Gold strike in the San Juans! Word spread like wildfire that summer of 1874, and the following spring prospectors crowded into this high mountain valley. In August 1875, the Town of Lake City, named for nearby Lake San Cristobal, was formed.
As more and more families arrived, log cabins gave way to sturdy frame and brick homes. Soon general stores, hardware stores, barbershops, saloons, and hotels lined Silver Street. Within three years, boosters claimed the town had grown to 2000 residents. The rough mining camp had become a full-fledged town—a gateway to the San Juans.
History swirled in and around the grand false-fronted buildings which formerly filled the area now known as the Lake City Town Park.
Beginning in the mid 1870s, this block was developed as Lake City's principal commercial district. By the late 1870s, this block was filled with a colorful assortment of businesses, ranging from Chinese laundries and restaurants, to banks, saloons, assay offices, barber shops, jewelry stores, theatres, and doctors' and attorneys' offices.
The block's numerous saloons and gambling halls, where revelry went on around the clock, were supposedly visited by such well known figures as Jesse James, Billy the Kid, and “Poker Alice” Duffield.
By 1915, however, Lake City's days of all-night revelry were clearly at an end. In the early morning of June 23, 1915, a fire burned the remains of the buildings in the block along Silver Street. Over time, the area was gradually developed into a park, as it remains today.
John Simpson Hough used profits from his successful mining ventures to build the Hough Block between 1880 and 1882. The building has two sections, each approximately 25 ft. wide by 100 feet deep. This building and the Stone Bank Block, which sits diagonally across the street, are the most significant features of the historic commercial district of Lake City.
The degree of craftsmanship and materials used in the construction of the building are remarkable given the fact that Lake City existed in what was at that time a remote section of Colorado. The building's plate glass windows (the largest of which measured 6' 2” by 12') and approximately 7 1/2 tons of ornamental cast iron were freighted to Lake City.
The Stone Bank Block was constructed by the First National Bank of Lake City in conjunction with John S. Hough. Cost of the cut stone structure, with furnishings, was $22,000 when it was completed in August 1877.
After several decades as a bank, the building has housed the Lake City Post Office, a confectionery, movie theatre, electric power company, a hotel, restaurant, and the Elkhorn Hotel. In 1983, the building was restored and opened as the First National Bank of Lake City, the first bank to open in the county in 69 years.
This site, Lot 9 in Block 57, had an uncertain future at one point in its history. The lot was vacant in 1902 when a prosperous laundryman named Quong On Wah decided to expand his business by constructing a larger building for a steam laundry. Construction was started on the massive stone walls, but the increase in business failed to happen, and Quong Wah left Lake City, leaving the building unfinished.
In 1908, the local Masons of Crystal Lake Lodge #34 purchased this lot and its partially-built structure, completing the walls, brick front, and roof. The building has served in this capacity ever since.
Built in 1883, this building was almost immediately known as Armory Hall due to the fact that Lake City's Pitkin Guards took a long-term lease on the building. The main hall as used for the Guards' drill room, while rooms in the east end of the building were fitted up for battalion headquarters, including a meeting area, gun room, and closets for storage of uniforms.
The Guards were known for their public entertainments held throughout the year. These included the Pitkin Guards Band in the 1880s, and the annual Washington's Birthday Masquerade Ball.
The Armory Hall has served as a public meeting hall continuously, and has housed the Pitkin Guards, a men's club, and in the early 1900s, the Lake City Greens basketball team. The Armory continues to be used today for community meetings, recreation, and celebrations.
Built as a wedding gift for Lake City's first bride and groom, Kitty Eastman and Davie Hughes, in 1876, the log cabin core of this building was quickly camouflaged with clapboard when it served as the law office of prominent attorney John Calhoun Bell from 1879 to 1885. Kitty Eastman was the granddaughter of one of Lake City's founders, John D. Bartholf. Bell was the prosecuting attorney at the homicide trial of Alferd Packer in Lake City in 1883.
During his six-plus decades as a Lake City resident from the mid-1890s through the late 1940s, Missouri native William Francis “Billy” Green (1866-1950) was a versatile businessman and public official who also happened to be an inveterate tinkerer.
Green's life-long fascination with mechanics was at least partially responsible for this landmark brick garage building which was built in 1917-1918 to house two automobiles, complete with a stand up grease pit excavated into the floor.
