All Aboard Westcliffe
The Denver and Rio Grande Railroad extended a rail line into the Wet Mountain Valley in 1881 to take advantage of Silver Cliff’s mining boom. The line ended one mile […]
Beckwith Ranch
Beckwith Ranch brings to life the romance of Custer County’s ranching heritage from more than 100 years ago. With its signature red roofs and white clapboard siding, this Victorian home […]
Ranching Heritage
Drawn by the number of beavers in the area, trappers moved into the Wet Mountain Valley in 1870, clearing some, but not all, of the dam builders from the area. […]
Centennial Ranches
Ranching has been the bedrock of the economy in the Wet Mountain Valley since the 1800’s and unsurprisingly Custer County is home to 11 Centennial Ranches, all located in or […]
Silver Cliff Museum
Silver Cliff’s hectic mining days are over, but many relics remain at the Silver Cliff Museum at 620 Main St. The museum’s 1879 building once served as Silver Cliff’s original […]
Pioneer Cemeteries of Custer County
Rare wildflowers, prairie grass, tumbleweeds, sagebrush and ornamental wrought iron fences dot the 200-year-old pioneer cemeteries of Custer County, Colorado: Ula (est. 1872), Rosita (est. 1870), Silver Cliff (est. 1878), […]
The Utes and Culturally Modified Trees
For at least 10,000 years before European explorers arrived, Native Americans sporadically inhabited the area that would become Custer County. The Ute Indians controlled much of Colorado by the 16th Century. […]
How a Railroad Created Westcliffe
Miners discovered silver in a sheer cliff of the Wet Mountain Valley in June 1878. During the resulting rush, Silver Cliff grew very quickly. The 1880 census listed Silver Cliff’s […]