Person

Harvey James Craig

Quick Facts
Significance:
Colorado homesteader
Place of Birth:
Nicodemus, Graham County, Kansas
Date of Birth:
18 June 1889
Place of Death:
Rocky Ford, Otero County, Colorado
Date of Death:
12 Nov 1970
Place of Burial:
Manzanola, Otero County, Colorado
Cemetery Name:
Manzanola Mountainview Cemetery

Harvey Craig was born in Nicodemus, Kansas on June 18, 1889. His parents, Sanford and Lulu (Sadler) Craig migrated there from Missouri around 1878. Nicodemus was an all-black town primarily made up of Exodusters from the south.

In April 1915, Harvey Craig, his parents, and siblings moved west with a large group of settlers hoping to claim their own land. They were recruited by Josephine and Lenora Rucker, sisters trying to establish an all-black farming community. The sisters encouraged families from Kansas, Missouri, and Oklahoma to homestead in southeastern Colorado.

The homesteaders settled on a vast expanse of arid land south of the town of Manzanola, an area which later became known as “The Dry.” Harvey Craig and others in The Dry attempted dryland farming. The settlers irrigated their land by building a dam on the Apishapa River in 1921. Less than two years later, the dam was washed out by floods.

Harvey met his future wife Rolan Dixon after arriving at the settlement. Her family moved to the community in 1916 from Lincoln County, Oklahoma. The couple married in 1923 and had four children: Bobby, Darlene, Harvey Jr., and Alice.

At its height, The Dry was home to around one hundred settlers. The population decreased significantly in the 20s and 30s due to the lack of irrigation, the Great Depression, and the Dust Bowl. Most packed up and moved on to cities that offered employment opportunities. Harvey Craig and many of his relatives stayed.

By 1925, Harvey was supplementing his farm income as a laborer for the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company. Harvey Craig and the remaining families switched from farming to raising dairy cows, pigs, chickens, and sheep. In 1934, he was granted an additional 117 acres from the 1916 Stock Raising Homestead Act.

Harvey Craig died in 1970 and his family continued to live at The Dry until 1983. His wife, Rolan, lived to be 109, one of the oldest people in the state of Colorado. Today, only the foundations from the homestead remain, but the land is still owned by the family.

Sources and Additional Reading:

Homestead National Historical Park

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Last updated: February 21, 2023