Tomboy, Colorado

Tomboy, Colorado
Ghost town

Tomboy, circa 1890-1910
Tomboy, Colorado
Coordinates: 37°56′12″N 107°45′16″W / 37.93667°N 107.75444°W / 37.93667; -107.75444Coordinates: 37°56′12″N 107°45′16″W / 37.93667°N 107.75444°W / 37.93667; -107.75444
Country United States
State Colorado
County San Miguel
Elevation 11,509 ft (3,508 m)
Time zone MST (UTC-7)
 • Summer (DST) MDT (UTC-6)
GNIS feature ID 187139[1]

Tomboy is a ghost town in San Miguel County, Colorado, United States.[1]

Tomboy was a mining town located 2 mi (3.2 km) east of Telluride.

At an elevation of 11,509 ft (3,508 m), Tomboy is one of the highest ghost towns in the United States.[2]

History

Gold ore from the Tomboy Mine, circa 1910

Located in a mountainous region known as the Savage Basin, the settlement was originally named "Savage Basin Camp". The Tomboy Mine was located nearby and began producing gold ore in 1894. Eventually the settlement became known at Tomboy.[2]

A stagecoach carrying passengers and mail would pass daily through Tomboy. Tomboy had a store, school, stable, and cabins for the miners. Unusual for an 1800s mining town, Tomboy had a YMCA and tennis courts. Tomboy also had a "social tunnel" along Tomboy Road where miners would meet women from nearby Telluride.[2]

The mine was sold for $2 million to the Rothschilds of London in 1897.[3]

Between 1908 and 1914, zinc was milled in Tomboy.[4]

The mine operated until 1928, though work in the mine tunnel continued until 1978.[2]

Remnants of Tomboy can be accessed by hikers or by four-wheel drive vehicles, though the settlement is now located on privately-owned land.[5]

References

  1. 1 2 "Tomboy (historical)". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Colorado Ghost Town Photography - Tomboy, Colorado". Colorado Post. Retrieved March 2016. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  3. ↑ "Ghost Towns - Links to the Past". Ouray, Colorado. Retrieved March 2016. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
  4. ↑ Berry, Edward Wilber (1925). The Flora of the Ripley Formation. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 54.
  5. ↑ "Tomboy Road - Imogene Road #869". United States Department of Agriculture. Retrieved March 2016. Check date values in: |access-date= (help)
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