WEST CENTRAL COUNTIES

Mining towns were rough, and facilities were nonexistent. Weather in the high country is always unpredictable, and getting lumber and supplies to remote locations was a considerable challenge. Some of the hotels pictured in this book attest to that, yet the pictures also remind us that some indomitable soul took it upon him (or her) self to try and make a go of it in a most unwelcome landscape. Miners needed food, heat and a bed. The heat may have been iffy, but two out of three wasn’t bad, and these rustic innkeepers supplied all they could. Their crudely built structures, daring to proclaim themselves hotels, are testimony to the frontier spirit. Or to quote a movie of more recent years, “If you build it, they will come.”

Gold and silver were the two elements that built the West, and Colorado was no exception. Fortunes rose and fell with the silver boom and the silver crash. The Pikes Peak gold rush saw many fortunes rise and just as many “bust,” but the gambling halls rolled on, regardless of the season. One might lose all due to bad luck, poor judgment or a collapsing economy, but there was still a chance of restoration through cards and roulette wheels. This controversial layer of socioeconomic activity brought more visitors into the towns, further increasing the need for housing and stimulating the building industry as more hotels were constructed.

Gold mines sprang up in the Rockies like aberrant prairie dog holes. As civilization surrounded the mines, towns like Victor, Cripple Creek, Golden and Leadville were born. Hotels celebrated the discovery of rich ores with names like Gold Coin Inn, La Veta (the Vein) and Eureka House.

Colorado remembers those exciting days and reveals them to us in its remaining old hotels and inns, many of which are still in operation. Buildings tell the stories of those who built them and those who stayed within. As the reader browses through this book, let the pictures and descriptions stir the imagination, drawing the mind back in time to a lively and exhilarating era when men and women staked their claims on strata of society just as miners did on gold and silver.

ALAMOSA COUNTY

Alamosa County was created by the Colorado legislature in 1913 from northwestern Costilla County. Alamosa is the Spanish word for “grove of cottonwood trees.”

Alamosa

Established in 1878 by the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad, this town became an important rail center. The city takes its name from the Alamosa River and is the county seat.

BROADWELL HOUSE: This hotel was built before 1907 on South Sixth Street.

ELKS HOTEL: This hotel was built sometime before 1904.

ST. CHARLES HOTEL: This hotel was built sometime before 1904.

VICTORIA HOTEL: Built before 1904 on State Street, this hotel was a two-story stone building with a corner entrance.

ARCHULETA COUNTY

Archuleta County has been home to the Anasazi, the Ute, the Navajo and the Apache. The area was first claimed for Spain by early Spanish explorers, and after the Mexican revolution, it became part of the Territory of Northern Mexico. Following the war with Mexico in 1848, it became the United States’ possession. When Congress recognized the Colorado Territory in 1861, this area was designated part of Conejos County. In 1885, Archuleta County was created from western Conejos County and named for Antonio D. Archuleta, senator from Conejos County at the time.

Pagosa Springs

Pagosa Springs, at an elevation of 7,108 feet, is named after the Great Pagosa Hot Springs. Describing the boiling, bubbling alkaline spring, ancient Utes called it Pah-gosa: “pah” meaning water and “gosa” meaning boiling. Modern advertising has changed the meaning to “healing waters.”

About 1867, the Utes gained control of the Great Spring from the Navajos, but their control was relatively short lived. The Brunot Agreement of 1874 signed the springs over to the white man. Three bands of the original seven that make up the Ute tribe are still located in the Pagosa area.

The military established an army post in the vicinity, choosing the Great Pagosa Hot Springs for its site. In 1878, Camp Lewis, later Fort Lewis, was built on the west bank of the San Juan River, opposite the Great Spring. Six square miles centering on the spring were declared a military reservation in 1879.

With the presence of the fort, more settlers began moving in. Fort Lewis remained in Pagosa Springs until early 1880, when it was moved to the banks of the La Plata River. The remaining outpost was designated Camp Pagosa Springs.

As word of the hot springs spread, people came to partake of the reported medicinal mineral waters. Pioneers settled the area by the early 1880s, raising cattle, sheep, grains and vegetables. They established businesses, and bathhouses sprang up around the Great Hot Spring like mushrooms. Pagosa Springs was incorporated in 1891, and its commercial district was located on the San Juan River. The area is known for its abundant fishing and hunting.

AMERICAN HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. L.T. Harris in 1904.

COMMERCIAL HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. Cora Seavey in 1904.

LOS BANOS HOTEL: This hotel was operating in 1920.

METROPOLITAN HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1915.

NICKLE PLATE HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by W. Glassner in 1904.

PATRICK HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by M.A. Patrick in 1904.

SAN JUAN HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. Cade in 1904.

SPRINGS HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by W.B. Alexander in 1904.

STRAWN HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by A.L. Strawn in 1904.

CHAFFEE COUNTY

Chaffee County, located on the eastern slope of the Rockies in southwest central Colorado, has more fourteen-thousand-foot peaks that any other county and has been called the “Fourteener Region.” Chaffee was created by the Colorado legislature in 1879 from southern Lake County and was named for Jerome B. Chaffee, Colorado’s first United States senator.

Alpine: Partial Ghost Town

This small former mining community, founded in the 1870s, is often considered a ghost town. When the mines gave out, both Alpine and nearby St. Elmo became ghost towns. Although a few hardy residents continued to stay on, both towns remained nearly empty for fifty years. In the 1950s, people began building summer homes in Chalk Creek Gulch and fixed up some of the salvageable buildings in Alpine and St. Elmo. Current residents are respectful of the community histories, taking pride in maintaining the character of these two old mining towns. The San Isabel National Forest surrounds both Alpine and St. Elmo.

Alpine’s first cabin was built in 1877, and by 1880, its population was five hundred. The town, a supply center for other towns along Chalk Creek, had two hotels, a dance hall, twenty-three saloons and a newspaper. When the railroad extended to St. Elmo, the life was drawn away from Alpine. The newspaper, banks and most businesses moved to St. Elmo, taking the people with them and making Alpine another example of the railroad’s power during that era.

The Badger Hotel, 1881. This hotel was named for the Badger State of Wisconsin, the home state of owners Captain Ford and John T. Swain.

BADGER HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1881.

Buena Vista

Unlike the mining towns, Buena Vista boasts a reputedly peaceable history, though it was reported to have had, at one time, three dozen bars and a hanging judge. It was settled in 1864, incorporated in 1879 and became a railroad town serving the local mining industry. The town has long been acknowledged for its mineral hot springs and excellent river rafting nearby.

AMERICAN HOUSE: This hotel was built before 1904.

*BUENA VISTA/COTTONWOOD HOT SPRINGS HOTEL: The Buena Vista was built in 1878 by Reverend J.A.D. Adams and his wife, a physician, as a hotel and sanitarium treating rheumatism and dyspepsia. The waters, 132 to 150 degrees, were piped into the house for drinking, bathing and treatments. The main house held the office, library, parlor and private rooms, with additional sleeping and bathing quarters in the wings. The property was owned by Gabe Durst in 1911 when the hotel burned down. It was not rebuilt.

A postcard of the Buena Vista Hot Springs Hotel, prior to its razing by fire in 1911. Today, it is known as the Cottonwood Hot Springs in Buena Vista.

The hot springs are still open as Cottonwood Hot Springs (18999 County Road 306, Buena Vista, CO 81211; 719-395-6434). The resort offers a variety of spa treatments and overnight accommodations.

CAPITOL HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1890.

HAYWOOD HOTEL: This hotel was built sometime before 1904 and was operated by Mrs. W.W. Dickey in 1904.

HORTENSE HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by H.C. Johnson in 1904.

LAKE HOUSE HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1879.

*MT. PRINCETON HOT SPRINGS/HOTEL: Begun in 1879, this hotel was dismantled in 1950. It was originally a three-story hotel called the Antero, which did not prosper due to incompetence and bad management. Construction was begun in 1879 but was not completed until about 1910. In 1913, the hotel sold to the Carlsbad Hot Springs Corporation, which also failed to make it prosper, and it changed hands again in 1915. The new owners added a fourth floor to the hotel and two massive towers. Guests were offered large rooms with marble fixtures, copper tubs, hardwood floors, paneling, elaborate stairs and stained glass.

More than seven hot springs bubbled behind the hotel, and an elaborate bathhouse was constructed to accommodate bathers. By the early 1920s, management of the Mt. Princeton Hot Springs/Hotel seemed to have finally found the formula for success. Its moment in the sun lasted almost ten years. Unfortunately, the last mine closed in 1924, the railroad removed its tracks in 1926 and the Great Depression sounded doom for resorts across the country. The hotel changed hands some more until 1950, when John Crowe bought the hotel, took it apart and used its more than one million board feet of lumber to build a subdivision in Texas. An ignominious end for a noble lady.

The Heywood Springs at the mouth of Chalk Creek were used for centuries by Native Americans and visited by white settlers in the 1860s. They were later developed, and today there are three large pools open to the public. Water in these pools enters at about 133 degrees and is kept around 95 degrees in winter and a bit cooler in summer. Other hot springs in the area include Hortense Hot Springs, not far from the Mt. Princeton pools. At 185 degrees, this pool is thought to be the hottest geothermal spring in the state. The springs are known today as the Mt. Princeton Hot Springs Resort (15870 County Road 162, Nathrop, CO 81236; 719-395-2447, 1-888-395-7799).

PRINCETON HOTEL: Built before 1903, this was a frame hotel with brick chimneys, dormer windows and a rounded turret with a conical dome. A dammed lake with falls at the City Park was next to the hotel grounds.

