John Auld
Burial Details
Obituaries
Basalt Journal page 1 - December 7, 1907
The news of the death of John Auld, stated very briefly in last week's Journal, came as a great shock to his score of Basalt friends. It was known by many that he had been in poor health for some time past, but none, not even his most intimate friends, suspected a fatal determination so soon. His brother, James M. Auld, of Colorado Springs, was notified of his sickness and came over to Basalt on the morning of November 23rd and persuaded John to return with him that evening. Arriving at Colorado Springs, John immediately went to bed and on Tuesday night at 10 o'clock he passed peacefully away, the immediate cause of death being pneumonia.
Mr. Auld was born at Prince Edward Island, Canada, in March, 1847, and was therefore a few months past 60 years of age. He was the second eldest of a family of eleven children, and leaves to mourn his loss, five brothers and four sisters, one sister having died several years ago.
Mr. Auld was an old time resident of Basalt and Carbondale, having resided in and been a deputy sheriff of Garfield county at Carbondale, in 1887, when that town was wild and wooly. Previous to that time, however, he was a resident of Summit county and lived at Dillon.
He served as county assessor in Eagle county from 1895 to 1897. In 1902 he was elected county commissioner and served four years, being defeated for re-election in 1906. Mr. Auld had been a resident of the United States for 40 years.
John Auld was known to almost everybody in Eagle, Garfield and Pitkin counties, and his death will cause universal regret. By profession Mr. Auld was a carpenter and builder, and also a first class cabinet maker, and some of our most substantial residences were built by him.
The funeral occurred from the home of James M. Auld in Colorado Springs Thanksgiving morning, being under the direction of the Masonic fraternity, which organization Mr. Auld had been a member for 35 years, holding his membership in Meridian Lodge, Boston, Mass.
The Journal and the entire population of Basalt join in extending sympathy to the bereaved brothers and sisters of the death of an old friend.
Eagle County Blade page 1 - December 5, 1907
Many friends throughout Eagle county will be pained to learn of the death of John Auld, which occurred at Colorado Springs on November 29th.
Mr. Auld had been in failing health for about two years and of late had become nearly helpless. On November 23rd, a brother, G. W. Auld, a contractor of Colorado Springs, went to Basalt and took his brother to his home here he died as above stated. The funeral and interment occurred at Colorado Springs.
John Auld was one of the best known men in the county, and had been a resident of Basalt almost since the founding of the town. In 1895 Mr. Auld was elected county assessor and served one term, being a candidate for re-election in 1897 but was defeated. In 1902 he was elected county commissioner from the third district and served one term of four years. Besides he had held other positions of honor and trust, having been a member of the board of town trustees of the town of Basalt and also a justice of the peace at the time of his death.
Mr. Auld was a pioneer of the state and county. In the early days he was a resident of Summit county and was well known about Dillon and Breckenridge. In the early days he was a resident of Garfield county, also, in 1887 residing at Carbondale. At that time Carbondale was largely a community of the wild and woolly order and Mr. Auld was the local deputy sheriff.
John Auld was a man of sterling integrity, in whose honesty the entire community had the most implicit faith. During the many years in which he served the community in various capacities as a public official, there was never a suspicion of wrong doing raised against him. Eagle county has sustained a great loss in his death, and a host of friends, with the Blade, feel keenly his removal.
Mr. Auld was about sixty years of age, and so far as known was never married. He was a native of Massachusetts, having been born at Lowell, we believe. In his younger days he was a man of much activity, having been at one time chief of the Lowell fire department. Some years ago he met with an accident in the pursuit of his trade as a carpenter which left him with a crippled hip, since which time he also seemed to fail in general health. His home town, Basalt, will feel most keenly his loss, and at that place his memory will be held in marked respect.
