[3] The former silver mining camp along Clear Creek in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains was established in 1859 during the Pike's Peak Gold Rush.

It has evolved into a lively historical summer tourist center today with many preserved structures from the heyday of the Colorado Silver Boom.

George and David Griffith were members of a mining party which decided to separate from the others in the Central City and Idaho Springs areas.

They found gold in Clear Creek (near the present-day site of the Alpine Inn) and decided to settle in the area for the rest of the summer and fall.

Soon after the formation of the Griffith Mining District, several early residents joined to form the "Georgetown Company," claiming 640 acres for a townsite.

She inherited half of her father's share in the American Sisters Mine and served on the Georgetown Library Association from 1911–1922.

Mellie's husband, John James White Sr., bought the remaining stock of what was now called the Two American Sisters Mine.

He managed construction of a dam and power plant north of Georgetown, and built a new shaft house and mill at the mine site.

At one time, before the collapse of the silver boom in 1893, the town population exceeded 10,000, and a movement arose briefly among local citizens to move the state capital there from Denver.

The frontier gambler, Poker Alice, lived for a time in Georgetown and in several other Colorado communities where she was considered an expert player and dealer.

By the late 1960s, the establishment of a museum in one of the historic hotels had made the town a popular summer tourist destination where visitors could relive the experience of walking among structures from the mining boom.

Furthermore, as the front range ski areas grow in popularity, the town makes for a good midway-stop for the returning skiers coming through I-70.

The film is about a widower and his daughter who go to Georgetown for vacation and business and find the true meaning of Christmas.

Other movies filmed at least partly in Georgetown include the made-for-TV movies "Perry Mason: The Case of the Reckless Romeo, and "Perry Mason: The Case of the Skin Deep Scandal"; and the feature film "Switchback" with Danny Glover and Dennis Quaid; and at least one scene from "The Duchess and the Dirtwater Fox", with Goldie Hawn and George Segal.

In addition, it has been the site for the filming of various commercials, and some music videos, including part of John Tesh's "A Romantic Christmas.