by Mona Lambrecht (Author), Boulder History Museum (Author)
Born out of the 1859 Pikes Peak gold rush, Boulder sits along the Front Range where the Rocky Mountains meet the plains. Discoveries of gold, silver, telluride, and coal nearby put the little supply town on the map, and early miners, farmers, and businessmen prospered there. The railroad's arrival in 1873 brought more newcomers who cultivated a diverse community full of new businesses, social organizations, and schools, and the town flourished despite the social problems and economic fluctuations that were typical of early mining towns. By the 1890s, education, health, and tourism had become significant to Boulder's economic development, a pattern that continues to this day. Great change came about during the early 1900s in the form of a citywide alcohol prohibition, the influenza epidemic, and the closure of the "Switzerland Trail" railroad in 1919, but Boulder weathered these difficult times even as it witnessed the end of the great railroading era.