Monday, March 9, 2020

Ghost Towns of Vicksburg and Winfield, Colorado



In autumn of 2019, my husband and I took a scenic drive in Colorado into Clear Creek Canyon, between Buena Vista and Leadville, Colorado to visit the silver mine ghost towns of  Vicksburg and Winfield.


We took Highway 24 north from Buena Vista until we reached County Road 390/Clear Creek Reservoir.  CR 390 is an unpaved dirt/gravel road but it is easily traveled by a regular car or SUV.  The surrounding trees along the road and high up in the Sawatch Mountain Range had the beginnings of beautiful autumn color.




There were many beautiful mountain views along the drive.



In about nine miles we reached the town of Vicksburg.



Vicksburg was founded in 1867 after prospectors from Leadville, Colorado, who were camping out in the Clear Creek Canyon lost their burros. The burros had wandered down the creek and when the miners found their pack animals, they discovered gold in the creek bed as well. More than gold, however, the surrounding area was rich in silver and copper. Early miners brought in "Balm of Gilead" (balsam poplar) trees on the backs of burros and planted them to line the main street of Vicksburg, where they still remain


Vicksburg was the second largest town in the canyon, with around 600-700 people during its peak. A museum is open here on some weekends during the summer, run by the Clear Creek Historical Society.  Many of the cabins in Vicksburg are now privately owned and seasonally occupied.


Quite a few interesting vintage mining implements and machines were on display around the cabins.




After visiting Vicksburg we continued on our drive...



...passing an area that obviously suffered an avalanche in winter at one time as many aspen trees lay broken on their sides along the side of the road.



Between Vickburg and Winfield is a small assortment of cabins for rent where more silver-boom towns once stood -- the towns of Rockdale and Silverdale. There are rustic cabins available for daily rent here. We spoke with a forest ranger who was sweeping out a cabin and she told us fishermen, hikers, mountain climbers, etc, rent the cabins all summer.




Continuing on for about five miles we reached the end of the county road and the town of Winfield.




Winfield was founded in 1861 with the first recorded silver prospecting done in 1867. Located on 120 acres at the junction of the north and south forks of Clear Creek, the town made lots of 50×100 free to anyone who desired to build there. In its prime, around 1890, some 1500 people lived in town. The silver market crash and depression in 1893 halted the mining activity in Clear Creek Canyon. There was a resumption in the early 1900s and the last ore was hauled out of the canyon by two-horse wagon in 1918.



Please click on photo to enlarge it


The history of the town is displayed in an open book in the Winfield schoolhouse window.




Two of the buildings are open as a museum during the summer, hosted by members of the Clear Creek Historical Society, while the rest are now privately owned and occupied seasonally.




There were quite a few trailheads located at the end of Winfield. The Winfield Cemetery was a quarter mile down a narrow winding road that would require high clearance 4WD.  Although 26 people are buried there, only two stone marker stones for children remained. In 2016, a descendant of one of the men buried there worked with the historical society to clean up the cemetery and place wooden crosses on the graves.  If you would like to see a local Denver news video about that effort and the story click here.



Can you imagine living such a rugged life at 10,000 feet, all because of hopes and dreams of finding riches in the surrounding mountains? The gold and the silver rush is the pioneer story of the state of Colorado and became the "boom and bust" of many a town.  To see more Colorado mining ghost towns visit my post on the Independence Pass Ghost Town--click here--and Saint Elmo Ghost Town--click here.


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37 comments:

A Bit of the Blarney said...

Really beautiful photos. Brings back memories. When we were dating 50 yrs ago visiting ghost towns was a cheap date!! Gabe a grand week!!

Elkes Lebensglück said...

wonderful photos from this place!
Greetings Elke

Tom said...

...WOW, what a collection of picture post card images!

Lydia C. Lee said...

Really beautiful shots of the road in and the road out - what I love most tho is that someone had the pride to put the history of the town in the window to share with anyone that came along when the museum was shut. Sometimes the small things speak loudest.

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

I was thinking about my comment before I came to the end and I was going to say...I can NOT imagine living such a hard life there back then! Rugged....I'm not! Sure is beautiful but so hard! Love your photos!

Angie said...

Pat - you had me with the first photo. Such a quintessential Rocky Mountain vista. You know how much I love pioneer history, and admire those who eked out a living in such inhospitable places. That is why I look forward to your posts, with the peek into history and the stunning photos. Keep bringing it to Mosaic Monday, my mountain friend!

