The Smelter Smokestack
Smeltertown was home to the Ohio-Colorado Smelting and Refining Company, which employed 500 people until World War I. Raw ore from hard rock mining was crushed in stamping mills then transported to smelters to extract metals.
The Smelter Smokestack was built in 1917 in order to keep noxious gases from polluting surrounding ranchlands. At 365 feet high, this brick and tile structure is twice as tall as the Leaning Tower of Pisa! Its concrete foundation extends 30 feet into the ground. Placed on the National Historic Register in 1976, the stack is also part of the Collegiate Peaks Byway. (See related photo below.)
– Leslie Walker, Salida Realty
