Silverton had become a town of considerable population by 1879, and fire protection became a necessity. A “hook and ladder” was ordered from Denver, and with news of its arrival at Grassy Hill at the head of the Rio Grande, nearly half of the male population started for Grassy on horseback and on burros. The hook and ladder with all its equipment was hauled to Howardsville where it was met by another group who brought it into Silverton by hand. The Silverton Cornet Band led the group from Howardsville, and that evening a big celebration was held. At the old City Hall on Blair Street, next door to Swanson’s Market, you can still see part of the old fire fighting Hose Cart; also two cells of the old county jail remain there.
Patrick, better known as “Cap” Stanley, opened the first brick yard at the foot of the hill between Reese Street and the Walsh Smelter. He built the first two brick homes in Silverton on the east side of upper Greene Street, and they are yet in very good condition. The bricks for the Grand Imperial Hotel were made in this yard. “Cap” was the leader of the Vigilantes, and a bluff, stern person. The Vigilantes did their work well, but at one time the town council, realizing that matters were becoming serious, hired the famous Bat Masterson of Dodge City fame to clean up the town. Needless to say, he did.
Fred Steinger secured a government contract for ten thousand dollars to bring the mail to Silverton from Parrot City. This was known as the Star Route and was a daily schedule with three stops and three changes of horses each trip. Meals and sleeping quarters were provided for the passengers should they desire or be forced to stay. There were log barns at all stops, and care for the horses was provided. It was not an unusual sight to see one hundred to one hundred and fifty pack animals turned out for grazing on the slopes of the hills. All went well during the summer, but winter was not so good. The carriers started in wagons, then later had to leave the wagons and use horses. Finally, when the snow got so deep at the stop below Silverton, a carrier by the name of Snyder would use his dog team and sled. He would pile the mail, general merchandise, and supplies on the sled, then he would perch himself on top of the load and be on his way. The sled was pulled by his huge black dogs that were both strong and savage. Snyder and his dog team also hauled water for the town in winter. He would fill six five-gallon oil cans, put them on the sled, and he and his trusty dogs were off to deliver water at fifty cents a can. The dogs were also utilized at funerals when the snow was too deep for the heavier animals. Snyder took good care of his dogs, and after a hard trip, so the story goes, he would give each of them a drink of whiskey.
In 1879, a fire broke out in the forests near Molas Pass. There are two stories told about the “Molas” or “Lime Creek” burn. One is, the fire was started by a camp fire left burning by careless campers, and the other, which is the most popular, that the Indians had set the forest afire to smoke out the white settlers. There had been trouble between the Utes and the whites, and men at the Animas Forks section, seeing the smoke, thought it was an Indian uprising and hid in the mine for several days. The blaze burned more than 26,000 acres of timberland and consumed an estimated 150 million board feet of timber.
Replanting of the burn began in 1924, and since then about 1,000 trees have been planted annually. Even so, eighty-three years later, the scars remain. Beautiful Molas Lake, owned by the Town of Silverton, is located five miles south and near the summit of Molas Pass. Silverton is surrounded by seven lakes above timberline that teem with native trout. So high are they that stocking is done by airplane.
Molas Lake, with Needle Mountains in the Background
In 1880, Otto Mears had a toll road from Saguache to Silverton, via Poncha Pass, Marshall Pass, Gunnison, Cebolla, Lake Fork, Animas Forks, Eureka and Howardsville, totalling 200 miles, with eight to ten toll stations.
May 28, 1880, Thatcher Brothers of Pueblo opened the Bank of Silverton. In July, 1880, Jefferman and Johnson opened the Bank of San Juan. This bank was sold to the Thatchers in 1882.
In December, 1882, application was made for a charter, and on April 18, 1883, the First National Bank was opened. This bank had only two cashiers in fifty-one years. It was liquidated in 1934, paying one-hundred cents on the dollar. This bank was located on the corner of Greene and 13th Streets, which is now the Recreation Hall.