Poncha Springs

Tucked into a valley and surrounded by the San Isabel National Forest, Poncha Springs calls itself the “Crossroads of the Rockies.” From the area’s plentiful hot springs and the influence of Spanish culture, the site was originally called Poncho—“cape” for warmth—Springs. In 1924, the town renamed itself Poncha Springs.

The town was a stage stop in the 1870s; visitors often stayed to see the springs or take mineral baths. Construction on the Jackson House began in 1876, and it opened in 1878. The town incorporated in 1880. Poncha Springs is one of the few towns whose primary landowners believed in prohibition. This resulted in a ban on the sale of liquor on any property they owned, thus reducing the ratio of saloons to other businesses. Poncha Springs also had a library, the first in Chaffee County, rare by mining town standards.

Before the 1880s, Poncha Springs was an established health resort, with some one hundred springs whose temperatures varied from 90 to 185 degrees. When the railroad came in 1881, the population grew to over two thousand. Another hotel was built to accommodate all the visitors. The Poncha Springs Hotel competed for a time with the Jackson House, which has hosted some famous guests, including Baby Doe Tabor and Jesse James. But fire struck the town in 1882, destroying most of the frame buildings, including seventeen saloons. The old town was never rebuilt. A few historic buildings remain, including the Jackson Hotel and an early brick schoolhouse.

Poncha Springs Hotel burned down in 1893. Another hotel was built on-site, but it, too, burned in 1903. When the Holman family came in 1904 to manage the springs, they found a large round swimming pool made of rock and completely plastered by hand. Two cabins, two baths and a sleeping room also remained. The springs bubbled out of the mountainside, some of them hot enough to fry an egg. The waters contained large quantities of soda, iron, magnesium, borax, sulfur and arsenic.

In 1935, the City of Salida had the WPA pipe the spring waters into the Salida pool. All the springs were then capped with cement, and the famous Poncha hot springs have been the property of Salida ever since. Today, the water from Poncha Springs is still piped into Salida’s Hot Springs Aquatic Center.

A round, sawn-board shelter covers the hot springs in front of the Poncha Springs Hotel. There were approximately fifteen springs with temperatures of 160 degrees Fahrenheit. The waters could boil an egg in less than eight minutes. Photo circa 1900.

JACKSON HOUSE: Built sometime between 1876 and 1878 by Henry A. Jackson, this hotel is still standing and was still in operation until recently. The restored historic building is apparently up for sale.

PONCHA SPRINGS HOTEL: This hotel was built in 1900 and burned down in 1903.

St. Elmo: Ghost Town

Founded in 1880 as a mining town called Forest City, St. Elmo was renamed by Griffith Evans, a founding father, who was reading a book by the same name written by Augusta Evans. St. Elmo, which had drawn the businesses away from Alpine when the railroad came in, was once an important stop for train excursionists on the South Park Line. Tailor-made clothing, oysters and fresh fruit from distant points were easily obtained in St. Elmo. Its decline began in the early 1920s, when the mines shut down and the train discontinued service. With the death of the postmaster in 1952, mail service was curtailed.

The town is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as St. Elmo Historic District, and though still inhabited by a few citizens, it is one of the state’s best-preserved ghost towns.

Home Comfort Hotel and Stark Brothers Mercantile Company, circa 1980s.

HOME COMFORT HOTEL: This hotel was built sometime in the 1880s by J.E. McClure and H.C. Bostwick on West Main Street.

In 1881, Anton Stark, a cattleman, became so impressed with St. Elmo that he brought his family to reside there. He had purchased the store and hotel property by 1902. Stark became a boss for one of the local mines, while his wife, Anna, ran the general store and hotel.

The hotel took the top floor of the two-story frame structure, while the downstairs was occupied by Stark Brothers Mercantile. The building was added to in stages and was reported to have the cleanest rooms in town, the best meals and more plentiful supplies than its competition. Of course, there are indications that this opinion may not have been universal.

Salida

Salida, at an elevation of 7,050 feet and surrounded by mountains, is known as the “Jewel of the Arkansas.” Founded in 1880, Salida was a significant link in the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad. Its present economy depends strongly on tourism: skiing, rafting, kayaking and outfitting, especially on the Arkansas River.

Salida Hot Springs Aquatic Center is a year-round facility, whose water is piped in several miles from the source in Poncha Springs. The clear, odorless water, once visited by the Ute Indians, flows continually into Salida’s pools, warming them naturally. This 1937 WPA project represents Colorado’s largest indoor hot springs pool, employing two hundred men to construct the pipeline and buildings. The facility and water line have been updated several times over the years.

BON TON HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel’s new operators were Mr. and Mrs. Cope in 1904.

THE ELK HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1904.

THE EUROPEAN HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1903 on the banks of the Arkansas River.

HOTEL MONTE CRISTO: Built about 1883 on the tracks of the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad, this hotel was torn down after World War II. The introduction of Pullman sleepers and dining cars ended the demand for overnight rooms and restaurant stops, signaling the end for this railroad hotel.

MAC MORAN HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1900.

MANHATTAN HOTEL: Built in 1901 at 228 North F Street, this hotel remained in operation into the 1930s. It is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

MILDRED HOUSE: Built before 1900, this hotel advertised “The Mildred European Plan.”

ST. CLAIR HOTEL: Built sometime between 1890 and 1900, this four-story brick structure with a corner tower was operated by C.G. Vaughn in 1904.

WELLSVILLE SPRINGS: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by V.C. Davenport in 1904.

Turret: Ghost Town

The first settlers in the area cut down wood to make into charcoal. Then came the miners, who found gold, silver and copper. When the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad built a line up the steep grade to Turret in 1881, the miners cheered. Unfortunately, a flood in 1901 wiped out the line, which was never replaced. Although the mines were still producing, the expected “Big Strike” in Turret never came to pass, and the loss of the railroad made it too expensive to ship out the medium-grade ore.

After struggling through many trials, Turret became an official ghost town. Following the death of Pete Schlosser, town founder and postmaster, the postal service discontinued mail service and declared Turret a ghost town on Schlosser’s birthday, November 12, 1939.

The Gregory Hotel, the Turret Sample Room and the Turret Hotel, 1902.

Tales have been told about families moving into Turret during the Depression, living in abandoned houses, planting gardens, hunting deer and smelting gold with blowtorches. The gold could be sold to the government for thirty-two dollars per ounce, and Turret was the poor man’s salvation until World War II made city jobs available again.

Turret is located north of Salida, owned by two Colorado natives living in Salida. They have established the Turret Townsite Company, LLC, in an effort to share the local history by selling cabin sites in Turret with strict guidelines to preserve the authenticity of the old town.

GREGORY HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1902.

TURRET HOTEL: Built before 1902, this hotel offered a separate Sample Room for salesmen to display their wares.

CONEJOS COUNTY

“Conejos” is the Spanish word for “rabbits,” which populate the area.

Antonito

Once part of Mexico, Antonito was founded in 1880 by the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad. Antonito is located two miles from Conejos, site of the oldest church in Colorado. At an elevation of 7,888 feet, located between the Conejos and San Antonio Rivers, the town is home to the historic Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Narrow Gauge Railroad. This railway is the longest and highest narrow gauge still running, through sixty-four miles of rugged terrain along the Colorado/New Mexico border. The area has long been known for trout fishing and horseback riding.

*CONEJOS RIVER GUEST RANCH: 25390 Highway 17, Antonito, CO 81120; (719) 376-2464; conejosranch.com.

Located in the Rio Grande National Forest, the ranch has approximately one mile of river frontage on the famous Conejos River. The historic, rustic guest ranch, famous for its fishing, is now in its second century of operation. Its beautiful surroundings are perfect for hiking, photography, horseback riding, hunting and snowmobiling in season. Guest horses are also welcome. The ranch has its own menagerie and a stocked pond for children to fish. Its restaurant, the Canyon Café, offers a wide variety of deliciously prepared hearty meals.

The original Conejos River Guest Ranch log house, circa 1930s. The original main house still survives and has been substantially added to over the years.

The original log lodge, still in use, has been expanded as the property changed hands over the years, and today cabins are also available. Present owners are Leonard and Kathy Romero, and the ranch foreman is Ms. Shorty Fry.

DEPOT HOTEL & RESTAURANT: This hotel was built sometime before the 1880s and faced the railroad tracks.

GERMANIA HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1904.

PALACE HOTEL: Built before 1904 at 429 Main Street, this hotel is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

La Jara

The town of La Jara, named for a local creek, is located in the central San Luis Valley. Its mostly Hispanic population descends from settlers who came to the area in the early 1850s to settle on the Sangre de Cristo and Conejos Land Grants. It is still primarily a ranching and farming area.

BLAKE HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1904.

GRANDE HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. L. Seyfer in 1904.

ORMOND HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. E.A. Brown in 1904.

Platoro

Platoro, at ninety-nine hundred feet in elevation, is in the Rio Grande National Forest, surrounded by the San Juan Wilderness. The town’s name was derived from the two Spanish words “plata” and “oro” (silver and gold), and it was founded in the 1880s as a mining town. By 1882, the serious lack of transportation began to adversely affect the town. Although the mines were still productive, the town was too isolated to prosper.

Platoro was also plagued by repeated flooding of the Conejos River. In recent years, a dam was built to create the highest man-made reservoir in North America, the Platoro Reservoir at 10,034 feet, two miles above the town. Today, Platoro has become a quiet resort community, dedicated to fishing.

A dogsled team in front of the Platoro Hotel, 1890–1900.

PLATORO HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1900.

