“The Cannibal Convicted”

August 7-11 at GHS from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Performances will be at GHS on August 12 at 1 and 3 p.m. MCT’s visit is sponsored by the Gunnison Arts Center. Please call Julia Wilson at 970.275.8863 for more information and to register. Register soon as space is limited.

Submitted by Larry

McDonald

It was during this week back in 1886 that newspapers around the country reported on the trial being held here in Gunnison of one of the most infamous figures in our state’s history. Alfred Packer had been residing in our jail since the spring of 1883, and after barely escaping the gallows back then, his fate would finally be determined.

Nothing piques the interest of our museum visitors more than when we mention the Colorado Cannibal display upstairs in our Main Exhibit Building. And while most long-time residents of our state know the basics of the gruesome story, very few of our out of state visitors do. There is not enough space in this column to detail all of the intriguing twists and turns of Mr. Packer’s tale, but in review, it was back in 1874 when Alfred was hired by a small group of gold seekers to lead them from Utah Territory to the Los Pinos Indian Agency, in the middle of winter. Against the sage advice of Chief Ouray, the party went forward, and it wasn’t long before things began to turn grim as the weather deteriorated and their supplies dwindled. With a blizzard raging, the party missed the cutoff leading east to Los Pinos and continued south towards present day Lake City, and soon desperation ensued.

What occurred from that point on will likely never be truly known, as Alfred was the only one to arrive at the original destination and suspicion immediately grew with each conflicting story he gave. What is known is that he was arrested and placed in the jail at Saguache, from which he soon escaped, spending the next nine years on the run before being spotted in the spring of 1886 working on a ranch in Wyoming under an assumed name. He was then extradited back to Lake City where a trial was held with the jury convicting him and sentencing him to be hung. With invitations to the hanging already distributed, a late appeal to the Colorado Supreme Court overturned that decision, and with the local residents considering “frontier justice”, Mr. Packer was hustled to our more secure jail in the dead of night where he would spend the next three years awaiting a second trial.

That trial began on July 31, 1886, with a guilty verdict on five counts of manslaughter and a sentence of 40 years, 8 for each of the five victims, coming down on August 4, and it wasn’t long before Alfred was on his way to the state penitentiary in Canon City. He would spend the next 16 years behind bars there before being paroled in 1901, and he would live a quiet existence in Littleton before passing away at the age of 65 in 1907. We encourage visitors this week to view our collection of Packer related artifacts that include a watch fob made from the hair of Mrs. Ella Cady and her daughter, a small stick pin and watch chain, a beautiful cane made from buffalo, antelope and bull horns, and jury chairs from the trial recently donated by our County Courthouse. A special complimentary commemorative Packer booklet will be available to all interested guests through August 4!

MUSEUM OPEN DAILY 9:00 A.M.-5:00 P.M. FROM MAY 15 THROUGH SEPTEMBER 30.

Admission $15 ages 13+, $5 for ages 6-12, Free for 5 and under. Follow us on Facebook for current information and amazing local history!