Harvesting Historical Riches

Power Station Rehab Recharges Interest in Salida’s Past

Originally published in Colorado History NOW, March 2005

The town of Salida calls itself the “Heart of the Rockies” for good reason.  Surrounded by fourteen-thousand-foot peaks, it draws visitors from the region’s extremities, infuses their souls with natural beauty, and pumps them back home along the major arterial roads, fortified and happy.  Recreational activities—including whitewater rafting and fishing on the Arkansas River, hiking or climbing in the Collegiate Peaks, and skiing or snowboarding at Monarch—attract most of the people, but cultural events and the historic district pull their fair share as well.  In fact, folks with their fingers on the local pulse know that Salida’s economic health owes as much to its arts scene and historical buildings as it does to postcard-perfect vistas.

It is ironic that Salida—a place known for its crisp, clean air and proximity to alpine wilderness—should focus its attention on the preservation of its industrial buildings and structures.  And yet, the town’s fondness for saving architectural eyesores reflects not only an astute preservation ethic, but also an awareness of the need to save all of the significant reminders of our past and not just cute or aesthetically pleasing landmarks.  Two historic resources in particular, the Salida Smelter Smokestack and the Salida Steam Plant, exemplify the town’s all-encompassing preservation program.

The extended battle to save the 365-foot-high smokestack may have paved the way for the steam plant’s more recent rehabilitation.  Situated on the Denver & Rio Grande Western line and along the Arkansas River between upstream mining districts and down-river manufacturing centers like Cañon City and Pueblo, Salida was a perfect place to run a smelting operation.  The railroad and river also attracted farmers and ranchers who wanted to capitalize on the valley’s unique climate.  Sheltered by mountain ranges on three sides, Salida enjoys relatively mild weather in comparison to other high-country towns.  Of course, the industrial and agricultural interests were bound to clash.

The Ohio and Colorado Smelting and Refining Company built the oversized chimney in response to complaints by local farmers and ranchers who claimed that cyanide-laden fumes emanating from shorter smokestacks harmed crops and animals.  After a while, one local rancher got tired of lodging complaints and just submitted a bill every time one of his cows died.  The company reimbursed him so handsomely that he “considered killing all of his animals on a regular basis.”

Bad jokes aside, both the smelting company and the local population understood that the air pollution represented a serious threat to public health.  Anticipating lawsuits, the company decided to build a smokestack that would be so high that it would effectively remove the toxic effluvium from local airspace.

The resulting construction, a brick behemoth that outreaches Denver’s Daniels and Fisher Tower by thirty-five feet, only operated for twenty-nine months.  The Ohio and Colorado Smelting and Refining Company went out of business in 1920 and subsequent owners of its property sold the operation for scrap.  But vocal preservationists fought to save the tower as a monument to the Salida area’s industrial past.

The Colorado Historical Society announced the smokestack’s listing in the National Register of Historic Places in January 1976.  Coinciding with Colorado’s centennial anniversary, the announcement came at a time of increasing respect for the state’s heritage.  Four years later, Salida celebrated its own centennial and the local newspaper jumped on the preservation bandwagon by calling on citizens to revitalize their downtown by preserving buildings with historic significance.

Salida’s early commitment to historic preservation paid off.  When a nonprofit arts organization decided to rehabilitate the town’s electrical generating plant as a theatre and conference center, local businesses, the chamber of commerce, wilderness groups, and schools lined up in support.  Between 1993 and 2003, the State Historical Fund awarded the City of Salida and the Steam Plant Board of Directors $264,000 in four separate grants.  The latest grant enabled the Board to rehabilitate the Steam Plant’s “Pigeon Room,” a large space once used for boilers, furnaces, and coal storage.  Speaking for the city in 2002, Ron Stowell said that “The completed project will enhance the city’s whole cultural and economic outlook.”

It has.  The long-abandoned Pigeon Room now serves up to 250 guests at a time, while the rest of the building continues to be used as a community theatre.  Once an outmoded eyesore, the Steam Plant generates energy of a different sort by recharging the town’s interest in the arts and the beauty of historic places.  And if you visit, don’t be surprised if you see a little grime on the walls.  Be assured that it was left there intentionally as an authentic reminder of Salida’s industrial past.

BY BEN FOGELBERG, Editor

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