If you're headed to Denver via I-70, don't pass the historic mining towns of Georgetown and Silver Plume without stopping. They're ideal for stretching your road-weary legs and taking a breath of fresh air.
But they're more than a rest stop. They're a bit of living history.They're part of the Georgetown/Silver Plume National Historic Landmark that includes the Georgetown Loop Railroad, a narrow gauge dating back to 1884 that today makes steam-powered excursions between the two towns.
The towns themselves are historic. Buildings constructed over a century ago when silver mining was going gangbusters line their streets.
Several of the significant structures are now museums. The Hotel de Paris in Georgetown, which still has original furnishings, opened for business in 1890. Today it is open to the public as a museum. The Hamill House, also in Georgetown, was the residence of one of the town's most prominent citizens. Construction was completed in 1881. It, too, is now a museum. The two-story Silver Plume School, where classes were held until 1959, was built in 1894 of locally made brick. Its four large classrooms now display town artifacts.
Both towns owe their existence to veins of silver ore, although the discovery of gold in the area by two brothers, George and David Griffith, predates the silver strikes. Georgetown was first known as George's Town, after one of the brothers.
The silver mines date back to the early 1860s. The towns prospered until 1893 when the price of silver plummeted. The population of Georgetown had dwindled to 300 by the 1930s.
The towns may have been on the critical list, but they didn't die. In the 1950s and 1960s, interest picked up in their historic value. The Colorado chapter of the Colonial Dames of America rescued the Hotel de Paris in 1954. And the Colorado Historical Society began the reconstruction of the railroad between Georgetown and Silver Plume in 1959.
The section opened as an excursion railroad in 1985.
But there's more to the area than history. You can browse through a smattering of antique shops and boutiques.
If you're into contemporary art, you'll find an intriguing range of works by Colorado artists at the Saxon Mountain Gallery in Georgetown. Fort Mackinaw Factory, next door to the gallery, sells homemade ice cream so good that, like Lay's potato chips, you can't stop at one serving.
Georgetown and Silver Plume are about an hour's drive west from Denver, making them an ideal day trip from Colorado's capital. The towns, both of which are within sight of the interstate, are only two miles apart, but they have separate freeway exits.
An added bonus: desert bighorn sheep graze on the hillside north of the interstate. Keep your eyes open - you can't miss 'em.
Here are some of the area's highlights:
- The Colorado Central Railroad hauled ore from the mineral-rich Rockies to Denver. The railroad reached Georgetown in 1877. But extending it to Silver Plume, a mere two miles away as the crow flies, took until 1884. Engineers had to figure a way around Devil's Gate where the canyon narrows and climbs steeply to Silver Plume.
A Union Pacific engineer designed a series of curves and one big loop where the railroad crosses over itself on a 300-foot-long trestle that hovers nearly 100 feet above Clear Creek. Thanks to the loop, considered the most complex in the world, the section of railroad became known as the Georgetown Loop.
The Colorado Central ended six miles west of Silver Plume, in what is now Bakerville. Its disappointed owners had envisioned it reaching Leadville, but Union Pacific arrived there first. Nor would it be the first railroad to cross the Rockies. That distinction had gone to the Denver & Rio Grande.
What once hauled ore now hauls tourists. Excursion trains run daily on the Georgetown Loop between Memorial Day and Oct. 1. Board at Devil's Gate near Georgetown (take exit 228 off I-70), or at Silver Plume (exit 226). The round trip takes a little more than an hour. The roundtrip fare is $10.95. Children 4-15 are $6.50. Children 3 and under ride free. Purchase tickets at the Old Georgetown Station in the original Georgetown Depot.
Also, you can tour the Lebanon Silver Mine midway on the journey. The mine tour takes one hour and 20 minutes. The cost is $4 for adults and $2 for children 4-15. After the mine tour you resume your ride on the train. Reservations are accepted only if you leave from Silver Plume. For information about the train call 1-800-691-4FUN.
