William Byers facts for kids
William Newton Byers (born February 22, 1831, in Madison County, Ohio – died March 25, 1903) was an important person in the early history of Omaha, Nebraska. He was the first deputy surveyor for the Nebraska Territory, helped form the first Omaha City Council, and was part of the first Nebraska Territorial Legislature.
He also became an early settler in Denver, Colorado. There, he started and was the first editor of the Rocky Mountain News newspaper. His wife, Elizabeth Byers, was well-known in Denver for her charity work. They lived in the Byers–Evans House, which is now a museum and is listed as a historic place.
Contents
Early Life and Moving West
William Newton Byers was born in Ohio. In 1851, he moved with his family to Iowa. Then, in 1854, they moved to Omaha, Nebraska when the city was just being planned out.
Building a Career
In Omaha, William Byers became the first deputy surveyor for the Nebraska Territory. This meant he helped create the first official map of Omaha. He worked with Andrew J. Poppleton to make this first map of the city. Soon after, he joined the first city council. He also became a member of the first Nebraska Territorial Legislature, which started on January 16, 1855, in Omaha.
In 1859, Byers moved to Denver because people had recently found gold there. He took printing presses from an old newspaper, the Bellevue Gazette, by oxcart. With J. H. Kellom, he wrote a guide for the gold fields that same year. Robert W. Furnas, who worked for another newspaper, later remembered that Byers bought the old equipment. He took it to Denver, which was then part of the western Kansas Territory. There, he used it to start the Rocky Mountain News. This was the first newspaper printed in Colorado, and it continued to be published until 2009.
In 1863, Byers bought land at Hot Sulphur Springs, Colorado in northern Colorado. He planned to turn it into a famous resort, calling it "America's Switzerland." However, his plans were delayed because the railroad did not reach the area until 1928.
Family and Community Work
William Byers was married to Elizabeth Byers. She came to Denver during the Pike's Peak Gold Rush when it was a very small town. Elizabeth faced many personal challenges during her 60 years in Denver. She was very active in starting charity groups in the city. In 1860, she founded the Ladies United Aid Society. Later, with Frances Wisebart Jacobs and Margaret Gray Evans, this group became the Ladies Relief Society in 1872. A year later, Elizabeth Byers and Margaret Gray Evans also started the Old Ladies Home. To help homeless girls, Byers created the Home of Good Shepherds in 1885.
After moving to Denver, William Byers built and lived in several large homes. One of these is now known as the Byers–Evans House. This house is now a museum located near the Denver Art Museum in downtown Denver. In 1891, Byers and his wife moved to another large home they built. William Byers loved gardening and planted many different kinds of trees on his property. He used most of the land for his own farming and gardening. After the Byers family moved out, their house was taken down, and the land was given to the Denver Public Schools in 1921. Some of the trees he planted might still be there today, around the edges of William N. Byers Junior High School (now DSST: Byers). William Byers faced a difficult personal challenge that affected his public life, but Elizabeth supported him.
Because he used to be a surveyor, Byers was very good at outdoor activities. While living in Denver, he spent a lot of time in the mountains. In 1863, the artist Albert Bierstadt asked Byers to be his guide. Byers led Bierstadt on a trip from Idaho Springs, Colorado to the top of a mountain. Bierstadt named this mountain Mount Rosalie, which is now known as Mount Evans. Bierstadt's famous painting,
, was inspired by that trip.
William N. Byers passed away on March 25, 1903. He was buried in Fairmount Cemetery in Denver, Colorado.
Legacy
In 1964, an episode of the Western TV show Death Valley Days told the story of how the Rocky Mountain News was started. In the episode, William Byers was played by actor Jerome Courtland.
Images for kids
-
Bierstadt-storm-in-the-rocky-mountains-1886.jpg
Storm in the Rocky Mountains
