After we left Silverton, Co., we headed further up the mountains to have lunch in Ouray, Co.Ouray is named after the most famous chief of the Ute Indian Tribe, who made his home in the Uncompahgre Valley. Native Americans came to Ouray to hunt, escape the heat, enjoy the beauty and to use the hot springs. The Utes signed many treaties with the government but eventually were pushed out of the San Juan Mountains by the white settlers.
Ouray was first explored in the early 1860's but the big mining rush occurred in the summer of 1875 and the town was incorporated in October 1876. In August of 1875 the first mines in Ouray County, the Fisher and Cedar lodes, were located inside the present-day City of Ouray. By fall 1876, Ouray had 400 hundred inhabitants and by 1878 that had increased to over 800. The mining in the early 1870's was mainly focused along Canyon Creek all the way up to Yankee Boy Basin.
In the 1880'2, silver mining exploded on the east side of Red Mountain (bottom photo). In 1887-8 Otto Mears built the Silverton Railroad from Silverton over Red Mountain Pass and down into Ironton. For several years it was the most profitable railroad, mile per mile, in
the United States. Much of the right-of-way remains and can be easily hiked today. The great silver mines flourished until the mid-1890's when the silver panic of 1893 led to the eventual closing of most of the area mines.
The discovery of gold as Tom Walsh's Camp Bird Mine as well as the mines on Gold Hill north of Ouray saved the town and ushered in a new time of prosperity in Ouray. Mining remained the primary industry in OUray and the base metals, lead, copper and zinc kept the larger mines producing until the closing of the Idarado and Camp Bird mines in the late 1970's. Recently, the high price of gold had resulted in the reopening of several area mines.
We had lunch
at the Main Street Restaurant. Good food. then we walked around town before heading back to Durango. On our trip back down the mountains we saw more waterfalls and enjoyed the scenery .Love to all ,
Candy and Johnny