EAGLE COUNTY

This county was created by the Colorado legislature in 1883 from portions of Summit County and named after the Eagle River, which runs through the area. The county seat was originally Red Cliff but moved to the town of Eagle in 1921. Once dependent on mining and agriculture, today’s driving force of the area’s economy is tourism.

Gypsum

Gypsum was founded in 1881, named for the mineral mined in the area. It is home to an American Gypsum drywall plant and mine. Gypsum is a common mineral associated with sedimentary rock, used in plaster and drywall manufacturing. In the spring of 1905, Theodore Roosevelt spent two weeks hunting in the area; his small party of men killed ten bears and two bobcats on Divide Creek. When the governor of Colorado offered Roosevelt a special permit to kill deer and elk, it was reported that Roosevelt declined, stating that he did not wish to violate Colorado’s game laws.

GYPSUM HOTEL: Built by 1903, this hotel was operated by Mrs. J.S. Strauss in 1904.

SWEETWATER HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. N. Davenport in 1904.

TRAVELERS HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. W.J. Sherman in 1904.

ULIN HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1903.

Holy Cross City: Ghost Town

The Mount of the Holy Cross is the northernmost fourteen-thousand-foot peak in the Sawatch Range of the Rockies. It is located in the Holy Cross Wilderness, near the ghost town of Holy Cross City. The cross formation can only be seen from the summit of Notch Mountain, which stands immediately east of the Mount of the Holy Cross. The mountain was discovered in 1869 and progressively gained notoriety. Organized Christian pilgrimages to the mountain began in the 1920s, and by the 1930s, they were drawing thousands of participants. Once declared a National Monument, the mountain lost this status in 1950, when the cross formation lost much of its definition due to rockslides and erosion.

The Timberline Hotel, circa 1880–90.

The town was named for the distinctive cross-shaped snowfield on the mountain’s northeast face. A few cabins and abandoned mining equipment are all that remain of Holy Cross City. The first mines were staked in 1880, and their ore appeared to promise a boom. But the deeper the miners dug, the less valuable the ore became. At its peak, the town’s population was about three hundred, but most of the mines were abandoned by 1886.

TIMBERLINE HOTEL: This hotel was built sometime in the 1880s.

McCoy

This area is known for its fossil beds. Conifer fossils found at McCoy are some of the earliest known in North America. Other fossilized plant life and creatures discovered here include snails, crinoids, corals and shark remains.

MCCOY HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by C.H. McCoy in 1904.

Minturn

Minturn was settled at the confluence of Gore Creek and the Eagle River in the late 1800s. Early residents were homesteaders, but others mined silver in the mountains above town. When the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad arrived in 1887, Minturn changed from a quiet community to a busy railroad and mining town. The development of Vail Resort in the 1960s prevented the town’s economic downturn, usually following collapse of the mining industry. Minturn, more fortunate than many mining towns, is today a thriving mountain community.

AMERICAN HOUSE: This hotel was built before 1904.

D. & R.G. HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad in 1904.

Red Cliff

Red Cliff, 8,650 feet in elevation, was founded in 1879 and named for red quartzite cliffs in the area. There has been a settlement at the junction of the Turkey Creek and Eagle River ever since the Rohm party set up permanent camp there in 1879, making it the oldest town in Eagle County. By 1900, Red Cliff was a lively mining town with saloons, a bank, sawmills and an opera house.

The town’s first hotel was the Star, a two-story building with cloth partitions and a surprising reputation as the most luxurious lodging in Red Cliff until the Quartzite Hotel was built some years later. In 1882, the following hotels, in addition to the Star and Quartzite, were operating: Southern Hotel, Pacific Hotel, Mountain House and Iowa House.

Like many towns of the period, Red Cliff suffered from disastrous fires. In 1882, fire burned down the Southern Hotel and then spread along Water Street, wreaking havoc in that part of the town. Two more fires prompted citizens to establish a water system in 1887.

Town fathers were determined that Red Cliff would be a proper town. The bodies of two men who had shot and killed each other in a gunfight were refused burial in the town’s new cemetery, as it was thought that allowing murderers to be the first customers would give the new cemetery a bad name. As a compromise, the two bodies were buried beside the road to the graveyard.

In 1881, the Denver and Rio Grande reached Red Cliff and opened for freight and passenger service, with overnight Pullman Sleepers available. Red Cliff’s surrounding area offers beautiful scenery, including views of the Mount of the Holy Cross.

EAGLE HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by William Greiner in 1904.

IOWA HOUSE: NO information available.

THE MOUNTAIN HOUSE: NO information available.

PACIFIC HOTEL: NO information available.

QUARTZITE HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by George Jones in 1904.

SOUTHERN HOTEL: Built prior to 1882, the Southern burned down in 1882.

STAR HOTEL: No information available.

Wolcott

Once known as Russell, Wolcott was an important rail shipping point for agricultural products. The town was renamed for Colorado senator Edward Oliver Wolcott.

In 1886, a wagon road was completed to Steamboat Springs, and the subsequent arrival of the railroad in 1887 made Wolcott one of the largest shipping points on the Western Slope. At the height of activity, two thousand cars of cattle were shipped from Wolcott yearly, and the community catered to travelers and those involved with cattle transport. The town boasted livery barns, stockyards, a hotel, a general store, a saloon and a blacksmith shop. Wolcott’s prosperity came to a sudden end with the opening of the Moffat Tunnel in 1928, which caused rail traffic to bypass the once prosperous community.

HOTEL HAWLEY: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by L.S. Hawley in 1904.

WOLCOTT HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by H.E. Asmus in 1904.

MCCOY’S HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by C.H. McCoy in 1904.

GRAND COUNTY

Grand County takes its name from the Grand River, an early name for the Colorado River. It was created out of Summit County in 1874. Prior to the construction of the Granby/Grand County Airport, U.S. Highway 40 over Berthoud Pass and Amtrak rail service, this alpine-like region was mostly inaccessible. But the area is today popular for hiking, biking, golfing, skiing, fly-fishing and just about any other outdoor sport one might wish for.

Grand County owes much of its pristine qualities to the U.S. government and the State of Colorado, which own 68 percent of its land. As a result, the local four-legged wildlife can expect to continue roaming the county from Rocky Mountain National Park in the north to Winter Park in the south, with little intervention from the two-leggeds.

Berthoud Pass

This pass is located on the line between Clear Creek and Grand Counties and was named for Edward L. Berthoud, chief surveyor of the Colorado Central Railroad in the 1870s. Berthoud, along with famed mountain man Jim Bridger, discovered the pass in July 1861, while surveying a route for the railroad. Berthoud reported the pass as suitable for a wagon road but not a railroad, and so it is driven over today via U.S. Highway 40.

A postcard of the Berthoud Pass Inn, circa 1925.

BERTHOUD PASS INN: In operation from 1915 to 1939, at an elevation of 11,306 feet, this log inn stood at the summit of the pass. It was built by Charles Fitchett, who helped to survey the old Berthoud Pass wagon road when plans were made to change it into a highway. The inn was built for summer tourists to buy snacks and souvenirs, although skiers used it during winter months as well. The building was struck by lightning and dismantled in 1939.

HOTEL EVANS SPRUCE LODGE: This hotel was built about 1900 on the west slope of Berthoud Pass.

Corona: Only a Memory

This tiny settlement at the apex of Rollins Pass, at 11,660 feet in elevation, was built in 1904 for the Denver and Salt Lake Railroad. The town served as a shelter for the engine crews and consisted of a café, a telegraph office, a small hotel and a few shops—the entire unusual settlement was constructed under snow sheds. A brick, single-story hotel was built for tourists who came via rail from Denver. The summit winds were so severe that it was often necessary to cable down the brick hotel, lest it be blown away. In 1928, a tunnel was finished beneath the pass, making the railroad over it unnecessary. Corona and its hotel were dismantled and burned by the U.S. Forestry Service. Today, nothing remains of Corona but its ghosts.

A postcard of the Corona Hotel, circa 1918: “Highest hotel in the world, elev. 11,794 ft., Denver and Salt Lake R.R.”

CORONA HOTEL: Built about 1905, this hotel was razed in 1928.

Fraser

Set in Middle Park in the Fraser River Valley at 8,550 feet, Fraser was established in 1904 for the Moffat Railroad. Fraser, Colorado, and International Falls, Michigan, vie for title of “Icebox of the Nation.” Fraser’s annual mean temperature of 32.5 degrees Fahrenheit makes it the coldest incorporated town in the continental United States.

GASKILL’S: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by L.D. Gaskill in 1904.

Grand Lake

Formed by glaciers, Grand Lake is Colorado’s largest and deepest natural lake, dropping to 265 feet. Located on the border of the Rocky Mountain National Park, Grand Lake is the headwaters of the “Grand River,” now known as the Colorado River. The lake is fed by high mountain runoff; its waters are clear and pristine. Grand Lake has welcomed visitors since the Rocky Mountain National Park’s opening in 1915.

European hunting parties first discovered Grand Lake in the 1850s, building lodges and hiring local mountain men as guides. By 1867, the area was permanently settled. The town of Grand Lake was officially established in 1881. Its first residents were miners and hunting guides. In the late 1870s, silver was discovered near Grand Lake, bringing more prospectors into the mountain community.

Trail Ridge Road, usually open from late May to mid-October, reaches 12,183 feet at its peak elevation and connects Grand Lake to Estes Park. As soon as the road opened, Grand Lake transformed into a bustling town, bringing the usual strife. Political differences over location of the county seat led to a bloody Fourth of July shootout. But despite violence and the eventual waning economy, some miners permanently settled the area, while other visitors returned yearly. To accommodate guests, a number of small hotels were constructed, and local Lodgepole pine was the building material of choice.

