Milner Pass Continental Divide Sign Archive
This archive contains photos of the Milner Pass Continental Divide signs from as far back as the early 1900s. Water that falls to the west of this pass will flow into the Pacific Ocean. Water that falls on the eastern side of this pass will flow into the Atlantic Ocean. This section of the website is a part of the larger Coloradotopia archive project.
The Coloradotopia Archives. The Coloradotopia archives contain hundreds of photographs, slides, postcards, old films, and small items focusing on Colorado’s automotive history in the mountains. Read more about the archives here.
1926
Fall River Road was the predecessor to Trail Ridge Road, which takes visitors from Grand Lake into Rocky Mountain National Park. The road was opened in 1920, and a woman is pictured here next to the Continental Divide sign in 1926.
- Archive ID: CML-26-669
c. 1920-1933
This is one of Harold Sanborn’s earliest postcards. It shows the back of the Continental Divide sign on Fall Ridge Road, as the road traverses over Milner Pass.
- Photographer: Harold Sanborn
- Archive ID: CML-G11
1947
A woman holding two cups of water demonstrates how the water should naturally flow towards either ocean, depending on which side of the divide it falls on.
- Photographer: Peter Novitt
- Archive ID: CML-A4790
c. 1947-'52
This photograph shows a man smoking in front of the Continental Divide sign on Milner Pass.
- Archive ID: CML-3390
c. 1947-'52
The same sign is pictured here sometime between 1947 and 1952. This image comes from a Kodachrome slide that was acquired for the archives in early 2024.
- Archive ID: CML-28
1952
This image is a historical dating staple for this archive. It has a reliable date of 1952, and other signs from this era can be dated based on whether they have more or less weathering and damage compared to the sign shown in this image.
- Archive ID: CML-C4X
c. 1952-'61
A couple poses next to the Continental Divide sign on Milner Pass. The sign here has acquired some additional damage and weathering since 1952.
- Archive ID: CML-4MU
c. 1952-'61
The same sign can be seen here, but the exact location has been slightly adjusted. The background is now different than what is shown in earlier images of this sign.
- Archive ID: CLM-5OH
Postmarked 1961
This postcard shows an early image of the new sign that was added on Milner Pass. This sign was located on the opposite side of the road as the previous sign.
- Archive ID: CML-264
1963
The sign received a fresh coat of paint by the time this image was captured. The same waved edge pattern that was added to this sign was also added to other signs around this time in Colorado, including Loveland Pass and Berthoud Pass.
- Archive ID: CML-763H
1966
This image, captured in 1966, has been scanned from a Kodak Ektachrome slide.
- Archive ID: CML-J9
1974
A wooden fence was added around the sign by 1974, but the sign remained mostly unchanged over the decade leading up to this point.
- Archive ID: CML-293
1977
This slide came out of the darkroom as a chromatic disaster. The colors have been adjusted so that the image would be usable for dating purposes here.
- Archive ID: CML-J77-6
1985
A new sign is pictured here in 1985. The text and elevation measurement remain unchanged from the previous sign.
- Archive ID: CML-856
