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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- Million Dollar Highway Bridge over Bear Creek Falls
- Million Dollar Highway bridge over Bear Creek Falls.
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- Million Dollar Highway Near Ouray, Colo.
- A photograph of the Million Dollar Highway near Ouray, Colorado. The road is visible in the foreground with mountains and a waterfall visible in the background.
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- Million Dollar Highway below Ironton Park
- Million Dollar Highway below Ironton Park
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- Million Dollar Highway between Ouray and Silverton, Colorado
- The text reads, "The famed Million Dollar Highway winds around a precipitous outcropping between Ouray and Silverton Colorado. Travelers over the paved highway marvel at the scenic grandeur and recall the tales of the building of the highway many years ago by Otto Mears."
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- Million Dollar Highway near Ouray Colo.
- A black and white photograph of the Million Dollar Highway near Ouray, Colorado. The road can be seen along the mountain range, and cut down trees can be seen along the highway.
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- Million Dollar Highway, Ouray - Silverton, Colo.
- Million Dollar Highway, Ouray - Silverton, Colorado, a real photo black and white postcard. Shows power lines along the paved two-lane road with warning drop-off hash marks on the river edge of the asphalt pavement.
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- Million Dollar Highway, The
- The Million Dollar Highway winds southward from Ouray through much of Colorado's most spectacular scenery. Imposing Mt. Abrams, 12,800 feet high, stands athwart the view from Bear Creek Falls overlook. Typical mine buildings of San Juan Mountains.
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- Million Dollar Highway, near Ouray, Colo.
- Million Dollar Highway, near Ouray, Colorado.
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- Million Dollar Highway, near Ouray, Colo.
- Million Dollar Highway near Ouray, Colorado; a real photo black and white postcard, produced during the White Border era.
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- Mining Avalanche Near Ouray - 1936
- The postcard photograph is of a minning avalanche near Ouray, Colorado in 1936. Two snow-covered buildings can be seen on the left side of the picture.
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- Molas Lake (Colo.)
- Molas Lake.