The San Juan Mountains is a high and rugged mountain range in the Rocky Mountains in southwestern Colorado and northwestern New Mexico . The area is highly mineralized (the Colorado Mineral Belt ) and figured in the gold and silver mining industry of early Colorado. Major towns, all old mining camps , include Creede , Lake City , Silverton , Ouray , and Telluride . Large scale mining has ended in the region, although independent prospectors still work claims throughout the range. The last large-scale mines were the Sunnyside Mine near Silverton, which operated until late in the 20th century, and the Idarado Mine on Red Mountain Pass , which closed in the 1970s. Famous old San Juan mines include the Camp Bird and Smuggler Union mines , both located between Telluride and Ouray.
24-537: San Juan County is the name of four counties in the United States: San Juan County, Colorado San Juan County, New Mexico San Juan County, Utah San Juan County, Washington [REDACTED] Topics referred to by the same term This disambiguation page lists articles about distinct geographical locations with the same name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change
48-490: A bitter strike. The Sunnyside mine was shut down after the 1929 stock market crash , but was acquired by Standard Metals Corp. in 1959, and reopened, finding gold in 1973 with the Little Mary vein. The county's economy was dealt a devastating blow in 1992 when the mine and the corresponding Shenandoah-Dives mill, the last operating in the region, permanently closed. The closure meant the end of jobs for over one third of
72-426: A household in the county was $ 30,764, and the median income for a family was $ 40,000. Males had a median income of $ 30,588 versus $ 19,545 for females. The per capita income for the county was $ 17,584. About 13.50% of families and 20.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.40% of those under age 18 and 7.10% of those age 65 or over. San Juan county is the only county outside Alaska where walking
96-526: A large portion of the San Juan Mountains. The Continental Divide Trail , a long-distance hiking trail follows the crest of the San Juan Mountains. The Weminuche Wilderness , Colorado's largest wilderness area, with an area of 499,771 acres (202,250 ha) is in the San Juans. The San Juan Mountains are also distinctive for their high altitude plateaus and peaks. As a result, facilities in
120-565: Is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado . As of the 2020 census , the population was 705, making it the least populous county in Colorado. The county seat and the only incorporated municipality in the county is Silverton . The county name is the Spanish language name for " Saint John ", the name Spanish explorers gave to a river and the mountain range in the area. With a mean elevation of 11,240 feet (3,430 meters), San Juan County
144-547: Is also speculation that Spanish explorers and fur traders ventured into the area in the 1600s and 1700s. Permanent settlement in the area surrounding present-day San Juan County began in 1860, near the end of the Colorado Gold Rush . These first settlers were a group of prospectors led by Charles Baker, who made their way into the San Juan Mountains searching for gold. After the Brunot Agreement with
168-600: Is home to the Hardrock 100 Endurance Run one of the most difficult and technical ultra-marathons in the world. The Rio Grande drains the east side of the range. The other side of the San Juans, the western slope of the continental divide , is drained by tributaries of the San Juan , Dolores and Gunnison rivers, which all flow into the Colorado River . The San Juan and Uncompahgre National Forests cover
192-578: Is in the Summitville caldera , one of many extinct volcanoes making up the San Juan volcanic field . One, La Garita Caldera , is 35 miles (56 km) in diameter. Large beds of lava , some extending under the floor of the San Luis Valley , are characteristic of the eastern slope of the San Juans. Tourism is a major part of the regional economy, with the narrow gauge railway between Durango and Silverton being an attraction mostly in
216-582: Is the highest county in the United States and also has the two highest elevation houses in the United States; the ‘Bonnie Belle’ above Animas Forks at 11,900’ – 11,950’ elevation and an unnamed house above Picayune Gulch at 12,000’ elevation. Long before European settlement, the area was regularly explored by the Anasazi , and later the Utes , who hunted and lived in the San Juans during the summer. There
240-514: Is the most common form of commute to work. As of 2013, 33% of residents walked to work, 18% drove alone, 19% carpooled, and 18% bicycled, though the small population size introduces considerable margins of error to these statistics. As of November 2006, the one and only local school had 53 students in grades K–12. In the era of William Jennings Bryan , San Juan County strongly favored the Democratic Party: no Republican managed to carry
264-714: The San Juan District Mining Association (SJDMA) in 1903, as a direct result of a Western Federation of Miners proposal to the Telluride Mining Association for the eight-hour day , which had been approved in a referendum by 72 percent of Colorado voters . The new association consolidated the power of thirty-six mining properties in San Miguel , Ouray , and San Juan Counties. The SJDMA refused to consider any reduction in hours or increase in wages, helping to provoke
