Picture Durango on a winter night in 1887: kerosene lamps flicker, then—click!—a single electric bulb floods the street with a glow townsfolk swear is “brighter than noon.” That very first spark lit the path to the Mission-style powerhouse you can still spot today from the Animas River Trail, just a breezy stroll or bike ride from your campsite at Junction West.
Key Takeaways
• Durango first lit its streets with electricity in 1887, making it one of Colorado’s earliest “bright” towns.
• The old power plant, built in Mission Revival style with a 100-foot smokestack, still stands by the Animas River Trail.
• You can reach the powerhouse on foot or bike in about 1.2 miles from Junction West Durango Riverside Resort.
• Long ago, the plant powered streetcars, smelters, and homes; lights once shut off every night at 10 p.m. to save money.
• Alternating current (AC) installed in 1892 let electricity travel farther and made Durango’s 2.5-mile streetcar line possible—years before big East-Coast cities tried it.
• The building is now the Powerhouse Science Center with hands-on exhibits, a short scavenger hunt, and a café; plan 90–120 minutes inside.
• A half-day history loop links the first DC plant site, the science center, and a smelter overlook without busting your budget or schedule.
• Quick tips: carry water, watch summer storms, avoid touching fragile stucco, and aim cameras at the smokestack for amazing selfies.
Why keep reading?
• Because your kids will love bragging, “Our vacation started where Colorado first flipped the AC switch!”
• Because that 100-foot smokestack doubles as an epic selfie tower and a nostalgic landmark in one frame.
• Because we’ll show you a half-day loop that links trains, smelters, and a science-museum scavenger hunt—without blowing your schedule or budget.
Ready to step inside the building that once powered streetcars, smelters, and Saturday-night porch dances? Buckle up; the story of Durango Electric Light & Power is about to switch on.
First Sparks: Durango Lights Up
Durango’s infatuation with electricity began when local investors created the Durango Light & Power Company in 1885, a milestone highlighted in the online exhibit curated by the Animas Museum. Two years later, a humble direct-current plant near today’s 7th Street railroad tracks cranked to life, mainly to feed the smelters that roasted ore by daylight. By night, households could buy illumination on a subscription plan that priced bulbs by fixture and shut the city’s lights off promptly at 10 p.m.—an early bedtime that makes kids laugh today, yet kept operating costs in check.
That modest generator still managed to stir imaginations. Local newspapers reported neighbors spilling onto boardwalks to count every bulb. Children played tag under a radiance they called “magic,” while smelter bosses tallied later shifts and bigger profits. Word spread along rail lines, and the Animas Valley sensed it was vaulting from dusty frontier outpost to modern boomtown in a single click of a switch.
Why Alternating Current Changed Everything
Demand spiked so quickly that, by 1892, engineers installed two alternating-current dynamos at 7th Street, ushering in technology still powering your phone charger today. As chronicled in Durango Magazine’s AC revolution feature, AC current traveled farther with less power loss, letting investors dream of streetcars zipping past storefronts and electric pumps draining deeper mine shafts. Within a year, Durango gambled big on a brand-new plant at 14th Street and Camino del Rio—Colorado’s first commercial Mission Revival building, complete with bell-shaped parapets and red-clay tiles.
The payoff? A 2.5-mile streetcar route connecting downtown to Animas City—an audacious move that beat many East-Coast metros by years. Imagine boarding that trolley in wool coats while overhead wires hissed with raw electricity. Families grabbed front seats simply to feel the future rush by, and investors boasted that Durango was no longer a camp—it was a city wired for promise.
Mission Revival Marvel You Can Still Visit
Walk the Animas River Trail today and the plant’s curved parapets, arched openings, and tile roof remain unmistakable. Mid-morning sunlight hits the south façade at a gentle angle, perfect for smartphone cameras that sometimes struggle with harsh Colorado contrasts. Step across Camino del Rio, brace your elbows on the guardrail, and you’ll snag a full-frame shot that makes the bell gable pop without sacrificing sharpness.
Architectural buffs call this structure a textbook Mission Revival specimen, yet its purpose always leaned more Edison than El Camino. Preservationists beg visitors to keep hands off the century-old stucco; even gentle taps accelerate paint flaking. Use the rule of thirds to place friends off-center beneath the towering smokestack, and the 100-foot chimney will appear to grow another story—Instagram gold without crossing the safety fence.
From Rate Wars to Smokestacks
Electric fame bred financial drama. By 1906, city leaders tired of haggling over street-light fees and sold the works to Standard Light, Power & Water. A few boardroom shuffles later, Western Colorado Power Company took the reins in 1913, modernizing boilers and wiring to keep up with swelling demand. Residents grumbled about meter readings, but the lights stayed on—and brighter—through two world wars.
