By Shannon Lukens.

The Farwell Ditch has been named to the United States National Register of Historic Places. It is 17 miles long, built starting in 1876, running throughout North Routt County. It was the first large scale ditch in Routt County to be used specifically for mining and to bring water to Hahns Peak. Three tunnels were built in the ditch. It is  estimated that as many as 200 men worked on it, using picks, shovels, and dynamite.

Hahns Peak was also the first seat of Routt County government between 1877 and 1912.

The historic Farwell Ditch was nominated by brothers Rod and Nolan Farwell. Nolan is writing a book called North Routt Revolution: Grit. Grief. Gold.

 

Press Release from Historic Routt County; Sept. 11, 2025.

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, Colorado – September 11, 2025 – Historic Routt County (HRC) applied for and is pleased to announce that the Farwell Ditch has been added to the United States National Register of Historic Places, the federal government’s official list of sites, buildings, structures, districts and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. The Farwell Ditch represents another distinction for northwest Colorado.

 

Routt County Commissioners added the Farwell Ditch to the county register of historic places in April, 2022. Kristen Rockford, Executive Director of HRC, said “This federal designation signifies that the seventeen mile long ditch, constructed between 1876 -1878 represents the first largescale mining-specific ditch in Routt County. Subsequent ditch works were primarily associated with agriculture, but Farwell Ditch was unique in that it was constructed to bring water to Hahns Peak for placer and hydraulic mining operations.” Notably, the ditch was an incredible engineering feat of its day, built with two tunnels blasted through solid rock, to bring water from the headwaters of the Elk River to the mine. A third tunnel was constructed in 1897 to replace failed fluming. The ditch wound through the mountains following a slight grade of roughly six feet per mile.

 

Construction on the ditch started before Colorado became a state, and took about two years to complete. It is estimated that between 100 and 200 people worked on the project, ostensibly some of the first wage-paying jobs in the county. Remarkably, no one died during construction of the ditch. The work was performed by men using picks, shovels and dynamite. Sections of the ditch utilized wooden flumes and hand-forged iron pipe to carry water.

 

Hahns Peak was the first seat of Routt County government between 1877 – 1912. The construction of the Farwell Ditch represented a shift from simple, low-cost placer mining by individuals on their own claims, to the more consolidated, capital-intensive, and industrialized hydraulic mining of wage laborers paid by small corporations. During the mining boom of the late 19th century, one of the large companies, The Purdy Gold and Silver Mining Company caught the interest of John V. Farwell of Chicago. In 1876, Farwell acquired Purdy’s claims around Beaver Creek and String Ridge, and invested $150,000-200,000 to construct a seventeen mile ditch to bring water from the Elk River to Hahns Peak Mining District. At the same time, he established the Hahns Peak Wagon Road Company to build roads from Laramie, WY, Baggs, WY, and Steamboat Springs, CO to Hahns Peak.

 

Farwell brought Robert McIntosh, a contractor from Chicago, to supervise construction of the ditch and mining camp. International Camp was developed as a company town and was located on the lower end of String Ridge. Farwell himself spent summers in the camp supervising the project. After the ditch fed the “giants” that washed the gravel from String Ridge, the sluices were checked for gold that would be lodged in the riffles. Although Farwell and his associates desired peace with neighboring Ute Indians, increasing tensions that ultimately led to the Meeker Massacre and the Great Fire of 1879, as well as lower than anticipated gold yields, Farwell cut his losses. After mining less than one full season after construction of the ditch was completed, he sold his investment in 1879 to James France and J.B. Donaldson for $60,000. Included in the sale were all the goods held in the inventory of the retail store Farwell had established in his mining company, which alone were valued at $32,000. The mining town was abandoned by 1881. Many of the buildings were moved to nearby Hahns Peak, and the rest were later destroyed by a forest fire.

 

Robert McIntosh stayed behind, convinced that there was gold in nearby Poverty Bar. He leased the property from France and Donaldson, and extended the Farwell Ditch one mile to present-day Little Mountain. In two months, he washed out $30,000 worth of gold. In later years, Ed Cody and Frank Hinman recovered $60,000 worth of gold after six weeks of work at Nugget Cut on Poverty Bar.

 

Farwell moved on to other mining operations in Independence, Georgetown, and Leadville. Additionally, he and his brother, Charles B. Farwell, led a syndicate that financed the construction of the Texas State Capital Building in 1879. In exchange, they received 3,000,000 acres of undeveloped land in the Texas panhandle. With this land, they established the XIT ranch, which became the largest ranch under one fence in the world.

 

In 1897, a young mining engineer named Herbert Hoover (the future 31st president) came to the area and described the difficulties of the dispersed nature of the gold and the lack of necessary water. In an article for The Mining and Engineering Journal, he wrote: “The pioneers in the undertaking may lose money; those who come after will profit by their experience.”

 

The public benefit of the preservation of the Farwell Ditch underscores the significance of late 19th century manual construction of an industrial ditch system, at almost perfect grade level while winding through northwest Colorado’s rugged mountains. Farwell, himself, is credited for founding the first wage-paying, industrial enterprise in Routt County. In addition to funding the construction of the ditch, he freighted in and operated the region’s first sawmill, invested in construction of roughly 200 miles of wagon roads, and grew the company town at String Ridge.

 

For more information on how you can support local preservation efforts, visit www.HistoricRouttCounty.org or call 970-875-1305.

 

About Historic Routt County: Historic Routt County is dedicated to the preservation and celebration of Routt County’s rich history, ensuring that its historic sites remain an integral part of the community’s future. Through advocacy, education, and partnerships, the organization works to cultivate a preservation ethic in Routt County and protect the character and heritage of this unique Colorado region.