by Pam North

Gilpin County's north-neighboring town of Nederland owes its founding to the previous existence of a small settlement called Caribou, and Caribou itself came about because of the discovery of silver in that location.  The deep-shafted (740 feet by 1879, and 100 feet plus in depth by 1882) Caribou Mine was a heavy-producing mine by 1870, earning great profits for its owners during its first ten years of operation, and helping to put Colorado on the mining map as the "Silver State."  In 1883, however, the mine closed for the first time, reflecting accumulated problems ranging from the effects of inconsistent management to exploitation.  Its supply of ore continued to be plentiful, but attempts to reopen the mine in the next few years for full-scale production were not successful.  Further depressing conditions wore away at the town.  Epidemics of scarlet fever and diphtheria claimed numerous lives.  A continuing great flow of underground water complicated mining, increasing costs.  The silver market declined, finally collapsing altogether in 1893.  Miners in Caribou were forced to seek other work elswhere, and the town gradually became one of the historic ghost towns that pepper the American West.

In more recent years, Caribou became recognized for the Caribou Recording Studio.  In 1971, James W. Guercio, then 28 years old, bought the ranch and built a "destination recording studio," one of the first in the United States.  Guercio had an abiding interest in the concept of controlled land development, and his deep love of the land was a strong force and philosphy in his creative work.  A respected writer, producer and musician, he built his state-of-the-art recording studio amidst the beauty and grandeur of the Rocky Mountains, providing a change of pace for those musicians accustomed to working in the fast-paced, big-city studios of Los Angeles and New York City, and giving them the opportunity to perform in a more peaceful, spiritual setting.  He assembled some of the most sophisticated recording equipment available, drawing many of the biggest names in the music business to record there:  Chicago, Stephen Stills,
Dan Fogelberg (who lived in Gilpin County off Beaver Creek Road for a time), the Beach Boys, Chick Correa, Amy Grant and Michael Murphy were a few of the music greats who were a part of the history of Caribou Recording Studio.  Elton John even named his album "Caribou" after the studio.  A fire on March 2, 1985 damaged the studio, and although the exterior structure was rebuilt, the building did not resume its previous function.  The valuable sound equipment was donated to the University of Colorado at Denver, including the 16-track soundboard that had been made for and purchased from George Martin, and which had been used in producing several Beatles albums.

Today, the townsite of Caribou has little left to mark its prior civilization.  Two sizeable ruins that are all that remain of the two oldest establishments of Caribou.  One is what was originally the Leo Donnelly General Store, rebuilt in 1928 by the Potosi Mining Company as a rooming and boarding house; the other is the remains of the Sears and Werley Billiard Hall (at two stories, it was the largest building in Caribou), and it, too, was probably also used by the Potosi Mining Company.  Now all lies in ruined repose, Arapahoe Peak and Mount Baldy standing in silent splendor behind.

Resource:  Nederland, A Trip to Cloudland, by Isabel M. Becker.