Gilman is an abandoned mining town in southeastern Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The U.S. Post Office at Minturn (ZIP Code 81645) now serves Gilman postal addresses. Founded in 1886 during the Colorado Silver Boom, the town later became a center of lead and zinc mining in Colorado, centered on the now-flooded Eagle Mine. It was abandoned in 1984 by order of the Environmental Protection Agency because of toxic pollutants, including contamination of the ground water, as well as unprofitability of the mines. It is currently a ghost town on private property and is strictly off limits to the public. At the time of the abandonment, the mining operations were owned by Viacom International. In 2007, The Ginn Company had plans to build a private ski resort with private home sites across Battle Mountain --- including development at the Gilman townsite. On February 27, 2008 the Minturn Town Council unanimously approved annexation and development plans for of Ginn Resorts’ 1,700-unit Battle Mountain residential ski and golf resort; Ginn's Battle Mountain development includes much of the old Gilman townsite. On May 20, 2008 the town of Minturn approved the annexation in a public referendum with 87% of the vote. As of September 9, 2009 the Ginn Company has backed out of development plans for the Battle Mountain Property. Crave Real Estate Ventures, who was the original finance to Ginn, took over day to day operations of the property. Description The town sits at an elevation of 8950 ft (2,700 m) on a dramatic 600-foot (180 m) cliff above the Eagle River on the flank of Battle Mountain. It is located southeast of Minturn and north of Tennessee Pass along U.S. Highway 24. The remnants of the townsite are visible in many places along the curves of the highway. More recent housing situated on the steep flank of the mountain itself near the former mines. The mining district became the richest and most successful in Eagle County. The ore occurs in sulfide replacement deposits of three types: 1) thin-bedded deposits in the Sawatch Quartzite, (2) highly elongated ore bodies in the Leadville Limestone (here completely dolomitized), and (3) vertical pipes or chimneys cutting across the various formations. The ore minerals in order of decreasing abundance are sphalerite, chalcopyrite, and galena. The non-ore minerals pyrite and siderite are also abundant in the ore bodies. History Several mining operations had sprouted along Battle Mountain