Crestone Historical Museum

Crestone Historical Museum


Mining, Land Grants and Spirituality

222 Cottonwood St
PO Box 64
Crestone, CO 81131

Contact:

719-588-4279

Email Us


Hours/Admission:
Memorial Day Weekend - mid-October

Friday 1-4pm

Saturday-Sunday 10am-4pm

Free admission - donations welcome

May be open for special events at other times and tours or museum openings can be arranged. Call 719-588-4279 or 719-256-0527 and leave a message to contact us.


The Museum is devoted to the history of the Crestone-Baca area on the eastern margin of the San Luis Valley, at the base of the rugged Sangre de Cristo Mountains. This area includes the Town of Crestone (current population 132), the mining districts in the foothills to the east, and the 100,000-acre Baca Grant (a Spanish land grant) to the south.

During the gold rush era (1874-1904) there was a string of mining camps along the base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, serving the mines of the El Dorado Mining District south of Crestone, and the Crestone Mining District east and north of Crestone. These camps were abandoned as the mines played out and little traces of them remain today. The town of 
Crestone is the only remaining vestige of the gold boom; founded in 1880, its population swelled to a peak of 2000 in 1900.

The Crestone Historical Museum opened in July 2011, and is located in the Old Crestone Schoolhouse, built in 1881 (and the only Crestone building on the National Register).

Displays range from implements and tools used by the miners and farmers in the late 1800s and early 1900s, to schoolbooks used in the old Crestone School (1881-1949), to the history of spiritual centers in the Crestone-Baca area (1980-present).

Natural history is also represented, ranging from a map of the prehistoric glaciers in the Sangres, a tree-ring calendar that goes back to 1884, and wildlife displays.

Six generations of Crestone children attended this elementary/high school between 1881 and 1949. The books they left in the building are now Museum displays.

About the town:

Nestled at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains at an elevation of 8,000 ft is your full service gateway to cool forests, rushing streams, and towering 14,000 foot peaks. Crestone is the jumping-off place for hiking and camping in the awesome Sangre de Cristo Wilderness, the newly expanded Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve, and the Baca National Wildlife Refuge.

After your outdoor adventure, enjoy a meal at one of our delightful restaurants, visit unique local shops, or enjoy a refreshing beverage at one our local watering holes. Live music acts perform throughout the season, culminating in the Crestone Music Festival in September.

Activities - Hiking, mountaineering, camping, adventure tours, fishing, wildlife watching, festivals, spiritual retreats, horseback riding
Spiritual Centers - The foothills around Crestone are home to 22 spiritual centers representing world religions, ancient and new.

For more information:
719-256-0572 or 719-256-4313


Articles about Crestone:
Peace, Love and UFOs in mysterious Crestone - The Gazette
One Woman's Scared Ground - Maclean's
Crestone Colorado: A Green Place to Be
 - Green Building Elements

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