By 1902 the town hired its first crew of three professional firemen, with horses to pull a fire engine. Volunteer firemen were still available, however, and this cap was worn by a member of Hose Company #1. The oil lantern was necessary before electric lights became common.

 

The 1900s
 

Grand Junction by 1900 had evolved from a simple frontier town to a small city with

advantages normally only found in much larger communities. This set the pattern that continues. The 1900 Federal Census recorded a Grand Junction population of 3,503, a 72.6 percent gain over the previous decade.
 
  PEOPLE

James Bucklin was a lawyer, a founder of Grand Junction, and a stockholder in the Town Company. New ideas in politics and government intrigued Bucklin and he promoted the unusual Preferential Voting System, in use here from 1909 to 1922. Citizens voted for everyone running for an office, in the order of the voter�s preference. Winners were those who tallied the largest number of high preference points. This innovation gained Grand Junction national and international attention.

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COMMUNITY

Churches were organized in early Grand Junction and the first small buildings soon were outgrown. Typical was the 1890 Congregational Church. By 1904 the burgeoning congregation rebuilt at the corner of 6th and Rood. They installed the first pipe organ in town, a Kimball Hydraulic Pneumatic Duplex concert instrument. In addition to worship, some churches also were used for musical and literary performances.

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BUSINESS

Frank Dean was a photographer in the booming silver mining towns of Western Colorado, and also in Grand Junction. By 1900 he moved here permanently and began a forty year career of photographing people, events, buildings and landscapes. His excellent photos are a valuable recording of the area�s history.
(Dean Photo)

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EDUCATION

Originally named the Park School, the  Emerson Grade School was built at 9th and Ute in 1903. The architect�s drawings of the large building included a dome, but it was not included. Ninety-nine years later the building had essentially the same appearance, minus the belfry and spire.
(Dean Photo)

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 AGRICULTURE

Selling our fruit to distant markets became a large business. The Colorado Fruit and Commercial Company and the Grand Junction Fruit Growers Association were two of the largest firms. The Fruit Growers Association, shown here, also evaporated fruit, which is superior to drying. For example, in 1904 they processed 244,466 pounds of Italian prunes in their evaporator building. This yielded 92,207 pounds of concentrated fruit, without moisture.

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TRANSPORTATION

An electrically powered streetcar system was inaugurated May 27, l909 by the Grand Junction and Grand River Valley Railway. When few people owned automobiles, streetcars were a great convenience for many riders. Streetcars were smooth, quiet, non-polluting transportation. Earlier, the city had horse-drawn streetcars from 1890 to 1903.

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CULTURE

The Women�s Library Association  petitioned philanthropist Andrew Carnegie for funds to build a new library, which was erected in 1901 at 7th and Grand. A substantial �Colonial� building, it had a red sandstone foundation, buff brick walls, a red tile roof, and furniture and woodwork of golden oak. (Dean Photo)

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RECREATION

First held in 1887, the Mesa County fairs were initially held at 7th and Patterson, then at Lincoln Park. Over the next two decades some of these annual celebrations were tailored into �Peach Day� festivals, focusing on one of the county�s most delectable and sought-after products. President William H. Taft visited the fair on his way to Montrose in 1909 to dedicate the Gunnison Irrigation Tunnel.

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