This gave rise to a unique form of architecture still apparent in Grand Lake today—a rustic form of Victorian architecture identified by log construction and steam-bent saplings. It has been called Victorian Gothic and Adirondack Rustic. Many of Grand Lake’s historic buildings are still in use.

The Adams Hotel, circa 1900.

ADAMS HOTEL: Built about 1890, this hotel was destroyed by fire in 1903.

HOTEL BELLEVUE: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by P.H. Smith in 1904.

KAUFMAN HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. J.L. Adams in 1904.

RUSTIC HOTEL: This hotel was built in 1900 on the west shore of Grand Lake by Christian F. Young and his wife, Josephine, who later remarried and became Mrs. H.C. Langley.

THROCKMORTON VILLA: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. E.J. Throckmorton in 1904.

*HOT SULPHUR SPRINGS: Hot Sulphur Springs in Grand County is the site of one of Colorado’s many hot springs. Seven natural springs have been flowing constantly for hundreds of years, surfacing at around 104 to 126 degrees Fahrenheit. Over 200,000 gallons of natural, hot, mineral-rich water flow through twenty-two pools and baths every day at controlled temperatures of 95 to 112 degrees. These mineral springs were once used by the Ute Indians, who believed the waters possessed healing properties. The springs fell into disrepair but were reopened in recent years and blessed by a Ute elder. The springs are now known as the Hot Sulphur Springs Resort (5609 County Road 20, Hot Sulphur Springs, CO 80451; 970-725-3306).

KINNEY HOUSE: Built before 1886, this hotel was operated by Mrs. L.E. Farley in 1904.

MCQUEARY HOUSE: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. M. McQueary in 1904.

MIDDLE PARK HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1886.

A pool at Hot Sulphur Springs, 1912.

RIVERSIDE HOTEL: 509 Grand Avenue, Hot Sulphur Springs, CO 80451. Built in 1903, the Historic Riverside, renovated in 2008, still possesses authentic turn-of-the-century charm. It has fourteen guest rooms and a restaurant overlooking the river. Located on the banks of the Colorado River, the hotel is currently for sale.

THE WILLOWS: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Frank Byers in 1904.

GUNNISON COUNTY

Gunnison County is named for John W. Gunnison, U.S. Army officer and captain in the Army Topographical Engineers, who surveyed for the transcontinental railroad in 1853.

Cebolla Hot Springs

Cebolla Hot Springs are now under the Blue Mesa Reservoir, all inundated. Three historic towns on the Gunnison River were abandoned and flooded, or moved, in the 1960s, when Blue Mesa Reservoir was created. These famous fishing places were Iola, Cebolla and Sapinero.

Lost in the flood were the following hotels:

GOLD COIN HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1904.

IOLA HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by C.A. Green in 1904.

SPENCER HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. Campbell in 1904.

SPORTSMEN’S HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was ooperated by J.J. Carpenter in 1904.

VULCAN HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by J.A. Weirs in 1904.

Crested Butte

The first white men to explore the East River Valley were trappers and surveyors, Captain John Gunnison among them. The county bears his name. Once a summer location of the Ute tribe prior to white intrusion, Crested Butte soon became a coal and silver mining town and more recently has become known for skiing, biking and other winter sports, with the construction of a ski area in the 1960s.

The town is listed on the National Register of Historic Places for its Victorian architecture. One singular contribution to sanitation has become a tourist attraction of sorts. Crested Butte’s two-story outhouse, built in the 1800s, is still standing. Some years, the snow was so deep that it buried the outhouses, so a clever, unknown Colorado carpenter designed the two-story model, which can reportedly be seen today in an alley behind the Company Store.

ELK MOUNTAIN HOUSE: Built in 1881 on the corner of Elk and Fourth Streets, this hotel was operated by C.J. Del in 1904. The large frame hotel faced the Elk Mountains and was heated by several wood stoves, which eventually caused its top floors to catch fire. The salvaged lower portion was added to and became the Mexican restaurant Donita’s Cantina (970-349-6674).

Gunnison

This town, like the county, was named in honor of John W. Gunnison, surveyor for the transcontinental railroad in 1853. After the Utes were forced out, the white population moved in. Initially a ranching and mining town, it became a trade center for smaller communities in the area and is now a tourist destination.

Gunnison became the official county seat in 1877. In 1880, the railroad arrived, bringing hopes for prosperity. But by 1883, a bust had taken place and half the population left. Ore mined in the area was not as rich as its reputation, resulting in another mining town’s economy biting the dust.

But the Taylor River, Tomichi and Cebolla Creeks have long been known as some of the best trout fishing spots in the Rockies. With the opening of Crested Butte Ski Area in 1963, Gunnison has become a favorite tourist destination.

DAWSON HOUSE: This hotel was built before 1883.

JOINTED ROD RESORT: This hotel was built before 1904 and was operated by A.L. Wilson in 1904.

A postcard of the La Veta Hotel, Gunnison, Colorado.

A humorous postcard advertising free meals at the La Veta Hotel and Gunnison’s weather, 1914.

LA VETA HOTEL: This hotel was in operation from 1884–85 to 1944 at 219 South Boulevard. It was one of the grandest buildings in Gunnison. It hosted passenger depot facilities for the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad and featured a four-story center, with a mansard roof and dormers, open walkways with iron railings, second- and third-story balconies, two three-story wings, stone window lintels and first-floor storefronts. The finest materials were used in its construction; its black walnut, oak and ash stairway rose to a forty- by sixty-foot rotunda that supported a skylight.

In 1912, as a promotion, the hotel began offering free meals to guests on any day the sun refused to shine in Gunnison and kept a record of meals it had given away beneath the lobby clock. In thirty years, the hotel gave away only twenty meals.

But the town’s interest in large and impressive structures was over. Local organizations tried to rescue the hotel in the 1940s but failed, and the building sold at a sheriff’s auction for $8,350 in 1944. It was soon after reduced to a one-story structure; its valuable timber was salvaged.

THE MARSTON: This hotel was built before 1904 and operated by Vernon Davis in 1904.

PALISADES HOTEL: Built before 1882 on Main Street, this hotel burned down in 1905. It was a stone, two-story structure on a prominent corner.

Irwin: Ghost Town

Irwin was founded in 1880 near Crested Butte, following the discovery of silver in 1879. The population grew to one thousand within six months. But with the demonetizing of silver in 1884, the town’s economy collapsed, and many of its buildings were dismantled and taken to other mining towns in the 1890s.

The Hotel Belmont in Irwin (Ruby Camp), 1882.

All that remains are a few foundations and the town cemetery.

HOTEL BELMONT: Built prior to 1882, this frame building was a two-story, flat-roofed Italianate with brackets under the eaves, three second-story arched windows in front and six windows over the store on the side.

Sapinero

Sapinero was relocated to the shore of the Blue Mesa Reservoir after its original site, a mile away, was inundated in 1963.

RAINBOW HOTEL: Built in 1908 by H.S. Carpenter, this fishing resort was torn down in 1962 for the Blue Mesa Reservoir. The hotel now sleeps with the fishes.

SAPINERO RESORT HOTEL AND MERCANTILE COMPANY: Built about 1910, this resort was razed for the Blue Mesa Reservoir in 1962.

HINSDALE COUNTY

Hinsdale County was formed in 1874 from Conejos County, named for early pioneer and lieutenant governor of Colorado George Hinsdale. The least populated county in the state, located in southwest central Colorado, its county seat is Lake City.

Lake City

Set in the heart of the San Juan Mountain Range, minutes from San Cristobal Lake, Lake City’s climate just escapes classification as semi-arid. Extreme daily temperature swings are common.

Explorers first discovered gold in 1848 in the valley, but fear of Chief Ouray’s Utes kept prospectors and miners away until 1874, when the Bunot Treaty opened the area to whites. The Denver and Rio Grande Railroad’s arrival in 1889 brought affordable transportation for ore, and the mines swung into full operation. Until the silver bust, Lake City had two banks, two breweries, seven saloons, a newspaper and the first church on the Western Slope. Lake City’s most productive years were 1876 and 1877, when the population swelled to twenty-five hundred.

Back in “the day,” Lake City had a neighborhood known as Hell’s Acre, brimming with thieves, drunks, con artists and murderers. When two reprobates who ran a sleazy dance hall killed the Lake City sheriff, incensed residents broke the thugs out of jail and strung them up on a nearby bridge. The killers’ fate was roundly approved by most of the town, the paper reported.

In 1874, Alferd Packer, Lake City’s infamous cannibal, was jailed for eating five prospectors when the group became trapped in a blizzard on nearby Slumgullion Pass. He was tried for murder in 1883 at the Hinsdale County Courthouse. Packer represented himself and was duly convicted. He spent some time in the Colorado Territorial Prison in Cañon City but was released on a technicality. Afterward, he allegedly became a vegetarian and made a simple living selling autographed pictures of himself, a better career choice than that of lawyer.

Today, Lake City is an excellent example of well-preserved, turn-of-the-century architecture, maintaining over seventy-five buildings from the 1800s in one of Colorado’s largest historical districts.

LA VETA HOUSE: This hotel was operated by G.B. Whitman in 1904.

OCCIDENTAL HOUSE: This hotel was operated by D.T. McLeod in 1904.

PUEBLO HOUSE: This hotel was operated by J.T. Allison in 1904.