Ruth Hiebert said...

That looks like a wonderful drive through all that natural beauty.

LV said...

A truly gorgeous part of our world.

Southern Sunflowers said...

Amazing landscape photos! You sure did see some beautiful scenery. I'm visiting from Little Cottage Party.

Carol @Comfort Spring Station said...

I love ghost towns but Colorado is gorgeous anywhere!

Buttercup said...

Pat, your pictures are as usual, beautiful! As things change I'm thinking more and more on domestic trips and Colorado needs to go to the top of my list.

Lady Fi said...

Such gorgeous shots.

Fun60 said...

Fabulous photos and so much history wrapped around them. I can't imagine what it must have been like to be one if the first pioneers. At least they were surrounded by beauty.

diane b said...

I enjoy your history lessons. Although our scenery isn't as spectacular, we also have ghost towns with similar histories.

EricaSta said...

Colorado is wonderful... what lovely landscapes. I wished, I could be there to join the nature.

Happy MosaicMonday

Jeanie said...

I think if I ever make a trip to Colorado, I'll try to plan it in the autumn. These photos are beautiful and with all the colors and mountains, I can only imagine how beautiful it must be. That's a fabulous road trip and I love following along!

Sandi Magle said...

Fascinating post---this is on our wish list....I have been working on some historical novels, and one of them is set in Colorado...just before the mining. Fabulous photos....I had to pin them for reference...! THANKS!

Sandra Nachlinger said...

Colorful Colorado, especially when the aspen trees turn gold. Thank you for sharing your ghost town photos and stories. Fascinating!

likeschocolate said...

Looks like a great place to explore!

Photo Cache said...

Your Colorado posts are so impressive. I now really want to go and visit the state.


Worth A Thousand Words

ellen b. said...

The colors in this area that you visited are so vibrant and beautiful! Another wonderful trip!

Rajlakshmi said...

what a stunning drive. The lush green mountain side is breathtaking. Gorgeous collection of pictures.

XmasDolly said...

The surroundings are absolutely breath-taking! Thank you for sharing that. The homes are too. Ahhhhh if walls could talk right? I would love to go there and just take pictures & look around. The background of the sights from those houses are such fine scenery for sure... an artist's dream I bet. Thank you so much for sharing. I hope & pray some day I could go see a ghost town.

betty-NZ said...

These places intrigue me so much! I'm glad you share these photos with us!

Your link-up at 'My Corner of the World' is very much appreciated!

My Corner of the World

Spare Parts and Pics said...

The old mining towns are fascinating. These are particularly beautiful. Yes, it must have been an exceedingly difficult life. And although everyone was chasing wealth, I think very few actually got wealthy!

Anne (cornucopia) said...

Beautiful photos.

Michelle said...

I love those cabins. Would like one on my farm :) Thanks for linking up.

Jim said...

Great shots.

eileeninmd said...

Hello,

The old mining town is interesting. The views are just stunning. I love the mountains and trees. Lovely series of photos. Happy Skywatching, enjoy your day! Have a great weekend!

Yogi♪♪♪ said...

Great post, wonderful photos. I love the old ghost towns.
The west is full of old ghost towns and buildings. My mother's father was a powderman in mines and lived all over the west (Idaho, Washington, Idaho, Montana) in mines.

Carolina G. Ticala said...

amazing! Thank you for sharing!!
Have a great week! 😍😍😍

Joanne said...

What beautiful views.. but I could not imagine living so isolated all in the hopes of striking it rich. Thanks so much for sharing with us at Encouraging Hearts and Home. Pinned.

William Kendall said...

An amazing landscape to be in.

Lowcarb team member said...

These photographs are so beautiful.
The views, the landscapes are awesome.

All the best Jan

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

That first picture is so stunning (and so perfectly says ‘this is Colorado’) that I almost couldn’t tear my eyes away from it . But glad I did because all the pictures and your narrative are great as always. I learn something new from your every post. Thank you for the research you do and the fun way to learn .

handmade by amalia said...

Such lovely photos. I miss being outside, enjoying nature. It is a lovely time of year around here, everything is green and growing and the wildflowers are out in numbers. But we are told to stay inside, in isolation. Crazy.
Amalia
xo

Ciao Chow Linda said...

I can't imagine living like that to pursue gold and riches. But plenty of people did it, as your photos attest. How interesting to live so near and be able to visit these pieces of history. Stay well, Pat and Vinny.