James Mickelson was born in Tinning ,Denmark on August 1, 1866. His name before being Americanized was Jens Mikkelsen — meaning Jens, son of Mickkel. His father, Mikkel Rasmussen, was a soldier in the war between Denmark and Germany. Mikkel and Ella had four children: Rasmus, Soren, Jens, and Anna Marie.
In 1882, at the age of 16, James sailed to America, landing at New York City with 5 cents in his pocket. By doing odd jobs, he worked his way to the home of relatives in Nebraska and then onto Rock Springs, Wyoming to join his brothers. Soren was an engineer on the railroad and Rasmus built houses and worked in the coal mines. Jens worked both on the railroad and in the mines but wanted a life that would suit his adventuresome spirit. Soon he struck out for the La Barge country to find work on cattle ranches; he was pretty sure he wanted to be a cowboy.
At La Barge he first worked for Ariel Hanson and then N.S. Miller, both fellow Danes. James learned all phases of ranch work. He saved up and bought a horse. He loved riding and helping ranchers riding bareback until he had enough money for a saddle. James liked to read and taught himself to write in English.
James’s brother Rasmus sold out and left Rock Springs to join James and they took up claims on La Barge Creek. While homesteading, James also cowboyed for the large Spur Outfit owned by M.E. Post and Wyoming’s first Governor, Francis E. Warren at their La Barge division. James learned about stock, became a good cowboy and noted roper, and worked his way up to the foreman of the La Barge unit.
The Green River Valley missed the notorious winter of ’86-’87, but went through a terrible freezing winter of 1888-1889. The cattle death loss was terrible. The Spur Outfit which he was foreman of only rounded up a small fraction of the thousands that they had in the La Barge unit. The winter had been a cowboy’s nightmare trying to save cattle.
In 1890, Wyoming became the 44th State. James was still foreman of the Spur and had 20 cowboys to ride with and boss. On fall roundups, men from as far as Bear Valley and Ft. Bridger would come riding for strays and the cook, “Old Tug” would have as many as 40 men to feed.
Whenever James got ahead, he would ride to Utah and buy a few cows from several different Mormons, putting together a small herd and trailing them back to Wyoming – selling some to ranchers and keeping what his pocketbook allowed. This was quite lucrative until Brigham Young told his people not to sell any more — that they needed to keep their cows.
James was trailing a herd in from Utah in 1895 when he heard that Otto Leifer’s place was for sale. He was very anxious to get back and try to buy what is now called the Circle Ranch. This ranch was the oldest in what is now Sublette County. It lay between Middle Piney and South Piney creeks and James knew it would be a great ranch to have. James was able to strike a deal and in November of 1895, with his saving s and a loan from his brother Ras, Jim was able to make the down payment on Otto Lifer’s Circle ranch and its stock and equipment of $14,790.88. Cattle were of great value at the time, and in two years James had his new ranch paid for, at the total price of $40,000. James’s Great Grandson, Robert Mickelson Miller, who goes by “Mike” and his family still ranch on this ranch today.
The cattle business was good and there was plenty of good, hired help. The ranchers turned their cattle out together on the Roundup Association to make their yearly drift to the desert to calve, then into the Windrivers behind Boulder, back around Cora to the Wyoming Range and onto Big Piney in the late fall. James would ride up to these various areas to help with the drift and back to Big Piney to tend to his ranch’s irrigating, haying, and making improvements.
Once a man came through the country selling stock of some kind and after politely listening to him Jim in his Danish accent said, “I tink I stick with de cows.”
James greatly enhanced his life on the ranch when he was 33 years old, and in 1899 he married the talented musician, Mildred Olive Avery from Leon, Iowa. The couple met when Mildred came to Big Piney to visit her Fear relatives. She and James were both invited to the Holdens’ for dinner. As she went to leave and get on the side-saddle, James held her horse and her blouse caught on the horn and tore several buttons off. She was so embarrassed and talked of it years later. “Millie” gave piano lessons in the Mickelson home and she was very active in community affairs. Their first son was stillborn and at Millie’s request, James buried him on the hilltop south of their ranch house so she could easily see across the willows to the grave. This was the start of the Big Piney cemetery.
