The community was established in 1880 and was originally called Marshalltown, named after nearby
Marshall Pass. In 1882 the community was renamed Sargents after Joseph Sargent, a local cattleman and the settlement's first postmaster. The town owed its existence to the
Denver and Rio Grande Railroad which reached Marshalltown in 1881. The railroad line crossed the
Continental Divide over Marshall Pass and descended to Marshalltown before following
Tomichi Creek west to
Gunnison. This line of the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad ultimately connected
Denver, Colorado with
Salt Lake City, Utah and points farther west. The station in Sargents was home to
helper engines that were used to assist heavily laden trains over the pass. The Sargents station had a
roundhouse, a
turntable, and a water tank. It was an important depot for the export of mine ore and lumber produced in the area, and it was also used by passengers traveling to and from the mining camps and towns in the upper Tomichi Creek valley. The population of Sargents greatly diminished when the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad discontinued passenger service in 1940 and completely abandoned the line in 1955. Partially offsetting the loss of the railroad was the construction of the transcontinental
U.S. Highway 50. In 1939 the new highway was routed over the Continental Divide at nearby
Monarch Pass and southwestward down Agate and Tomichi Creeks and through Sargents. The community still maintains some roadside services for highway travelers. ==Climate==