David Moffat
Encyclopedia
Financier
Financier is a term for a person who handles typically large sums of money, usually involving money lending, financing projects, large-scale investing, or large-scale money management. The term is French, and derives from finance or payment...
and industrialist.
Moffat was one of Denver's most important financiers and industrialists in late 19th and early 20th century Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, and he was responsible for the development of the Middle Park
Middle Park (Colorado basin)
Middle Park is a high basin in the Rocky Mountains of north-central Colorado in the United States. It is located in Grand County, on the southwest slope of Rocky Mountain National Park, approximately 50 miles west of Boulder.-Description:The basin surrounds the headwaters of the Colorado River...
area. He served as president, treasurer and as a board member of railroads, banks and city government posts. Over the years he had claims to over one hundred Colorado mines and nine railroads. Moffat died on March 18, 1911 in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
at the age of seventy three. Some had said that he had vainly spent fourteen million dollars
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
on the dream of a railroad directly west from Denver. The Denver and Salt Lake Railway
Denver and Salt Lake Railway
The Denver, Northwestern and Pacific Railway was a U.S. railroad company incorporated on July 18, 1902, by David H. Moffat, Walter S. Cheesman, William Gray Evans, Charles J. Hughes, Jr., George E. Ross-Lewin, S.M. Perry and Frank P. Gibson...
had cost him $75,000 a mile, and Rollins Pass
Rollins Pass
Rollins Pass is a high mountain pass in the Rocky Mountains of north-central Colorado in the United States. The pass is located on the continental divide at the crest of the Front Range southwest of Boulder, at the boundary of Grand and Boulder counties.-Description:Rollins Pass Rollins Pass (el....
had cost him the rest of his fortune. He was in New York city trying to raise more money, and was stopped by what would later be learned was the doing of E. H. Harriman
E. H. Harriman
Edward Henry Harriman was an American railroad executive.-Early years:Harriman was born in Hempstead, New York, the son of Orlando Harriman, an Episcopal clergyman, and Cornelia Neilson...
and George Jay Gould I
George Jay Gould I
George Jay Gould I was a financier and the son of Jay Gould. He was himself a railroad executive, leading both the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad and the Western Pacific Railroad ....
. He was one of the greatest threats they had faced in years. Although Moffat was looked at the time as a vain dreamer, he would later be viewed by many as ahead of his time. His legacy would leave Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
The Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad , often shortened to Rio Grande or D&RGW, formerly the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, is a defunct U.S. railroad company. The railroad started as a narrow gauge line running south from Denver, Colorado in 1870; however, served mainly as a transcontinental...
and later Union Pacific Railroad
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska, is the largest railroad network in the United States. James R. Young is president, CEO and Chairman....
with a railroad that would outlast most other rail lines in Colorado. He would have Moffat Tunnel
Moffat Tunnel
The Moffat Tunnel is a railroad and water tunnel that cuts through the Continental Divide in north-central Colorado. Named after Colorado railroad pioneer David Moffat, the tunnel's first railroad traffic passed through in February 1928....
and Moffat County, Colorado
Moffat County, Colorado
Moffat County is the northwesternmost and the second most extensive of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. The county population was 13,184 at U.S. Census 2000. The county seat is Craig.- History :...
named after him.
History
Moffat was born in Washingtonville, New YorkWashingtonville, New York
Washingtonville is a village in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 5,851 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Poughkeepsie–Newburgh–Middletown, NY Metropolitan Statistical Area as well as the larger New York–Newark–Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA Combined...
. In 1851, when he was twelve years old, he moved to New York City, where he began work as a messenger boy in the New York Exchange Bank, now the Irving Exchange National Bank. His starting position was minor, but he was eager to learn the banking business. Moffat was noted by the president, and advanced to the position of assistant teller. In 1855 he made his way to Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines is the capital and the most populous city in the US state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small portion of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines which was shortened to "Des Moines" in 1857...
and became teller in the bank of A. J. Stevens & Company. Moffat then became cashier of the Bank of Nebraska, owned by B. F. Alien, of Des Moines Iowa. He moved to Denver, Colorado
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
in 1860 where he opened a bookstore on 15th and Larimer. The book and stationery store was not highly profitable, so after a few years he went back to banking. On April 17, 1865 the First National Bank of Denver, was organized. It had little success until 1867, when Moffat was elected cashier. He remained the controlling mind in the institution until his death, being elected to the presidency in 1880. He instituted polices and methods which led to the growth and success of the bank for years to come.
