Discover Silver Plume

Silver Plume is a former silver-mining camp on Clear Creek in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. The town’s cultural profile ranges from mining and local history to historic buildings, railroad connections, and outdoor trails. When planning your trip, you can distinguish between these themes: some relate to individual structures and memorial sites, while others concern a theater performance or specific routes.

Silver Mining and Local History

The Georgetown-Silver Plume National Historic Landmark District preserves and interprets the architecture, atmosphere, ways of life, and landscape settings of two of the best-preserved 19th-century silver-mining towns in the American West’s Rocky Mountains. The Griffin Monument marks the grave of Clifford Griffin. The Silver Plume Jail was built in 1875 and used until 1915. Together, these connect the broader historical context of the district with specific points of interest, each associated with a grave or a building with clearly stated construction and use dates.

Historic Buildings and Railroad Connections

The Old Silver Plume School House, also called the Pioneer Building, is a two-story Romanesque-style building. The George Rowe Museum is housed in a former schoolhouse built in 1894, after the collapse of the silver boom. At the Old Silver Plume School House, the Romanesque style and two stories describe the building’s form. For the museum’s schoolhouse, the year it was built and its connection to the end of the silver boom place its history in context.

The restored Silver Plume Depot, dating from 1884, offers a free slideshow and exhibits on railroad history. A one-hour train ride also offers the opportunity to visit the Lebanon Mine, which dates from the 1870s. The railroad connections therefore highlight both the depot’s history and the option to visit the mine.

Events and Trails

The annual Silver Plume Melodrama is a theatrical performance that brings the 1800s to life. As a stage production, it engages with history differently from the historic buildings and memorial sites. If the melodrama is important to your stay, check the event dates for your travel dates.

The trails differ in specific ways, including length and route. The 7:30 Mine Trail is a moderate, 4.5-mile singletrack loop recommended for hiking, biking, and snowshoeing. The Argentine Central RR Grade is a 3.2-mile one-way trail; hiking, biking, and snowshoeing are also recommended there. The main points of comparison are therefore the route type and length: a loop or a one-way trail, 4.5 or 3.2 miles. The recommended activities are the same for both trails.

Landscape and Getting Around

The Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forest surrounds Silver Plume, offering opportunities for hiking, camping, and fishing. Together with the specific trail information, this gives an overview of different activities: individual routes on the one hand and the surrounding natural area on the other. The western trailhead is at the Silver Plume Depot of the Georgetown Loop Railroad.

The Clear Creek County RoundAbout is a free public transit service that serves Silver Plume. This makes a named transit service and a specific trailhead practical points of reference for your stay.

Discover more destinations: Idaho Springs, Gerogetown

For the broader travel overview: Clear Creek.