Minnie and Willliam (Bill) J. Thomas

Bill Thomas (1882-1952)

Minnie Circa (1884 – Circa 1950)

Bill Thomas was born in 1882, the eldest son of Welsh immigrants John and Jane Thomas, who arrived in Frisco in 1887. At just eleven years old, Bill’s first job was driving pack trains of burros laden with silver ore from the area’s mines.

In 1910, the Thomas Ranch was established as a cattle farm after Jane Thomas was granted a homestead deed for 145 acres along the base of Mount Royal. By 1930, Frisco’s population had plummeted to just eighteen people. Bill began offering free parcels of ranch land to families willing to build a cabin, and put down roots, boosting the town’s population while creating a customer base for the family’s dairy operation. A handful of families took him up on the offer, and this became the foundation of what is now Frisco’s historic Bill’s Ranch neighborhood.

Bill and his wife Minnie, born Minnie Dusing, a homesteader’s daughter who grew up in Slate Creek, north of Silverthorne, home is preserved at the Frisco Historic Park & Museum.

Lizzie and Louis Wildhack

(1878-1961) and (1872-1957)

Louis Wildhack came to Frisco from Illinois to work as a mining engineer. He opened an assay office while continuing to work as a surveyor and owning some mines himself.

When the Prestrud store burned down, the post office relocated to the Wildhack residence on Main Street, Frisco. Louis took over the position of Post Master and served in that role for the next 20 plus years, about 1914-1935.

With his wife, Lizzie, the Wildhacks also operated a grocery store. Lizzie Wildhack is noteworthy as one of the women elected to the all female Board of Trustees for the town. The Wildhack cabin, post office and grocery store, now known as Foote’s Rest, are on the National Register of Historic Places.

Helen Foote

(1918 – 2006)

Helen grew up on a farm in Wellington, Texas, one of eight siblings, and earned a degree in vocational home economics. In 1941, she married neighbor Robert “Bob” Stuart Foote. After Bob worked for Vultee Aircraft during World War II, the couple relocated to the nearly deserted mountain town of Frisco, opening Foote’s Rest in April 1946 — a post office, general store, gas station, and cabins that still stand at 5th and Main today.

With fewer than 100 residents in those early years, Foote’s Rest became the heartbeat of the community, one of the few places in town with a telephone and a guaranteed warm welcome from Helen.

In 1958, Helen began a 22-year teaching career at Breckenridge High School, founding its first home economics department, and later served as Town Clerk and School Board Member. In 1983, she co-founded the Frisco Historical Society, whose work lives on at the Frisco Historic Park and Museum. Foote’s Rest is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Frank Wiborg

(1855-1930)

Frank Wiborg had already amassed a fortune in the manufacture of printing ink when he came to Colorado. He arrived in the Frisco area in the late 1890’s when the town was at risk of becoming a ghost town.

Wiborg invested heavily in refurbishing the Excelsior mine with the latest technology. He also oversaw the electric power project for the mine that included damming the North Tenmile Creek. The power plant generated electricity to power equipment for the the mine and its interior lighting. The plant generated more power than was needed for the mine.

Wiborg sold the excess power from the plant to the town of Frisco, thus lighting its Main Street. After the mine ran dry in 1913, it is said that the town went nearly two decades without power. The building that was the Excelsior mine office is now owned by the town of Frisco.

Deming Brothers

This pioneering Frisco family, led by Elisha Deming who came from Nova Scotia in 1890, homesteaded a ranch in West Frisco that year, so we honor their deep roots in the county. His son John accompanied him, later marrying Nellie Rose in 1902, and fathering 7 children. John was a miner, a saloon owner and a rancher. A family known for their civic, governmental and town involvement, they were also known for “enduring hardship with grace”, as John died at 46 from pneumonia, leaving Nellie alone with 7 youngsters and no income. To survive, she took in wash and the older children did what they could to keep the family from starving.

Youngest son Harold (“Chick”) pushed an unwieldy, heavy 2-wheeled cart from the P.O. to the depot every day for $10/month. Son Bob found an old rifle, and attempting to refurbish it, lost an eye when it exploded. With no medical facilities nearby, a friend pushed a sobbing Nellie (holding her son to her chest against the November wind) on a flatbed rail car up to Fremont Pass, then on to the Leadville Hospital. Just another example of the tough pioneer life and its people.

John Deming began a peculiar celebration by lighting dynamite at 4 a.m. every July 4th, much to the anger of the townspeople! Chick and friends continued this into his 30’s. Chick helped build the Gore Range trail with the USFS and was known to remark that he always carried a gun, not because of the 4-legged critters, but because of the “2-legged varmints”.

Deming Mt. stands tall in the Gore Range, honoring this adventurous, hard-working, and colorful family.

Colonel James Havens Myers

(1844-1924)

Colonel James Haven Myers began life on a prosperous southern plantation enjoying an intellectual education and expansive wealth.
Despite his gentlemanly background, people later in life viewed him either as a hero or a double-dealer. No matter which is true, Myers looms large in the Summit County mining saga. He contributed to Summit’s economy with his unshakable belief that he could move mountains-which is what he did. His mining achievements stunned the Summit County mining community. His ways of undermining competitors, including slander, divided the community.

Among his many mining achievements was the creation of the King Solomon Mine, a silver mine in the Tenmile Canyon which he drove in at a staggering 3,000 feet.

Among his moves to squash his competition, Colonel Myers labeled the North Tenmile Canyon’s Square Deal Mine the “Crooked Deal Mine”.

The Colonel’s successful silver ventures like the King Solomon near Frisco, the Lenawee Mine and Mill near Montezuma, and the Mint Mine on Ophir Mountain, gained him great honor.

Charles “Howard” Giberson

(March 22, 1912 – July 8, 2007)

Howard Giberson was a central figure in the legacy of a pioneering Summit County family. His father, Wilbert “Wib” Giberson arrived in the region in 1895, eventually establishing a 320 acre ranch near Frisco with his wife, Elizabeth.

Growing up on this rugged landscape, Howard became a gifted athlete, famously winning cross country skiing competitions in the 1930’s using primitive leather strap bindings.

In 1947, Howard purchased the family ranch and expanded its holdings by 400 acres. Throughout the mid-20th century, he navigated significant regional upheavals, including the loss of acreage to the Dillon Reservoir and the construction of I-70.

Despite these pressures, Howard remained a dedicated steward of the valley. In 1998, he ensured the land’s future by placing 160 acres into a permanent conservation easement.

Today the 179 acre Giberson Preserve serves as a protected sanctuary honoring the family’s enduring commitment to the Colorado landscape they helped shape for over a century.