Old Leadville

Abstract

Photograph of Leadville taken during the 1890s showing houses in a residential area with smelters, mills and a church visible in the background. Placer gold was discovered in the area in 1859, and a number of mining camps quickly lined California Gulch. The identification of silver ore (that had been clogging placer equipment for years) in 1875-1876 was quickly followed by the discovery of silver lodes. The booming community chose the name Leadville from among several proposed names in 1877. Lead-silver mining defined the most productive period of the Leadville district until the collapse of the silver market in 1893. By 1880 production from the mines was high and there were at least twelve smelters in the Leadville area. The town of Leadville contained numerous businesses, boarding houses, and places of entertainment. During its heyday from 1876 to 1893, the mines in the Leadville area ...