Silverton, Colorado, City Hall Postcard

"Silverton, Colorado, City Hall" by Catherine Sherman. The 1908 Silverton City Hall is one of several notable historic buildings in Silverton, Colorado. The red stone block building has a prominent and distinctive bell tower. Several trucks are parked in front, and tall trees flank the structure. Silverton is situated at the center of the San Juan mining district. Prospecting began in the 1860s, but it was not until 1871 that the first profitable silver vein was discovered in nearby Arrastra Gulch. The late 19th and early 20th century residential and institutional buildings within the district reflect the prosperity brought about by one of Colorado’s richest mineral producing regions according to https://www.historycolorado.org/location/silverton-historic-district With a mean elevation of 11,240 feet (3426 meters), San Juan County is the highest county in the United States. It's also the county with the smallest population in Colorado. Silverton is a former silver mining camp, most or all of which is now included in a federally designated National Historic Landmark District, the Silverton Historic District. Silverton is linked to Durango by the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, a National Historic Landmark. Tourism provides the gold and silver in Silverton, not mining. Also supporting the population is maintenance of US 550 (which links Montrose with Durango via Silverton), mine pollution remediation, and retirees. In 2002 an extreme ski mountain, Silverton Mountain, opened near the town.