Horses were always a love of James and as he built his cow herd he built his horse herd also-he had over 200 broodmares. He raised hundreds of work horses and saddle horses, selling many along the way. Horses could not be replaced on the ranch; they were used for clearing brush, developing hay meadows, haying, feeding, branding, cowboying, fencing and transportation. There were no horse trailers or the soft-life. James Mickelson’s horses were known for their good quality, they were strong horses of great stamina. He had sires from the “Zeb” line of horses. Zeb was a thoroughbred type of horse that later became a major AQHA founding sire. He also brought in some Morgans which proved to be very versatile. They were good riding and pulling horses and crossed well with the saddle horses and the work horses.
James and Millie had two more sons, Maxie and James Francis, and then their daughter, Mildred Avery who later became Mildred Mickelson Miller. Tragedy struck the family with young Max dying on March 5, 1908, of Scarlett Fever. Jim was cowboying near Cora and upon receiving the sad news of his son’s death at 2 a. m., Jim took off horseback and rode home alone through the snowdrifts, arriving at 6am. – 4 hours! That was the type of horses they rode back then.
In Millie’s sorrow, Mrs. Stepp who was known as a fortune teller and married to one of Jim’s good cowboys, told Mildred that she was going to have a daughter that would fulfill her life. Then in 1910, when Millie was 40 years old, Jim was 44 yrs old and Jim Francis was 6 ½, Little Mildred was born.
James loved animals and taught his children how to tend ranch yard with its milk cows and calves, sheep, lambs, chickens, ducks, turkeys, pigs, and take care of a nice garden. The children often went with their father, becoming very good horsemen and cattlemen, which taught them valuable skills to go on to later help build and operate big ranches in Sublette County.
Up until James Mickelson helped establish the Big Piney Bank, he had been an area banker. Jim financed and helped many businessmen and ranchers get their start. His biggest boggle in financing was turning down J.C. Penney who was seeking to open his first department store at Kemmerer. James was nervous of the deal as J.C. had gone broke twice before. In James’s ledger of loans, some of the names that may be familiar are Jewetts, Oscar Beck, Jim Jensen, Frank Burney, Curtis, Nobles, Fish, and Springmans. Jim operated on his word and handshake, which everyone knew you could count on. Mickelsons were able to buy out several ranchers around them who wished to retire or give up their homesteads. The Leifer ranch that Jim had first purchased and the land that surrounded it became known as the Circle ranch and James used the circle brand.
Oscar Beck was one of James’ neighbors just around 1½ miles to the north, they were good friends and often helped one another out.
In 1916 the Big Piney Roundup Association and other small roundup groups around joined and formed the Upper Green River Cattle and Horse Growers Association. Its grazing span kept decreasing as homesteaders moved in and fenced off their places and in 1925 the name was changed to the Upper Green River Cattle Assn., known as “The Drift.” James was an early president of the organization.
James was a State Representative in 1916-17, and Presidential Elector in the Harding election. For 14 years James was in the Masonic Lodge, at first riding horseback 130 miles to Evanston to attend meetings until a closer lodge was established. Jim served on the school board, and as President of the Big Piney Bank and President of the Big Piney Roundup Association.
Every fall, James and his help drove his cattle to the rail head at Opal, taking 4 or 5 days. Then he and a hand or two would ride the train to Omaha to care for and see the cattle through the sale.
One summer evening when young Jim Mickelson turned his work team out of the barn that he had been haying with, he slapped one on the rear to get him to leave and it kicked him in the face, breaking several bones and knocking him out for a short time. The closest doctor was at Kemmerer and James loaded Jim into his pickup and drove him to Kemmerer that night. These early vehicles were not strong enough to drive everywhere and James had to put it in reverse to get up the hills. Young Jim recovered but always had scars and slightly offset eyes.
James remained active up until two weeks before he died from stomach cancer in September of 1921 when he was 55 years old, astounding the doctors as he said he felt no pain. James Mickelson was a cowboy, horseman, stockman, and businessman. He never lost sight of his ambition and love of cattle, horses, and cowboying. Passing his passion on to many generations.