Voices of the Past: Lessons from the Rails (Part 2)

Durango exists because of a railroad that almost went somewhere else. In this documentary, Jeff Johnson traces the arrival of the Denver and Rio Grande in Southwest Colorado — from General William Jackson Palmer's original 1870 push south out of Denver, to the mining boom that pulled the rails toward the San Juans, to the founding of Durango itself in 1881 as a town built by and for the railroad. Jeff follows the line through its boom years serving the Silverton mining district, its near-collapse after the Silver Purchase Act was repealed in 1893, and its unlikely second life as a beloved tourist attraction in the postwar decades. It's a story about how a railroad meant to carry a young civilization toward the future became, in time, our clearest window into the past.

The Power of Place Magazine is a special initiative of the Colorado 150 Southwest organizing committee, featuring 20 articles by professional historians and local writers exploring Southwest Colorado's rich and complex heritage.

By Jeff Johnson

This story is sponsored by Alpine Bank, Sky Ute Casino and Strater Hotel.

Watch the full series, Voices of the Past: Southwest Colorado.