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#1732775665239288-512: The Sunnyside silver vein along Hurricane Peak, outside the mining camp of Eureka. Gold was then discovered in 1882, which helped the county weather the Panic of 1893 far better than other mining communities, such as Aspen or Creede . The Sunnyside Mine would become one of Colorado's longest running and most productive mines. Mining operators in the San Juan mountain area of Colorado formed
312-514: The United States, at 11,240 feet (3,430 m), none of Colorado's 53 fourteeners (mountains at least 14,000 feet in elevation) are in San Juan County. As of the census of 2000, there were 558 people, 269 households, and 157 families residing in the county. The population density was one person per square mile (0.39 person/km ). There were 632 housing units at an average density of 2 per square mile (0.77/km ). The racial makeup of
336-574: The Utes in 1873, which exchanged four million acres (6,200 sq mi; 16,000 km ) for the Southern Ute Indian Reservation and $ 25,000 per year, several mining camps were constructed. These would later become the communities of Howardsville , Eureka , and Silverton . San Juan County was formed on January 31, 1876, from part of La Plata County . The region boomed after George Howard and R. J. McNutt discovered
360-529: The county between 1892 and 1916, and it was even one of the few northern or western counties to vote for Alton B. Parker in 1904. It remained a Democratic-leaning county until the 1960s but then turned towards the Republican Party in subsequent decades. No Democratic presidential nominee won San Juan County between 1968 and 2000, although it was one of fifteen rural or remote counties to give a plurality to Ross Perot in 1992. Since John Kerry carried
384-462: The county for his party for the first time in four decades at the 2004 election, San Juan County has voted Democratic at the last five Presidential elections. 37°46′N 107°40′W / 37.77°N 107.67°W / 37.77; -107.67 San Juan Mountains The Summitville mine was the scene of a major environmental disaster in the 1990s when the liner of a cyanide -laced tailing pond began leaking heavily. Summitville
408-545: The county was 97.13% White , 0.72% Native American , 0.18% Asian , 0.36% Pacific Islander , 0.72% from other races , and 0.90% from two or more races. 7.35% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. There were 269 households, out of which 23.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.90% were married couples living together, 8.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.30% were non-families. 36.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 4.80% had someone living alone who
432-491: The county's workforce. According to the U.S. Census Bureau , the county has a total area of 388 square miles (1,000 km ), of which 387 square miles (1,000 km ) is land and 0.8 square miles (2.1 km ) (0.2%) is water. It is the fifth-smallest county in Colorado by area. The county is located in the heart of the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. Though it has the highest mean elevation of any county in
456-424: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=San_Juan_County&oldid=933107767 " Category : United States county name disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages San Juan County, Colorado San Juan County
480-539: The northern edge of the San Luis Valley, close to Poncha Pass. This suggests that early human presence in the region dates back to ancient times, long before the establishment of modern landmarks. Mining operators in the San Juan mountain area formed the San Juan District Mining Association (SJDMA) in 1903, as a direct result of a Western Federation of Miners proposal to the Telluride Mining Association for
504-399: The summer and fall. Off-roading is popular on the old trails which linked the historic mining camps, including the notorious Black Bear Road . Visiting old ghost towns is popular, as is wilderness trekking and mountain climbing . Many of the old mining camps are popular sites of summer homes . Though the San Juans are extremely steep and receive much snow, so far only Telluride has made
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#1732775665239528-443: The towns and cities of the region are among the highest in the nation. Telluride Airport , at an elevation of 9,070 feet, is the highest in the United States with regularly scheduled commercial service. Human history at the eastern edge of the San Juan Mountains dates back thousands of years. Smithsonian archaeologists have identified paleo-Indian sites that are about 5,000 years old, located near Great Sand Dunes National Park and at
552-516: The transition to a major ski resort . Purgatory Resort , once known as Durango Mountain Resort, is a small ski area 26 miles north of Durango. There is also skiing on Wolf Creek Pass at the Wolf Creek ski area . Recently Silverton Mountain ski area has begun operation near Silverton. The range is also a popular destination for endurance sports like trail running and mountain biking; Silverton
576-459: Was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.06 and the average family size was 2.63. In the county, the population was spread out, with 20.10% under the age of 18, 4.30% from 18 to 24, 28.10% from 25 to 44, 40.50% from 45 to 64, and 7.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 110.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112.40 males. The median income for
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