The Missing Men of Silver Plume
Two disappearances. One tiny mountain town. And a mystery that still echoes through the Colorado Rockies.
High in the Rocky Mountains sits the old mining town of Silver Plume, Colorado — a place that feels almost frozen in time. Fewer than 200 people live there now. Old wooden buildings lean into the wind, and abandoned mine shafts cut into the mountainside like scars. It’s the kind of town where everyone knows everyone, and the mountains seem to watch in silence.
In the late 1980s, Silver Plume became the backdrop for one of the strangest mysteries in Colorado history — the disappearances of Tom Young and Keith Reinhard. Two men who barely knew each other. Two men who both went missing under hauntingly similar circumstances, a year apart, from the same town.
The First Disappearance: Tom Young
In 1987, Tom Young was a quiet man running a small bookstore on Silver Plume’s main street. Locals liked him. He was friendly but private, often seen walking his dog Gus through town. Then one day, Tom and Gus simply vanished.
The store was locked. Nothing inside was disturbed. A “Closed” sign hung in the window. Weeks passed, then months. Locals assumed maybe he’d left town suddenly, though no one could say why.
Nearly a year later, in 1988, hikers discovered Tom’s skeletal remains — and those of his loyal dog — deep in the mountains. A gun was found nearby. Authorities ruled it a suicide, but not everyone was convinced.
The Second Disappearance: Keith Reinhard
In the summer of 1988, journalist Keith Reinhard came to Silver Plume looking for a fresh start. He rented a small cabin, got to know the locals, and — in a strange twist — decided to open a shop in the same space Tom Young once used.
Keith also began writing a novel about a man who mysteriously disappears in the mountains. His main character? A fictionalized version of Tom Young.
Then, on August 7, 1988, Keith told friends he was going for a short hike up Mount Pendleton — a rugged peak above town. He said he’d be back by dinner. He never returned.
A massive search followed: helicopters, rescue teams, dogs, hundreds of volunteers. No trace of Keith was ever found. The search was called off after seven days — the same number of days Keith had written his character would be missing before being declared dead in his novel.
Coincidence or Connection?
Two men, a year apart, both connected to the same small town and the same building. One a quiet bookseller, one a writer chasing inspiration. One found dead with his dog. The other never found at all.
Locals still whisper about what happened in Silver Plume. Some believe Keith’s curiosity about Tom’s death drew him too close to a truth someone didn’t want uncovered. Others think the isolation and altitude can do strange things to the mind. And some — especially those who live in Silver Plume — say the mountains there hold their own secrets.
The Legacy of Silver Plume
Today, Silver Plume still stands — quiet, beautiful, and haunted by unanswered questions. Visitors sometimes stop by the old storefront, now part of the town’s ghostly folklore.
Two men walked into the same mountain valley and vanished into thin air. Maybe it’s coincidence. Maybe something darker ties their stories together.
Either way, Silver Plume will always be the town that lost two of its own to the silence of the Rockies.
🎧 Listen Now
Hear the full story, the strange parallels, and the theories that linger in the shadows of this Colorado mystery in our latest episode of Crime Clueless: “The Missing Men of Silver Plume.”
Have thoughts on this story or other cases you’d like to see highlighted? Share them with us in the comments or connect with us on social media. Together, we can ensure that stories like this one are never forgotten.
Don’t forget to follow us on social media, share your thoughts, and let us know what you’d like to hear about in future episodes. If you have any true crime stories of your own, send them our way crimeclueless@gmail.com to be featured on a future episode! And as always, remember: refuse to be clueless, careless, or caught off guard. Not today, murderers.
See you in the next episode of Crime Clueless!
Resources:
Clear Creek County Sheriff’s Office. (n.d.). Keith R. Reinhard, Missing Person: Case Detail [Case summary]. State of Colorado.
CBS4 Colorado. (2018, August 7). Still no clues in cold case of man who went missing 30 years ago. CBS News
Walter, E. (n.d.). The mysterious disappearance of Keith Reinhard. Eric Walter Docs. ericwalterdocs.com
Unsolved Mysteries Wiki. (n.d.). Tom Young. Fandom.
Unsolved Mysteries Wiki. (n.d.). Keith Reinhard. Fandom.
StrangeOutdoors.com. (2024, June 17). The bizarre disappearance of Keith Reinhard and death of Tom Young in the Rocky Mountains. StrangeOutdoors.com
Swartz, T. (2020, January 9). A Chicago-area sportswriter disappeared 31 years ago in Colorado. The search for him continues on a new Travel Channel series. Chicago Tribune.
James, K. (2015, July 17). Colorado Semi-Ghost Town….Silver Plume a town with a ghostly tale and a modern mystery with a twist. Discover Hub Pages.
Wikipedia contributors. (2025, October X). Silver Plume, Colorado. In Wikipedia.
