Leonard L. Aitken
Although not well known, L.L. Aitken was one of the more prosperous and successful members of the Cripple Creek crowd.
Aitken was born September 3, 1871 at Viola, Illinois. Upon finishing his education at age 16, Aitken became a public school teacher in the Viola area for a short time. He migrated to Chicago and enrolled in the Kent College of Law. His practice and knowledge of law served him well for the rest of his business career.
At the urging of his uncle, well-known Cripple Creek mining man J.R. McKinnie, Aitken came to Colorado in December 1898. The pair operated the Moon-Anchorn Mine for a number of years. Aitken also served as officer and director number of other mining companies .
It was Aitken's association with the legendary attorney and business tycoon Verner Z. Reed that really launched his business career. In the early 1910s, Reed and his associates began to sell their Cripple Creek holdings and invest in the developing Salt Creek oil field in Wyoming. This move not only made the group fabulously wealthy, it also provided Aitken with a key job as president of the Midwest Oil Company. This highly successful firm would eventually merge with the Standard Oil Company of Indiana (later Amoco). The presidency of Midwest Oil, as well as a seat on the board of Midwest Refining Company, thrust Aitken into a position of great importance in the business community.
Aitken and his wife Jennie were married in 1899. They had a daughter and a son. The family resided in Colorado Springs until they moved to Denver in 1915. Aitken was a member of the Denver Country Club and Denver Athletic Club.