Denver Pacific RailwayDenver Pacific RailwayThe Denver Pacific Railway was a historic railroad that operated in the western United States during the late 19th century.Formed in 1867 in the Colorado Territory, the company operated lines in Colorado and present-day southeastern Wyoming in the 1870s until merging with the Kansas Pacific and...
The construction of the rail line linking Cheyenne and Denver was widely credited at the time for reviving the city of Denver, which had been founded less than a decade before during the Colorado Gold RushColorado Gold Rush
The Pike's Peak Gold Rush was the boom in gold prospecting and mining in the Pike's Peak Country of western Kansas Territory and southwestern Nebraska Territory of the United States that began in July 1858 and lasted until roughly the creation of the Colorado Territory on February 28, 1861...
.
The decision to build the transcontinental railroad to the north had left the Denver stranded from the major transportation routes. As a result, Thomas Durant, vice president of the Union Pacific, pronounced Denver "too dead to bury." Colorado Territorial Governor John Evans
John Evans (governor)
John Evans was a U.S. politician, physician, railroad promoter, Governor of the Territory of Colorado, and namesake of Evanston, Illinois; Evans, Colorado; and Mount Evans, Colorado...
declared that "Colorado without railroads is comparatively worthless." As a result, Evans, together with other local business leaders, including David Moffat, William Byers
William Byers
William Newton Byers was a founding figure of Omaha, Nebraska, serving as the first deputy surveyor of the Nebraska Territory, on the first Omaha City Council, and as a member of the first Nebraska Territorial Legislature....
(founder of the Rocky Mountain News
Rocky Mountain News
The Rocky Mountain News was a daily newspaper published in Denver, Colorado, United States from April 23, 1859, until February 27, 2009. It was owned by the E. W. Scripps Company from 1926 until its closing. As of March 2006, the Monday-Friday circulation was 255,427...
), and others partnered with East Coast investors to form a railroad company that would link Denver and the Colorado Territory with the national rail network. The company was incorporated on November 19, 1867 as the "Denver Pacific Railway and Telegraph Company". The company broke ground on its Cheyenne line on May 18, 1868, at a spot near where the Denver Coliseum
Denver Coliseum
Denver Coliseum is an indoor arena, owned by the City and County of Denver, operated by its Theatres and Arenas division and is located in Denver, Colorado...
now stands. The line took approximately two years to complete. It followed the South Platte River
South Platte River
The South Platte River is one of the two principal tributaries of the Platte River and itself a major river of the American Midwest and the American Southwest/Mountain West, located in the U.S. states of Colorado and Nebraska...
through present-day Greeley
Greeley, Colorado
The City of Greeley is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Weld County, Colorado, United States. Greeley is located in the region known as Northern Colorado. Greeley is situated north-northeast of the Colorado State Capitol in Denver. According to the...
.
Denver, South Park and Pacific RailroadDenver, South Park and Pacific RailroadThe Denver, South Park, and Pacific Railroad was a historic narrow gauge railway that operated in Colorado in the western United States in the late 19th century. The railroad opened up the first rail routes to a large section of the central Colorado mining district in the decades of the mineral boom...
The Denver and South Park road got its start in 1872 when a group of Denver businessmen headed by Colorado Governor John Evans, David Moffat, other local business leaders to form a railroad company that would link Denver and South Park and the mining country. It was a historic narrow gauge railway that operated in ColoradoColorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
in the western United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in the late 19th century. The railroad opened up the first rail routes to a large section of the central Colorado mining district
Colorado Mineral Belt
The Colorado Mineral Belt is an area with abundant ore deposits. The area stretches north-east from the La Plata Mountains in Southwestern Colorado to the Front Range near Boulder, Colorado...
in the decades of the mineral boom. The railroad took its name from the fact that its main line from Denver
Denver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
ascended the Platte Canyon
Platte Canyon
The Platte Canyon is a deep, narrow, scenic gorge on the South Platte River in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. The canyon is southwest of Denver on the border between Jefferson and Douglas counties. The canyon is at the entrance to the mountains, where the South Platte emerges through the Rampart...
and traversed South Park
South Park (Colorado basin)
South Park is a high intermontane grassland basin, approximately 10,000 ft in elevation, in the Rocky Mountains of central Colorado. It encompasses approximately 1,000 square miles around the headwaters of the South Platte River in Park County approximately 60 mi southwest of Denver...
. The company operated as an independent railroad from its founding in 1872 until it was sold in foreclosure proceedings in 1889. Its lines later became part of the Colorado and Southern Railway
Colorado and Southern Railway
The Colorado and Southern Railway was a railroad company in the western United States that operated independently from 1898 to 1908, then as part of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad until it was absorbed into the Burlington Northern Railroad in 1981.The railway began as the...