The First Baptist Church of Lake City was organized in 1883. By 1891, members had raised enough funds to begin construction of their church structure, timber for which was cut from 71 Mountain above Lake San Cristobal. The new building was dedicated in January 1892 by the Reverend Charles A Parker.
Novel features of the church included elaborate memorial windows, which were the first stained glass windows placed in a Lake City church. The building consists of a 36 by 22 foot auditorium with seating for 102, and an adjoining lecture room which can seat 35. The steeple is 45 feet tall.
Rather than the bustling commercial district which Lake City town fathers originally envisioned, from the late 1870s the south end of Bluff Street developed as an around-the-clock carnival of saloons, dance halls, and brothels which was informally known as the Red Light District or “Hell's Acre.”
Depending on the economic ebb and flow, Lake City's dance halls and brothels were primarily confined to the west side of Bluff Street near the entrance to Henson Creek. In economic boom times, however, the district overflowed up Henson Creek and the east side of Bluff Street as far as this residence, 216 Bluff Street, which in the early 1890s probably served as a “crib” for one or two women whose virtue, according to newspaper accounts of the time, was “frail as ocean foam.”
In 1874, Enos Hotchkiss, John Bartholf, and Henry Finley were a part of a road building party which passed through the area while constructing Otto Mears' Saguache & San Juan Toll Road. The men were the first to build a human settlement in this valley, and staked the famous Hotchkiss Mine (later known as the Golden Fleece).
Finley was also a partner in the town's first sawmill, and the first president of the Lake City Town company. In 1877, in partnership with Schiffer & Co. of Santa Fe, Finley built this structure to house a general merchandise store. Finley himself, a stone mason, crafted the stone front on the building, which was known at the time as the Stone Trade Palace.
George Edwards (1901-1981) and other newly arrived post-World War II businessmen took part in what was referred to as the “Revolt of the 1940s” in which long time Lake City local residents were displaced by new investors. Edwards opened his new 18-unit motel in July 1949.
Innovative at the time, each unit contained propane wall heaters, private showers and baths, flush toilets, electric refrigerators, and hot and cold running water. The distinctive “Matterhorn Motel” sign on top of the building is a rare remaining example of vintage neon in Lake City.
George Edwards at first favored demolishing the neighboring Baptist Church to provide additional room for his motel, but later changed his mind and paid off the mortgage on the church building in return for permission to use the building to project movies for his guests two nights a week.
The Bent Mule Barn is representative of the variety of outbuildings constructed in Lake City in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as reflected in its rectangular plan, board siding, and simple frame construction. This barn was originally associated with the residence of Charles Hammond Bent, whose home stood at the front of this lot until it burned to the ground in 1918.
In 2010, volunteers stabilized and re-roofed the Mule Barn in a cooperative effort between the property owners, the Town of Lake City, and Colorado Preservation, Inc.'s HistoriCorps program.
Businessman Peter P. Kennedy (1834-1904) is responsible for this home which, architecturally, represents a succession of building styles and mirrors Kennedy's economic standing in the community. A shoemaker by trade, Kennedy acquired shares in the virtually worthless Golden Fleece Mine at Lake San Cristobal, which unexpectedly boomed in the late 1890s and made Kennedy a wealthy man.
Originally a spare Greek Revival style, 1 1/2 story house, Kennedy expanded the home in 1891 and 1892, with Queen Anne style elements, including a two-story bay window with stained and frosted glass. These materials reflect the greater availability of materials due to the 1889 completion of the Lake City branch of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad.
Portions of this pioneer dwelling, were constructed by Dr. George A. Kellogg in the mid 1870s. For many years, the house was owned by Henry and Mary Avery, who purchased it in 1900 and completed extensive remodeling in 1903. The present appearance reflects the changes made to it during the time the Averys lived here.
Unlike many area homes which consisted of four walls and a roof, this house was notable for its landscaping. Dr. Kellogg planted the grounds with young cottonwood and spruce trees, then seeded the lawn with blue grass and white clover. While the Averys later made substantial changes to the house, they retained much of the landscape that had been made by Dr. Kellogg.
Mary Avery was a local school teacher, and Henry Avery was involved in the community, serving as mayor, captain of the Pitkin Guards, a member of the town council, and as Hinsdale County Judge.
In 1881, Henry Kohler, one of Lake City's first entrepreneurs and druggists, returned to his home of Germany to retrieve his sweetheart. Kohler and his new bride, Sophia Nachtigall Kohler, sailed for the United States, and upon their arrival in Lake City, Kohler presented this new brick home to his wife as a wedding present.
