Aspen Colorado was originally occupied by the Ute Indians. Miners arrived over Independence Pass in 1879 and set up camp. They name their new camp Ute City. The picture in this post is from a couple years after they arrived. The first baby, Dale Jacobs was born in Aspen in 1881. It’s hard to fathom that the Aspen Colorado we know of today is only 145 years old.
Aspen grew to a population of 12,000 people during the 1880s. With the stroke of a pen in 1893 President Grover Cleveland signed the Sherman act which changed the United States dollar from being backed by silver to being backed by gold. When the ink dried Aspen began its long decline down to a couple hundred people by the 1920s. Because there was nobody around to tear down the historic houses and buildings and with preservation issues beginning in the 60s there are still hundreds of historic buildings and homes around Aspen. Most, if not, all have been restored and look like the day they were built.
The period between the mining boom, and skiing was known as the quiet years. In the mid 1930s people began skiing and the Aspen ski club was formed. There was a boat tow, which is a sled that was pulled by a haul rope short distance on Aspen Mountain to haul skiers up. Plans to build a ski area right out of town were put on hold by World War II. The 10th mountain division which fought the war on skis, was set up at Camp Hale, close to modern day Vail. This is where the soldiers were stationed and trained. On weekends, they would ski over to Aspen check into the hotel Jerome for $1 and ski the local mountains for training. They would hang out at The J bar which is still a favorite place for food and drinks. After the war, many of these soldiers ended up starting many of the ski areas around the United States including Aspen.
The first chairlift on Aspen Mountain, was installed in 1946 and was inaugurated in January 11, 1947. At the time it was the world’s longest chairlift. In 1958 two other mountains opened for skiing within 3 miles of Aspen Both Aspen Highlands and Buttermilk ski area are still local favorites. In 1968 Snowmass at Aspen opened. In 1978 the village of Snowmass, incorporated, and is now known as Snowmass Ski Area.
Beginning in the 1960s Aspen saw another boom, the lodging and condominium boom. The first condominium complex in Colorado was the Aspen Alps, which is slide on the Little Nell ski run on Aspen Mountain. The Alps was built in 1963 after its developer lobbied the state of Colorado to allow condominiums which before that they were illegal. Thus set off the boom which continues today with new hotels replacing some of the older properties from the 1960s and 70s.
There are hundreds of lodging options in Aspen and Snowmass Village. Let us know what you’re looking for and we’ll work one on one with you to find the perfect vacation rental properties for you and your group. As of now you can search over 250 Vacation rentals on our website. Aspen Snowmass Rentals can help you navigate everything Aspen Snowmass.