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S. Statement of Significance <br /> Certifying official has considered the significance of this property in relation to other properties: <br /> ®nationally ❑statewide ❑locally <br /> Applicable National Register Criteria ©A ❑B ®C ❑D NHL Criteria 1, 4 <br /> Criteria Considerations(Exceptions) ❑A ❑B ❑C ❑D ❑E ❑F ❑G <br /> Areas of Significance (enter categories from instructions) Period of Significance Significant dates <br /> Architecture 1859-1918 N/A <br /> Exploration/Settlement <br /> Community Planning and Development <br /> Commercial <br /> Ethnic Heritage--European Cultural Affiliation <br /> Industry N/A <br /> Social History <br /> Invention <br /> Significant Person Architect/Builder <br /> N/A N/A <br /> State significance of property, and justify criteria criteria considerations, and areas ano periods of sippni ficance noted above. <br /> I. CONTEXT: Central City-Mack Hawk National Historic LandmarE� District as <br /> a Prototypical Settlement of the Rocky Mountain Mining Frontier, 1859-1918 <br /> Central City, Black Hawk, and Nevadaville are the three principal <br /> settlements of the historic Gregory mining district in Gilpin County, <br /> Colorado. During the heyday of mining in the Gregory district numerous <br /> frontier communities filled tiny Gilpin County. Most were short-lived, <br /> disappearing almost overnight as miners moved on to more lucrative mines or <br /> they merged with their more prosperous neighbors. The towns of Central <br /> City, Black Hawk and Nevadaville survived and became the county's primary <br /> towns. They are located on the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains 35 <br /> miles west of Denver, at an altitude of approximately 8,000 to 9,000 feet. <br /> The three towns and surrounding area are significant under the National <br /> Historic Landmark theme of X. Westward Expansion of the British Colonies and <br /> the United States, 1763-1898; E. The Mining Frontier; 5. The Rockies: <br /> Colorado and Wyoming. The historic district is eligible for nomination as a <br /> National Historic Landmark (NHL) District under Criterion 1 for its <br /> association with events of national importance in the settlement and <br /> industrialization of the American West. The district's period of historic <br /> significance began with its founding as a group of chaotic gold boom camps <br /> in 1859 and closed in 1918 with a final dramatic decline in mining activity. <br /> During this time, the district communities evolved for half a century into <br /> mature industrial towns that were prototypes for the rapid urbanization on <br /> the western mining frontier. These towns were unique as the first large <br /> settlements in the arid Rocky Mountain region of the western United States <br /> and in the spectacular gold output from their surrounding mines. Early <br /> placer mining was "played out" within 5 years of the first gold discovery in <br /> the area and replaced by the technological complexities and high investment <br /> of lode or hard-rock mining. Yet the initial placer strikes attracted an <br /> estimated 100,000 prospectors and settlers into the region that now includes <br /> [.O See continuation sheet <br />