W. Nelson, 1866

Location of Name

On the walls of Spaulding's Cavern inside North Gateway Rock. There is also a W. Nelson on the eastside of White Rock. The name is just up and to the right of the O. Brooks name.

Condition of Name

According to the reporter who entered the cavern when it was re-opened for a time in 1935, the name W. Nelson,1866 appeared plainly on the cavern walls. The name on White Rock is not carved as neatly as some of the other names. The "s" is somewhat faded.

Biography of W. Nelson

There was a W. Nelson mining along the South Platte river in early November of 1860. He was 34 years of age and a native of Illinois. He had three other miners as companions: one, like himself, was from Illinois; the other two were from Ohio.