J. Stanley Weidman, a lumberman from Michigan, first established a lumber mill along the Piedra River in Archuleta County. He eventually moved the Weidman Sawmill to the location seen here, just south of Durango along the Animas River in 1946. It was the largest operating lumber mill in La Plata County. Adjacent to the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, it used a spur line to ship lumber to market. At its peak in 1960, the sawmill employed more than 100 people. By the early 1980s, it ceased operations and was dismantled. Today, the Rivergate Lofts and Animas Surgical Hospital are located on the site. Sawmill Road is named in honor of this historic business. – Ed Horvat for Animas Museum, edhorvat@animasmuseum (Catalog number: 25.07.5 from the La Plata County Historical Society Photo Collections)
J. Stanley Weidman, a lumberman from Michigan, first established a lumber mill along the Piedra River in Archuleta County. He eventually moved the Weidman Sawmill to the location seen here, just south of Durango along the Animas River in 1946. It was the largest operating lumber mill in La Plata County. Adjacent to the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, it used a spur line to ship lumber to market. At its peak in 1960, the sawmill employed more than 100 people. By the early 1980s, it ceased operations and was dismantled. Today, the Rivergate Lofts and Animas Surgical Hospital are located on the site. Sawmill Road is named in honor of this historic business. – Ed Horvat for Animas Museum, edhorvat@animasmuseum (Catalog number: 25.07.5 from the La Plata County Historical Society Photo Collections)