JACKSON COUNTY

Jackson County, thought to have been named for President Andrew Jackson (for some incalculable reason), is located in the high basin known as North Park. The term “park” comes from the French word for game preserve, as North Park was once filled with herds of deer, antelope and buffalo. There were so many buffalo that the Utes, believing the surrounding mountains held the game herds in the valley, called the area “Bull Pen.” In 1861, Colorado formed seventeen counties, including Larimer, part of which would, in 1909, become Jackson County.

Initially, whites avoided North Park, which was Ute and Arapahoe hunting grounds, so strongly defended that white settlers feared venturing in. But when valuable minerals were discovered in North Park, Grand County claimed it as part of its county, as did Larimer, and it was contested all the way to the state Supreme Court. In 1886, the court decided for Larimer, making the North Park residents unhappy until Jackson County’s formation.

Walden

This town, named for early settler Marcus Walden, is the Jackson County seat. It is built on a high plain at the headwaters of the North Platte River.

WOODS HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1895.

An eclectic gathering of townspeople, one dog and a burro in front of Woods Hotel, 1895.

LAKE COUNTY

Lake County, named for local Twin Lakes, is the highest county in the United States, bounded on all sides by fourteen-thousand-foot peaks. The two highest mountains in Colorado—Mount Elbert and Mount Massive—form its western boundary and are visible from most of the county.

Leadville

Leadville is the Lake County seat and its only municipality. Its history began in 1860 with the discovery of gold south of town. Some eight thousand prospectors flooded into “Oro City,” as they called their rough town of tents and cabins. During the next five years, more than $4 million in gold was discovered using sluice and pan—more than any other Colorado site. Within five years, the gold was gone. Next came the silver boom. Leadville became one of the raunchiest mining towns in the Rockies.

By 1880, the town had over thirty thousand residents; innumerable stores, hotels and boardinghouses; and over one hundred saloons, dance halls, gambling joints and brothels. Soon, the Colorado and Southern High Line, a narrow gauge railroad, was serving the mineral belt.

Horace A.W. Tabor, who owned a local mercantile store with his wife, Augusta, speculated in mining and made millions from silver. He built Leadville an opera house in 1879, followed by the Bank of Leadville and the Tabor Grand Hotel. He also left his wife to wed the divorced, beautiful and much younger Elizabeth McCourt “Baby” Doe. While society snubbed her, Tabor became an important political figure.

Leadville also gave opportunity to other financial careers, the Guggenheims, Marshall Fields and W.B. Daniels among them. Doc Holliday’s time in Leadville was less laudable. While there are conflicting accounts, records indicate that he shot one Bill Allen in 1884. Holliday was released on bail of $8,000, raised by friends, and in 1885, he was acquitted. Allen, who did not die, had the dubious honor of being the last man shot by Holliday.

In 1893, the repeal of the Silver Purchase Act ruined Tabor and many others. Baby Doe froze to death at Leadville’s Matchless Mine. Silver was over, but mining for zinc, lead and copper continued. Mining’s last great hurrah took place in 1918, when the Climax Molybdenum Mine opened north of Leadville, employing over three thousand workers and supplying half the world’s molybdenum.

In 1889, Congress established a National Fish Hatchery on the east side of Mount Massive, which is today the oldest fish hatchery west of the Mississippi River. Seventy square blocks of Leadville have been designated as a National Historic Landmark of Victorian architecture, featuring over fifty nineteenth-century buildings. Other local attractions include the historic mining district, the railroad, more museums than any town in Colorado and, at 10,152 feet above sea level, the world’s highest microbrewery.

CLARENDON HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1881.

*DELAWARE HOTEL: 700 Harrison Avenue, Leadville, CO 80461; 719-486-1418, 800-748-2004; delawarehotel.com.

Completed in 1886 by the Callaway brothers, the Delaware was designed by British architect George King and named for the Callaways’ home state. The Callaways started with mercantile stores, and as they prospered, they built the Callaway Block, housing the hotel, first-floor businesses and offices. This was a very forward-thinking plan for its day.

John Callaway was the first proprietor, described as a dapper man with wire-rimmed glasses, a derby and a vested suit who played classical music on a phonograph.

Notables of the day such as Butch Cassidy, John Phillip Sousa and Unsinkable Molly Brown frequented Leadville, in all likelihood stopping at the Delaware. Doc Holliday also stayed at the hotel, preferring a particular second-floor room with a view of Main Street, as he could check the street out front and make a quick getaway, if needed, by jumping out a window onto an adjoining roof and running down the back alley. During one stay, some testy business involving a gun and a bartender cut short that particular visit.

Even Leadville’s tragic heroine, Baby Doe Tabor, feet wrapped in gunnysacks, often came to the hotel’s second-floor office to write letters and warm herself, frequently staying most of the day.

The Delaware was extensively renovated in 1992, resulting in thirty-six handsome rooms on both second and third floors, furnished in antiques. Its ground floor features an antique shop, a bar in the lobby and Callaway’s Restaurant, a Victorian bistro offering favorite western dishes and an eclectic menu of signature soups, salads (such as pear-walnut and cranberry coleslaw) and a special Victorian sampler plate. Buffalo chili is a local favorite, as are home-smoked barbecued ribs, brisket and chicken flavored by Callaway’s secret sauce. Callaway’s also offers traditional Sunday afternoon tea, but for those not partial to cucumber sandwiches, Cowboy Tea and Sweet Tooth Tea are tasty variations of Leadville-style fare. Dinners are served Fridays and Saturdays, June through September.

The Delaware Hotel today is Leadville’s Crown Jewel. Photo courtesy of the Delaware Hotel.

The Delaware, known as the “Crown Jewel of Leadville,” filled with history and antiques of the era, is still going strong. In 2011, it will celebrate its 125^th anniversary with continuing exhibits, presentations, reenactments, a Victorian fashion show and special events highlighting Leadville’s surprisingly varied cultural ethnicity.

GRAND HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1879 on Chestnut Street.

PALACE HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1879 on State Street (later named Second Street).

TABOR GRAND HOTEL: The Tabor Grand was opened in 1885 at Seventh and Harrison Streets across the street from the Delaware Hotel. George King was the architect.

When the Leadville Hotel Company came up short-funded for plans to build a first-class hotel, local silver baron H.A.W. Tabor supplied the money, and the hotel subsequently bore his name. The four-story hotel had 117 rooms, steam heat, a formal dining room and a wine cellar. Extravagance was the byword, evidenced by the hotel’s lobby floor, which was inlaid with silver dollars.

The Kitchen Brothers acquired the hotel in 1887 and renamed it, not so surprisingly but rather distractingly, the Kitchen Hotel. But the brothers knew more than how to run its kitchen, and the hotel flourished for a while, hosting dignitaries and celebrities. At the height of its success, in 1891, the Kitchens sold to an investment company, which renamed their establishment the Hotel Vendome.

Two years later, the silver crash decimated local economy. Nevertheless, the Vendome struggled into the twentieth century, repeatedly changing hands like a square dancer, never closing. While the hotel still stands and has once again been named the Tabor Grande Hotel, it is now apartments.

HOTEL VENDOME: Originally the Tabor Grand Hotel (see above), this hotel was renamed twice by 1890. It was still operating in 1931.

HOTEL WINDSOR: This hotel was built sometime in the 1880s.

Twin Lakes

Twin Lakes adjoins two lakes at the foot of Colorado’s highest peak, Mount Elbert. The town was once a transportation hub for mining towns but has evolved into a beautiful place for recreation.

HOTEL CAMPION: This hotel was originally built in 1895 by John Francis Campion as his family’s “Country Villa.” Campion was president of Napite Mining Co. and vice president of the Denver, Northwest and Pacific Railroad. Upon his death in 1916, the home was turned into a hotel. It was reached via the Colorado Midland Railway and featured an oversized cupola and many windowed gables, with its own power plant beside the lake.

INTER-LAKEN: Built before 1886. It was a frame hotel with “Inter-Laken” painted above the door and antlers adorning the front gable.

MINERAL COUNTY

Mineral County is located in the mountains of southern Colorado. Having 95 percent public lands, it offers a wealth of unspoiled scenic beauty. A number of ghost towns haunt the countryside.

Creede

Creede is located near the headwaters of the Rio Grande River, which flows through the San Juan Mountains and San Luis Valley. The town, named for prospector Nicholas C. Creede, is the only town in Mineral County. At an elevation of eighty-five hundred feet, it was the site of Colorado’s last silver boom in the 1800s; at its peak, it had some ten thousand residents. In 1883, the railroad brought the first tourists to Creede, with the opening of the Wagon Wheel Gap depot. Fishermen could ride the railroad to a favorite spot, jump off the train, fish all day and then catch a returning ride back.

Creede was firmly established with the discovery of large deposits of silver in 1892, and the population soared. Simultaneously, a reform movement against gambling clubs and saloons in Denver prompted many owners of the city’s major gambling houses to relocate to Creede. One of these shady proprietors was infamous con man, Jefferson Randolph “Soapy” Smith, who opened the Orleans Club and soon dominated Creede’s underworld.

Creede also became host to Bat Masterson; Robert Ford, the man who killed outlaw Jesse James; and William Sidney “Cap” Light, Creede’s first deputy sheriff and brother-in-law of Soapy Smith.

One of Creede’s citizens made a respectable name for himself. Jack Dempsey, famous prizefighter, lived in Creede as a boy. His mother, who operated a local boardinghouse, would eventually be rewarded for her labors by her son’s gift of a mansion and serving staff to wait on her.

In 1892, a major fire destroyed most of the business district. Three days later, Edward O’Kelley walked into Robert Ford’s tent saloon and shot him dead. The town of Creede was willing to keep in the game, but the anti-gambling movement in Denver was over. Big city saloonkeepers took their trade back to their old neighborhoods, leaving vice business to the locals.

