"I wonder, sometimes, whether men and women in fact are capable of learning from history whether we progress from one stage to the next in an upward course or whether we just ride the cycles of boom and bust, war and peace, ascent and decline."
___ Barack Obama
By Rob Carrigan, robcarrigan1@gmail.com
Montezuma is perhaps the poster child for a Colorado silver boom and bust, small boom again, and bust, and then boom again.
The population was 65 in 2010 according to the United States Census for Montezuma, Colorado.
The town of Montezuma was founded as early as 1865, following the discovery of silver in the vicinity of nearby Argentine Pass, and was populated by prospectors coming over the passes from nearby Georgetown. Incorporation followed in 1881, with the local newspaper, the Montezuma Mill Run, publishing's first issue in 1882. In that issue, the Mill Run described a town with two hotels, three stores, three saloons, two blacksmiths, a shoemaker, and restaurants and boarding houses.
The town of Montezuma was founded as early as 1865, following the discovery of silver in the vicinity of nearby Argentine Pass, and was populated by prospectors coming over the passes from nearby Georgetown. Incorporation followed in 1881, with the local newspaper, the Montezuma Mill Run, publishing's first issue in 1882. In that issue, the Mill Run described a town with two hotels, three stores, three saloons, two blacksmiths, a shoemaker, and restaurants and boarding houses.
The town is a former mining camp sitting at an elevation of 10,200 feet, just west of the Continental Divide, nestled among mountains with peaks that reach an elevation of 12,000-13,000 feet. It rests in the upper valley of the Snake River above the modern ski resort of Keystone in the Colorado Ski country.
Experiencing a slight revival in mining interest in 1940, it has remained quiet since World War II. Five major fires throughout its history, including ones in 1949 and 1958 destroyed many of the historic structures, including the Summit House, which burned in the fire of Christmas 1958. Other fires in the 1970s and 1980s destroyed additional historic buildings and businesses, leaving the town with little current economic base. Currently, the town is experiencing a high surge of interest as the value of real estate in proximity to ski areas and with access to wilderness.
In 1890 — at the height of the Colorado Silver Boom — the population reached nearly 10,000, and had two stores, a post office, two hotels (the Summit House and the Rocky Mountain House), and a sawmill. It eventually had a smelter, which allowed local separation of the silver and lead ores, typically found together in the region. At the its peak, the mountainside around the town, located numerous mines on the Belle and Blance lodes and were operated by the Sts. John Mining Company, after which the nearby ghost town of Saints John is named. Saints John now consists of three cabins near timberline, at 10,764 feet.
According to the June 24, 1882 "Montezuma Mill Run," a prospector named Coley made prospecting trips through South Park in 1863. He went up the North Swan River, over Bear Pass, down along the west slope of Glacier Mountain, and past the site of the future Sts. John’s mine. Sts. John will be named after both the Baptist and the evangelist, as a result, Saints, not Saint. In 1863, Coley arguably made the first silver discovery in the Territory, although no one knew where Coley had been, until he returned from one of his trips. He had smelted his ore in a crude furnace, built on the site of his discovery, and when he returned to Georgetown and Empire, he showed his silver ingots.
"Coley’s discovery was reported to be on the slopes of Glacier Mountain and quickly it led to a slew of prospectors combing the high mountain valleys in that area. A few of the lucky ones made silver ore discoveries and formed a local mining district with their own mining claim rules. In 1865, M.O. Wolf, D.C. Collier, and Henry M. Teller camped in the valley below some of these silver claims and they, like any good pioneers, decided the location would be a good location for a town. The next thing they did was to start naming some of the surrounding mountains and in honor of the riches associated with last Aztec Emperor of Mexico, they also blazed the name Montezuma on a tree near Colliers tent as this would be a good location for a town," according to Mary Gilliland, in "Summit: A Gold Rush History of Summit County, Colorado."
In 1890 — at the height of the Colorado Silver Boom — the population reached nearly 10,000, and had two stores, a post office, two hotels (the Summit House and the Rocky Mountain House), and a sawmill. It eventually had a smelter, which allowed local separation of the silver and lead ores, typically found together in the region. At the its peak, the mountainside around the town, located numerous mines on the Belle and Blance lodes and were operated by the Sts. John Mining Company, after which the nearby ghost town of Saints John is named. Saints John now consists of three cabins near timberline, at 10,764 feet.
"Coley’s discovery was reported to be on the slopes of Glacier Mountain and quickly it led to a slew of prospectors combing the high mountain valleys in that area. A few of the lucky ones made silver ore discoveries and formed a local mining district with their own mining claim rules. In 1865, M.O. Wolf, D.C. Collier, and Henry M. Teller camped in the valley below some of these silver claims and they, like any good pioneers, decided the location would be a good location for a town. The next thing they did was to start naming some of the surrounding mountains and in honor of the riches associated with last Aztec Emperor of Mexico, they also blazed the name Montezuma on a tree near Colliers tent as this would be a good location for a town," according to Mary Gilliland, in "Summit: A Gold Rush History of Summit County, Colorado."
1. A pack team in Montezuma taken in the early 1900s. Men and pack burros pose in Montezuma, Summit County, Colorado. The saloon behind them (Montezuma Pool Hall) is a two-story frame building with a false front; signs by the door read: “Anheuser Busch Pale Light Beer.” Photo courtesy of Summit County Historical Society and Denver Public Library photo archives.
2. Montezuma, Colorado, looking north: Lennewee Mt. in the distance at the right, approximate date between 1883 and 1885. Picture courtesy of Denver Public Library.
3.4.5. 6.
Photos of recovering mining operations in Montezuma in WW II, including children of family now living in old hotel in ghost mining town now coming to life because of defense needs. Photos by Marion Post Wolcott, September, 1941. U.S. Farm Security Administration/Office of War Information Black & White Photographs.
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