Across the Fence: The Colorado Coalfield War

In 1867 the Kansas Pacific Railway was planning a route for the railroad that would take it through the southern regions of Colorado. William Jackson Palmer, who led the survey crew, discovered large veins of coal that lay close to the surface and provided relatively easy access for mining operations. The expansion of rail transportation across the continent made those coal deposits a valuable natural resource and Colorado Fuel and Iron (CF&I) quickly seized the opportunity for commercialization of those deposits.

CF&I became one of the nations most powerful corporations, at one time employing...