Pikes Peak Summit House - Circa 1900
In 1858, gold was found along Cherry Creek and Clear Creek near what would become Denver. Throngs of fortune seekers crossing the prairies in 1859 used Pikes Peak as a landmark to guide them to the diggings north of the mountain. In 1860 gold, and in 1876 silver, were discovered to the west of Pikes Peak in Leadville. The Ute Indian trail along the northern foot of Pikes Peak was turned into a wagon road to get to the mines at Leadville. This route is today’s U.S. Highway 24 through Ute Pass. By the 1890’s. visitors to the region could ascend to the summit of Pikes Peak by carriage from Cascade or on the Pikes Peak Cog Railway from Manitou Springs. One of the most famous visitors to Pikes Peak was Kathryn Lee Bates, a literature professor, who was inspired to write the words of “America the Beautiful” after a trip to the summit in the 1890’s.