Old Two Toes is pictured with E.M. Getts in front of his store on Main Street.
For more than a decade, a large bear had been seen on occasion on Grand Mesa, and it was long suspected of killing many cattle over the years. In 1890, the bear was caught in a trap, and lost three toes on his right foot in the adventure when he escaped from the trap. From then on, he was identified as “Old Two Toes”, and he was easily identified by his tracks around slain and partially eaten cattle. He preferred his meat “fresh”, and would not go back to a previous kill. Angered cattlemen put up a $500 bounty for the removal of “Old Two Toes.”
In late October, 1902, a small hunting party happened to be on Grand Mesa, and 61 year old Franklin Manges, a novice hunter, decided to tag along. Manges decided to stay in their camp as the others went looking for game. After a while, Franklin took his Winchester .30-30 and left camp for a look around, thinking he might scare up a deer for sport.
As he was walking along, he heard a loud “woof” behind him, and looking around, saw an immense bear approaching him. Standing perfectly still, the bear left him alone, but when it was about 60 feet away, Manges fired and wounded it, and it ran off. He tracked the bear for several miles, and as he was crossing a stream, the bear stood up on his hind feet about seventy-five feet from him.