Guston, Colorado

Guston Colorado
By Jerry Clark

The town of Guston was a late addition to the Red Mountain Mining District. Located at the foot of Champion Gulch on the Silverton Railroad line, the town was formed around the workings of three large mines; the Guston-Robinson, the Yankee Girl and the Genessee-Vanderbilt. The Guston post office was established on January 26th, 1892 and closed on November 16th, 1898.

The English preacher Rev. William Davis succeeded in establishing a church in Guston in 1892. He had been unsuccessful in establishing one in Red Mountain Town. The day the church was dedicated in Guston, a fire in Red Mountain destroyed the town's commercial district. More than one resident of Red Mountain was noted to have questioned the effects of divine intervention. The church at Guston not only had a bell, it also had a steam whistle to signal the miners that services were about to start.

Guston declined rapidly after the Silver Panic of 1893. The effects of later sporadic workings and recent environmental cleanup have removed any traces of residences, although the shaft house of the Yankee Girl, and a few remains of the Guston-Robinson mine are still standing.

Miners at the Yankee Girl Mine
Guston, Colorado - 1888
Otto Mears and CW Gibbs were still pushing the new Silverton Railroad up from Burro Bridge to Red Mountain Pass

(185k)