Post-war optimism soared sky-high, literally, when a 100-foot smokestack pierced Durango’s skyline in 1948. Boilers swapped sooty coal for cleaner natural gas, saving laundry day and clearing vistas of the San Juan Mountains. Retirees who remember coal furnaces nod approvingly at that upgrade, while photographers now use the stack as a reference point when scouting sunset shots from Highway 550.
Dust, Debate, and a Big Comeback
By 1972 the powerhouse’s turbines finally spun down, ending 79 years of nonstop hum. Windows boarded up, asbestos warnings fluttered, and pigeons moved in. It even landed on Colorado Preservation Inc.’s endangered listing, prompting locals to debate whether to raze or rescue the building.
A group of enterprising parents chose the second path, pitching the idea of a hands-on science center. Grants in 2002 paid for gnarly asbestos removal, brick repointing, and riverbank cleanup. By 2011, the Durango Discovery Museum flung open its doors, later rebranding as the Powerhouse Science Center. Today, the old boiler room hosts a black-box theater, and turbine bays serve as open-air experiment zones where kids launch paper rockets under that same Mission Revival roofline.
What to Expect Inside the Powerhouse Science Center
Step through the arched doorway and you’re greeted by a hall of hands-on exhibits: crankable generators that make resistance grow with rising voltage, a lighting-timeline wall glowing from carbon-arc lamps to modern LEDs, and a control-panel replica that invites every curious finger. Families can knock out a five-item scavenger hunt—leather safety gloves, steam gauge, carbon-arc lamp, coal bucket, control switch—in under thirty minutes, keeping young explorers alert without overload.
Most guests tour the indoor galleries, the outdoor turbine yard, and the riverfront deck in 90–120 minutes. Add a leisurely half-hour for the café’s local-roast coffee and the STEM-themed gift shop, and your whole morning still wraps before lunch. The museum follows classic seasonal hours—shorter in winter, longer in summer—so a quick website check the night before spares you sad faces at locked doors. Snacks and sippy cups are welcome in marked dining nooks; stashing them in a daypack keeps vulnerable interactives sticky-finger free, a rule that lets exhibits last for the next generation.
Getting There Car-Free or Car-Light
From Junction West Durango Riverside Resort, lace up or saddle up for a breezy 1.2-mile cruise along the paved Animas River Trail. Start before 9 a.m. to dodge midday heat and heavier bike traffic, keep right, and signal passes so anglers, joggers, and stroller brigades coexist in harmony. One liter of water per person is the local standard; high-desert humidity tricks newcomers into thinking they’re hydrated until a nagging headache says otherwise.
Afternoon clouds can build fast over the San Juans, so tuck a featherweight rain shell into your handlebar bag. Solar chargers soak up campsite sun while you brew morning coffee; topping up batteries means your phone won’t die halfway through the museum’s audio tour. Prefer four wheels? The drive clocks in under five minutes, but downtown parking squeezes tight after 10 a.m. Locals ditch cars at the river-trail lot and enjoy a five-block stroll, leaving the city’s quirkiest storefronts and murals for you to discover on foot.
Half-Day Industrial Heritage Loop
Kick off at 9 a.m. by listening for the Silverton train whistle echoing across Junction West’s riverbank; nothing sets the mood like steam and steel. Pedal or walk upstream to a modest plaque on 7th Street marking the original DC plant—history’s version of a launchpad. Continue north to the Powerhouse Science Center for your main visit, budgeting two hours for exhibits, selfies, and scavenger glory.
Still feeling charged? A brisk twelve-minute walk lands you at the smelter-stack overlook where interpretive panels explain why molten metals once devoured megawatts. Grab lunch at a riverfront café—pizzas and craft sodas taste better when the Animas burbles beside your table—and swing through the grocery store on Camino del Rio for evening grill supplies before rolling back to camp. Weekend warriors squeezing every second can skip the plaque stop and still claim bragging rights.
Make the Story Stick for Every Generation
Travel educators swear by a simple hook: ask “How was life different before electricity?” the moment you enter the museum. Kids immediately hunt for clues, grandparents reminisce about crank phones, and suddenly everyone’s invested. Encourage older relatives to share memories of boiler-fired furnaces or the first TV they ever saw; oral history bonds families faster than any smartphone app.
On the deck back at Junction West, hand each child a scrap of recycled paper and challenge them to draw their favorite artifact. While burgers sizzle, compare sketches—did the steam gauge win, or did the giant switch steal the show? Multisensory reflection cements new knowledge and quietly buys adults a few serene minutes of grill time.