- The Hamill House on Argentine Street shows you just how sweet life could be in Georgetown. The original section was built in 1867 by William A. Hamill's brother-in-law. Hamill acquired the house in 1874 and added onto it as his mining businesses prospered. By 1885, the house had been expanded to its present size. It includes an elegant dining room and a solarium with a decorative fountain. Central heating and gas lighting were among its creature comforts.
Historic Georgetown Inc. acquired the house in 1971. Now a museum, it's open daily from Memorial Day through Sept. 30.
The walnut woodwork, ceiling papers, fireplace mantels and a few furnishings are original. Otherwise, the furnishings are typical of the period.
Also on the premises are a privy, a carriage house and stable and Hamill's office building.
Hamill's fortunes plummeted with the price of silver. He moved to Denver shortly after the silver crash of 1893. He died in 1904. His wife lived in Georgetown until she died in 1910.
- Hotel de Paris on 6th Street in Georgetown was built in 1875 by an expatriate Frenchman, Louis Dupuy, who came West with the U.S. Cavalry and for a time reported mining events for the Rocky Mountain News. He worked in the mines until he was injured in an accident. After he recovered, he purchased the Delmonico Bakery in Georgetown. That was the beginning of the Hotel de Paris. Eventually, three buildings were joined together to make the hotel.
It had hot and cold running water and steam heat. Meals were supposedly excellent and the hotel had a choice of fine wines. (Dupuy had trained as a chef in Paris.) The hotel had two beautifully furnished display rooms where traveling salesmen met with clients.
Dupuy's private quarters are on the east side of the building.
The building is now open as a museum daily from Memorial Day through September.
Furnishings are original, and the exterior and interior walls have been repainted their original colors. The diamond dust mirrors, Haviland china and a library of books carefully selected by Dupuy are original to the building.
The Frenchman died in 1900 and is buried in Georgetown.
- The Maxwell House, also in Georgetown, is one of the best examples of Victorian-style architecture in the Rocky Mountain region. Located on a hill overlooking downtown, its fanciful facade shows many architectural influences including a French roof, Greek Revival pediments and Queen Anne patterned shingles. The oldest part of the structure was built in 1870. The home is privately owned and not open to the public. But it's worth a walk to 4th Street to see the exterior.
Silver Plume
Like Georgetown, the fortunes of Silver Plume waxed and waned with the price of silver. The town's population was 2,000 in 1875 and 86 in the 1960s. Today, about 150 people reside in what they call "a living ghost town."
The canyon narrows significantly near Silver Plume. I-70 separates the business district and residential area from the railroad depot where you board the Georgetown Loop train.
Among buildings that have been restored are the 1904 Silver Plume bandstand, where groups of local musicians used to perform, and the Small Town Hall that housed fire fighting equipment purchased in 1886. (The town bought the equipment as the result of the 1884 fire that leveled the business district and a number of homes.)
The Silver Plume School was built in 1894. In a daring move, the school board decided to build the school despite the town's shrinking population. The structure is now a museum that includes a school-room exhibit.
Among the historic buildings that line Main Street: the Catholic Church, constructed in 1876; the Knights of Pythias Hall, moved from nearby Brownville in 1895; the Blanton Building, dating from 1884; Morgenthau's Dry Goods Store, built in 1885; and the Neuman & O'Neill Store, constructed in 1884 after the great fire.
Hiking/biking
Among the many mountain trails is the Argentine Central Railroad Grade. For hikers and mountain bikers, it is 3.25 miles long and climbs 1,050 feet. It begins by the west end of the south frontage road near Silver Plume and follows the old railroad grade to Pavilion Point on Leavenworth Mountain.
Saxon Mountain Road, which starts at the junction of Main Street in Georgetown, is for high-clearance vehicles. It's 6.5 miles and climbs nearly 3,000 feet to the summit of Saxon Mountain. It has numerous switchbacks and beautiful views.