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A cableway transports excavated boulders from the Gold Pan Pit at the Gold Pan Mining Company operations just south of Breckenridge, Colorado. Boulders larger than 8 inches were lifted from the pit by rectangular metal platforms edged on three sides called "stone boats". The cableway transported and disposed the rocks away from the pit. Barney Ford Hill in the background. Early 1900s.

A young boy sits on the snow above a man leaning against a snowbank along the railroad tracks that serviced the Kilton Gold Reduction Company ore sampler, west of Breckenridge, Colorado, during the "Big Snow" of 1898-1899.

A man sits at a desk in the offices of the Gold Pan Mining Company on South Ridge Street in Breckenridge, Colorado. A half wall lined with drawers, shelving and teller windows separates the office from the public space. Hanging on the wall behind him is a row of clipboards and more file drawers, and a clock. Circa early 1900s.

Abandoned log building on Farncomb Hill, in the Upper Swan River Valley near Breckenridge, Colorado. Circa 1930s-1940s. The building once housed the Wapiti post office, granted in 1894.

Office in the Gold Pan Mining Company building on South Ridge Street in Breckenridge, Colorado. Circa early 1900s. The room is furnished with two rolltop desks facing each other, a drafting table under one of the two windows, and a radiator. Against one wall is a wood card file cabinet with numerous small drawers over larger drawers; lower shelves are filled with ledger books. More books are on top of one of the desks, and framed certificates adorn the wallpapered walls. Hanging from the wallpapered ceiling is a four globe light fixture.

The Evans hydraulic elevator system at the the Gold Pan Mining Company south of Breckenridge, Colorado, with a view of the elevated trestle and sluice. Tailings were hauled up the elevated wooden trestle by ore trolley and dumped over the edge, away from the Blue River and Gold Pan excavating pit. The sluice was used to collect potential gold-bearing dirt and gravel. Mine buildings in the background, with a view of Barney Ford Hill. Circa early 1900s.

The elevated wooden scaffold at the Gold Pan Mining Company in Breckenridge, Colorado. Circa early 1900s. Far left, a sluiceway with a rubber conveyor belt moved rocks from the gold excavating pit and into an ore trolley. The trolley moved up the elevated wooden scaffold and dumped the rocks over the edge, eventually creating a massive tailings pile. The Gold Pan Mine operations nearly reached the buildings and houses on the southern edge of town. Tenmile Range in the background; the Colorado and Southern (C&S) Railway tracks are in the foreground.

Evans elevator system and excavation pit at the Gold Pan Mining Company just south of Breckenridge, Colorado. Water diverted from the Blue River was forced under tremendous pressure down one pipe into the pit. A second pipe hydraulically lifted rocks, dirt, water and potential gold to the elevated trestle and sluice. Tailings were moved by conveyor belt into an ore trolley; the trolley hauled the rocks up the elevated wooden trestle and dumped them over the edge, away from the pit. In the background are houses on Ridge Street. Circa early 1900s.

A cableway transports excavated boulders from the Gold Pan Pit at the Gold Pan Mining Company operations just south of Breckenridge, Colorado. Boulders larger than 8 inches were lifted from the pit by rectangular metal platforms edged on three sides called "stone boats". The cableway transported and disposed the rocks from the pit, and carried heavy pipes and equipment into the pit. Circa early 1900s.

Gold Pan ditch under construction. Men use shovels and a horse-drawn dirt scraper to dig the four foot deep trench from May to November, 1900. The ditch ran north collecting water from the Blue River and Pennsylvania and Indiana Creeks and was used for the Gold Pan Mining Company hydraulic operations south of Breckenridge, Colorado. Stands of dead trees cover the dirt hillside.

Evans elevator system at the Gold Pan Mining Company operations south of Breckenridge, Colorado. Circa early 1900s. Water diverted from the Blue River was forced under tremendous pressure down one pipe into the pit. A second pipe hydraulically lifted rocks, dirt, water and potential gold to the elevated trestle and sluice. Tailings were moved by conveyor belt into an ore trolley; the trolley hauled the rocks up the elevated wooden trestle and dumped them over the edge, away from the pit. In the background are the Gold Pan Shops, including the pipe making shop and dipping tank; machine, blacksmith and carpenter shop; and pipe flanging and shearing shop. Also, the Gold Pan office building with dormer windows. Barney Ford Hill is in view, with Illinois Gulch to the southeast.