Durango’s electric story feels even brighter when you can watch the Animas glide by from a comfy chair, dinner sizzling on the grill, and tomorrow’s adventures just a bike trail away. Claim that perfect vantage point—whether it’s a riverfront RV spot, a cozy glamping cabin, or a tent nook under the pines—by reserving your stay at Junction West Durango Riverside Resort today. Flip the switch on convenience, community, and Colorado scenery, and let every moment of your getaway hum with the same energy that once powered a pioneering town.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How far is the historic Durango Powerhouse from my campsite at Junction West, and can we walk or bike there?
A: The Mission-style building sits about 1.2 miles (roughly 2 km) south of the resort on the paved Animas River Trail, an easy 20-minute stroll or 8-minute bike ride with gentle grades and riverside scenery the whole way.
Q: What are the current hours and admission prices at the Powerhouse Science Center, and do they offer senior, student, or military discounts?
A: Summer hours typically run 9 a.m.–5 p.m. daily and winter hours 10 a.m.–4 p.m. Wednesday-Sunday, with last entry 30 minutes before close; admission hovers around $12 for adults, $8 for kids 3-17, $10 for seniors 60+ and military, $6 for college students with ID, and children under three enter free—always double-check the website or call because seasonal tweaks happen.
Q: Are the original turbines, gauges, or control panels still on display inside the old plant?
A: Yes; two early-1900s turbine housings anchor the main gallery, a bank of brass gauges lines the mezzanine railing, and a recreated switchboard lets visitors flip levers that once controlled streetlights, so you can stand inches from the hardware that kept Durango glowing for nearly eight decades.
Q: Does the museum offer guided tours, scavenger hunts, or other kid-approved activities?
A: Staff and volunteer educators lead 30-minute “Power Tours” on weekends and daily in summer, while self-guided scavenger hunt sheets are free at the front desk and include five quick-find objects that turn even short attention spans into energized detectives.
Q: I’m a teacher planning a field trip—do they have standards-aligned lessons and space for buses to park?
A: The Powerhouse’s education team provides downloadable curriculum packets tied to Colorado STEM standards, offers 60-minute guided labs for grades K-8, and reserves the east lot for bus drop-off; advance booking is required but parking is free and a staff member greets groups on arrival to review safety rules.
Q: Is the building ever used as a brewery, concert hall, or after-dark light show spot?
A: While the plant itself houses the museum, its riverfront deck doubles as an event venue that hosts evening concerts, science-on-tap talks, and occasional brew-fests with local craft beer; check the “Events” tab on their site because many gatherings run past sunset and feature artful LED uplighting on the smokestack.
Q: Can budget travelers enjoy the history without paying admission?
A: Absolutely—interpretive plaques along the public River Trail describe the powerhouse’s timeline, an outdoor turbine yard is viewable through an open fence, and the façade makes a great free photo stop; if you arrive on the museum’s monthly “Community Day,” admission is by voluntary donation.
Q: How does the power plant story tie into Durango’s railroad and mining heritage I keep hearing about?
A: The same investors who funded the Durango & Silverton rail line and local smelters bankrolled the electrical company so ore could be processed faster and streetcars could ferry workers, making the powerhouse the literal energy link among locomotives, mines, and downtown businesses.
Q: What’s the best time and angle for photographing the 100-foot smokestack and Mission Revival arches?
A: Mid-morning light from the southeast strikes the stucco without harsh shadows, so stand across Camino del Rio near the guardrail, frame the stack on the right third of your shot, and you’ll capture a warm, evenly lit façade ready for Instagram glory.
Q: Is the trail and museum accessible for wheelchairs, strollers, or folks with limited mobility?
A: Yes; the River Trail is paved and level, curb cuts lead to a ramped entrance, galleries sit on a single ground-floor plane, and accessible restrooms are located just inside the lobby, though a quick call ahead ensures staff can open side gates if you’re arriving with an extra-wide mobility device.
Q: Where can we grab coffee, lunch, or a craft beer near the historic site once we’re done exploring?
A: A café inside the Powerhouse pours local Durango Joe’s coffee and sells paninis and kid-friendly snacks, while a two-minute riverside walk north lands you at several brewpubs and taco joints on Main Avenue, perfect for refueling before the short trip back to camp.
Q: Do exhibits connect early electricity to today’s renewable energy so I can spark a modern STEM chat with my kids?
A: One gallery traces power generation from coal-fired boilers to the region’s present-day solar and hydro plants, letting visitors crank miniature turbines and compare carbon footprints, a seamless way to bridge the 1890s light bulb moment to the solar panel on your RV roof.
Q: Any last tips for making the most of a visit during peak season?
A: Aim to arrive right at opening, carry at least one liter of water per person for the high-desert walk, buy tickets online to skip the queue, and throw a folded rain shell in your daypack because afternoon mountain showers appear faster than you can say “alternating current.”
