Later the early white settlers and miners passed through this area, many seeking passage west along the Old Spanish Trail.

He also built toll roads over the nearby mountain passes to use for hauling supplies to mining camps to the north, and to further open the area to settlement.

The paper is printed every week on a flatbed press built in 1915 with metal type cast on a Linotype composing machine.

The Ute tribe encampments were common in the area around the present-day community and the name "referred to springs in which blue earth was said to be found to the north".

[16] The Colorado State Historical Society has a different take on the meaning: The note on a community monument: Saguache, "the name derived from the Indian word `Blue Water'.

As the gateway to the San Juan Mountains, home to the Rio Grande National Forest and the La Garita Wilderness Area, Saguache offers outdoor activities such as sightseeing, cycling, hiking and camping.

Highway 114 to Cochetopa Pass follows the original Old Spanish Trail, offering high country scenery and access to large tracts of public lands.

According to the information they provide: In a tribute to our forebears and in keeping with the work ethic embedded from our agricultural heritage, this Museum has won acclaim from visitors all over the United States, and many foreign countries.

[19][20]The museum provides information related to convicted cannibal Alferd Packer, who served time in the Saguache County Jail.

On February 9, 1874, Alferd Packer and five other men departed from the camp of Ute Chief Ouray, near what is now Montrose, Colorado, prospecting for gold.

By coincidence, on the day of Packer's escape from the Saguache jail, the remains of the missing prospectors were found with evidence of foul play and cannibalism.

[21] Due to the nature of the crime, at the time it was sensationalized and well-covered throughout the nation, and it remains a well-known incident locally in Colorado.