Volume 5: Telluride/ Ouray/ Ophir

These mountain towns are gems in Southwest Colorado. Telluride and tiny Ophir are in San Miguel County, and Ouray, not far away if unimproved roads aren’t a barrier, is located in Ouray County. Telluride is the most populous (about two thousand residents) and best known of the three, home to a famous ski resort, many well-known music festivals, and exclusive luxury homes. Telluride’s colorful history as a hard-rock mining town where gold, silver, and tellurium were extracted beginning in 1878 changed dramatically in the 1970s when the Telluride Ski Resort opened. Telluride’s elevation is 8,750 feet above sea level, a bit higher than Ouray’s 7,792. (source) Fewer than 1,000 people call Ouray home, but each year many thousands of tourists visit the charming village, nicknamed the “Switzerland of America.” Like most mountain towns in the region, Ouray was founded on mining (gold, in this case), made accessible by the railroad, and popular with visitors. (source) Ophir, Colorado, is the highest in elevation of these three towns at 9,695 feet. Gold was discovered in 1875, and the town was founded in 1881, but the mines decreased until there was only one resident in 1970! Telluride’s popularity in recent has allowed a few hundred residents to call Ophir home. (source)

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Burro Pack Train Scene, Near Ouray, Colo.
View of burros with wooden boards strapped to their back on a trail to the mines. A note to "Grandma" is written on the front.
Burro pack train (Ouray, Colo.)
Two men leading a pack of nine mules with packs on their backs; mountain peaks in the background are covered with patches of snow
Burro pack train en route to the Army-Navy Mine, Ouray (Colo.)
Photo of mules carrying wooden planks on their backs, on the back addressed to Martin Otes Y. Bradley on Derby, Connecticut; two postmarks; one-cent stamp
Business District, Telluride, Colorado
The text reads, "Telluride is a picturesque old mining town on Hwy. U. S. 145 surrounded by the most rugged and beautiful mountains that can be imagined."
Business district (Telluride, Colo.)
Photo of downtown Telluride vehicles parked on both sides of the street. One of the vehicles appears to be a sheriff's car. The mountains in the background are covered with snow. The Sheridan Hotel is visible on the left.
Cable for the Nellie Tramway (Telluride, Colo.)
Main Street in Telluride, Colorado, showing many horses in the streets and many spectators watching from the side.
Cable for the Nellie Tramway (Telluride, Colo.)
Main Street Telluride many horses with in the streets, many spectators watching from the side.
Cable for the Nellie Tramway (Telluride, Colo.), length 10,810 ft. weight 17,000
Main Street, Telluride; many horses in the streets, many spectators watching from the side, writing on the right side, on back addressed to Miss Carrie Coffman Fort Spring, W. Va. Postmarked Kansas City, Mo. Oct. 13, 1907 with one cent stamp
Cable for the Nellie Tramway, Telluride, Colo.
Cable for the Nellie Tramway, Telluride, Colorado. Shows many mules loaded with the continuous cable for the tramway, standing in the main street of Telluride.
Camp Bird Mill (Ouray, Colo.)
Original settlement at Camp Bird Mill pictured in a mountain valley. One slope is forested; the other slope is sparsely vegetated, showing some layers of rock.
Camp Bird Mill No. 3, Ouray, Colo.
Camp Bird Mill No. 3, Ouray, Colorado.
Camp Bird Mills, Ouray, Colo.
This postcard is a tinted picture of an overhead view of Camp Bird Mills in Ouray, Colorado. A great mountain ridge can be seen behind the camp, covered with a forest and several felled trees.

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