Smelters worked Buena Vista's east side
This photo is of the Cornucopia Smelter, which was located at the far east end of Main Street. It shows the smelter and the railroad tracks that carried the ore in for processing and then took the silver or gold out. These ore cars are from the Denver & Rio Grande. You can see the names on the cars. The smelter was used from 1883 until it burned down. Fire was a real danger in these smelters as the hot furnaces used for the ore were not well controlled. After this smelter burned another was built to take its place on the same site. The Morley Smelter was built in 188...
Source: chaffeecountytimes.com