And the West is History – Graden Mercantile Elevator and Flour Mill – ca. 1905

Smelter Mountain was nearly obscured by the ever-present smoke from the American Smelting and Refining Co.’s smelter operation the day this photo was taken of the Graden Mill and Elevator. This business, with its spur from the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, was located along the Animas River where the DoubleTree Hotel is today. Owner and Civil War veteran Thomas Graden was early Durango’s most successful businessman and an early mayor. He owned a number of sawmills in the area, a slaughterhouse, feedlots, this flour mill, a coal mine, a mercantile store, a foundry and a streetcar company. He was also involved in real estate. He retired to California and died in 1924, leaving an important business legacy to Durango and the surrounding area. He left no direct descendants. – Ed Horvat for Animas Museum, edhorvat@animasmuseum.org (Catalog Number: 86.03.2 from the La Plata County Historical Society Photo Collections)