Historic Leadville Walking Tour

Dive deep into Leadville History with a Walking Tour

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Historic Leadville Walking Tour

Leadville, Colorado 80461, United States

Created By: VistaWorks

Tour Information

Not only is Leadville the highest incorporated city in the U.S., it is also one of Colorado’s largest historic districts.

Leadville, Colorado is a National Historic Landmark District consisting of over 70 square blocks and was designated by Congress in 1966. It’s a beautiful and interesting area for a short walk anytime of year. This is a brief peek into the history of some of district’s more interesting buildings.


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What You'll See on the Tour

You will be starting your walk at the Ice Palace Park in the 100 block of West 10th were ample parking is available. Opening on January 3, 1896, the world’s largest palace of ice was built in Leadville. It contained a skating rink, gran... Read more
The three story house on the southeast corner of Harrison and Tenth is the Healy House. Originally a two-story structure, the Healy House was built in 1878 by August R. Meyer, a mining engineer from St. Louis who established the first ore s... Read more
The brick building at the northeast corner of Harrison and 9th is the Heritage Museum. Built as the Carnegie Library, it opened in 1904, two years after the cornerstone date of 1902. It served as the library for the area until 1971 when it ... Read more
Look west on 9th. The large red brick building at 120 West 9th houses the Federally Chartered National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum. The building was originally the Leadville High School built in 1900. The museum is open daily. We encoura... Read more
Be careful crossing the intersection! At the northeast corner of West 8th and Harrison is Leadville City Hall. Built in 1905 as a federal building, it was used as the US Post Office until 1973. As the story goes, the postmaster used the sma... Read more
At the northeast corner of West 7th and Harrison Avenue sits the Delaware Hotel Block. Opening in October of 1886, the Delaware Block cost an estimated $60,000 and is named in honor of the home state of the three brothers who built it. A fe... Read more
Look up East 7th Street to the church with the tall spire. Annunciation Church sits on the southwest corner of Poplar and East 7th. Started in 1879, the church was dedicated on New Year’s Day, 1880. The steeple is a masterpiece of intrica... Read more
Continue your tour by walking south on Harrison Avenue. Located on the southeast corner of 6th and Harrison is the Iron Building with a corner pediment with the name of Fearnley. It was built in 1893 amidst the collapse of the silver market... Read more
The Tabor Home was built by H. A. W. Tabor about 1877 at 512 Harrison Avenue and moved to its present location at 116 E. 5th in 1879. Property on Harrison Avenue had become too valuable for residence lots and needed to be occupied by blocks... Read more
Located on the southeast corner of 5th and Harrison is the three story brick and sandstone bank building built in the Romanesque style. The building is 25 feet wide and 110 feet deep with a 17 foot tower of red sandstone. The corner tower i... Read more
The southeast corner of 4th and Harrison is currently the Scarlet Lounge. The building was built in 1887 as the Breene Block named from Lt. Governor and State Treasurer of Colorado, Peter W. Breene, who provided the funding. Initially the f... Read more
Two historic buildings on this side of the street in the middle of the 300 block of Harrison just can’t go without mention! The Hyman Block, built between 1885 and 1890 is where Doc Holliday shot (but did not kill) his last man!
Next door is the famous Tabor Opera House. Opening on November 20, 1879, the Tabor Opera House is one of only a few “Tabor” associated building still standing in Colorado. Tabor was a shopkeeper who grubstaked a couple of miners who str... Read more
Cross Harrison Avenue at 3rd, using caution and the crosswalk, to return up the other side of Harrison going north. The saloon in the middle of this block is one of Leadville’s oldest establishments. Opening in 1883 in the Clipper Buildin... Read more
As you cross 4th Street, look to the west. St. George’s Episcopal Church is located on the northwest corner of 5th and Pine. The church was built as a small replica of St. George’s Church in New York City. The cornerstone was laid Septe... Read more
On the southwest corner of 5th and Harrison sits the Western Hardware Building. It was opened in August of 1881 as the Manville and McCarthy Hardware. The store operated as a hardware store for over 100 years. It remains a perfect intact ex... Read more
Continue walking on Harrison Avenue. The building on your left is the Lake County Courthouse. Built in 1955, Leadville received the All-America City award from Look magazine in 1958 for being progressive! This building contributed to this s... Read more
The building on the northwest corner of Harrison and 6th Street is an original 1897 clapboard commercial structure. Opened as a drug store and saloon, it was later know as Davis Drug from 1902 until 1943.
On the northwest corner of 7th and Harrison, sits the Tabor Grand Hotel building. Built during the two year period of 1883 to 1885, this four story brick building was designed by noted architect of the period, George King. The hotel has had... Read more
On the northwest corner of 8th and Harrison sits the Presbyterian Church, affectionately called “The Old Church” by locals. With its open Gothic-styled belltower, the church has been a landmark on Harrison Avenue since its impressive de... Read more

 

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