And the West is History: Electra Lake Performers – Ca. 1935

This interesting picture of young girls posing, or possibly performing a dance, was taken at Electra Lake in the mid-1930s. The photographer was Dr. Benjamin Ochsner a well-known Durango physician known for his unusual but captivating photographs. Recognized as somewhat of a “Renaissance Man” of his day, his obituary in The Durango Herald read: “Considered one of the world’s most consistent contributors to national and international photography salons, the doctor became one of the few Americans honored with a fellowship in the Royal Photography Society of London.” Besides operating a flourishing medical practice, the doctor was also known to be an expert marksman, hunter and skilled fisherman. His other passion was music, collecting the finest library of symphonic and operatic music in the region. A skilled surgeon, he started a private hospital in 1903. Ten years later he relocated it to what is now known as the Gable House. Dr. Ochsner died at 84 years of age in 1953. – Ed Horvat for Animas Museum, edhorvat@animasmuseum.org (Catalog Number: 90.13.4 from the La Plata County Historical Society Photo Collections)