Kohler had contracted the construction of the home to builders Samuel Tarkington, Jack Wells, and Antone Fjelle, and at the time this was one of the costliest and most modern homes in Lake City.
Among the earliest numerous racial minorities to take up residence in Lake City in the initial 1876-77 economic boom were African Americans who were freed in the wake of the Civil War.
Among them were Willis and Emily Williams, former slaves from Kentucky and Virginia, who constructed this frame cottage in 1888 as part of a dairy and farm operation. In addition to their work at one of Lake City's hotels, Willis and Emily were early Lake City entrepreneurs, utilizing proceeds from their laundry and dairy business to construct this house and develop a herd of dairy cattle which grazed in a pasture across the street. The Williams produced turkeys, vegetables, potatoes, milk, cream, and butter.
According to children growing up in Lake City at the time, Willis and Emily were local favorites, telling stories of their days on the old plantations, and occasionally illustrating their tales by showing the wide-eyed children the brands which remained as scars on their arms.
By the early 1900s, Lake City had its first organized baseball team, the Lake City Blues, which played in a league that included Salida, Gunnison, Montrose, Delta, Olathe, and Grand Junction.
Carolyn and Clarence Wright, in their book Tiny Hinsdale of the San Juan, refer to the ball field: “On Sunday afternoons, they (the ball team) met across the river on the flat later known as the ball park.” Early Lake City residents remember the saying, “let's go to the ball game on the flats,” which eventually became, “let's go to the ball flats.”
The Silver Thread Byway traces the first roads through the San Juan Mountains. In 1874, the Saguache and San Juan Toll Road was built into this high valley. The following summer, the Antelope Park and Lake City Toll Road snaked over Slumgullion Pass—11,000 feet high. Soon twelve freight wagons a day rumbled into Lake City.
Passengers arrived in Concord stage coaches drawn by teams of six horses. Said one passenger, “A trip on one of those coaches was something to be remembered.” Within a few years, toll roads defying the imagination linked the far flung mining camps of the San Juans. Like the Silver Thread Byway, many of the old roads, as well as the Ute Indian trails, are part of today's state highway system.
Lake City pioneer Harry Youmans envisioned a magnificent showplace when he commissioned architect Jefferson J. Marsh to build this stylish Queen Anne-style residence in 1892.
Building as a speculative venture, the house was intended to be noticed: located on a spacious corner location, it was originally painted in rainbow hues of light green, yellow, and blue. The pediment over the corner veranda was brilliant in shades of crimson and yellow, representing a sunrise.
It was among the first Lake City homes to be wired for electricity; upon its completion in 1895, Youmans directed that the lights be left on day and night in order for passerby to admire the residence.
From 1900 to 1978, the home remained in the family of Alexander Carey, a prominent businessman who owned local saloons, and a confectionery and pool hall.
This location has played an important role in the education of Lake City area children for over a century. Hinsdale County School District No. 1 was formed in 1876, and enrolled 28 students in the county's first public school. The school was one of the earliest schools on the Western Slope of Colorado.
A two-story brick school was built in 1880 and was used until 1949 when, due to structural deterioration, the second story was removed. In 1987, the remainder of the building was demolished, and a new school was built on a site immediately behind the old location.
St. James Episcopal Chapel is located in a single story frame building with clapboard siding. The interior of the small chapel is arguably the best preserved of Lake City's four existing churches, featuring original, locally constructed pews, reading desk, 1910 Estes organ, tuned railing, and altar accouterments.
Two hand-forged steel tie rods span the interior from the east wall to the west wall. The building was constructed in 1875 as a carpentry shop for the Turner & Lyons firm. For a short period, the building was leased to the Hinsdale County school district, making this the oldest school building in the region. In March 1877, the building was leased to the local Episcopal Society, and it has been used for this purpose ever since.
In June 1876, Rev. Alexander Darley arrived in Lake City and gathered enough signatures to charter a congregation, making Lake City's Presbyterian Church the first church organized on the Western Slope of Colorado.
Darley's brother, George, a carpenter, began construction of the church in August of 1876. The steeple was added in 1882 by carpenter Antone Fjelle. After completion, George Darley continued to live in Lake City as the first pastor of this congregation. The adjacent Manse was built by George Darley in 1878-79.
