Leadville, Colorado, Doc Holliday, Silver Kings, Horace Tabor, Baby Doe Tabor, Matchless Mine, Pittsburg Mine
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Leadville's nationally famous and oldest restaurant
Leadville, Colorado Colorado History Information

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There never has been, nor will there ever be again, a city like Leadville, Colorado. If you are planning to visit Leadville in person you are in for a treat... if you are a serious researcher of Colorado history or perhaps a genealogist, the odds are you will find yourself researching Leadville... just about anyone and everyone who came west was in early-day Leadville,Colorado at some time.

Doc Holliday Doc Holliday
The famous Younger Gang lived here; Doc Holliday had his final shoot-out here; Bat Masterson and the Earps were here. And of course perhaps the most famous rags-to-riches- and-back-to-rags story began here with Horace and Baby Doe Tabor. As colorful as Colorado’s early days were, Leadville typifies it more than any other boom town in the state. Leadville’s story starts in 1859-1860 when the Slater Party made the $8 million gold discovery up the California Gulch.

Miners in Leadville
The area exploded and thousands flocked to it for their share, and the volume of prospectors working the area had literally exhausted all the gold reserves by the mid-1860’s and were moving on to areas like Alma and Buckskin Joe, located over Mosquito Pass. Little did they know at the time that "all that black stuff" that seemed so difficult to separate from the gold in their pans, sluice boxes and cradles, was actually silver bearing lead ore, and it wasn’t until two veteran miners, Alvinus Wood and William Stevens from South Park recognized it’s value a number of years later.

Ore Cart
They began buying up old "worked out" gold claims, and by 1880 the silver boom had begun. Leadville quickly became the second largest city in the state and the Carbonate Camp was clearly the most important mining center in Colorado.

Millionaires were made overnight... some for as little as a $37.00 grubstake investment like Horace Tabor who became rich overnight with his grubstake interest of the Little Pittsburg Mine. His rise to political power was one of many spawned from the wealth of Leadville’s silver mines. Presidents and dignitaries held interests in many of these mines which were producing hundreds of thousands of dollars in income for them every day.
Horace and Baby Doe Tabor, Tabor Mansion, Tabor Opera House, Pittsburg Mine, Matchless Mine
By June of 1893 however, the inevitable catastrophe happened. A number of circumstances finally culminated in the price of silver dropping to almost nothing and the "silver crash of ’93" as it has been nicknamed brought countless millionaires to their knees - Tabor among them.

Leadville 8th Street Leadville (8th Street)
The era of top hats and tenderloins had ended. The story doesn’t end here, but for those serious about learning more about this incredible city which still thrives today, we encourage you to take a peek at our Leadville videos, which include "The Colorado Gold Boom of 1860: Discovery of the California Gulch" and "Leadville’s Story of Baby Doe Tabor" (a 4-tape internationally award winning series which will boggle your mind).

Miners arrested during the bloody miner's strike in Leadville Miners arrested during the bloody
miner’s strike in Leadville
Doc Holliday’s last shoot-out with Billy Allen is featured in another award winning documentary (Leadville’s Story of Doc Holliday) which details Doc’s life from his birth in Griffin, Georgia to his death in Glenwood Springs and highlights his activities in Leadville... and beyond.

If you are planning on visiting Leadville, and would like more information about it, including lodging facilities, tours and other places to visit and things to do, please visit www.GoldenBurro.com.   If you'd like to review our incredible video collection about early Leadville, click here.
VIDEOS about this area Visitor Information Colorado History Information Leadville's nationally famous and oldest restaurant
Search for Leadville History & Genealogy Contact Us

Leadville, Colorado, Doc Holliday, Silver Kings, Horace Tabor, Baby Doe Tabor, Matchless Mine, Pittsburg Mine


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