Fierce Competition

Fierce Competition. . Decades before this area became a national monument, commercial tourist sites exhibited the fossils and competed for customers. The remnants of an old road across the meadow in front of you marked the boundary between two family businesses. The rivals were reported to have used signs to lure visitors away from each others' property. The competition became violent at one point as one of the owners was shot after placing tacks in a roadway to disrupt the competitor's business. , Captions: To your left was the privately-owned Pike Petrified Forest, which had changed names multiple times before the National Park Service acquired the property. The location was first developed by the Henderson family and in operation by 1922. John Baker bought the property and operated the Forest until it closed in 1961. Several large petrified stumps including the Trio were the main attractions. , To your right was the Singer family's Colorado Petrified Forest, which featured the Big Stump. The family purchased the land and business from John Coplen, who had called it the Coplen Petrified Forest. The Singers operated the private attraction and dude ranch from 1927 until the National Park Service acquired the property in 1973.