Inside Colorado’s ‘Richest Square Mile on Earth’

The Richest Square Mile on Earth

There’s always been something special about Central City, Colorado. In the 1870s, the gold mining boom town was known around the world as the “Richest Square Mile on Earth.” The district produced 6.3 million troy ounces of gold – 200 tons – that would translate in 2025 to around $18 trillion.

Central City was for a decade the largest town in Colorado with a population of up to 20,000 people, a gorgeous opera house, and the best hotel between the Mississippi River and San Francisco. A fire in 1874 burned down 150 buildings, but the town was so rich, they didn’t care. The next year, they rebuilt 85 of them, this time in brick and stone instead of wood.

The Decline and Revival

And then Central City went bust. Gold played out, the mines closed, and at one point in the 1980s, the town was reduced to just 300 people. But Central City was also filled with ghosts and legends of the Old West and with 294 certified buildings more than 100 years old.

It was in Central City that John Stetson invented his famous hat. Buffalo Bill Cody performed in the Opera House and in the 1950s, Jack Kerouac had a wild night in the saloons here that he wrote about in his famous book, “On the Road.” Why, even a very young Bob Dylan sang here one summer when he really was a complete unknown.

Today, walking around the streets of Central City can transport you back to the glorious days of the Old West in one of the best-preserved mining towns in America.

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Gambling’s Impact on Central City

Now, of course, in 1990, Colorado voters legalized gambling in Central City and its neighboring town, Black Hawk (one mile away). The first casinos opened on October 1, 1991. It’s been a double-edged sword. On the plus side, gambling today in Central City and Black Hawk generates more tax revenue than the towns ever did back in their gold mining days.

Black Hawk, with flatter ground on which to build, now has 17 casinos and a 33-story hotel, all generating $90 million a year in taxes. Central City, built on steep rolling hills and filled with historic buildings, has just six casinos that bring in $6 million in annual taxes.

Many people have been put off by gambling casinos in the mountains. While Black Hawk has become a stunning success financially and in tourism, Central City at first struggled with empty storefronts. Then in 2004, Central City acquired a 150-foot-wide strip of land from I-70 to the town and they built a superb $38.3 million highway that makes it easy and fast to get there from Denver.

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A Revitalized Central City

If you have not been to Central City in years, you’re in for a surprise. The town has been repainted, restored, has historic lampposts with gorgeous flower baskets, antique stores, dozens of flapping American flags, more new shopping and a series of events including juried art shows, a summer opera festival, Lou Bunch Day celebrating the town’s most famous brothel, “Still in the Hills” with whiskey tastings, and a rip-roaring Central City Beer Festival.

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Central City Walking Tour

This walking tour is roughly a half-mile long and leads to the major downtown sites. But don’t forget to walk down alleys, visit the cemeteries north of town, and pause to breathe the same mountain air once enjoyed by prospectors and prostitutes, gunfighters and grifters, Cornish hard-rock miners and opera singers.

Welcome to the complex and sometimes crazy history of Central City, Colorado.

The Birth of a Mining Town

In 1858, just nine years after the great California Gold Rush, some flakes of gold and gold nuggets were discovered in the area that would eventually come to be called Denver, Colorado. The news spread across America like electricity.

In just two years, more than 100,000 people walked, rode horses, hopped on wagons – some even pushed wheelbarrows – traveling a minimum of 800 miles to get to the gold diggings and the possibility of instant wealth. The “Mother Load” of the gold, the source from which all the gold flowed downhill by streams, was discovered by John H. Gregory just 34 miles west of Denver on May 6, 1859.

Overnight, towns spread out across the hills and prospectors began digging mines. The main camp took on the name Central City. Start your walking tour at the Teller House Hotel. Built in 1872, the 80-room building was the best luxury hotel in Colorado. President Ulysses S. Grant and his wife stayed here in 1873, enjoying an eight-course dinner unthinkable anywhere else in the Wild West.

Upon his arrival by stagecoach, the townspeople made a sidewalk for President Grant paved entirely of glowing silver ingots. The suite the President stayed in remains with all of its original décor, from the curtains to the canopy bed, and can still be visited. Tour tickets are available at the Gilpin Historical Society (the yellow building across the street) and start at $7 per person.

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Central City’s Cultural Heritage

Central City’s Legendary Artwork

One of Colorado’s most valuable pieces of original art can be seen in the Teller House Hotel bar. The artwork was inspired by a legendary ballad written in 1898 by H. Antoine D’Arcy that tells the story of a young gentleman jilted in romance. His heart was so broken that after he chalked an image of his lost love on a bar’s floor, he died on the spot.

Of course, that never happened. But years later, in 1936, Herndon Davis, perhaps having a cocktail or two himself at the bar, recalled the tale and, on his knees, recreated the inspired image of a beautiful lady on the saloon’s floor. The painting has been preserved and cherished and seeing the “Face on the Barroom Floor” has been a Colorado legend ever since.

