Coben Scott is a history graduate, a history buff, and he has explored and researched much of Falcon and the area’s past. Coben’s column, Yesteryear, features stories about the history of the plains.
Hometown hero
Coben Scott
From the Buffalo Soldiers at Fort Garland to the creation of an entire defense command inside a mountain, Colorado — especially the Pikes Peak region — holds a significant place in America’s military history. Calhan resident Nathaniel Funk played a notable role in that history.
Funk was born in Missouri. At age 10, he and his family moved to Calhan. Like many early settlers, the Funk family entered the ranching business, which helped shape Funk’s character and work ethic.
In the 1910s, Funk met his first wife, Anne Argust. The couple married in 1915, and that same year, Funk enlisted in the U.S. Army and attended basic training at Camp Funston, which today is a training center at Fort Riley, Kansas.
In 1917, Anne Funk gave birth to a son, Frank. At the time, Funk was stationed in France with the 89th Division. A year later, he was in the midst of the Battle of Saint-Mihiel.
Many Americans were concerned about world events at the time. The Great European War (World War I) began in 1914, and the country was divided over whether the United States should enter the conflict.
Later, he saw action in the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Under the command of Gen. John J. Pershing, Pvt. 1st Class Funk served in French trenches near No Man’s Land during one of the war’s deadliest battles.
Two patrols had ventured into No Man’s Land to scout enemy positions when they came under fire. A full retreat was ordered. Most of the soldiers made it back safely, but two lieutenants who had directed the withdrawal were wounded and unable to escape. The colonel determined it was too risky to send a rescue party.
Funk and another soldier, named Barger, volunteered to carry a stretcher 500 yards through enemy fire to retrieve the wounded men. Funk later told Barger’s biographer, “Those darned machine-gun bullets were just singing songs around us, and I figured every minute they were going to get us.”
When the pair found Lt. Millis, he instructed them to take Lt. Rowell first. Funk and Barger carried Rowell back to safety, then returned through the gunfire to retrieve Millis. Barger later said the bullets ripped holes in their clothing and stretcher, yet none of the men were struck. Their bravery earned both men the Medal of Honor, which Gen. Pershing presented in 1919.
The two men went their separate ways after the war. Funk left the Army in 1920 as a corporal. He returned to Colorado, where he was designated a hero across the state. At the same time, Funk and his wife were having battles of their own, possibly because of Funk’s war experiences. They divorced, and Funk spent time traveling, eventually meeting his second wife, Stella, in Mount Pleasant, Utah.
The couple married in 1923 and had a daughter, Betty. They eventually returned to Calhan, where Stella Funk served as postmistress and Funk resumed ranching.
The venture was short-lived. In 1933, Funk died from complications following surgery for appendicitis. Three years later, Funk’s daughter, Betty, contracted scarlet fever and died after surgery related to appendicitis.
Following the deaths, the town of Calhan mourned. Stella Funk moved back to Utah, while Anne Funk spent the remainder of her life in Colorado Springs. Funk’s son, Frank, served in World War II and attained the rank of major. He later lived in Pueblo.
