Product Details
Intricately engraved antique bond certificate from the Atlantic-Pacific Railway Tunnel Co. dating back to the 1890's. This document, which is signed by the company President (Brick Pomeroy) and Assistant Secretary, was printed by W. E. Badeau and measures approximately 8 1/4" (w) by 4 1/4" (h).
This certificate's fantastic vignette features a cross cut view of the Continental Divide including the Mountain of Holy Cross, Grey's Peak, Torry's Peak, Kelso Mountain, and Loveland Pass, and a train going through the company's planned tunnel.
Images
You will receive the exact certificate pictured.
Historical Context
This stocks was issued as part of a plan to drill a tunnel through Mt. Kelso, located about 60 miles from Denver, thus making the trip to Salt Lake City 250 miles shorter.
An 1896 New York Times article describes that stockholders as declaring the company a fraud, given that only one fourth had been completed before the company was sold. At that point, promotor "Brick Pomeroy" was dead. The article went on to say "'Brick' Pomeroy, who died in poverty in this city a few months ago, was during much of his life absorbed In various schemes in Western towns."
Marcus "Brick" Pomeroy
“Brick” Pomeroy began his career in the newspaper business at age 21 working as an apprentice for the Corning Journal. On January 24, 1854, he married the first of three wives, Anna Amelia Wheeler, with whom he had one daughter, Mary Rebecca Pomeroy. By 1857 Marcus had moved from
New York to Horican,
Wisconsin and revived a failing newspaper, the Horicon Argus. It was while working at the Horicon Argus that Pomeroy supposedly earned the nickname, “Brick.” According to an 1868 biography, his satirical rebuttal of a rival Wisconsin newspaper’s disparaging portrayal of the village of Horicon earned him the admiration of a Louisville Journal reporter who named him a “perfect brick.” At the time, a “brick” was a “facetious, funny fellow who says smart things…such as practicing a dry joke on a too smart fellow.” (The Rhode Island Schoolmaster, 1864) Pomeroy embraced the term, even writing biographical sketches titled “Brick Dust Sketches.”
Brick Pomeroy's Signature
As his popularity grew, Pomeroy became involved in politics and attended the Democratic National Convention in 1860 in support of Stephen Douglas. With the nation on the verge of the Civil War, Brick Pomeroy became the owner and editor of the Lacrosse Democrat, gaining fame for being an outspoken Copperhead – those who opposed the war and advocated for restoration of the Union even if slavery continued. After Lincoln’s assassination on April 15, 1864, angry citizens of Lacrosse took to the streets and, forming a lynch mob, sought to destroy the Lacrosse Democrat and lynch Pomeroy, believing his anti-Lincoln writing had inspired John Wilkes Booth’s deadly act. Forewarned, Pomeroy escaped unscathed.
After the Civil War, Brick Pomeroy started the Daily Democrat Newspaper in
New York City backed by the infamous Boss Tweed. His time in New York brought him wealth and notoriety. On May 15, 1871 Pomeroy married Louise Rider with whom he had one daughter, Louise Rider Pomeroy. In 1875, he moved to
Chicago; the following year, financial ruin forced him to file for bankruptcy. Pomeroy married his third wife on September 2, 1876. They had four children: Markella, Mark Mills Jr., Idalia and Hazel. Later in life, he authored several books including Sense, followed by Nonsense. Now living in
Colorado, Pomeroy founded The Great West newspaper. Pomeroy also served as president of the Atlantic Pacific Tunnel, an enterprise with the goal of building a railroad tunnel through the Rockies; the endeavor was a failure. Brick Pomeroy died on May 30, 1896, nearly penniless.