.
Denver and New OrleansDenver and New OrleansThe Denver and New Orleans Railroad is a historic railroad that operated in Colorado.The D&NO was started by Colorado Governor John Evans, along with railroad entrepreneur David Moffat and other associates in 1881. The company was chartered to build a railroad connection from Denver, Colorado to...
The Denver and New Orleans Railroad, later to be known as the Denver and Fort Worth Railroad and would become part of part of the Colorado and Southern RailwayColorado and Southern Railway
The Colorado and Southern Railway was a railroad company in the western United States that operated independently from 1898 to 1908, then as part of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad until it was absorbed into the Burlington Northern Railroad in 1981.The railway began as the...
, was started by Colorado Governor John Evans, David Moffat and other associates in 1881 to give Denver an outlet to the Gulf. They built from Denver to Pueblo, when the work was taken over by General Dodge and others and completed to Fort Worth.
Denver TramwayDenver TramwayThe Denver Tramway, operating in Denver, Colorado was incorporated in 1886. The tramway was unusual for a number of reasons: the term "tramway" is generally not used in the United States, and it is not known why the company was named as such...
Denver Tramway was started by Colorado Governor John Evans, David Moffat and other associates in 1886. Denver Tramway was the first trolley line in Denver.Manitou and Pike's Peak RailwayManitou and Pike's Peak RailwayThe Manitou and Pike's Peak Railway is an Abt rack system cog railway in Colorado, USA, climbing the well-known mountain Pikes Peak. The base station is in Manitou Springs, Colorado near Colorado Springs....
The Manitou and Pike's Peak Railway is an Abt system rack railwayRack railway
A rack-and-pinion railway is a railway with a toothed rack rail, usually between the running rails. The trains are fitted with one or more cog wheels or pinions that mesh with this rack rail...
in Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
(United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
), climbing the well-known mountain Pikes Peak
Pikes Peak
Pikes Peak is a mountain in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, west of Colorado Springs, Colorado, in El Paso County in the United States of America....
. The base station is in Manitou Springs, Colorado
Manitou Springs, Colorado
The city of Manitou Springs is a Home Rule Municipality located in El Paso County, Colorado, United States. The population was 4,980 at the 2000 census.Students are served by Manitou Springs School District 14 and Manitou Springs High School....
near Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs, Colorado
Colorado Springs is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and most populous city of El Paso County, Colorado, United States. Colorado Springs is located in South-Central Colorado, in the southern portion of the state. It is situated on Fountain Creek and is located south of the Colorado...
. The railway is the highest in North America by a considerable margin. It was built and is operated solely for the tourist trade. The railway was started by Zalmon G. Simmons
Zalmon G. Simmons
Zalmon Gilbert Simmons was a businessman, manufacturer, Wisconsin legislator, and Mayor of Kenosha, Wisconsin....
, inventor and founder of the Simmons Beautyrest Mattress Company and David Moffat. The company was founded in 1889 and limited service to the Halfway House Hotel was started in 1890. The summit was reached the following year.
Denver & Rio Grande
In 1885 David Moffat was elected to D&RG board. Then in 1887 Moffat was elected president of the Denver & Rio Grande. Moffat built the Glenwood to Grand Junction, standard gauging Pueblo to Grand Junction, and the Tennessee pass tunnel. David H. Moffat resigned as president of D&RG in 1891 due to foreign bondholder's displeasure with Denver management of company. Moffat had wanted to build directly west from Denver to Salt Lake City and had spent $200,000 of the D&RG's money on surveys in the James Peak neighborhood. He would later go on to build the Denver, Northwestern and Pacific Railway in the same place.CreedeCreede, ColoradoThe historic town of Creede is a Statutory Town that is the county seat of, and the only incorporated municipality in, Mineral County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 377 at the U.S. Census 2000.-History:...
Branch
1892 David Moffat next developed a railroad to Creede from Wagon Wheel Gap, Colorado. Along the banks of the Rio Grande River to Creede, which was then a booming silver camp, which he owned mining clams at. The Denver & Rio Grande Railroad wanted nothing to do with it, so Moffat built the road entirely at his own expense. Then when it began to make a profit he sold it at a heavy profit to the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad.Denver, Northwestern and Pacific Railway (Moffat Line)
David H. Moffat and his business associates established the Denver, Northwestern and Pacific Railway. It originated in DenverDenver, Colorado
The City and County of Denver is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Denver is a consolidated city-county, located in the South Platte River Valley on the western edge of the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains...
and was planned to terminate in Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City, Utah
Salt Lake City is the capital and the most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. The name of the city is often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC. With a population of 186,440 as of the 2010 Census, the city lies in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area, which has a total population of 1,124,197...
