The Casimiro Barela Building

Home of Trinidad's first daily newspaper

   by Bryan Zug,
July 21, 1997

Well known locally and in Denver, Casimiro Barela was familiar to many as the "Perpetual Senator." Even before Colorado became a state, Barela was a representative in the Territorial Legislature.

He was one of the men who drafted the Colorado State Constitution as part of Colorado Territory's being accepted into the Union in 1876.

Barela went on to serve in the Colorado Senate until 1914--a tenure of over 37 years.

As one of Trinidad's wealthiest citizens, Barela built the structure located at 234 North Commercial just to the left of United Presbyterian Church.

One of the early tenants of Barela's building was another of early Trinidad's prominent citizens, Dr. Michael Beshoar.

Beshoar, who later bought the building from Barela, was the first medical doctor in southern Colorado and northern New Mexico.

Among his many enterprises, Dr. Beshoar was the publisher of Trinidad's first daily newspaper, The Daily Advertiser. It was in Barela's building that Beshoar housed the presses for his newspaper operation.

As the story goes, Beshoar was not shy about his opinions and he boldly expressed them in the pages of his publication. This often led to verbal, and sometimes physical, attacks on Beshoar by people who disagreed with him.

Though Beshoar was a small man, he carried a gun under his trademark red vest. But, when he was surprised by an intruder in the building who threatened him because of something he had published, Beshoar did not have his gun with him.

Instead, Beshoar grabbed a knife from his hip pocket and stabbed the man.

He then used his medical skills to repair the damage.

Sources:

 

"A Walk Through the History of Trinidad" written by Jerry Stokes on behalf of the Trinidad Historical Society. 1986. Trinidad, Colorado.