When Jules Beni established his trading post here in the mid-1850's, he unknowingly set the stage for a series of four towns that would bear his name. Strategically located at the Upper California Crossing of the South Platte River, the first Julesburg supplied the needs of settlers and immigrants on their way west. History remembers Beni as a disreputable character: the stage line fired him after accusing him of theft and other illegal activities, and he fought several gun battles with Joseph A. "Jack" Slade, a supervisor with the stage line. Slade eventually killed Beni and allegedly cut off his ears, nailing one to a fence post and using the other as a watch fob. Slade was later lynched for "disturbing the peace." The unsavory reputation surrounding Julesburg and its namesake prompted an unsuccessful attempt to rename the town "Overland City."