Gold Pan Mining Company operations at the southern outskirts of Breckenridge, Colorado. Circa early 1900s. A sluiceway with a rubber conveyor belt moved rocks from the gold excavating pit and into an ore trolley. The trolley moved up the elevated wooden scaffold and dumped the rocks over the edge, eventually creating a massive tailings pile. The Colorado and Southern Railway (C&S) tracks ran under the conveyor system and crossed a trestle to the west side of the Blue River. In the foreground is a wood frame house with a square bay window, facing east. A rail fence borders the property. Tenmile Range in the background.

The Gold Pan Mining Company office building on South Ridge Street in Breckenridge, Colorado. Circa early 1900s. The two-story multi gable wood frame building with dormer windows featured five offices on the main floor, with bedrooms and a bath upstairs. A man dressed in a waistcoat and necktie stands on the covered porch. Boulders line the dirt walkway to the entrance. In the background is the elevated scaffold that carried rocks away from the Blue River and Gold Pan excavation pit.

Gold Pan Mining Company office on South Ridge Street in Breckenridge, Colorado. The building had five offices on the main floor, and bedrooms and a bath upstairs. The room is furnished with a drafting table, roll top desk and two office chairs. A large map of "Leadville" covers one wall. Hanging from the ceiling is a four globe light fixture; two large windows bring additional light to the interior. Circa 1900s.

Two men sit or stand at the back of the retail room on the second floor of the Gold Pan Shops building at the south end of Breckenridge, Colorado. Circa early 1900s. The long narrow room is lined with tall windows flanked by wooden shelves holding various styles of glass lamp globes and shades, and other electrical lighting supplies. From the wooden beams above hang ceiling light fixtures, each with two glass lamp globes. In 1901, the Gold Pan Company began supplying hydroelectric power to the town, putting the Breckenridge Electric Company, a coal-fueled steam plant and the town's supplier since 1892, out of business.

Goldpan Engineering and Mine Supply machine shops, a subsidiary of the Gold Pan Mining Company, at the south end of Ridge Street, Breckenridge, Colorado. Circa 1901. The Goldpan shops consisted of three main buildings and numerous outbuildings: pipe shop (left); machine, blacksmith, wood working shop, and power plant with a tall smokestack (center); and a warehouse for boiler plate storage (right). The two story, multi gable wood frame building with dormer windows is the Gold Pan Mining Company office. In the foreground are the Colorado and Southern (C&S) railroad tracks. Barney Ford Hill in the background.

Photograph taken by Otto Westerman for the Wapiti Mining Company circa 1896. Shows the view of the Great Flume on Farncomb Hill above American Gulch, six miles east of Breckenridge, Colorado. The buildings of Dog Town can be seen below. This area was known for its crystallized gold.

Interior view of the Gold Pan office building on South Ridge Street in Breckenridge, Colorado. Circa 1900s. A paneled wood wall with alternating mirrors and teller windows divides the space leading to the book keeper's and cashier's office. One mirrored panel reflects lettering on the wall opposite: "Offices - Gold Pan Mine Company - Gold Pan Engineers - Mine Supply - Oro Grand Placer Mines Company". The room also featured wallpapered walls and ceiling, and heavily patterned carpeting.

Men stand outside the Minnie Mine and Mill boardinghouse on Mineral Hill in French Gulch, east of Breckenridge, Colorado. The one-and-half story log building featured a shingled, side gable roof and exterior wooden stairs. A wooden boardwalk fronts the building. The Minnie Mine and Mill was owned by the Blue Hill Mining Company from 1890-1904.

Men (and one dog) stand side-by-side outside the Minnie Mine and Mill mill building on Mineral Hill in French Gulch, east of Breckenridge, Colorado. The wood frame, metal-roofed mill was constructed in 1892 and included several crushers, crushing rolls, screens and jigs. Smoke rises from one of the chimneys. Peeled, cut logs are stacked near the mill's entrance. The Minnie Mine and Mill was owned by the Blue Hill Mining Company from 1890-1904.