Victor, CO: 6 Cool Walkable Ways to Experience Gold Mining History

April 2023: Victor (pop.379*) is a historic old mining town located in Teller County, Colorado. It is situated at an elevation of 9,800 feet above sea level in the Rocky Mountains on the southwest side of Pikes Peak. We visited both Cripple Creek and Victor recently, eager to learn more about their mining heritage. Victor is smaller and much less dependent on the casino tourism industry than neighboring Cripple Creek. However, we found it to be a really cool place to explore – especially its relatively large historic downtown that once supported nearly 18,000 inhabitants and now less than 400.

To put our visit in context, it is worth learning more about the area’s history.

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Victor – A Brief (and fascinating!) history

Gold discovery

Victor was founded in the early 1890s, shortly after Winfield Scott Stratton discovered gold nearby. The town was named after the Victor Mine. Battle Mountain, located just above the town, had the largest, most prolific mines in the area.  

In 1894, a couple of brothers discovered gold when they began digging the foundation for a building, which resulted in the creation of the Gold Coin Mine. At that time, the town’s population was around 8,000. The town of Victor boomed as the surrounding Cripple Creek mining district (which hit its peak in 1900) became the 2nd largest gold district in the country’s history and the population is believed to reached 18,000 inhabitants, although the 1900 census registered around 5000.

Mine owners and investors lived in Cripple Creek, while most of the miners for the districts’ 500 mines lived in Victor.

Fire of 1899

In August 1899, the Victor business district was destroyed in a five-hour fire. As a result, many of the historic buildings seen today date to 1899, including the St. Victor Roman Catholic church, the First Baptist Church of Victor, and the Victor Hotel.

Mining in decline – but remains an economic force

The town declined steadily throughout the 20th century, as the area gold mines became tapped out and closed.

Today, the Cripple Creek & Victor Gold Mining Company is the only local gold mine still in operation. It was formed in 1976 as a joint venture to restart mining in the district, and began its first large-scale open pit mining in the district in 1994.

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6 Ways to Experience Gold Mining History on Foot

1. Admire the (many!) historic buildings dating back to the gold rush era

The impressive Victor Downtown Historical District has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1985. There are 55 buildings officially included in the register, several of which house active businesses today. But also many of which stand empty with exteriors that have been maintained and add greatly to the character of the streets. If you love historic old buildings, you will love this town! We also appreciated that they had poster boards for many of the old buildings explaining their historic relevance.

2. Check out the very cool public art

While walking the historic streets, we were also amazed at the large number of unique and creative art displays! Many of them showcasing the town’s history, and some just featuring creative fun.

3. Stop and shop at the Mining Museum and Victor’s Gold Camp

Both businesses include shops as well as a museum area featuring gold mining history.

• Victor Lowell Thomas Museum – Google Maps
• Victor’s Gold Camp – Google Maps

We learned later that the historic Isis Theater that is also sometimes open to the public to see the renovated space and historic old costumes!

• Isis Theater – Google Maps

4. Stop by Victor Hotel and have a drink at the 1899 Mining Claim and Saloon

During our visit we learned that one of the highlights of the historic downtown area is the original Victor Hotel, which was built in 1899 and has been restored to its original grandeur. Visitors can stay in one of the hotel’s Victorian-style rooms and enjoy the period decor and architecture. Right next door is an old-style saloon with an outdoor patio taking in the views of Battle Mountain.

• Victor Hotel – Google Maps
• 1899 Mining Claim and Saloon – Google Maps

5. Admire the historic and colorful neighborhoods

Near downtown businesses, we also found some really cool historic neighborhoods.

6. Admire the view (and some wildlife if you are lucky!) from the Straub Overlook

At the start of our visit, we parked across from the old City Hall building. On our way back to the car, we noticed a friendly (collared) black cat hanging out and stopped to make friends. After petting him for a bit, he perked up as if something caught his attention. We crossed the street and noticed a kit of foxes playing in the field down below… which we later learned is the Straub Mountain Overlook. What a cool way to end our visit!

• Straub Mountain Overlook – Google Maps

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More to Explore!

We found an active facebook page for the Main Street Program, which provides real time updates of news in the historic downtown area. We also found a Walking map of Victor on town website.

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Activities / Events

Although the town was relatively quiet the Sunday afternoon we visited, a little online research indicates that there are many interesting events planned – including several cool opportunities to lean into the area’s mining history in a fun way. 2023 Summer events include:

• Walking tours of downtown and Guided bus tours of the mining district (sponsored by Lowell Thomas Museum)
• Sunnyside Cemetery Tours | Stranger Side of Victor Tours – June through October
• Mineral Show and Oddities Alley & Hunk o’Junk Antique Exhibition & Old Time Medicine Show– mid June
• Gold Rush Days – mid July
• Victor Celebrates the Arts – Sept.1-4
• Pack Burro Race – Sept 9 (opportunity to run with the burros! a legacy mining sport)
• Victor/Cripple Creek Yoga Festival – Sept 29-Oct.1
• Haunted Downtown Trick or Treat Street – Oct.27
• Steampunk Soiree – Sept 22-24
• Holiday Headframe lighting – Nov.25-Jan.1
• Parade of Lights – Dec.8

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