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About Monarch PassTo the east of Monarch Pass is Shavano. To the west, at the bottom of the pass, is the old town of Sargents, still kicking. The few inhabitants of Sargents have taken some effort to preserve the town's mining town roots, the best of which is the original water tank used to replenish locomotive stream engines, shown below. Sargents is a short distance from Whitepine. On the east side of Monarch Pass is the still-active Madonna Mine. This area was the scene of one of the earliest and most tragic mining accidents in Colorado. On March 30, 1882, an English miner named John Broll, who lived in the town of Monarch along with his family, was killed while attempting to dislodge an unexploded charge of dynamite. His body was horribly mangled. Word of the accident spread quickly throughout Colorado mining towns and his family consisting of wife and three children soon packed up and returned to England. ![[Sargents]](../images/monarch2.jpg) |