Moccasin Bill Perkins

William Henry Perkins, better known as "Moccasin Bill" Perkins (December 24, 1825 – November 13, 1904), was a frontiersman, scout, and hunter. Born in Indiana, he learned to trap and hunt as a child when the area was a wilderness. He continually moved west to Missouri, Kansas, central Colorado, and ultimately the Western Slope of Colorado. During the American Civil War, he was a government scout out of Fort Scott and was injured by Native American arrows. He tried his hand at farming in Kansas, but yearned for the frontier where he was a hunter, trapper, and miner. He was particularly known for his skill as a bear hunter. Perkins was a widower and a rancher in 1880, living in Texas Creek and Ula, Colorado. In 1885, he was living in Costilla, Colorado.

Their children were: Elenora (born about 1860), Rosa (born about 1864), Mary (born about 1866), Martha (born about 1873), He was among the first Anglo-Americans to locate in the area. He dug a lot of prospect holes there. He was said to have lived in the Hardscrabble area. and was hired by Big Muddy Cattle Company to kill bears and mountain lions that threatened the livelihood of its stock. He killed 40 bears over his five-year period of employment for the company.

Later years and death Perkins lived in later years near Crawford, Colorado, and he died November 13, 1904, at his ranch. His funeral was held at Fort Crawford, after which he was interred at the Garden of Memories Cemetery in Crawford.