Saints John, Colorado facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Saints John
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Mining ghost town
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View of Saints John around 1880
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Country | United States |
State | Colorado |
County | Summit |
Elevation | 10,764 ft (3,281 m) |
Time zone | UTC-7 (Mountain (MST)) |
• Summer (DST) | UTC-6 (MDT) |
GNIS feature ID | 182364 |
Saints John, originally called Coleyville and later Saint John, is a former silver-mining town in Summit County, Colorado. About a mile from the town of Montezuma, Saints John was the site of one of the first silver discoveries in Colorado. Although no longer a town, it still has several inhabitants.
History
A prospector named Coley discovered silver in 1863 or 1864 on the slope of Glacier Mountain, and built a crude furnace to extract silver from the ore. Other prospectors followed, including John Cullom, who discovered the Saints John Lode. In 1867, he sold the Saints John lode to the Boston Silver Mining Company, which built an ore mill, next to which grew the town, originally called Coleyville. In the 1870 census, the town name had changed to Saints John, which had a population of 71, which made it the largest town in Summit County.
The fortunes of the town followed those of the Saints John mine. The mine ceased working in 1928.
Geography
The site of Saints John is at 39°34′18″N 105°52′54″W / 39.57167°N 105.88167°W, at an altitude of 10,764 feet (3,281 m) above mean sea level. The site accessible by dirt road from Montezuma.