Climax, Colorado

Climax, Colorado
—  Town  —
Climax mine, 2005
Climax, Colorado Location within the state of Colorado
Coordinates: 39°21′57″N 106°11′09″W
Country	United States
State	State of Colorado
County	Lake County
Government
• Type	unincorporated community
Elevation	11,360 ft (3,463 m)
Time zone	MST (UTC-7)
• Summer (DST)	MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP Code	80429

Climax, Colorado straddles the continental divide at Fremont Pass

Climax was an unincorporated mining village and a former U.S. Post Office located in Lake County, Colorado. Climax was known for its large molybdenum ore deposit. The former Climax Post Office had the ZIP Code 80429. Climax is located along the Continental Divide at an elevation of about 11,360 feet (3465 meters). It was the highest human settlement in the United States, and it holds the record for having had the country's highest Post Office and the highest railroad station. The residential houses were all transported to the West Park subdivision of Leadville, Colorado, before 1965, leaving only the mining buildings standing.

History

Climax's reason for being and its "claim to fame" is its huge deposit of molybdenum ore. The Climax mine was the largest molybdenum mine in the world, and for many years it supplied three-fourths of the world's supply of the metal.

Geography

Climax is located at 39°21′57″N 106°11′09″W (39.365890,-106.185780).

See also

• Climax mine
• List of cities and towns in Colorado

Further reading

• Paul B. Coffman (1937). "The Rise of a New Metal: The Growth and Success of the Climax Molybdenum Company". The Journal of Business of the University of Chicago 10 (1): 30–45. doi:10.1086/232443. JSTOR 2349563. 
• Voynick, Steve (2004). "Climax, Two Decades Later". Colorado Central Magazine 125: 16. http://www.cozine.com/archive/cc2004/01250161.html. 
• PD Press Release (April 5, 2006) Phelps Dodge Board of Directors Conditionally Approves Restart of Climax Molybdenum Mine near Leadville, Colo. [1]

References

Storm over Sheep Mountain just north of Climax, 2005.