A recent Westword cover story explored a theory that Chicago fugitive Eleanor Jarman, aka the Blonde Tigress, lived the rest of her days in Denver after escaping from prison following her deadly robbery spree. If correct, the so-called "most dangerous woman alive" has been buried in the Fairmount Cemetery under an alias since 1980.
But the Blonde Tigress is far from the only famed felon to find a final resting place in Colorado. The graves of several well-known wrongdoers are located throughout the state.
Here are some of the biggest baddies buried in Colorado and where to find them:
Alfred Packer, Cannibal
Littleton Cemetery in Littleton1842-1907
Better known as the "Colorado Cannibal," Alfred Packer was a wilderness guide who ate five men in 1874 after the group he was hired to lead to Breckenridge became stranded in a winter storm. Though Packer's story changed multiple times over the years, he admitted to eating his companions' bodies and killing at least one of the men, which Packer claimed was in self-defense. He was arrested but quickly escaped from jail and remained on the run for nine years. Once finally caught, Packer was convicted of manslaughter and eventually paroled in 1901. He died of health issues in 1907.
Doc Holliday, Gunslinger
Linwood Cemetery in Glenwood Springs1851-1887
John Henry “Doc” Holliday is a legend of the American West, famous for his participation in the O.K. Corral shootout in 1881. The dentist-turned-gambler-turned-gunslinger was involved in many gunfights, assisted in numerous killings and has at least two verified kills of his own. He fled to Colorado in 1882 to avoid prosecution for murder, being granted sanctuary by the state's governor. He died of tuberculosis in Glenwood Springs five years later.
Tom Horn, Assassin
Columbia Cemetery in Boulder
1860-1903
Tom Horn was a hired killer for Wyoming cattlemen, paid to assassinate anyone suspected of stealing cattle, encroaching on their range or otherwise causing trouble for the big ranchers. The number of his victims is unknown, though some estimates place it in the dozens, with many killed by his gunfire from as far as 200 yards away. He was hanged in Cheyenne in 1903 for the murder of a fourteen-year-old boy, though some historians believe that was the one murder he did not commit. His body was brought to Boulder by his brother.
John Chivington, Mass Murderer
Fairmount Cemetery in Denver 1821-1894
The man responsible for carrying out the Sand Creek Massacre, the deadliest day in Colorado history, remains in the capital city. In 1864, Colonel John Chivington led hundreds of volunteer troops to attack a peaceful settlement of Cheyenne and Arapaho, killing around 230 people and brutalizing their bodies. Most of the victims were women, children and the elderly. The massacre is considered one of the worst atrocities in American military history. Chivington died of cancer while living in Denver in 1894, defending the massacre until his end.
Kid Curry, Outlaw
Linwood Cemetery in Glenwood Springs
1867-1904
Harvey Alexander Logan, known by the alias Kid Curry, was a bank and train robber in the Wild West believed to have murdered between nine and fifteen people, including several lawmen. He was imprisoned in 1901 but escaped after two years, continuing his life of crime until 1904, when he robbed a train outside of Parachute, Colorado. During his escape, his crew stole horses from a ranch. Logan was badly shot by one of the pursuing ranchers, and then he fatally shot himself in the head.
Todor Glava, Vampire...?
Lafayette Cemetery in Lafayette1877-1918
Okay, this one is probably not true. But according to legend, a murderous vampire lies in the Lafayette Cemetery: Theodore "Todor" Glava, a coal miner born in Transylvania who moved to Colorado in the early 1910s. He died in 1918, presumably from the Spanish Flu. Glava's headstone sits beside a tall tree, which the town lore says grew from the stake townspeople drove into Glava’s heart to be sure he was truly dead (while the rose bushes nearby grew from his fingernails).
