DSP&P Historical Timeline: 1872: Governor John Evans, the 2nd territorial governor of Colorado, forms the Denver, South Park & Pacific Railway. 1873: Governor Evans forms a new company, the Denver, South Park & Pacific Railroad (DSP&P, . . . — — Map (db m293299) HM
Native peoples traveled through the Upper Arkansas Valley for centuries before European and American explorers.
Ute, Comanche and other tribes traveled on foot until the arrival of the Spanish and the introduction of the horse in the 1600s. . . . — — Map (db m107827) HM
St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church was located at West Main and Gunnison streets, across from The Princeton Hotel, which was built in 1893. The hotel survived two fires and was rebuilt each time. The third fire, which was in 1936-37, destroyed the . . . — — Map (db m293249) HM
The Ute People made this land home. Next came Spanish military expeditions and French fur trappers. The fledgling U.S. sent its own explorers west into the Rocky Mountains in the early 1800s. In 1806 the Zebulan Pike expedition explored the Buena . . . — — Map (db m293270) HM
The beauty and majesty of the landscape intrigued locals and visitors from Buena Vista's earliest days. Early newspapers touted everything from the scenery to the local hot springs, encouraging outdoor recreation and tourism via stagecoach, rail, . . . — — Map (db m293277) HM
Farms and ranches dotted the upper Arkansas River valley as early as 1864. The Mahon, Loan, and Bard families established some of the first ranches, portions of which are now part of Buena Vista. The area's first farmer, Dr. Frank Mayol, raised . . . — — Map (db m293274) HM
With the discovery of gold in California Gulch in 1860, getting to Oro City (now Leadville) meant an opportunity for fame and fortune.
It would, however, be twenty years before railroad service traversed the Upper Arkansas . . . — — Map (db m107833) HM
In the late 1800s, transportation of goods and people could be an arduous undertaking.
Gold and silver fever led many to endure travel up the Arkansas River from Canon City to Leadville.
Although arguably the largest and most notorious, . . . — — Map (db m107835) HM
Constructed in 1883 as the Bank of Buena Vista, the bank was transferred to the First National Bank of Buena Vista in 1884. The property was placed on the Colorado State Registry of Historic Properties by the Colorado Historical Society August 9, . . . — — Map (db m293199) HM
In Memoriam William Joseph Walsh 41 Replacement Unit No. 41 Medical Corps who died September 29, 1918, serving his country during The Worlds War 1914 1918 — — Map (db m293296) HM WM
Dominating the view to the west, the peaks of the Sawatch Range define the Continental Divide. Fifteen of the peaks in the Upper Arkansas River Valley are "fourteeners," boasting summits exceeding 14,000 feet.
Between the peaks, creeks flow . . . — — Map (db m158531) HM
Agriculture in the Upper Arkansas Valley was initially developed to meet the demand of area mining camps. The flood of fortune-seekers created a market for meat, flour, vegetables, and other foods.
French immigrant Frank Mayol, credited . . . — — Map (db m158536) HM
As trappers, miners, and settlers migrated west they encountered an arid environment. Early explorers referred to the West as the Great American Desert and many believed it could not be settled. Unlike the wetter eastern United States, . . . — — Map (db m158541) HM
"It is a town of only eight days' growth, but full of life.... There are now about 300 inhabitants, with fifty houses, tents, etc., and quite a number of buildings in process of construction, comprising one hotel, one boarding house, two . . . — — Map (db m281103) HM
Intersection of the centuries You're standing on more than the junction of US Highways 50 and 285. This place where the Sawatch and Sangre de Cristo mountain ranges meet has seen many travelers over the centuries. The Utes and . . . — — Map (db m281224) HM
With its rich farmland, natural hot springs, and proximity to busy mining districts, Poncha Springs seemed poised for prosperity. By 1880 the town of 3,000 was receiving eight daily stagecoach arrivals, the Denver & Rio Grande Western tracks were . . . — — Map (db m281068) HM
Not everyone who came to this junction of mountains and waterways kept moving. Prospectors and homesteaders put down roots here in about 1860. The first cabin, built by Nat Rich and Bob Hendricks, still stands in the town of Poncha Springs. In . . . — — Map (db m281265) HM
As settlements grew and the quest for gold and silver brought prospectors and miners, transportation for people and goods became critical. Entrepreneur Joseph Lamb started a ten burro pack train to carry goods from Caρon City to the Upper . . . — — Map (db m281236) HM