With the Silver Panic of 1893, Creede’s bubble burst, along with those of the other mining towns, as the price of silver sank from $1.29 to fifty cents per ounce, and most of the silver mines shut down.

But Creede was one of the few towns to have enough other minerals to stay alive and never became a ghost town, though its population declined significantly. By tenaciously refusing to surrender, Creede has today become a historic mining town devoted to tourism.

*CREEDE HOTEL: 120 North Main Street, Creede, CO 81130; 719-658-2608; creedehotel.com.

The first hotel by this name was built before 1892 and burned down in the town fire. Today’s Creede Hotel and Restaurant is located in the former Zang’s Hotel building (see Zang’s Hotel). The Creede Hotel of this century is a small, charming inn, with four restored guestrooms occupying the historic 1892 building on Main Street. All rooms have private baths; two of the upstairs guestrooms share the front balcony.

During the 1900s, Zang’s Hotel, once considered the best in town, declined to the point of being categorized as “extremely rustic.” But its bar downstairs was a popular hangout for miners, drifters and, of course, politicians. The list of its patrons is long, including western icon John Wayne.

Since its reincarnation as today’s Creede Hotel and Restaurant, the old Zang’s has redeemed its shady reputation, having undergone much interior renovation, while its original exterior remains much the same as it was a century ago. Today’s Creede Hotel, filled with history and more than a few secrets, is a wonderful place to rediscover the authentic flavor of Colorado mountain life in the late 1800s. There have been reports that a few old boarders may still be around; guests have heard and seen strange things in the night. Bring along your favorite ghost hunter.

The Creede Hotel, located in the former Zang’s Hotel building.

The Creede Hotel and Restaurant offers elegant dinners featuring hand-cut steaks, fish flown in overnight from Honolulu, ever-changing pasta dishes, local game entrees and much more. The exceptional food is enhanced with good wines, a pleasant atmosphere and friendly hospitality. During the summer season, guests can choose to dine in the hotel’s main dining room or among flowers and shimmering aspen on the porch or patio.

ZANG’S HOTEL: This hotel was built about 1892 by John Zang, a Denver brewer of beer and its proprietor. At one time, there were close to one hundred such “hotels” in Creede. Zang’s Hotel, whose humble owner named it for himself, was considered one of the town’s best. When the first Zang’s burned down in Creede’s 1906 fire, it was hurriedly rebuilt and soon in operation again. Of all the hastily knocked together buildings in early Creede, Zang’s Hotel, of basic but sturdy frame construction, was considered the fanciest place to stay.

Its five upstairs rooms, and at least that many downstairs, housed miners, drummers and others whose professions were less easily defined. Zang’s famous (or infamous) boarders included con artist town boss Soapy Smith, Poker Alice Tubbs and Calamity Jane, whose pictures upstairs in the hotel will terminate any attempts to glamorize them. Bob Ford, baby-faced assassin of Jessie James, also tucked in at the old Zang’s, prior to his own assassination.

Early photos show the stone building in back of Zang’s Hotel as a family-type dwelling, with a barnyard or court between the two. At some point, the stone home was converted into an apartment for the madam and the cribs, where her girls conducted business. Chorus girls from the opera house next door, which is now the Creede Repertory Theatre, used the cribs for costume changes. As the law began to crack down on prostitution, later owners turned these back rooms into legitimate rentals.

Nevertheless, and despite this minor affront to morality, John Zang and his wife ran a good business and were well respected in the community. Go figure.

Unfortunately, Zang did not meet an inspiring end. In 1891, a local paper gave the account that Zang had invaded the home of a woman whose husband was away. It stated that Mrs. Michael LeFevre, her clothing shredded, was discovered with the traditional smoking gun—and Zang’s dead body, shot in the face, on her floor. It seems Zang, fifty-five, had attempted to force his attentions on her, and she had struggled with him, broken away, grabbed her husband’s revolver and fled. When Zang continued pursuit, she shot him at close range, instantly killing him. Mrs. LeFevre, in her ruined garb, was found calmly washing dishes in the kitchen. That was her story, and she was sticking to it. Zang’s side of the gory drama will never be told, as he wasn’t talking.

Showing much emotion at the coroner’s inquest, LeFevre claimed that Zang had torn her clothes; had struck her in the face, blackening her eye; and had thrown her on the bed three times—and only then had she grabbed the revolver. Zang chased her to the kitchen, where she ordered him four times to leave, but after his failure to comply, she dispatched him with her old man’s .45. The coroner’s jury returned a verdict that Mrs. LeFevre had acted in self-defense. In an odd sidebar to the story, the paper reported that Mrs. LeFevre, having regained her composure, would be traveling to Denver with her husband to attend Zang’s burial at Riverside.

There is yet a belated clause to the tale. Mrs. Zang, after displaying extravagant grief over the loss of her husband, continued to operate Zang’s Hotel until 1919, when she sold out, shortly thereafter remarried and left the area.

Wagon Wheel Gap

The settlement was named for wagon remains found in the area. Settlers, including Kit Carson’s brother-in-law, Tom Boggs, farmed the land at Wagon Wheel Gap about 1840. In 1875, a depot was built by the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad for tourists heading to the area’s hot springs. By 1870, many had flocked in to take the waters, and as word spread, Wagon Wheel Gap was expected to become the next fashionable resort. But before that happened, the interest in spas diminished, and the area became popular for fishing instead.

THE GAP HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by J.A. Murray in 1904.

HOT SPRINGS HOTEL: Built before 1904, with baths, this hotel was operated by Ellwood Bagley in 1904.

PARK COUNTY

Park County is situated high in the Rockies in the center of the state and is known for its spectacular scenery and recreation.

Bailey

Bailey was named for William Bailey, who settled the area in 1864. Set in the Platte Canyon area, in the Pike National Forest, Bailey has long been a refuge from the stress of city life, offering exceptional scenery for camping, hiking and fly-fishing.

Glen Isle’s rare 1878 cast-iron and glass Victorian fish tank. The top tier of the tank is actually a fountain composed of four lions’ heads, which drew fresh water through a pipe in the floor and sprayed it into the glass and iron basin below. Photo courtesy Jill Dean, Glen Isle.

ESCANABA HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1904.

FAIRVIEW HOUSE: This hotel was built before 1904.

*GLEN ISLE ON THE PLATTE: PO Box 128, Bailey, CO 80421; 303-838-5461; coloradodirectory.com/glenisleresort.

Built about 1900, this hotel has been owned by the same family since 1923. This timeless, rustic hotel, situated on the North Fork of the beautiful South Platte River, is one of few remaining late Victorian resorts in South Platte Canyon, west of Denver. The main lodge features large timbers and a stone fireplace, and the dining room boasts an original, extraordinary 1875 glass and iron, two-tiered pedestal fish tank, which is also a fountain, and once housed fresh mountain trout for guests. Glen Isle is on the National Register of Historic Places; its lodge is open June through mid-September, and cabins are open all year.

THE KIOWA LODGE: Built sometime between 1900 and 1926 and known as “Hotel Beautiful,” Kiowa Lodge in Bailey was one of the many grand hotels along the Denver South Park and Pacific Railway. Unfortunately, few of these railroad hotels remain today.

Shawnee

Located in the Platte Canyon on the North Fork of the South Platte River, the settlement was first known as Fairville, but the name was changed to Shawnee with the building of the Shawnee Lodge. In 1886, James Price from England homesteaded the area, building the Grandview Hotel in 1899. In 1900, in conjunction with the Colorado and Southern Railway, Price built the Shawnee Lodge. Shawnee became a popular fishing resort. The local economy was founded on tourism, ranching, farming, logging and winter jobs at the Maddox Ice Co., which closed in 1937.

The sunroom of the Shawnee Lodge, circa 1905–10.

GRAND VIEW HOTEL: Built in 1899, this was James Price’s first hotel. The versatile property later became a private residence, a store and a cemetery. It was operated by J.W. Price in 1904.

SHAWNEE LODGE: Built in 1900 by James Price, this hotel burned down in 1929. It was operated by E.A. Thayer in 1904.

Como

Como is a historic mining settlement founded during the Pikes Peak gold rush of 1859. In 1879, Como became the site of a roundhouse of the Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad, which extended over Kenosha Pass to mining areas during Colorado’s silver boom. The roundhouse served as a junction for trains going north over Boreas Pass. The town retains many historic buildings, including the roundhouse, in the process of being renovated as a tourist attraction.

CASSELL’S HOTEL: This was a summer resort in the South Platte Canyon, on the Colorado and Southern Railway in Park County, operated by D.N. Cassell.

*COMO DEPOT HOTEL B&B: 17 Sixth Street, Como, CO 80432; 719-836-2594.

Originally called the Pacific Hotel, the first Como Hotel was constructed in 1897 to serve passengers on the Denver, South Park and Pacific Railway from Denver. The present owners operate the property as a bed-and-breakfast and restaurant. The Como Depot Hotel is on the National Historic Register, as is the restaurant, the Como Eating House.

Como, filled with railroad history, was an important center for the Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad, housing the largest roundhouse on the line, whose stone section still remains. The depot itself was built about 1879. Simultaneously that same year, the Gilman Hotel was built on the site. When the Denver, Leadville and Gunnison Railroad took over the line in 1882, it enlarged the Gilman into the Pacific Hotel, which burned down in 1896. The current Como Eating House was built in 1897 as a replacement.

Cassell’s Hotel, viewed across the pond, circa 1910–20.

