VISTABOOKS PUBLISHING: Colorado

AROUND THE CIRCLE in 1892--A Thousand Miles by Rail Through the Rocky Mountains.
by S. K. Hooper, Gen. Pass. Agent, Denver, Colorado.

"Being a descriptive of a trip among peaks, over passes, and through canons of Colorado--a journey which comprises more noted and magnificent scenery than is compassed in any other one thousand miles of travel in the known world," says the blurb on the title page of this tract prepared by the Passenger Department of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad. Reprinted from a series of annual guides presented to passengers on the then-extensive rail lines through Colorado's mountains, with notes on routes, features seen, with "seventy points of interest Around the Circle for only $28 all seen from the train--in 1892.

Photographs, 56 pages. ISBN-10: 0-89646-049-5. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-049-2. Order #VIST0049 paper$4.95

AT A NEW MINING CAMP: Creede of Colorado, 1892.
by Richard Harding Davis.

Today Creede is a "ghost" town in southwestern Colorado (the italics because today's residents don't like being called ghosts), a remnant of its former size and glory. But author Davis reports it when activity there seemed circus-like. At the1892 time Creede was growing rapidly to a population of 8,000. The town was rip-roaring, and this account helps us understand the bustle as well as the unbounded hope and optimism at the site of a new mining boom. Reprinted from 19th century originals.;

Period illustrations, 32 little pages. ISBN-10: 0-89646-018-5. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-018-8. Order #VIST0018 paper$3.95

THE CITY OF DENVER, 1888: an early history of "The Queen City of the Plains".
by Edwards Roberts.

Here is Denver at a time when the Centennial State of Colorado was only 12 years old. It is a story of mines, railroads, cattle and sheep, of cowboys, prospectors, bankers, merchants, and politicians--the resources from the region and the personalities that brought them together at this city on the plains at the base of the Rockies. The city itself had had fewer than 50 residents during the winter of 1858-59, but already by 1888 public and private buildings, urban and suburban districts, parks and schools had been built and arranged around a transportation system of rail, trolley, horse, and foot. It was a system that had "fit", unlike today's transportation system. It must have been an exciting period! There are also glimpses of satellite cities--Golden, Boulder, Central City, Black Hawk, Georgetown, and Leadville. Reprinted from Harper's Magazine.

Illustrated with period engravings, 24 pages. ISBN-10: 0-89646-006-1. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-006-5.  Order #VIST0006 paper$3.95

CRIPPLE CREEK 1900: a Colorado Mining Camp.
An eyewitness account by Francis Lynde.

Cripple Creek got a later start than most of the West's famous mining camps. In fact, many of its predecessors had already played out by 1891 when the Golconda was uncovered here. Tells how Cripple Creek got its name, gives history of nearby Pikes Peak, explains the mines and their mechanization. Because the industrial revolution was at peak in America in 1900, the technology of railway, electricity, and steam drilling could be applied at Cripple Creek. Reading this account helps us understand how Colorado and other Western states which had mineral resources were able to get a good and early start on their development, albeit at the expense of the Cripple Creeks, which were destined to bust just as they had been destined to boom.

Period illustrations, 20 pages. ISBN-10: 0-89646-080-0. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-080-5. Order #VIST0080 paper$3.95

THE DOME OF THE CONTINENT: Colorado in 1872.
by V. Colvin.

With geological, mineralogical, and biological notes, here is a little tour of the Colorado of 1872--one of mining camps, stage roads, and a mountain climb to the summit of Grays Peak, a "14er" (peak over 14,000 feet altitude). It was a tour similar to ones today's visitor often take, 'though they use their cars more. Area covered includes Denver and the mountains just west--Central City, Idaho Springs, Georgetown, Grays Peak. Topics cover how to find gold, mine it, and refine it. Modern visitors can appreciate their sojourns more with this historical insight. There are fanciful sketches of alpine animals like conies and ptarmigans plus engraved illustrations of scenery and mining.

24 pages. ISBN-10: 0-89646-012-6. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-012-6. Order #VIST0012 paper$3.95

NOTECARDS:
 The Colorado Rocky Mountains.
by Thomas Moran, 19th century landscape painter.