John Simpson Hough was one of the notable pioneers of Colorado, an entrepreneur, member of the 1876 Colorado Constitutional Convention, and in 1880, candidate for Colorado governor. Hough was also responsible for constructing several important Lake City buildings, including the Hough Block and the Stone Bank Block.
This home was constructed in 1877 by Hough in an architectural style which has elements of Greek Revival with touches of Italianate, notably seen in the square bay window and porch ornamentation. The central portion of the residence measured 15 by 30 ft. with two 15 by 15 ft wings.
H.E. Turner built this two-story, squared-log house in 1877. It wasn't until a few years later, with increased prosperity, that the original logs were covered by the more up-to-date and fashionable wood lap siding which remains today. Turner's original 18 by 30 ft. log house with 12 by 32 ft. ell at the rear reportedly cost $3000 when it was built.
Built in 1891 by Hiram May, this home has had a string of residents significant to Lake City's history, including George Bardwell, one of western Colorado's most notable attorneys, and Professor Herbert Heath, who dedicated his career to building Lake City's educational system.
G & M Cabins consists of 9 cabins built from 1936 to 1937 by H.B. “Jimmy” Grant and 6 additional cabins built later, in 1948 by brothers Max and Glenn Hersinger. The G & M Cabins are named for the initials of the two brothers. Max Hersinger once noted that he originally came to Lake City for the fishing, as the fish “were so plentiful you couldn't give them away.”
The cabins are configured around a central court, with an owner's residence and office at the northwest corner of the property.
Following a 140 mile ride on a burro over the toll road from Del Norte, Susan B. Anthony arrived in Lake City on September 19, 1877. Curious miners and residents streamed into town to hear Anthony speak about women's suffrage, but the newly constructed Hinsdale County Courthouse could not hold the crowd. The presentation was moved outside, where Anthony addressed hundreds of men and women, to their cheers and shouts.
One audience member was the young J. Warner Mills, who was inspired by the speech and for much of his career represented minorities whose voices might not have otherwise been heard. Mills later went to Denver and drafted the text of the Colorado Equal Rights amendment, which passed in 1893.
The present day route of the Silver Thread Byway follows in large degree two old toll roads: the Del Norte & Antelope Park Toll Road and the Antelope Park & Lake City Toll Road. These roads were instrumental in bringing settlers into the Lake Fork valley in the mid to late 1870s.
Barlow & Sanderson Stage & Express Line received the government mail contract to Lake City and started regular coach service to Lake City from 1876 to 1884. This site commemorates the location of Lake City's first post office in July 1875.
This house was built circa 1880 by Joseph B. Michaels, and is the only remaining original house in this block. A frame house, it is an excellent example of the early folk Victorian style of architecture used during Lake City's first major building boom from 1876 to 1889.
Beginning in the mid-1870s with windowless log shanties featuring dirt floors and roofs, architectural styles in Lake City rapidly developed. Tthis evolution is illustrated by these two residences reflecting two distinct economic periods of Lake City history: the 1 1/2 story frame McClellan House, 215 Gunnison Avenue, built in 1877 at the start of the mining boom, and its next door neighbor at 217 Gunnison Avenue, the cinder block Swank house which was built in 1947 as a tourism based economy developed.
One of Lake City's founders, Enos Throop Hotchkiss (1832-1900) was a Pennsylvania native who arrived at Denver via covered wagon in the early 1860s. The first log cabin built in Lake City was constructed in August 1874 by Hotchkiss, who was in the Lake Fork Valley as the leader of a construction crew building the Saguache & San Juan Toll Road from Saguache to Baker's Park.
The original Hotchkiss cabin survived only a few years. The abandoned relic was demolished by school children in 1879.
This interpretive sign is located at the former location of the Lake City Depot, and commemorates Lake City's railroad history, which lasted from 1889 to 1934. The Lake City line of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad reached Lake City in August of 1889. The wood frame depot was located near this site, but was torn down in 1937 for scrap lumber. Lake City's fire station, completed in 1992, was built in a style reminiscent of the old depot.
Completed in March 1878, the St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church features an ornate “Roman style” altar built by George Boggs and John C. Johnson.
Resident priests maintained an active congregation here through the 1890s, but church attendance decreased after 1900. In later years the church was maintained through an arrangement with St. Peters Catholic Church in Gunnison. For many years, the church remained closed other than an occasional funeral or mass held by a visiting priest.
The building was completely renovated between 1982 and 1992, including work that reinforced the foundation and walls, a new roof, and new wiring.