Otto Mears is a key figure in the history of the Silverton Northern, Silverton Railroad, Silverton, Gladstone & Northerly, and Rio Grande Southern railroads.

Known as the "Pathfinder of the San Juans" because of all of the toll roads and railways he constructed within the rugged San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado, his routes helped open up the region and facilitate the mining boom of the late 1800s. Many of his routes are still in use today as roads, such as US 550 over Red Mountain.

Read more at Wikipedia's Otto Mears page.