In this ongoing series, we feature a piece from our Museum Director, Billie DeLancey, originally published in The Johnstown Breeze on September 19, 2024. Enjoy this look back, and keep an eye on the paper for the newest stories shaping our community.
Harvey Jay Parish was born in Taylor County, Iowa near Hawleyville on February 5, 1862. He traveled to Colorado in a covered wagon with his family when he was four years old, and they settled a few miles west of present-day Loveland on a quarter section of land that is now known as the Buckhorn Ranch.
Mary Celinda Ann Wygal was born in a sod fort near present-day Windsor on November 20, 1864. She has been touted as the first white baby, or one of the first babies, born in the area.
The couple married on Harvey’s 22nd birthday in 1884. The newlyweds started their life together in this modest farmhouse Harvey had built on his homestead the year before. The farm was bounded on the north by what is now CO Hwy 60, on the east by WCR 17 (now Parish Ave), on the south by WCR 46, and on the west by WCR 15 (now Telep Ave). If you look closely, you can see the small survey pin embedded in the sidewalk on the corner.
The former farmhouse’s foundation was revealed in early 2002, the centennial year of Johnstown’s founding, during the excavation for the McDonalds restaurant currently occupying that location.
The Johnstown Historical Society worked with the McDonalds Corporation, which funded the purchase and placement of a commemorative plaque on the corner of the building. The restaurant opened on May 22, 2002, and the dedication ceremony followed on May 25th.
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Sources: A Tribute To Johnstown, Rebecca S. Healy, 1977; Weld County Clerk/Recorder; Portrait and Biographical Record, Denver and Vicinity, Colorado, 1898; Research by June Grelle, 2002.