Who was the first white woman to scale Pikes Peak?
Frank Polzin
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Julia Holmes is given the credit for that 1858 feat. Born in 1838 in Nova Scotia in Canada, Holmes migrated with her family to Lawrence, Kansas, and assisted in abolition efforts. With a group of gold miners, she reached the summit of Pikes Peak on August 5, 1858. In a letter to her mother, she wrote, “Nearly every one tried to discourage me from attempting it, but I believed that I should succeed; and now, here I am, and I feel that I would not have missed this glorious sight for anything at all.”
Marshall Trimble is Arizona’s official historian. His latest book is Wyatt Earp: Showdown at Tombstone. If you have a question, write: Ask the Marshall, P.O. Box 8008, Cave Creek, AZ 85327 or e-mail him at marshall.trimble@scottsdalecc.edu
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