Historic Central City Opera House: Colorado’s Cultural Crown Jewel

Next door, uphill is the Central City Opera House, which opened in 1878 and made the town the cultural capital of Colorado. Built by Welsh and Cornish miners and town residents, the stone and brick structure had a crescent-shaped balcony and arched windows. Famed artist John C. Massman painted a ceiling mural.

The opera house was kept cool during the summer by a creek that flowed in a flume under the building. Electricity was installed in 1896. Buffalo Bill Cody and every popular actor and opera star of the time appeared at the theatre. But then, when the gold played out and Central City became a ghost town, the opera house was abandoned. It sat empty until 1929, when a dedicated band of Denver preservationists and music lovers formed the Central City Opera House Association to renovate and reopen its doors.

There was extensive restoration in 1932, and in 1999, the old wooden chairs were replaced with plush new theater seating. Today, the building continues to offer several operatic productions each summer. It is a wonderful experience to stroll the town’s old historic sidewalks for a summer evening of music and history.

Washington Hall: Art, History, and Dramatic Past in Gold Country

The yellow building across the street is Washington Hall, one of the oldest buildings in Central City and the home of the Gilpin Arts Association. This is where you can book Gilpin History Tours. Admission to the building is free and it has an art gallery of more than 1,000 pieces of art, many depicting Central City throughout its history.

Built in 1862 by Sheriff William Z. Cozen, it was originally intended to be a jail because the Sheriff’s wife, Mary York, was tired of having inmates handcuffed to the furniture in their house. Later in 1864, it became the Colorado Territory District Court. During one of the first miners’ sessions held here, the courtroom floor collapsed, hurling 200 men from the second floor down to the first. The furnishings of the courthouse that survived are still on display.

Best Accommodations in Central City

Historic Churches and Courthouse

Just west of Washington Hall is St. James Church. It was constructed between 1864 and 1872 and is the home of the oldest congregation in Colorado. Clara Brown, a freed slave, was one of its earliest members. She is believed to be the first African American to settle in Colorado territory. Aunt Clara, as she was known, started a laundry in town and was so successful that she was able to fund almost half of the church’s construction.

St. James Church featured Colorado’s first lending public library and an impressive 857-pipe organ. Julia Ward Howe, the author of the lyrics of the famous Civil War tune, “The Battle Hymn of the Republic,” was living in Central City in 1904. As a memento to the church bishop, she wrote in her own hand a copy of the lyrics. The priceless document is still owned by the church, though the Smithsonian would love to lay their hands on it.

Next door to St. James Church is the still-functioning Central City Courthouse that was built in 1900. It’s open during business hours and features a hand-carved, three-story oak staircase, visible just inside the front door. They also have a 38-star flag that was created when Colorado was admitted to the Union as the 38th state in 1876.

Colorado’s Press Pioneer: The Weekly Register Call’s Resilient History

As you turn around and walk back downhill on Eureka Street, look for the offices of the Central City Weekly Register Call, the longest-running newspaper in Colorado. Once, when a raid by Cheyenne Indians destroyed their normal paper supply, they printed an edition on wallpaper.

Climb the tall stairs beside the “Weekly Register Call” and turn right at the top on High Street. Here you’ll pass the picturesque St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, built in 1873 in Gothic Revival-style granite. Continue your short walk to the Gilpin History Museum. Up until 1966, this was Central City’s High School. It was originally built in 1869 because before that, school was being held on the first floor of a gambling hall and saloon.

Five-Star Time Travel: Inside the Gilpin History Museum

The wealthier townspeople thought better and raised the funds to construct the two-story building that has now become the Gilpin History Museum. This is a TripAdvisor Five-Star rated attraction, open from June to September. Here you can meander through history with its true-to-life displays that bring the town’s history to life.

Climb back down the stairs to Eureka Street and walk downhill to the stable of Dick Williams, who was elected sheriff of Central City four times and mayor of the town twice. Before automobiles, stables were of vast importance in the transportation of people and goods, and this was the largest stable in town. The exterior signage has been restored to what it would have looked like a hundred years ago.

The Deadly Shootout of 1896: Central City’s Most Dramatic Wild West Tale

In April 1896, Sheriff Dick Williams was working in the stable when he heard a commotion down the block in what is now the Century Casino. A man named Samuel Covington got in an argument over a debt, pulled a revolver, and shot City Marshal Mike Kelleher. Sheriff Dick Williams, arriving on the scene, fired a pistol but missed. The enraged Covington shot Dick Williams point blank in the chest. With a revolver in each hand, Covington then ran down Nevada Street firing at the crowd following him.

A local citizen, Henry Letham, borrowed a Winchester rifle and snapped off a quick shot down the full length of the block, hitting Covington and killing him. Marshal Kelleher survived, but popular Dick Williams died four days later at the age of 48. His funeral was so large, it was the first and last to ever be held in the Opera House, with a procession that included 116 horse-drawn carriages.

Main Street and Hollywood Connections

Walk to the corner of Eureka and Main streets and you are in the center of Central City, where the view has changed very little over the years. On May 21, 1874, a catastrophic fire destroyed about 150 of the town’s buildings, but they were all rebuilt with brick and stone rather than wood.

