Automobile associations, like this Oldsmobile owner group from Denver, formed in the early 1900s to promote automobile use and the needs of drivers for good roads. They often participated in “Sociability Runs” to bring distant communities together and encourage commerce. This tour in September 1917 left Denver with a number of members pulling out at the last minute for fear of driving over Wolf Creek Pass. The cars made the three-day trip to Durango uneventfully and visited Mesa Verde and the surrounding area. The highlight for many was the trip on flat cars to Silverton on the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad. From there, they drove over Red Mountain Pass to Ouray, Montrose and eventually home to Denver. One driver claimed they were the first formal party to “go over the Alps of America.” – Ed Horvat for Animas Museum, edhorvat@animasmuseum.org (Catalog Number: 15.48.7 from the La Plata County Historical Society Photo Collections)