Fairplay

Set in the center of the state and surrounded by mountains, this area was called South Park by early traders and trappers. The Pikes Peak gold rush saw a virtual army of miners stream into the county. The mining district, in about 1859, was first called Fairplay Diggings by miners who had been turned away from other established sites, where they had been refused a claim. The term “Fairplay” indicated that every man had an equal chance at staking his claim.

BERGH HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1904.

*FAIRPLAY HOTEL: 500 Main Street, Fairplay, CO 80440; 719-836-4699; stayfairplay.com/history.

The land on which the hotel sits was bought in 1873 for $87.50 by Louis and Marie Valiton, who built the original Valiton Hotel. The hotel’s name changed as the business changed hands; it burned down in 1920, forcing its closure. But by August 1921, prominent Park County citizens had rebuilt the hotel on its original foundation, following the original floor plans as closely as possible.

Architect William Bowman of Denver employed the Rustic/Adirondack–style for the hotel—fitting for its rugged mountain surroundings. By early June 1922, the new hotel had opened.

The hotel closed in 2008 but was purchased and renovated in 2010, reopening that same year. The hotel’s Middle Fork Restaurant, a full-service restaurant, serves breakfast, lunch and dinner in season.

The hotel boasts eighteen rooms and a reportedly long-standing ghost named Julia. It is on the National Register of Historic Places, called the Fairplay Valiton Hotel, to acknowledge its original name, the Valiton Hotel.

*HAND HOTEL: 531 Front Street, Fairplay, CO 80440; 719-836-3595. Built in 1931 by Jake and Jesse Hand, this hotel still operates as a bed-and-breakfast, overlooking the Middle Fork of the Platte River. It is acknowledged as a haunted hotel.

Hartsel

This town was founded in 1880 and named for Samuel Hartsel, local cattle rancher. Due to its location in the center of the state, it is cleverly called the “Heart of Colorado.”

HOT SPRINGS HOTEL: Built before 1907 near an area hot springs, this hotel could be reached via the Colorado Midland Railway.

The Hot Springs Hotel at Hartsel, circa 1907.

Insmont

In 1898, Harry Insley, Denver cycling enthusiast and member of the Colorado legislature, purchased land between Bailey and Estabrook to promote cycling and the great outdoors. The new retreat was named Cycle Park. Insley, president of the Denver Wheel Club, began developing his resort about the same time as other resorts like Glen Isle, Kiowa Lodge and Shawnee Lodge were being built. By 1900, Insley had moved to Cycle Park to oversee his resort. Cycle Park was soon after renamed as the town of “Insmont.”

The Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad brought guests to the area. Insley built a clubhouse called the Insmont Hotel, adding cottages for members and guests. A general store, railroad stop, icehouse and wooden racetrack for bicycle races and socials were installed. In 1902, an Insmont post office was approved. Insmont was soon accommodating the elite Denver Wheel Club, vacationers and permanent residents, and it flourished until 1909, when business fell off. In 1910, Insley sold his whole resort for $7,000, including all structures, to an East Coast investor named Martha Pauly, who divided and sold off Insmont’s lots and buildings.

INSMONT HOTEL: Built in 1900, this hotel was operated by H.E. Insley in 1904.

PITKIN COUNTY

This county, named for Governor Frederick Pitkin, was called the “Shining Mountains” by the Utes. Its 975 square miles in the White River National Forest are surrounded by peaks of the Elk Range in the northern Rockies.

Ashcroft: Ghost Town

Renamed from Chloride in 1882, Ashcroft was an active mining town south of Aspen. Within in a couple of years, Ashcroft had some thirty-five hundred residents, six hotels and twenty saloons. But in 1884, a rich strike in nearby Aspen ended Ashcroft’s prosperity, and people left, dragging their homes with them. By 1890, Ashcroft had lost most of its businesses, and when the town’s last resident died in 1939, it became an official ghost town. The Tenth Mountain Division used the town for training during World War II.

The remains of an unnamed Ashcroft hotel.

Aspen

An Indian uprising was technically responsible for the founding of this town. Nestled in the Rockies at 8,161 feet, Aspen was first called Ute City by miners who inadvertently established it in 1879 by remaining on the western side of the Continental divide to avoid a scalping by Utes. The settlement was renamed Aspen in 1880 and soon surpassed Leadville as the most productive silver district. But as with all mining towns, production and population declined markedly with the repeal of the Silver Act. Yet Aspen had other, untapped resources.

Entrepreneurs first explored the possibility of turning the town into a ski resort in the 1930s, but their plans were foiled by World War II. After the war, the Aspen Skiing Corporation was founded in 1946, and the town quickly became the well-known resort it is today, proving that snow was an even more valuable commodity than silver.

Hotel Jerome, Aspen. Photo courtesy of Hotel Jerome, a RockResort.

BURT HOUSE: This hotel was built before 1904.

CLARENDON HOTEL: This hotel was built sometime between 1880 and 1890 on a corner, with a wraparound balcony and a flat roof.

EUREKA HOUSE: This hotel was built before 1904.

*HOTEL JEROME: 330 East Main Street, Aspen, CO 81611; 970-920-1000; hoteljerome.rockresorts.com.

Hotel Jerome was built in 1889 by Jerome B. Wheeler, co-owner of New York’s Macy’s Department Store. It was planned in the style of the great European hotels to bring civility to what was then a raucous mining town. The hotel was one of the first buildings west of the Mississippi to be fully lit by electricity, featuring ninety rooms, fifteen baths, indoor plumbing, steam heat and a rope-pulled elevator. Following the 1890s Silver Crash, the hotel struggled to remain open. But when Aspen became a ski resort in the 1940s, the Hotel Jerome was restored and soon became a mecca for celebrities.

The hotel offers three restaurants: the Garden Terrace, the popular J-Bar and the relaxed Library, featuring locally inspired menus, sustainable cuisine and fresh, organic, natural and seasonal ingredients. With continuing updates, this elegant hotel is operating in its 122^nd year.

WINDSOR HOTEL: This hotel was built about 1887.

Nast

Nast was as a resort town on the Fryingpan River, west of Hagerman Pass, accessed by the Colorado Midland Railway.

NAST HOTEL: Built sometime between 1900 and 1910, this hotel was decorated in the rustic Craftsman style. The hotel likely closed around the time of the closing of the Busk-Ivanhoe Tunnel in 1921.

The office of the Hotel Nast, circa 1910. Half-log pieces fit together to form a multitude of squares covering walls, the stairway, the front desk and benches.

Redstone

Redstone is an unincorporated community, established by John Cleveland Osgood. It is located near the ski resort town of Snowmass and is known as the “Ruby of the Rockies.”

*REDSTONE INN: 82 Redstone Boulevard, Snowmass Village, CO 81623; 970-963-2526; redstoneinn.thegilmorecollection.com.

John Osgood, wealthy industrialist, did more than run a profitable mining enterprise. To improve living standards of the miners, and as a social experiment, he built eighty-four chalet-style homes in Redstone to house them. He then constructed a twenty-room lodge intended for use by bachelor employees and as a meeting place for the Colorado Fuel and Iron Company Board of Directors.

Today, the Redstone has become a magical resort in the Rockies. It, and the small mountain village located beneath the great red cliffs, is on the National Register of Historic Places.

Osgood’s nearby forty-two-room estate, Cleveholm Manor, built between 1897 and 1901 (also known as Redstone Castle), is open for tours (info@redstonecastle.us).

The Redstone Inn today. Photo courtesy of the Redstone Inn.

RIO GRANDE COUNTY

Formed in 1874 from Conejos and Costilla Counties, this county is the gateway to the San Juan Mountains, named for the Rio Grande, which flows through it. Late in February, sand hill cranes, the San Luis Valley’s oldest visitors, begin their annual trek north, stopping near the Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge every year.

Del Norte

Founded in 1871, Del Norte is the seat of Rio Grande County, located in southern Colorado.

HOTEL EL RIO: This hotel was built before 1930.

FORK HOUSE: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by A. Pfeifer in 1904.

LOVE HOUSE: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. W.H. Freeman in 1904.

WINDSOR HOTEL: 625 Grand Avenue, Del Norte, CO 81132.

Operated by D.H. Hill in 1904, this hotel, constructed shortly after the town’s founding in 1871, occupies one half of a city block downtown. The Windsor was the main social and commercial center for over one hundred years. In 1993, it was saved from demolition by a local benefactor and has been partially restored.

Monte Vista

Monte Vista in the Spanish language means “Mountain View.” This historic town is located in the heart of the San Luis Valley, surrounded by the Rockies.

The Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge is one of the area’s top attractions. Established by the Migratory Bird Conservation Commission in 1953, the wetland habitat provides refuge for wildlife, especially migratory birds. Ancient Native American petroglyphs in the area depict the sand hill crane’s migration, confirming that these birds have used the San Luis Valley as a stopover for over two thousand years. The annual Crane Festival is held here in late February each year.

Monte Vista is near the Los Caminos Antiguos (the Ancient Roads) Scenic and Historic Byway. The route traces the Rio Grande River and meanders through the fertile San Luis Valley and some of Colorado’s oldest communities, also passing the Great Sand Dunes National Monument.

Near completion in 1883, the Hotel Blanca in Monte Vista was a three-story stone building with a gambrel roof, dormers, an arcade, chimneys and arched windows.

BLANCA HOTEL: Built in 1883, this hotel burned down in 1902. Magnificent by any standards, the Blanca exuded an aura of permanence, enhancing the town and welcoming guests to its sturdy, elegant arms. But the unexpected can change everything in an instant. As with the death of a beautiful young woman, the unfortunate end of the Blanca is remembered as a tragic loss of something that should have endured for generations. Sadly, the Blanca was reduced to ruins in a blaze that occurred in November 1902.

