Don't Call Me Ishmael: Victor in winter

Victor Pass, with the Crystal Ship to the right

Downtown Victor

Colorado's gold mining wealth gravitated toward Denver, but some cities that delivered that wealth from the earth fight for survive in the mountains.

Once home to 18,000 during peak gold mining years more at the start of the 20th century, Victor claims less than 400 residents now. Placement on the National Register of Historic Places protects the block of the business district from mining. That is a blessing, considering Victor has many buildings with striking architecture. Industry founded this town, but it would not grind up its lingering grandeur.

My friend Beny advocates for Victor as a good getaway close to the Springs, and I won't argue.

Eclectic elk

Unlike nearby Cripple Creek, Victor did not have a history with gambling, and retains much of its early charm, even if the streets were deserted on a Sunday morning except for people heading into the First Baptist Church and one local eager to talk about town history. People bound for church gave an invitation to join. I thanked them for the offer.

The nearby mountains rise in unnaturally symmetrical terraces. Some mining continues on Battle Mountain and other areas around Cripple Creek, although the historic mines all closed by the early 1960s. The town began its decline around World War I, when many miners joined the U.S. forces. In the decades before, miners and their unions became embroiled in the Colorado labor wars. One remaining union hall still sports bullet holes from those days.

Vintage mining car

Victor still bears other signs of mining. One block of downtown hosts a garden of old mining equipment. Buckets, belts, chains and other equipment slowly rust in a peaceful lot. On the clearcut hills, elevator pulleys from mining's heyday still sit. After a major renovation, the Victor Hotel still operates, touting great views of the mountains.

By contrast, Cripple Creek practically roared with gamblers and tourists drawn to its nine casinos. Tour buses ferried in people from the Front Range. Many streets were as quiet as the cemetery on the outskirts of town

Mined hills near Victor

To the east of both towns the sharpened peaks of the Sangre de Cristo Range glimmered with snow. These twin cities created by gold have endured into the 21 century, although the quiet pace of Victor suited me better than the bustle of Cripple Creek.

In Victor's defense, it was winter, and only a little respite from the snow made it accessible. On Sunday most businesses were closed.

I wondered if Victor might have a future in reinvention like other former mining towns. Its neighbor turned to gamble, which has worked, but other models exist in the mountain west. Phillipsburg, Montana - immortalized in a Richard Hugo poem - nearly went under only to reemerge as an artist colony with a tourist-friendly downtown. The bones of old Victor could easily support an evolution into something new.

Like most old towns, Victor has a historic foundation from which to rise. Revival might come at the expense of the quiet, a few more people roaming its streets on a Sunday morning would not hurt, especially blocks this beautiful.