The Great Sand Dunes Gold Rush

The Volcanic Mining Company built this structure at the edge of Medano Creek, along with pipes and vats that separated out the gold sand. Remnants of the operation are still visible at this location near the main Dunes Parking Area.

NPS Archives

In the 1920s, gold was discovered in the dunes, prompting a small gold rush. Local newspapers ran articles estimating its worth at anywhere from 17 cents/ton to $3/ton. Active placer mining operations sprang up along Medano Creek, and in 1932 the Volcanic Mining Company established a gold mill designed to recover gold from the sand. One miner’s daughter recalls her father finding an ounce of gold for every four cubic yards (meters) of sand.

The idea that the dunes could be destroyed by gold mining or concrete-making alarmed residents of Alamosa and Monte Vista. By the 1920s, the dunes had become a source of pride for local people, and a potential source of tourist dollars for local businesses. Members of the Ladies PEO lobbied politicians, asking for national monument status for Great Sand Dunes. Widely supported by local people, a presidential proclamation was signed in 1932 by President Herbert Hoover, ending the mining era of the dunes.