I feature the Ouray County Courthouse as my last significant building in the Ouray mini-series, which may be my favorite picture. The building has an architectural integrity that yesterday’s library lacks. While I also like the architecture of the Beaumont Hotel, I like this photo better because of the building’s relationship to the background mountains.

Built in 1888, the courthouse is at the corner of 6th Avenue and 4th Street. While there’s a sidewalk, notice how the street is not paved, though reasonably flat. Perhaps this is a smoother surface than some badly maintained pothole-filled asphalt streets.

As part of my quick research on Ouray, I learned it’s nicknamed the “Switzerland of America” because of the surrounding mountains. Also of literary interest, Ayn Rand’s secret hideaway in the Rocky Mountains, “Galt’s Gulch,” in her book Atlas Shrugged, used Ouray as an inspiration. Finally, the courtroom was used in John Wayne’s “True Grit.”

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