Today, there are 294 buildings in Central City validated by the state’s Historic Preservation Office as being over 100 years old. The remarkably preserved town center was recognized by Hollywood as early as 1910 when Tom Mix made some of the first silent movies here. The 1970s mini-TV series based on James Michener’s best-selling book, “Centennial,” was filmed here, with the studio having to just add tons of dirt to the street and wooden sidewalks to make it look authentic.

“Centennial,” of course, refers to Colorado, which was admitted to the Union in 1876 and is known as the “Centennial State.” In 1974, the ‘The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox,” a romantic comedy with George Segal and Goldie Hawn was filmed on Main Street, and in the Belvidere Theatre, which was transformed into a saloon.

Today, the Belvidere is being restored to its former glory with a new restaurant that will carry the original name, “The Shoo Fly.” Several episodes of the TV classic “Perry Mason” were also filmed here. Don’t miss Hawley Mercantile, which has four floors of antiques and fun.

Saloons and Celebrities

From the 1950s to the 1980s, Central City was filled with saloons featuring live music and was a popular day-trip destination from Denver. Jack Kerouac in his classic book, “On the Road,” memorialized one evening in town. “It was a wonderful night. Central City is two miles high; at first, you get drunk on the altitude, then you get tired, and there’s a fever in your soul.”

We approached the lights around the opera house down the narrow, dark street; then we took a sharp right and hit some old saloons with swinging doors. Most of the tourists were in the opera. We started off with a few extra-large beers. There was a player piano. Beyond the back door was a view of mountainsides in the moonlight. I let out a yahoo. The night was on.”

To visit one of these old saloons, walk south on Main Street past Gregory Street and step inside the Gold Coin bar, housed in the Easy Street Casino. Here, the bar and the interior décor have been little changed since it was built in 1897. This is Central City’s oldest drinking establishment and the hand-carved oak bar remains just as it was back then. Why are there dollar bills stuck to the ceiling? Those were put there by patrons who could afford to leave a bill, only to be removed later by those who could not and still needed a drink.

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Rock Star Routes: The Celebrity Trail Through Central City’s Historic Taverns

Many celebrities have been known to frequent Central City. Across the street from the Gold Coin once stood the Gilded Garter, where Paul McCartney enjoyed a cocktail in 1967 on one of his many visits to Colorado. Next door to Doc Holidays was the Glory Hole Saloon, named after one of Central City’s largest mining operations. Bob Dylan attempted to launch his singing career here in 1959, but his brand of folk music just didn’t sit well in the mountain town. Four years later, back in New York, he released his breakout album “The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan.”

More popular in town were Stetson hats, which were invented in Central City by John B. Stetson in 1860. An experienced hat maker, Stetson, as a joke, made an elaborate extra-wide-brim hat to show off his skills. When a stranger bought the hat, Stetson realized the practical advantages the wide brim had to ward off the sun, rain, and the elements. He turned that original Central City hat into a multi-million-dollar industry producing millions of hats that became synonymous with the West and cowboys.

Western Fashion Revolution: From Central City to Cowboy Culture Icons

Colorado became the epicenter for western wear when Jack A. Weil, founder of Rockmount Western Wear in Denver, invented the snap-button western shirt. Realizing that cowboys don’t sew, he replaced sewn-on buttons with snaps, so after a barroom brawl or tangling with a steer, cowboys didn’t have to sew on new buttons — they could just snap them back into position.

His shirts have been worn in hundreds of Western movies and by rock stars from Eric Clapton to Bruce Springsteen. You can buy a snap-button Rockmount shirt for yourself or a Stetson Hat at Dutch’s Central City Trading Post on 125 Main Street.

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Conclusion of the Tour

End your tour by walking back uphill on Main Street to the junction with Eureka Street and enter the Central City Visitor Center. The two-story building is filled with photos, exhibits, and artifacts about this historic mining town.

The knowledgeable and welcoming staff of the Visitor Center can help you find many other excursions. Some suggestions might include directions to the eleven historic cemeteries in the area (many of them haunted). Or a scenic drive over the “Oh My God Road” (Virginia Canyon Road) to the sister mining town of Idaho Springs and the Argo Gold Mill, where $10.1 trillion of Central City gold was shipped by an underground tunnel railroad.

You can also hike along the route of a Gravity Railroad that shipped gold ore down from Central City to the mills in Black Hawk. Or drive to area ghost towns like Nevadaville, once home to 2,000 men and now abandoned. Wherever you go in Central City, you are likely to discover the true history of the Wild Wild West in Colorado.

If You Go:

There are six casinos, ten cafes, restaurants, and a brewery for meals and drinks. For more information: Central City.

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Author Bio: Maryann Zarlengo Yuthas has had a long career in the Denver travel industry, representing Hyatt hotels and other travel-related businesses; Rich Grant worked as director of communications for Visit Denver for 35 years and as a travel writer has produced stories for dozens of newspapers, magazines, and websites.

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