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all along the front range from Denver north to Wyoming. Many <br />farms depended upon irrigation for water and grew a variety <br />of grain crops including corn and wheat as well as hay and straw <br />for animal feed. Many of the farms raised livestock in addition <br />to their crops. Local agriculturalists did not participate <br />in the early twentieth century sugar beet boom that spread through <br />much of the region from Denver up the South Platte Valley and <br />from Longmont north to Fort Collins. This probably occurred <br />because the Louisville farmers already had profitable markets <br />for their produce, as they had had since the first crops were <br />planted during the 1860s.6 <br />Denver grain dealers and packing houses depended on the <br />lands around their city to supply their needs, even to the point <br />of operating facilities such as the Louisville grain elevator, <br />to assure that the grain, cattle, hogs and sheep were marketed <br />in Denver. This dependence, combined with the coal markets <br />in Denver made Louisville part of Denver's eocnomic hinterland. <br />The other activity in Louisville that complemented coal mining -- <br />gardening --had its roots in the seasonal nature of the local <br />mining economy.? The miners, laid off in March and April, knowing <br />they would not be called back to work until late August or usually <br />September, faced the summer months without income. To survive <br />and replace their lost income without seeking employment outside <br />the town, many who lived in detached houses used their lots <br />as areas for gardening. Produce from these gardens not only <br />fed the owner's family but also was grown with the intent that <br />4 <br />