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The Town of Breckenridge is located 9,603 feet above sea level in a
U-shaped valley on the western slope of the Continental Divide. There
are 5.3 square miles within the town boundary.
The Town is home to a permanent population of only approximately
3,100 residents.
Gold Dust to White Gold
Long before white settlers from the east crossed the Continental
Divide, Breckenridge was part of the summer hunting grounds of the nomadic
White River and Middle Park Ute Native Americans. The Town of Breckenridge was
born out of America's mid-nineteenth century rush to settle the West during
Pike's Peak Gold Rush. General George E. Spencer was one of hundreds of "town
builders" who trekked across the West, intent upon locating in the Blue River
Valley.
The General formally created the Town of “Breckinridge” in November 1859 and
named it after President James Buchanan's Vice President, John Cabell
Breckinridge (1857-1861). By flattering the United States Government, Spencer
hoped to gain a post office. He succeeded and the post office in Breckenridge
became the first post office between the Continental Divide and Salt Lake City,
Utah. During the Civil War, Breckinridge's sympathies were clearly with the
South. He received a commission as a Confederate Brigadier General and the U.S.
Senate expelled Breckinridge for treason. The embarrassed little town of
Breckinridge quickly and quietly changed the spelling of its name to
"Breckenridge," changing an "i" to an "e".
An ambitious grid was eventually platted for the 320-acre Breckenridge town
site. Main Street was laid out parallel to the Blue River. Residences
developed along Main Street. On the west side of the Blue River, in "West
Breckenridge," industry, inexpensive housing, and a red light district were
established.
By mid-1861, Breckenridge boasted several stores, hotels, saloons, and a post
office. On October 11, 1861, the Town secured the Denver, Bradford, and Blue
River Road Wagon Company connection, which gave lifeblood to the little gold
mining community. Breckenridge's Main Street allowed for ease in turning
around freight wagons and became the center of social and athletic
activities.
Breckenridge was established as the permanent county seat of Summit County,
Colorado, but by the mid-1860s, the Civil War and increasing difficulty in
locating free, accessible gold led to a drop in the Breckenridge population.
Many businessmen and merchants moved on to other boomtowns.
The late-1860s saw the introduction of large-scale hydraulic placer mining to
the area and Breckenridge was once again engrossed in another mining phase. The
community was formally incorporated in 1880. Comfortable houses, churches, and
a school were built on the hillside east of Main Street. Saloons and other
false-fronted commercial ventures were confined to the main streets. Main
Street became the business thoroughfare and in 1880 eighteen saloons and three
dance halls lined the street.
By 1882, Breckenridge secured a depot site for the Denver, South Park and
Pacific Railroad and thereby brought rail service to Town.
Breckenridge was home to one of the most famous evangelists in Colorado history
-Reverend John Lewis Dyer. The Methodist minister, known as the “Snowshoe
Itinerant,” walked and skied his way through the mountains, taking the gospel
to those who might not otherwise hear it. Carrying heavy canvas sacks of mail
over the snow-packed mountain passes; Father Dyer earned enough money to
continue his missionary work in Breckenridge. In 1880, he built Breckenridge's
first church, now located on Wellington Road.
World War II Ends the Mining Era
Despite a successful gold-dredging boom from 1898 to 1942, the population
continued to drop throughout the first half of the twentieth century. Thinking
the Tiger Placers Company would provide jobs in an era of national depression,
Breckenridge town officials allowed the Tiger #1 Gold Dredge to chew its way
from the northern town limits through the south end of Main Street. The
two-story, pontoon boat supported an armature that carried a line of moving
buckets that dug up placer mining ground to depths of 48 feet in the riverbed.
The dredge removed all vegetation and buildings in its path. The riverbed was
literally turned upside-down. World War II finally silenced the dredge and the
population declined to approximately 254 individuals.
In 1930, it was decided that Breckenridge had been excluded from maps of the
United States. The Breckenridge Women's Club was in session one day in 1936
when they found a strip of land 90-miles long and 30-miles wide had been left
out of the United States. Breckenridge was included in this area. So, on
August 8, 1936, the Governor and an impressive entourage gathered on the
courthouse lawn, where a flag of the United States was raised. Today, for one
weekend in August, Breckenridge declares itself free and sovereign with the
heritage festival, once known as “No Man's Land.”
White Gold and the Eisenhower Tunnel
In December 1961, Rounds and Porter, a Wichita, Kansas, lumber company, opened
the Breckenridge Ski Area and a new-boom era began. Transportation
improvements fueled the Breckenridge recreation "rush." The Eisenhower Tunnel,
on Interstate 70, was completed in 1973 reducing the drive time from Denver to
Breckenridge to an hour and a half. As a result of the relatively easy access
from the Front Range and Denver, the recreational activities in the high
country including bicycling, hiking, golfing, fishing, snowshoeing, and skiing,
have increased in popularity.
With world-class skiing, a continuous series of summer-time events, and over
600 restaurants, galleries, and services Breckenridge looks forward to
continued economic viability while preserving its unique history and character.
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