| Gold Mining in Colorado | |
|---|---|
Gold mining centers in Colorado | |
| Location | |
| State | Colorado |
| Country | United States |
| Regulatory authority | |
| Authority | Colorado Division of Reclamation Mining & Safety |
| Website | Official website |
| Commodity | Gold |
Gold mining in Colorado, a state of the United States, has been an industry since 1858. It also played a key role in the establishment of the state of Colorado.
Explorer Zebulon Pike heard a report of gold in South Park, present-day Park County, Colorado, in 1807.[1]
Gold discoveries in Colorado began around Denver; prospectors traced the placer gold to its source in the mountains west of Denver, then followed the Colorado Mineral Belt in a southwest direction across the state to its terminus in the San Juan Mountains. The Cripple Creek district, far from the mineral belt, was one of the last gold districts to be discovered and is still in production.
- ^ A. H. Koschman and M. H. Bergendahl (1968) Principal gold-Producing Districts of the United States, US Geological Survey, Professional Paper 610, p.143.