Genealogy Jottings

The State of Colorado celebrates its birthday today—Colorado Day. The Centennial State achieved statehood 137 years ago on August 1, 1876.

None of my family lived here then. The Reeds came later, well into the twentieth century. But came they did. These folks made their way into the same state where I, too, settled. Today I am thinking of my Reed predecessors who came to Colorado:

• Robert Morton Reed, my great-uncle, worked as a railroad telegrapher in Denver in 1917. He registered for the WWI draft there. He had a long career with the railroad, serving in both Colorado and Wyoming. The Broomfield [CO] Depot Museum is currently documenting the service of all the men, including Robert Morton Reed, who served as station agents there. Uncle Mort, as we knew him, retired to Delta, CO. He and his wife Alta are buried in Delta.
• Grace Reed, my grandmother, moved her family to Loveland from Wyoming in 1936. My grandfather, a truck driver, had died in an accident near Brighton, CO the previous year. Wyoming had virtually no benefits for widows and orphans during those Depression years, but Colorado was more generous. Uncle Mort found a place for my grandfather’s family to live. Grandma is buried in the Loveland cemetery. Her second son, named Robert after Uncle Mort, is buried at Ft. Logan National Cemetery in Denver.
• Dean Reed, the American Rebel and my third cousin, was born in Denver in 1938. After a colorful singing career in Hollywood and behind the Iron Curtain, Dean died under mysterious circumstances in East Germany. His is buried in Green Mountain Cemetery in Boulder.
• Thomas Aaron Reed was my great-uncle and younger brother of Robert Morton Reed. He retired to Cañon City in the 1960’s. He and his wife Hettie are buried there.

Today many of their descendants call Colorado home. We enjoy living in the beautiful Centennial State. Happy birthday, Colorado!

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