The Top of the Rockies Scenic and Historic Byway travels through spectacular scenery and is surrounded by some of the states highest peaks. In the nineteenth century, these mountains yielded some of Colorados biggest mining fortunes. On the . . . — — Map (db m281215) HM
The Jackson Hotel was built in 1878 by Henry A. Jackson who left his home in Kentucky looking for a place where his family could escape the turmoil of post-Civil War reconstruction. A former Memphis steamboat captain, Jackson found himself high . . . — — Map (db m309473) HM
The Colorado Rockies were once a great barrier to Western travel; then they became a great goal of Western travel. William M. Butler, Roof of the Rockies Of the 68 "fourteeners" 14,000-foot-high mountains in the continental . . . — — Map (db m281203) HM
Before the 1860s the Upper Arkansas Valley was crisscrossed by native peoples moving from summer to winter camps and by European and American explorers. The discovery of gold and other minerals in the Colorado Territory brought rapid change. . . . — — Map (db m293398) HM
Smokestack Construction Facts: Construction started: June 21, 1917 Construction completed: Nov 14, 1917 Last used: March 1920 Material: 264 standard gauge carloads of pressed, glazed brick and mortar. Chimney: Octagonal . . . — — Map (db m293380) HM
Chaffee County Courthouse built by Ray Lines Post 64 American Legion Architect De Morduant Approximate cost $120,000 Completed 1932 — — Map (db m293500) HM
[Roll of Honored Dead]
Frank J. Coscarelli Jack Rundell Joe A. Barnhill
Frank Holman Roy J. Barnhill John T. Fowler
Raymond Thorpe John N. Maestas Cyril J. Coster
Theodore D. Benjovsky Laverne F. Knipp Philip F. Scholl . . . — — Map (db m158549) WM
Frustrated in their attempt to climb Pikes Peak on November 27, 1806, Zebulon Pike and his party of 15 trudged on through South Park looking for the Red River, southern boundary of the Louisiana Purchase. After crossing Trout Creek Pass, the . . . — — Map (db m127876) HM
Salida hosts the nation's oldest whitewater paddling festival the third weekend of every June. This four-day festival blends a world-class whitewater competition with raft racing and light-hearted events. FIBArk began in 1949 as a bet between two . . . — — Map (db m293297) HM
Following ancient paths The history of Chaffee County as part of the United States began in 1803, with the purchase of the Louisiana Territory from France. But human history was established here centuries earlier. Many of the hiking trails . . . — — Map (db m116085) HM
Salida sprouted within weeks of the arrival of the railroad. Homes and businesses couldn't be built fast enough, and many families spent time camped along the Arkansas River. In its first edition The Mountain Mail newspaper reported that . . . — — Map (db m293397) HM
Life changed rapidly in the Upper Arkansas River Valley with the arrival of European explorers and the United States settlers. Spanish presence in the area and their interaction with local Utes was recorded as early as 1626, but official . . . — — Map (db m293431) HM
Up, up, up the Pass! This popular walking and bike path follows a portion of the Monarch Spur, the railroad branch that crossed the Arkansas at the Salida railyards and stretched west to the mining camp of Maysville and up to the quarry below . . . — — Map (db m293396) HM
With the acquisition of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803, the United States had extensive new lands to explore. In search of a new border While Lewis and Clark engaged in their famous Voyage of Discovery along the Missouri River (1803-1806), . . . — — Map (db m293486) HM
As early as 1880, when gold, silver, copper, and iron mines began producing ore in Chaffee County, a local smelter was needed. Several small concentrating plants and smelters were built close to ore sources, but most were inadequate. The arrival . . . — — Map (db m293381) HM
A legacy of hard work and dedicated workers When operating, the smelter ran 24 hours a day. Work was physically demanding and often tedious, but the men were proud of their accomplishments. Many smelter workers and their families lived near . . . — — Map (db m293384) HM
Electricity was introduced in Salida in 1887 when a group of local townsfolk created The Electric Illuminating Company. In 1892 the then-named Salida Light and Power Company built a 1000-kilowatt steam generating plant at this location on the banks . . . — — Map (db m52403) HM
Salida Equal Suffrage League
formed by Carrie Chapman
Catt here at former Baptist
church in support of 1893
women's suffrage referendum. — — Map (db m250652) HM
The Arkansas River in the time of the Ute Indians fluctuated dramatically. In spring, snowmelt swelled the river, causing flooding and bank erosion. By mid-summer, the river shrank to a shallow stream. In the 1850s, silver and gold miners began . . . — — Map (db m293298) HM