, though it went bankrupt before reaching that city. By 1913 it reached Craig
Craig, Colorado
The City of Craig is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Moffat County, Colorado, United States. The population was 9,189 at the 2000 census...
in Moffat County, Colorado
Moffat County, Colorado
Moffat County is the northwesternmost and the second most extensive of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. The county population was 13,184 at U.S. Census 2000. The county seat is Craig.- History :...
, along the Colorado-Utah border.
Moffat TunnelMoffat TunnelThe Moffat Tunnel is a railroad and water tunnel that cuts through the Continental Divide in north-central Colorado. Named after Colorado railroad pioneer David Moffat, the tunnel's first railroad traffic passed through in February 1928....
David Moffat envisioned a tunnel through the continental divide west of Denver. Construction of the tunnel took place from 1922 to 1927. The Moffat Tunnel is 6.2 miles long and is the 6th largest tunnel on earth.Mining holdings
- Caribou, ColoradoCaribou, ColoradoCaribou is a former silver-mining town, now a ghost town near Nederland in Boulder County, Colorado, United States. It was named after the Caribou silver mine nearby. The Caribou Ranch recording studio is several miles away, on the road from Nederland up to Caribou.-History:A prospector named...
- Caribou mine - Creede, ColoradoCreede, ColoradoThe historic town of Creede is a Statutory Town that is the county seat of, and the only incorporated municipality in, Mineral County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 377 at the U.S. Census 2000.-History:...
- Cripple CreekCripple CreekCripple Creek may refer to:Places* Cripple Creek, Colorado* Cripple Creek, VirginiaSongs* "Cripple Creek ", traditional folk song* "Up on Cripple Creek" by The Band* "Cripple Creek Ferry" by Neil Young on the album After the Gold Rush...
, Colorado-Anaconda and Golden Cycle - Leadville, ColoradoLeadville, ColoradoLeadville is a Statutory City that is the county seat of, and the only municipality in, Lake County, Colorado, United States. Situated at an elevation of , Leadville is the highest incorporated city and the second highest incorporated municipality in the United States...
-Breece iron mine, Maid, Henriette, Resurrection and Little Pittsburg Consolidated (purchased from H.A.W. TaborHorace Austin Warner TaborHorace Austin Warner Tabor , also known as The Bonanza King of Leadville, was an American prospector, businessman, and politician. His life is the subject of Douglas Moore's opera, The Ballad of Baby Doe....
) - Victor, ColoradoVictor, ColoradoVictor is a Statutory City in Teller County, Colorado, United States. The population was 445 at the 2000 census.Victor is in the heart of Colorado's gold country, home to two of the major gold mines in the Cripple Creek mining district...
- White Hills, ArizonaWhite Hills, ArizonaWhite Hills is an unincorporated community in Mohave County, Arizona, United States. White Hills is northwest of Dolan Springs.-History:In 1892, Henry Shaffer discovered silver deposits in the area, with the help of local American Indians. The resulting mining efforts led to the creation of the...
-Moffat-Root Company -White Hills Mining Company
Moffat partnered with Jerome B. Chaffee
Jerome B. Chaffee
Jerome Bonaparte Chaffee was an entrepreneur and United States Senator from Colorado. Chaffee County, Colorado is named after him.-Biography:...
and H.A.W. Tabor
Horace Austin Warner Tabor
Horace Austin Warner Tabor , also known as The Bonanza King of Leadville, was an American prospector, businessman, and politician. His life is the subject of Douglas Moore's opera, The Ballad of Baby Doe....
in many mines. He had clams in over one hundred Colorado mines at one time or another. Mines belonging to David Moffat were involved in at least two significant strikes: the Cripple Creek strike of 1894
Cripple Creek miners' strike of 1894
The Cripple Creek miners' strike of 1894 was a five-month strike by the Western Federation of Miners in Cripple Creek, Colorado, USA. It resulted in a victory for the union and was followed in 1903 by the Colorado Labor Wars...
, and the more widespread strikes of 1903
Colorado Labor Wars
Colorado's most significant battles between labor and capital occurred primarily between miners and mine operators. In these battles the state government, with one clear exception, always took the side of the mine operators....
.
Banking involvement
- Equitable Life Assurance Society of New York
- First National Bank of Denver
- Bank of Nebraska
- New York Exchange Bank
- Fourth National Bank of New York
- Western National Bank of New York
- Colorado Mining Stock Exchange