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The Town of Alma

The Alma Region

The road #783 goes over Mosquito Pass to Leadville--a route much traveled by the Rev. John Dyer.

A 1990's Topographic Map

A Postcard View--1930s

Buckskin Gulch lies between Loveland Mt. on the left and Mt. Bross on the right.

Statistics & Facts (2002):

The population of Alma is approximately 148.

The amount of land area in Alma is 0.878 sq. kilometers.
The amount of surface water is 0 sq kilometers.
The distance from Alma to Washington DC is 1647 miles. The distance to the Colorado state capital is 75 miles. (as the crow flies)
Alma is positioned 39.28 degrees north of the equator and 106.06 degrees west of the prime meridian.

The Alma cemetery is most exceptional.
It is located in a very beautiful area featuring Aspen trees and a great mountain view.
It is also, very well cared for by the community. There are hawk feathers with small bells attached, tied to branches throughout the cemetery. The tiny bells tinkle in the breeze giving a magical ambiance to an already extraordinary place. There have been restorations to existing headstones and fences. Small, rustic, handmade crosses mark graves that have been anonymous for more than a century.
The Alma cemetery was once the 'Buckskin Joe' cemetery. Named after the mining camp that once flourished just up the road from the cemetery and modern day Alma. Many of the dead are miners and their families who died during a terrible smallpox epidemic. Many of the unmarked graves belong to them.
There is also the story of a beautiful dancer who entertained in the camp. Everyone knew her as 'Silver Heels'. During the epidemic when many of those who were able, left Buckskin Joe's to avoid the illness. Silver Heels reportedly, stayed to nurse her friends and admirers. The smallpox ran it's course but not before she too, fell victim to it. She lived but her once beautiful face was terribly scarred. No one knew where she went after that. But years later, there began the reports of a veiled woman walking among the graves of the smallpox victims, sometimes weeping. The sightings continue today. Would be ghost chasers have found her to be most elusive.

This cemetery is definitely off the beaten path but is so worth it. You will not be disappointed here but if you run into Silver Heels, please leave her be.

To get there: Once you're inside the town of Alma (it's small) look for Molly McDuff's Bakery & cafe. You'll find Buckskin Rd. next to it. Turn there and you will pass a sign for Kite Lake. Stay on Buckskin for about a mile and a half. You will see a water treatment area on your left and then a turn off on your right. That is the road to the cemetery. Follow it all the way back and ignore the crossroads.

From COLORADO GHOST TOWNS AND MINING CAMPS

1985

By Sandra Dallas

Established in 1872, Alma was named for Alma James, wife of the town's first merchant and homeowner, according to Frank Hall's History of the State of Colorado. Another story claims it was named for the first girl born in the town. Whatever the origin of its name, Alma flourished with the mining activity on nearby Mount Bross. The discovery of silver at Leadville sent prospectors scurrying across Mosquito Pass from Leadville to prospect on Mount Bross and Mount Lincoln, discovering the Dolly Varden, the Hiawatha, the Moose, the Eagle, the True Blue, and the Gertrude mines.

Alma grew steadily, and in the 1880s had a population of between five hundred and a thousand citizens, a weekly newspaper, and several hotels.

The town's main street was nearly destroyed in 1937 when a fire that started in a been parlor was fanned by fifty-mile-per-hour winds and spread to adjacent buildings. The blaze destroyed a pool hall, a barber shop, a grocery, a restaurant, several shops, and, most disastrous of all, the Gately Motor Company, a garage where most of the town's cars were parked.

1997, May: The Colorado History News (published by the Colorado Historical Society) reported in their "New listings on the National and State Registers":

Alma Community Church (Second and Main Street)

The 1936 Alma Community Church is significant for its role in the social history of the community. It is a well-preserved and unaltered example of the Rustic style. Construction was primarily done by volunteers, and the building remains available for community use.

Alma School (East Buckskin Street)

The 1925 Alma School, a rare example of the Mission style, is significant as a symbol of the importance of education to the area's residents. Additions to the building were funded by the Public Works Administration in 1936.

Some Alma Photographs