Ophir is a home rule municipality town governed by a general assembly and is located in San Miguel County, Colorado, United States. It is located two miles from the Ames Hydroelectric Generating Plant, the world's first hydroelectric plant to supply alternating current electricity for an industrial purpose (mining). The population was 197 at the 2020 census.
Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower. Hydropower supplies 15% of the world's electricity, almost 4,210 TWh in 2023, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and also more than nuclear power. Hydropower can provide large amounts of low-carbon electricity on demand, making it a key element for creating secure and clean electricity supply systems. A hydroelectric power station that has a dam and reservoir is a flexible source, since the amount of electricity produced can be increased or decreased in seconds or minutes in response to varying electricity demand. Once a hydroelectric complex is constructed, it produces no direct waste, and almost always emits considerably less greenhouse gas than fossil fuel-powered energy plants. However, when constructed in lowland rainforest areas, where part of the forest is inundated, substantial amounts of greenhouse gases may be emitted.
Davis Dam is a dam on the Colorado River about 70 miles (110 km) downstream from Hoover Dam. It stretches across the border between Arizona and Nevada. Originally called Bullhead Dam, Davis Dam was renamed after Arthur Powell Davis, who was the director of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation from 1914 to 1923. The United States Bureau of Reclamation owns and operates the dam, which was completed in 1951.
Parker Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam that crosses the Colorado River 155 miles (249 km) downstream of Hoover Dam. Built between 1934 and 1938 by the Bureau of Reclamation, it is 320 feet (98 m) high, 235 feet (72 m) of which are below the riverbed (the deep excavation was necessary in order to reach the bedrock on which the foundation of the dam was built), making it the deepest dam in the world. The portion of the dam above the foundation stands 85 feet (25.9 m) tall, making it the only dam in the world that stands more underground than above ground. The dam's primary functions are to create a reservoir, and to generate hydroelectric power. The reservoir behind the dam is called Lake Havasu and can store 647,000 acre⋅ft (798,000,000 m3; 2.11×1011 US gal; 1.76×1011 imp gal). The dam straddles the Arizona-California state border at the narrows the river passes through between the Whipple Mountains in San Bernardino County, California and the Buckskin Mountains in La Paz County, Arizona.
The Ames Hydroelectric Generating Plant, constructed in 1890 near Ophir, Colorado, was one of the first commercial system to produce and transmit alternating current (AC) electricity for industrial use and one of the first AC hydro-electric plants ever constructed. It became operational in 1891 and was built by Westinghouse Electric around two of their large alternators. One was set up in the valley as a generator and driven by water. It was connected by a 2.6-mile (4.2 km) transmission line to the second alternator used as a motor up at the Gold King Mine to drive the mining operation. The facility has been changed and upgraded over the years but is still in operation. It is now on the List of IEEE Milestones.
Acequia is an unincorporated community located in Douglas County, Colorado, United States.
Alice is an unincorporated community located in Clear Creek County, Colorado, United States.
Altman is an extinct mining town located in Teller County, Colorado, United States.
Alvin is an unincorporated community in Yuma County, Colorado, United States.
Hydroelectricity is, as of 2019, the second-largest renewable source of energy in both generation and nominal capacity in the United States. In 2021, hydroelectric power produced 31.5% of the total renewable electricity, and 6.3% of the total U.S. electricity.
Cameo is an extinct coal mining town located in Mesa County, Colorado, United States. The townsite is located off I-70 Exit 46 at 39.1486°N 108.3209°W at an elevation of 4,787 feet (1,459 m).
Atchee is a ghost town in Garfield County, Colorado. It was originally a railroad village/company town owned by the Gilsonite Company that served as a shopping town on the narrow-gauge Uintah Railway. The railroad served mines in nearby Utah. At a point in time, the railroad was dismantled which led to a sharp population decline. By 1938, there were only 27 voters in the town and by 1940 only two voters remained.
Abarr is an unincorporated community in Yuma County, Colorado, United States.
Abeyta is an extinct town in Las Animas County, in the U.S. state of Colorado.
Adena is an extinct town located in Morgan County, Colorado, United States.
Avalo is an unincorporated community in Weld County, in the U.S. state of Colorado.
Axial is an extinct coal mining town located in Moffat County, Colorado, United States.
Adelaide is an extinct mining town located in Lake County, Colorado, United States. The site of the former town is located about one mile west of downtown Leadville through Stray Horse Gulch and two-thirds of a mile north of Nugget Gulch.
Trout Lake is a lake located in southeast San Miguel County, Colorado, in Uncompahgre National Forest. Trout Lake is a 15-minute drive from Ophir via Colorado State Highway 145 and a 20-minute drive from Telluride.
