Lewis Northey Tappan

Lewis Northey Tappan (June 15, 1831 – February 25, 1880) was an abolitionist, politician, and Colorado pioneer and entrepreneur. He was son of Colonel Ebenezer Tappan, a manufacturer and State Legislator of the prominent Tappan family of Massachusetts. He was also a first cousin once removed of abolitionists and philanthropists Lewis Tappan and Arthur Tappan, and their brother and U. S. Senator, Benjamin Tappan of Ohio.

Born in Manchester, Massachusetts, and initially involved in business in Boston, Lewis went to Kansas in 1857 to join his cousin, Samuel Forster Tappan (1831–1913), who was already heavily involved in the Free-State movement as clerk of the Topeka Constitutional Convention and later, acting Speaker of the State House of Representatives. Lewis became Secretary of the Senate under the Topeka Constitution and one of the Fort Scott Treaty Commissioners.

Lewis was one of the fifteen armed men who went to Lecompton to recover the infamous candle box containing fraudulent election returns, the discovery of which caused the downfall of the Kansas pro-slavery party.

In 1859, Lewis moved to Colorado Territory where he joined the first city government of Denver, built its first frame building with his brother George Hooper Tappan (1833–1865), and operated the first store in the territory. He was further involved in territory politics as a member of Governor Gilpin's council and as a staff member to Governor Cummings. In the summer of 1860, the two brothers opened their store after constructing the first frame building in the town—two stories high. He was a member of the city government of Denver and organized the first Sunday School there.

Coming to the Pike's Peak region in 1859, Lewis N. Tappan, along with several other town promoters, met in Denver City and organized the Colorado City Town Company on August 11, 1859, founding Colorado City on August 12. A few days later, on August 15, 1859, Tappan and many of the same eager town promoters organized the El Paso Claim Club, a vigilante form of civil government, to record real estate claims and settle land disputes. Tappan not only became the Town Company's director, secretary, and treasurer, but he also became the Claim Club's director, secretary, and recorder. Colorado City is now a national historic district within Colorado Springs, where he operated a general and mining supplies store. Although Lewis Tappan was active within the business community of Colorado City and El Paso County, Tappan still found time to explore the surrounding area. In 1859, Tappan, Anthony Bott, George Bute, Melancthon S. Beach, A.D. Richardson, several people from Golden City, and several women hiked to the summit of Pikes Peak, taking several days. At the summit, the hikers found evidence of others having reached the summit. Records indicate the members of the Lawrence, Kansas, prospecting party hiked to the summit in the summer of 1858.

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