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Every so often, someone proposes renaming some piece of Colorado, although the reasons vary.
Sometimes it's an adjustment to modern sensibilities. For instance, N-word Hill near Breckenridge is now Barney Ford Hill, for an African-American pioneer who successfully lobbied against Colorado statehood until the constitution guaranteed the right to vote for men of all colors.
Commerce also produces cartographic revision -- one easy
way to spot a long-time Colorado resident is by the use of
the traditional Wheeler Junction
rather than the
resort of Copper Mountain,
or Collegiate Peaks in
the Sawatch Range
rather than the majestic
Collegiate Range which overlooks the pristine yet
amenity-laden spectacular two-acre parcels of Rio Napestle
Estates ...
On other occasions, the idea is to honor a person or event. Shortly after Winston Churchill's death in 1965, there were proposals to rename Colorado's second-tallest peak, 14,421-foot Mt. Massive, in his honor. Since Massive is an apt name for that eminence, that notion fortunately faded.
However, a similar suggestion succeeded. One subsidiary summit in the Crestone group in the Sangres became Challenger Point, for the space shuttle that exploded in 1986.
And every few years, someone proposes a new name
Tennessee Pass between Leadville and Minturn, with Tenth
Mountain Pass
or some variant the main contender.
The origin of this Tennessee
is lost in the
mists of history -- it apparently came from homesick miners who hailed from the Volunteer State, and has no special historical or geographic significance in Colorado.
The west side of Tennessee Pass once hosted Camp Hale, training site of the Army's famous Tenth Mountain Division, justly celebrated for heroism during World War II, and a handsome stone memorial to the Tenth Mountain soldiers stands at the summit of the pass, near the base of the Ski Cooper lift.
Since Tennessee
is a name with no real
significance, and Tenth Mountain
has historic and
geographic import, renaming the pass sounds like a good
idea.
But as much as the Tenth Mountain Division deserves honor, that's not a good name for the pass. The Ten-Mile Range rises nearby, and it has summits like Peak Eight and Peak Nine, heavily promoted by the marketers of Breckenridge.
Add Tenth Mountain Pass
to that farrago, and most
people will figure it's just another montane numeral. The
soldiers and their battles will be forgotten, and the idea
was to remember them.
Better in that regard is the current approach -- historical markers at the site of Camp Hale, along with Scenic Byway status for the road.
Which leaves us with the issue of a new name for the pass. John C. Frémont, searching for a year-round railroad route through the Rockies, nearly froze to death in the San Juans in 1848-49. The irony is that he had already found such a route when he crossed Tennessee Pass in 1845. However, we already have a Frémont Pass, although Frémont never crossed it.
Tennessee Pass was the first Continental Divide highway in Colorado to be kept open in the winter, in 1928 under the leadership of Charles D. Vail, chief engineer of the state highway department. But we already have a Vail Pass, too.
Soon, though, the rails will be ripped up on Tennessee Pass, and it will lose its distinction as the highest through rail route in the United States. The state announced last week that it wants a trail there.
With that in mind, I suggest we call it Romer Pass, so that future generations will remember the governor who betrayed his state while accomodating billionaires.
From its summit, you'll soon be able to see what used to be a main-line railroad, a source of jobs with good pay and benefits and a connection vital to other industries that offered real pay and benefits.
Roy Romer went along with that abandonment. From the summit, you'll also be able to see both sides of the future according to Romer -- glitzy resorts on one side, and on the other, the low-paid no-benefit workers for those resorts.
A suitable sign could explain how Romer believed this was a desirable future for the Colorado citizens who mistakenly believed he would look out for their interests.
And every time there was a horrible winter accident involving such commuters, the news account would refer to Romer Pass, putting credit where it is due, rather than unjustly defaming the Tenth Mountain Division, who served their country rather than their corporate buddies.
So, a new name for Tennessee Pass is in order now -- as long as it's the right name: Romer Pass.
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