Includes scenes of Mountain of the Holy Cross, Pike's Peak, and Long's Peak--all 1874 by Moran, plus Gray's Peak, 1874. 2 scenes each on antique white paper with 8 matching envelopes. ISBN: 0-89646-297-0. Order #VIST0297 notercard$7.95

ROCKY MOUNTAIN RAILROADS OF COLORADO--a marvel of the New West, 1892.
by William M. Thayer.

How the railroad through Colorado came to be built, and where and how the lines functioned. Areas covered include Royal Gorge, Marshall Pass, Platte Canyon to South Park, South Park to Leadville via Breckenridge, Pike's Peak Railway, Alpine Tunnel, Toltec Gorge/Tunnel, Animas Canyon (Durango to Silverton), Black Hawk/Central City High Line, Raton Press, Georgetown Loop. Some of these lines operate today carrying tourist passengers on restored rail lines.

Period engravings. 56 pages. ISBN-10: 0-89646-020-7. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-020-1.  Order #VIST0020 paper$4.95

SILVER SAN JUAN: the mines and high scenery in Colorado's southwest mountains--in 1882.
by Ernest Ingersoll.

Presents early sketches of this region where the Colorado Rocky Mountains culminate in their grandest scenic display, including Silverton, Rico, Animas Canyon, Capitol City, Lake City. Although mines and mining are the prime topic in this early history, and the writing gives a good picture of mining in the mountain West, the author admired the landscapes greatly, too. It was a time for that in America, when national pride in Western grandeur was swelling. Silver San Juan was a great place for such pride, for the region has been called "The Switzerland of America". Most of the region's minerals have now been removed, but the economic input from that source is replaced by tourists who come enthusiastically in numbers. For those who want to know the background of the region they visit, this book is for them. Reprinted from 1882.

Illustrations by Thomas Moran and others. 24 pages. ISBN-10: 0-89646-025-8. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-025-6. Order #VIST0025 paper$3.95

UP LONG'S PEAK IN 1873--with Rocky Mountain Jim. by Lady Isabella A. Bird. Temporarily out of print.

In 1873 Lady Bird had herself a grand world tour from her native England. She stopped long at Estes Park, adjacent to what is now Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park. Was it the marvelous mountain scenery that held her there? Or her guide, Rocky Mountain Jim? On her tour she wrote letters to her sister back home, and these were later collected into the now-classic A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains. Up Long's Peak, of course, comes from the larger volume, abridged so as to center just on Estes Park and Long's Peak, in the area of what is today Rocky Mountain National Park. Visitors to the park region today can learn through this first-hand account of an early appreciation of America's wilderness heritage. Illustrations are by master landscape painters Albert Bierstadt (for whom a lake in the park is named), Thomas Moran, and others from both the original 1879 work and other sources.24 pages. ISBN-10: 0-89646-023-1. ISBN-13: 978-0-89646-023-2. Temporarily out of print. Order #VIST0023 paper$3.95

COLORADO-RELATED TITLES ON OTHER PAGES

THE BUFFALO--1898.
BUFFALO BILL'S TRUE TALES.
THE CAÑONS OF THE COLORADO--the 1869 Discovery Voyage down the Colorado River.
click here to view above VistaBooks titles on WesternAmericana page.

THE SOUTHERN UTE INDIANS OF EARLY COLORADO.
click here to view above VistaBooks title on Indian&RockArt page

ROCKY MOUNTAIN TREE FINDER
ROCKY MOUNTAIN FLOWER FINDER
MOUNTAIN STATE MAMMALS
click here to view above titles on Other Publishers--Nature Study Guild page

ROADSIDE HISTORY OF COLORADO
ROADSIDE GEOLOGY OF COLORADO
COLORADO ROCKHOUNDING:  A Guide to Minerals, Gemstones, and Fossils.
CLIMAX: The History of Colorado's Climax Molybdenum Mine
LEADVILLE: A Miner's Epic
COLORADO GOLD: From the Pike's Peak Rush to the Present.
RAPTORS OF THE ROCKIES
AMAZING COLORADO: A Collection of Puzzlers, Mazes, and Fun!
VAIL: Triumph of a Dream.
STEAMBOAT: Ski Town USA.
click here to view above titles on Other Publisher--Mountain Press page

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