Albert Bills

For the past few weeks at my workshop we’ve been enjoying a few episodes a day of a show called “Gold Rush: Mine Rescue with Freddy & Juan.” It’s interesting if not too formulaic; struggling miners in the wilderness, having spent nearly all of their savings, desperately work the tailings or new paydirt from the “old timers'” mine claims. But something goes wrong! Machinery is improperly aligned, the sluice boxes don’t have carpeted riffles, or they’re digging pay in the wrong area. Freddy and Juan swoop in and have a couple of days to assess the situation and help the miners correct their mistakes (they always do). They’re usually paid in gold too which is pretty cool. Anyway, I like the show and it reminded me a former Berdan’s Sharpshooter from Michigan who was a gold miner outside of Boulder, Colorado after the war.

Albert Bills, Co. K (MI) 1st U.S. Sharpshooters was a 39-year old surveyor when he enlisted in March 1862. Companies I and K of the 1st U.S.S.S. were latecomers from Michigan; they arrived at Camp of Instruction in Washington almost as the regiment departed for the Virginia Peninsula in late March. Company muster rolls from that year show that Bills was hospitalized due to illness in late June but returned to the company while they were languishing at Harrison’s Landing in July. He was severely wounded in August at 2nd Bull Run while the regiment occupied an exposed position in a creek bed directly in front of Stonewall Jackson’s soldiers at the infamous railroad cut. The nature of his wound is not known to me but Bills was discharged for disability in late January, 1863 and returned to civilian life. A notation on the verso of this paper-framed tintype states the image was taken “last fall” which, because of his enlistment date, could mean it was taken in late 1862 during his recovery. The notation itself likely dates to sometime in 1863 when it reached it’s recipient.

Bills’ pre and post-war years are quite interesting. Before returning east to Michigan in late 1861 Bills worked as a surveyor throughout northeastern Utah and northwestern Colorado. After recovering from his war wound he made his way back west and seems to have attempted a trip to California but landed in Utah again. An 1875 pamphlet geared towards mining interests lists Bills as a surveyor, prospector, former Berdan’s Sharpshooter, and having been present at the driving of the ”Golden Spike’ at the 1869 completion of the Trans-Continental Railroad in Promontory, Utah. Continuing east he settled outside of Boulder, Colorado and combined his earnings with those of partner Henry Taylor to stake several small land claims for gold mining. The “Colorado Mine Directory, 1879 – 1910” lists a total of four surveyed 1879 claims in Bills’ and Taylor’s names; Erie, Gertrude, Golden Era, and Yellow Boy. The only information I have found thus far about these mines was pertaining to Yellow Boy,. It was a 150′ by 1,500′ parcel with 12′ shaft accessing a 6′ wide vertical vein of quartz containing gold. This particular mine seems to have been fairly lucrative for both men as they sold their other three claims and focused their attention on Yellow Boy. They worked the mine from 1877 to 1888 when Bills fell grievously ill and returned home to Michigan. He resided at the Soldier’s Home in Grand Rapids until his death on March 31st, 1889. His business partner Henry Taylor sold their claim to Yellow Boy mine after Bills died; Taylor himself passed away in Denver, Colorado in 1892. It is not currently known how much gold their mines yielded.

Bills wears a full dark green uniform in his portrait here. In lieu of brass or rubber eagle buttons his frock bears a civilian style of ‘Goodyear’ rubber button which I have observed in a handful of other U.S.S.S. photos.

Brian T. White Collection.