Samuel Gould
Born: Unknown
Died: Unknown
Married to: Unknown
In Leadville: 1886-1888

Sam Gould was a clerk at Ben Davies’ jewelry and pawn shop at 222 ½ Harrison Avenue during December of 1886 when he was accidentally shot in the hand with a .44 caliber pistol. On December 15, 1886, Sam was reportedly showing a customer a pistol in the shop when the patron jokingly pointed the weapon his direction. The patron, James Callom, claimed the weapon was not loaded. Sam sized the gun from Callon, and in doing so accidentally discharged it. The bullet reportedly passed through his palm and wrist and exited with considerable force on the other side of his arm. The wound was treated at nearby office by Dr. Galloway. Callom was arrested and briefly detained in the city jail, until the episode was clarified to have been an accident. [1] Sam’s condition was reported on December 17th. That day he was in much pain and had lost a great deal of blood, as well as incurred the possibility of loss of a shattered bone in his arm. The reporter concluded that nothing else positive could be reported. [2] Samuel did not appear further in newspapers but was listed as a resident of 222 Harrison and continued to work for Ben Davies during 1887 and 1888. [3] He presumably left Leadville following 1888.

Due to the common nature of the name Samuel Gould, and the fact he was not in Leadville during a census year, there is a lack of verifiable evidence of his origin, background, and subsequent movements. Several unrelated non-Jewish individuals- including one born in Leadville in 1883 and a Maine State Congressmen who lived in Denver- were also named Samuel Gould. No relation can be established to the Samuel Gould of this study and these individuals. The name similarity also hinders the consistency of identification in existing documents and the above newspaper document is the only evidence of his life uncovered by this researcher.