COMMERCIAL HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by J.F. Anderson in 1904.

EL MONTE HOTEL: 925 First Avenue, Monte Vista, CO 81144. Built in 1930, this hotel was later renamed the Monte Villa. The rural community constructed the $112,000 hotel, designed by E. Floyd Redding. It offered all modern conveniences, including Monte Vista’s first elevator.

HUNTER HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. M.P. Hunter in 1904.

SIMPSON HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by John Hecker in 1904.

ROUTT COUNTY

Routt County was created from western Grand County in 1877 and named for John Long Routt, the last territorial and first state governor of Colorado.

Hayden

This town was named for Ferdinand Hayden, a surveyor who explored western Colorado in the late 1800s. With a history of coal mining and farming, Hayden is a quiet community near the Medicine Bow–Routt National Forest, Mount Zirkel and the Sarvis Creek Wilderness Areas, a favorite region for hiking, backpacking and other outdoor activities.

OXFORD HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by C.T. Bowman in 1904.

Steamboat Springs

This city, founded by James Crawford, is named for the Steamboat Spring, located near the town’s library. The spring itself was named for its bubbling, which sounded like a steamboat engine to early settlers. But blasting for railroad construction in 1908 silenced the chugging spring. In the 1890s, Crawford staked a claim near the Steamboat Spring and built a cabin near Iron Spring, the community’s favorite spring, due to its sweeter water. According to the book The Cabin at Medicine Springs, written by Crawford’s daughter, Lulita Crawford Pritchett, locals made a drink from the Iron Spring’s water, using lemon and syrup, calling the finished product “Steamboat Fuzz.”

The Yampa River flows through the middle of town, and today two hot springs are open to the public. The largest, Old Town Hot Springs, has multiple pools and two slides. A few miles out of town is Strawberry Park Hot Springs, with two pools and natural rock formations. Strawberry Park offers stargazing opportunities due to its lack of ambient light and permits nude bathing. In recent years, Steamboat Springs has become an internationally known winter resort and skiing destination.

BARTZ HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. Alice Bartz in 1904.

LA VETA HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1904.

ONYX HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1904 and operated by Gardner & Co. in 1904.

SHERIDAN HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. L. McGettegan in 1904.

STEAMBOAT CABIN HOTEL: Built in 1909, this hotel burned down in 1939. This hotel was built across from the Iron Spring and had one hundred rooms but only four bathrooms. Despite promoting the area springs as a health spa, the hotel was never fully successful. It changed hands several times, closing for periods of time, before reopening in 1937 for a convention. In 1939, fire destroyed the Steamboat Cabin Hotel, taking the lives of two people. The town library now occupies the site.

Yampa

This town, incorporated in 1906, was named for the local native Yampa plant. Yampa is reportedly a Ute word meaning “bear.” In the early 1900s, the railroad transported Yampa’s cattle, produce and lumber to market, and today the town’s economy is based on agriculture. Yampa has preserved many of its historic buildings.

The Antlers Hotel, Yampa, circa 1899.

Hotel Yampa. This hotel was a U-shaped log house with a sod roof and an elk horn fence in front. It was the residence of Ira Van Camp, who ran the stage station and livery stable.

THE ANTLERS HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1899 on Moffatt Avenue.

MONTE CRISTO HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1902 on Moffatt Avenue, next to the Antlers Hotel.

MONTGOMERY’S HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. Montgomery in 1904.

ROYAL HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1909.

HOTEL YAMPA: This hotel was built between 1880 and 1900.

SAGUACHE COUNTY

“Saquache,” pronounced “Sa-watch,” comes from a Ute word meaning “Water at Blue Earth.” At an elevation of seventy-eight hundred feet, Saguache is the northern gateway to the San Luis Valley, surrounded by the Sangre de Cristos on the east and the San Juan range on the west, with many fourteen-thousand-foot peaks.

The area was settled in 1867 by Otto Mears, who operated the first toll road above Poncha Pass. Today, cattle and sheep are raised there, and there is some logging on Forest Service land. Farming is done in the lower valley, where crops include potatoes, lettuce and barley.

Crestone

Crestone is a small settlement at the foot of the western slope of the Sangre de Cristos. Named for the fourteen-thousand-foot peaks east of town, Crestone began as a small mining town.

More recently, the Crestone area has become a spiritual center, representing various religions, including a Carmelite monastery, a Hindu temple, a Zen Buddhist center, several Tibetan centers and a variety of New Age activities.

HOTEL CRESTONE: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Jones & Sloan in 1904.

Villa Grove

This town was settled in 1865 by Colorado Civil War veterans. In 1880, news of the silver strike just over the hill in Bonanza brought Ulysses S. Grant around to look into silver prospects. But the ore was low grade, and by 1900, most of the miners had moved on.

Villa Grove’s original site was the southern terminus of the Denver and Rio Grande narrow gauge railroad over Poncha Pass. The town was originally named Garibaldi, after Italian revolutionary Giuseppe Garibaldi, and in 1870, Garibaldi was granted a post office. But in 1872, its name was changed to the less political Villa Grove. After train service was curtailed in 1890, the town declined and is today a quiet community in the northern San Luis Valley.

VALLEY VIEW HOT SPRINGS: This hotel was operated by J. Stewart in 1904. The springs, noted for curative properties, were located one mile from the Denver and Rio Grande Station.

SUMMIT COUNTY

Summit County was formed in 1861. As with most counties in this part of the state, its early history was written by the gold rush and the mining industry.

Breckenridge

Breckenridge was founded in 1859 to serve miners working gold deposits along the Blue River. General George Spencer chose the name “Breckinridge” for John C. Breckinridge, vice president of the United States. But in 1861, when the former vice president joined the Confederates as a brigadier general, the town’s Union-sympathizing residents altered its name to Breckenridge, changing the first “i” to an “e.”

Breckenridge is the location of the former home of civil rights pioneer Barney Ford, whose house is now the Barney Ford House Museum at 111 East Washington Avenue.

Since 1981, the town has hosted the Breckenridge Festival of Film.

ARLINGTON HOUSE: This hotel was built between 1880 and 1900 on Main Street.

COLORADO HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1904.

DENVER HOTEL: This hotel was built about 1889.

SILVERTHORN HOTEL: This hotel was built before 1860.

Dillon

In the late 1800s, the first town of Dillon was located in the deepest part of Lake Dillon. It was then a trading post with a few cabins at the juncture of three rivers. But as Denver grew, needing water from the high country, Dillon was forced to relocate for the reservoir that would become known as Lake Dillon. Dillon moved to the present northeast shore of Lake Dillon, with the reservoir’s completion in 1963. Some of its buildings were moved to Silverthorne, including the general store and post office. In the 1960s, when skiing became an economic factor, businesses again located in Dillon, and today the town is a short distance from many world-class ski areas.

The Hamilton Hotel in snow, circa 1898.

HAMILTON HOTEL: Built before 1898, this hotel was operated by J.D. McGrew in 1904.

ORO GRANDE HOTEL: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by Mrs. G. Williams in 1904.

WARREN HOUSE: Built before 1904, this hotel was operated by C.C. Warren in 1904.

Frisco

This town was founded in 1873 by Henry Recen, developing fast due to the area’s many mines. Enter Henry Learned, railroad agent representing the State of Colorado, who was hired by rail companies interested in expanding rail lines west. One such stakeholder was the St. Louis–San Francisco Railway, also called the Frisco Line. In 1875, Learned nailed a sign on a cabin in town and declared the area “Frisco City” in hopes of drawing the railroad line to the area.

Frisco was not named for San Francisco, California. Its name came from Learned’s combination of letters taken from the St. Louis–San Francisco Railway Company’s logo: the “Fr” from Francisco, the “is” from St. Louis and the “co” from Company.

But Learned’s clever plan failed, and ironically, the Frisco Line wound up running south from Missouri to Frisco, Texas. Nevertheless, Learned remained in the area and became a community leader. By 1882, Frisco (which had dropped “City”) was served by both the Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad and the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad.

Frisco’s mining boom lasted until 1918, and although the mines still produced some, the town was hard hit by the Depression. By 1930, Frisco’s population had dwindled to eighteen, and many smaller, less accessible mining towns were abandoned. But Frisco’s perseverance paid off; its population rose to fifty in 1946. With twenty-five hundred current residents, Frisco is skating into a prosperous future thanks to the ski industry, which attracts some three million people a year to the area.

The Frisco Lodge, the first building on right, circa 1890s. Photo courtesy of the Frisco Lodge.

*FRISCO LODGE: 321 Main Street, PO Box 1325, Frisco, CO 80443; 970-668-0195, 800-279-6000.

Originally a stagecoach stop, this lodge soon became a way station for passengers and crew on the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad. The Frisco Lodge continues to occupy the same building, its rooms decorated to retain the ambiance of the period. The Frisco Lodge, now a bed-and-breakfast, has been in continuous operation since the 1880s.

Montezuma

This town began as a mining camp, at an elevation of 10,200 feet, named for Montezuma, emperor of the Aztecs. It was founded by miners in 1865 after silver was discovered in nearby Argentine Pass. Incorporating in 1881, at one time it supported two hotels but declined following the 1893 silver bust. Located near the west side of Loveland Pass, it is often considered a ghost town but has kept a small population over the years. Five major fires have decimated much of the town, including two that razed many of its historic structures, among them the Summit House.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE: This hotel was built before 1910.

SUMMIT HOUSE: This hotel was built before 1900 and burned down in 1958.