Silverton, Colorado | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Location of Silverton in San Juan County, Colorado. | |
| Coordinates: 37°48′39″N 107°39′53″W / 37.81083°N 107.66472°W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  State of Colorado |
| County[1] | San Juan County - seat[2] |
| Established | September 15, 1874 |
| Incorporated | November 15, 1885[3] |
| Government | |
| • Type | Statutory Town[1] |
| • Mayor | Dayna Kranker |
| Area | |
• Total | 0.83 sq mi (2.16 km2) |
| • Land | 0.83 sq mi (2.16 km2) |
| • Water | 0.00 sq mi (0.00 km2) |
| Elevation | 9,302 ft (2,835 m) |
| Population | |
• Total | 622 |
| • Density | 750/sq mi (290/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-7 (Mountain (MST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-6 (MDT) |
| ZIP code[7] | 81433 (PO Box) |
| Area code | 970 |
| FIPS code | 08-70580 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2413289[5] |
| Website | townofsilverton |
Silverton is a statutory town that is the county seat, the most populous community, and the only incorporated municipality in San Juan County, Colorado, United States.[1][8] The town is located in a remote part of the western San Juan Mountains, a range of the Rocky Mountains. The first mining claims were made in mountains above the Silverton in 1860, near the end of the Colorado Gold Rush and when the land was still controlled by the Utes.[9] Silverton was established shortly after the Utes ceded the region in the 1873 Brunot Agreement, and the town boomed from silver mining until the Panic of 1893 led to a collapse of the silver market, and boomed again from gold mining until the recession caused by the Panic of 1907.[10] The entire town is included as a federally designated National Historic Landmark District, the Silverton Historic District.
Originally called "Bakers Park", Silverton sits in a flat area of the Animas River valley and is surrounded by steep peaks. Most of the peaks surrounding Silverton are thirteeners. The highest being Storm Peak, at 13,487 feet.[11] The town is less than 15 miles from 7 of Colorado's 53 fourteeners, and is known as one of the premier gateways into the Colorado backcountry.
Silverton's last operating mine closed in 1992, and the community now depends primarily on tourism and government remediation and preservation projects. Silverton is well known because of the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, a former mine train that is now a National Historic Landmark, and internationally recognized events such as the Hardrock Hundred Mile Endurance Run. The town population was 622 at the 2020 census.[6]
- ^ a b c "Active Colorado Municipalities". State of Colorado, Department of Local Affairs. Archived from the original on December 12, 2009. Retrieved September 1, 2007.
- ^ "Colorado County Seats". State of Colorado, Department of Public Health and Environment. Retrieved December 31, 2007.
- ^ "Colorado Municipal Incorporations". State of Colorado, Department of Personnel & Administration, Colorado State Archives. December 1, 2004. Retrieved September 2, 2007.
- ^ "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
- ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Silverton, Colorado
- ^ a b United States Census Bureau. "Silverton town, Colorado". Retrieved April 5, 2023.
- ^ "ZIP Code Lookup". United States Postal Service. Archived from the original (JavaScript/HTML) on November 22, 2010. Retrieved January 2, 2008.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
:2was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Cite error: The named reference
:0was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "14ers.com • 13er Storm Peak A". www.14ers.com. Retrieved May 19, 2021.