Austin, Ira, 1807-1893.

Colo. pioneer businessman, born May 30, 1807 in Bristol, N.Y. He married Harriet Benjamin (b.1810) in 1831. The couple had three children: Schulyer D. (ca.1837-1901), Julia E. (ca.1843-1922), and Helen A. (ca.1848-1926). Austin and his family moved to a farm in Will County, Ill. (1838-1860). He journeyed alone to Placerville, Calif. as a gold prospector (1849-1850) before returning to Ill. Austin travelled to Colo. (1860), where he set up a mill in Gilpin County and also went into coal mining, railroading and other enterprises. Austin served as a Gilpin County commissioner, and was twice elected to the Colorado State Legislature. He later moved his family to Boulder, Colo. in 1870, where he died in 1893.

From the description of Ira Austin papers, 1838-1904 [manuscript]. (Denver Public Library). WorldCat record id: 13175665