northwest corner of Cleveland Avenue and Fourth Street.

When Loveland was founded, residents of nearby St. Louis realized that their town could not survive without rail service. Shipments of farm products were hardly practical over the area’s primitive wagon roads passable only in good weather. Many St. Louis merchants moved their businesses to Loveland.

The Colorado Central erected an 80-foot by 30-foot brick depot, completed in December 1877. It was located on the west side of the tracks close to Fourth Street. Unfortunately, trains stopped at the depot blocked traffic. The depot, built at a cost of $2,000, had a ticket office, passenger waiting and freight room. This structure was replaced in 1902 by the present-day depot, and the bricks from the old depot were used for the sidewalk.

Loveland’s success was in part due to the construction of the Colorado Central linking Denver and Cheyenne. The town had an ample supply of good water from the Big Thompson River. Lots could be purchased for $3 to $7 payable in installments over a 5-year period. As proven by David Barnes, the area was ideal for growing wheat. Barnes dug an irrigation ditch further increasing the area’s agricultural potential.

In a little over a year after its founding, Loveland had a population of 250. A second mercantile business, owned by G. W. Krouskop, opened its doors along Fourth Street. Krouskop was one of the former St. Louis merchants who elected not only to move his business but his entire store to Loveland. Dr. Taylor also moved his small frame office to Fourth Street. On the northwest corner of Railroad Avenue and Fourth Street, Mrs. Hopkins operated a small hotel and boarding house with 16 rooms. Other merchants included a drugstore, shoe store, barbershop, watchmaker, meat market and billiard hall.

Visitors were impressed by the two small churches in early Loveland. As written by a reporter for the Fort Collins Courier, “As one enters this lovely little village, the first thing that attracts his attention is the beautiful Presbyterian Church.” This church once stood on the southwest corner of Fourth and Lincoln and was of Gothic style constructed of brick. It had stained-class windows, and suspended from the center of the sanctuary’s ceiling was a chandelier. On the next block at Third Street and Lincoln Avenue was Loveland’s second church belonging to the United Brethren.

Loveland grew at a steady rate, and by 1885, its population reached 900. By this time, it had a weekly newspaper, the Reporter.

For a more extensive look into Loveland’s history, visit the Loveland Museum/Gallery at Fifth Street and Lincoln Avenue. Within the museum, historic rooms and shops have been recreated including Mariano Medina’s cabin. In addition, the museum has an excellent display of the Great Western Sugar Company.
 

This was written by Kenneth Jessen
Kenneth Jessen is best known as author of Ghost Towns, Colorado Style, a three volume set covering over 600 town histories. His most recent work is Out the Back, Down the Path – Colorado Outhouses. Other books include Railroads of Northern Colorado, Thompson Valley Tales, Eccentric Colorado, Colorado Gunsmoke, Bizarre Colorado, Estes Park - A Quick History, Georgetown - A Quick History, The Wyoming Colorado Railroad and An Ear in His Pocket.

In addition to books, Jessen is the author of more than 700 articles plus several booklets. His column on Colorado ghost towns and regional history is featured weekly in the Sunday edition of the Loveland Reporter-Herald. He is a contributor to Lydia's Style Magazine, North Forty News, Colorado Time-Table and Colorado Central Magazine. Jessen has made a half dozen appearances on "Colorado GetAways” (KCNC Channel 4) and also has a monthly radio show on Clear Channel KCOL 600AM. In addition to these activities, Jessen gives tours of the area’s ghost towns.

A life member of the Colorado Railroad Museum, Jessen is a longtime member of the Rocky Mountain Railroad Club, a Centennial member of the Colorado Historical Society and one of the founders of the Western Outlaw-Lawman History Association. He is also a patron of the San Luis Valley Historical Society. Other memberships include the Estes Park Area Museum, the Johnstown Historical Society, the Summit Historical Society and the Westerners. Jessen serves as a volunteer for Larimer County Parks and Open Space as well as the Loveland Museum. He is also completing 9 years on the Loveland Public Library Advisory Board.

Jessen is working on an extensive history of the Big and Little Thompson river drainages called Tales Along the Thompson.