Episode 142 - From Quaker Values to Railroad Empires: The Life and Legacy of General William Jackson Palmer

The Ordinary, Extraordinary Cemetery

Send us a text

The New York Times called him "the foremost citizen of Colorado." William H. Spurgeon said he was "the soldier, the builder of an empire, the philanthropist, the friend of the people, whose life was a blessing." At his funeral in 1909 Colorado College president William Slocum told more than 3,000 mourners that gathered in the snow at Evergreen Cemetery, "A great man has passed, but the influence of his life can never go from us." All of these men were commenting on the life and legacy of General William Jackson Palmer, the man most famously known for founding the city of Colorado Springs, Colorado but his Ordinary Extraordinary story is so much greater! William Jackson Palmer was an adventurer, a soldier, a railroad pioneer and a community builder. Raised in the Quaker faith, he was a man of high moral and ethical character who valued human equality, peace and education. His vision founded not only Colorado Springs, but communities throughout the Southwest.
In this episode Jennie and Dianne are joined by special guest Bob Stovall, who has been sharing the story of General Palmer for many years in a personal and entertaining style. Often dressed in period costume, Stovall becomes Palmer as he relates first-hand the General’s voyage from his early days on a Delaware farm to creation of a vast enterprise of railroad, manufacturing and communities, and the many people who joined him on the adventure.

History Shorts
Daily dose of fun history in <10 minutes from award-winning historian P.S. Zablocki
Listen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify

Chapters

1. Episode 142 - From Quaker Values to Railroad Empires: The Life and Legacy of General William Jackson Palmer (00:00:00)

2. [Ad] History Shorts (00:09:56)

3. (Cont.) Episode 142 - From Quaker Values to Railroad Empires: The Life and Legacy of General William Jackson Palmer (00:10:37)