Marker Logo HMdb.org THE HISTORICAL
MARKER DATABASE
“Bite-Size Bits of Local, National, and Global History”
“Bite-Size Bits of Local, National, and Global History”
Climax in Lake County, Colorado — The American Mountains (Southwest)
 

Welcome to Climax!

 
 
Welcome to Climax! Marker <i>(Click on photo to enlarge.)</i> image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 28, 2017
1. Welcome to Climax! Marker (Click on photo to enlarge.)
Inscription.
A whole lot of Colorado history has happened right here on top of Fremont Pass. And it all happened because of a metal most people have trouble pronouncing.

Molybdenum (moll-ib-den-um) is used to harden steel. More molybdenite ore (the unrefined form of the pure metal) has come from Climax Mine than any other place on the planet: 470 million tons.

In the seventy-six years it took to mine that ore, more than 60,000 workers drew a Climax paycheck. The company town across the road (which once boasted a population of 3,000) had a state championship basketball team, the first television reception in central Colorado and the highest post office in the nation.

The spot where you’re standing lay at the base of one of the state’s first ski areas, and there was a top-secret World War II observatory just up the hill.

There was a gas station, beauty shop, grocery store and luncheonette on this spot in the Fifties, as well as a saloon called the Slop Chute.

We hope you’ll spend more time in this place to learn a few of its stories, and come to understand what is truly special about the place in the sky called Climax.

The County Line War
Some of the most powerful magnets that draw people to a place are water and the potential for wealth. There is no shortage
Paid Advertisement
Click on the ad for more information.
Please report objectionable advertising to the Editor.
Click or scan to see
this page online
of either on the summit of Fremont Pass.

The Climax Mine property straddles the Continental Divide, and three major streams originate here: the Arkansas and Eagle Rivers, and Ten Mile Creek. Water on the Leadville side of the pass flows into the Gulf of Mexico, more than 1500 miles from where the water on the Copper Mountain side of Fremont Pass reaches the sea in the Gulf of California.

While the Continental Divide is a real geographic feature, the boundary line between Summit and Lake counties is not. No one paid much attention when it was established in 1881. At that time, there was no hint of the enormous wealth that lay beneath Bartlett Mountain.

The legal description of the county line was vague, but it was generally accepted that the Climax orebody was in Summit County. In the early 1900’s though, one of the companies that was battling for control of the newly-discovered molybdenum deposits on Fremont Pass filed mining claims in Lake County, asserting that the existing claims filed in Summit County were invalid because the boundary line was drawn in the wrong place.

The claims touched off a lawsuit between the counties that became known as the County Line War. The eventual verdict placed Climax Mine in Lake County, with the result that millions of dollars in property taxes were paid at the courthouse in Leadville, rather than
Welcome to Climax! Marker (<i>wide view</i>) image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 28, 2017
2. Welcome to Climax! Marker (wide view)

View of Climax Molybdenum Mine beyond the marker. Bartlett Mountain, Clinton Peak and McNamee Peak can be seen in the background, behind the mine buildings and structures
in Breckenridge.
 
Erected by Climax Molybdenum Company & the Federal Highway Administration.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Industry & CommerceSettlements & Settlers.
 
Location. 39° 22.046′ N, 106° 11.304′ W. Marker is in Climax, Colorado, in Lake County. Marker can be reached from State Highway 91, 11 miles south of Interstate 70, on the right when traveling south. Marker is located on the west side of Colorado Highway 91, at the summit of Fremont Pass, directly across from the Climax Molybdenum Mine, within a small park containing historical markers and mining exhibits. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Climax CO 80429, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Climax (a few steps from this marker); The Big Shot (a few steps from this marker); Life on the High Line (a few steps from this marker); Highway in the Sky (a few steps from this marker); Skiing on Top of the World (a few steps from this marker); More Than Just a Mine (a few steps from this marker); Top Secret (a few steps from this marker); Water Treatment Protects Downstream Users (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Climax.
 
More about this marker. Marker
Climax Historical Marker Park Entrance image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 28, 2017
3. Climax Historical Marker Park Entrance
is a large composite plaque, mounted on a giant boulder, overlooking the Climax Molybdenum Mine building complex located across the highway.
 
Related markers. Click here for a list of markers that are related to this marker. Climax Historical Park
 
Also see . . .
1. Climax Molybdenum.
Climax Molybdenum Company, a subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan, is the world's leading molybdenum producer and supplier. Founded in 1916, our global operations include both primary and byproduct molybdenum mines. (Submitted on September 5, 2017, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.) 

2. The History of Colorado's Climax Molybdenum Mine.
High atop the Continental Divide, the Climax Mine opened during World War I to meet military needs for molybdenum, a metallic element that enhances the toughness and durability of steel. (Submitted on September 5, 2017, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.) 

3. Climax Mine: A brief history.
When war erupted in Europe in 1914, Germany unexpectedly unveiled an arsenal of molybdenum-steel gun barrels and armor far superior to those of the Allies. As wartime demand sent molybdenum prices soaring, prospectors and speculators rushed to the tiny railroad water stop named Climax atop Fremont Pass. Of the three companies that battled for control of Bartlett Mountain, the Climax Molybdenum Company emerged victorious and began mining and milling molybdenite
<i>Molybdenum Company Mine. Climax, Colorado</i> (Photograph courtesy of the Library of Congress) image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Marion Post Wolcott, September 1941
4. Molybdenum Company Mine. Climax, Colorado (Photograph courtesy of the Library of Congress)
ore in February 1918, at the rate of 250 tons of ore per day. Molybdenum alloys proved invaluable for the Allies in weapons-grade steel, armor and aircraft engines. (Submitted on September 5, 2017, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.) 
 
Vintage Climax Molybdenum Poster - 1920s (<i>on exhibit near marker</i>) image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 28, 2017
5. Vintage Climax Molybdenum Poster - 1920s (on exhibit near marker)
Vintage Climax Molybdenum Poster - 1940s (<i>on exhibit near marker</i>) image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 28, 2017
6. Vintage Climax Molybdenum Poster - 1940s (on exhibit near marker)
Vintage Climax Molybdenum Poster - 1950s (<i>on exhibit near marker</i>) image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, August 28, 2017
7. Vintage Climax Molybdenum Poster - 1950s (on exhibit near marker)
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on December 13, 2022. It was originally submitted on September 4, 2017, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 684 times since then and 41 times this year. Last updated on September 3, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. Photos:   1, 2. submitted on September 4, 2017, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.   3. submitted on September 5, 2017, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.   4. submitted on September 6, 2017.   5, 6, 7. submitted on September 3, 2018, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. • Syd Whittle was the editor who published this page.

Share this page.  
Share on Tumblr
m=122900

CeraNet Cloud Computing sponsors the Historical Marker Database.
This website earns income from purchases you make after using our links to Amazon.com. We appreciate your support.
Paid Advertisements
Mar. 19, 2024