The True Cornerstones of Grand Junction
All towns and cities have things in their community that, without them, they could not exist.
For some, it's water. For others, it's how fertile the land is. For Grand Junction, it was these and more that helped the fledgling town grow into the vibrant place it is today.
Grand Junction was founded in September of 1881 when the government kicked the native Utes from the land. Men like George Crawford gathered and put a plan together for the town, which got its name from being at the confluence of the Grand and Gunnison Rivers. The Grand River was later changed to the Colorado River.
The river is one of those cornerstones. Those early settlers had to hand dig trenches from the river to their property to grow the food their family. But, the further away from the river, the harder it was to get water to the land.
Because of this, the founders decided to make the Highline Canal that snaked through the town and using the river water to irrigate from the canal. And it's still in use today.
Grand Junction continued to grow once the railroad came through town. Prior to that, the goods bought and sold had to be taken by wagon or on horseback. Having the railroad make its permanent residency allowed for goods to move quicker, as well as people. The railroad began in Grand Junction on the same day as the San Francisco earthquake, September 18, 1906.
The best cornerstone, and the strongest, one is its people. It was the people who founded Grand Junction, who made the canal, who laid the railroad tracks and who lived and died here to make it a better place.
Today, Grand Junction's people are it's greatest and strongest cornerstone.