This is a list of some
ghost town
Ghost Town(s) or Ghosttown may refer to:
* Ghost town, a town that has been abandoned
Film and television
* Ghost Town (1936 film), ''Ghost Town'' (1936 film), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser
* Ghost Town (1956 film), ''Ghost Town'' ...
s in the
U.S.
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
State of Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the ...
. Colorado has over 1,500 ghost towns, although visible remains of only about 640 still exist. Due to incomplete records and legends that are now accepted as fact, no exhaustive list can realistically be produced.
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Colorado ghost towns
Most Colorado ghost towns were abandoned for the following reasons:
*Mining towns were abandoned when the mines closed; many due to the devaluation of silver in 1893.
*Mill towns were abandoned when the mining towns they serviced closed.
*Farming towns on the eastern plains were often deserted due to rural depopulation.
*Coal towns were abandoned when the coal (or the need for it) ran out.
*Stage stops were abandoned when the railroad came through.
*Rail stops were deserted when the railroad changed routes or abandoned the spurs.
Others were abandoned for more unusual reasons. Some were resort towns which never brought in enough tourists. One or two former townsites are now underwater, caused by the creation of reservoirs; a few are covered in mining tailings, as noted below. Of the list below, some involve settlements with visible tangible remains such as structures or cemeteries, while the precise location of others is known only through maps and historic accounts.
Table of Colorado ghost towns
The following is a sortable table of some of the most notable Colorado ghost towns.
Notes
Gallery
Animas Forks CO.jpg, Abandoned buildings at Animas Forks, Colorado
Animas Forks is a ghost town located twelve miles (19 km) northeast of Silverton in San Juan County, Colorado, United States. The area is managed by the Bureau of Land Management. At over 11,000 feet, Animas Forks is one of the highest mi ...
.
Ashcroft CO - houses.jpg, Houses along Ashcroft, Colorado
Ashcroft, originally known as Castle Forks City then Chloride until 1882, was a mining town located ten miles (16 km) south of Aspen, Colorado, United States. A few buildings remain standing as a testament to the town's past.
History Early y ...
's Main Street, 2007.
Rawley Mine Commissary $1.00 Token.gif, Token coin
In numismatics, token coins or trade tokens are coin-like objects used instead of coins. The field of token coins is part of exonumia and token coins are token money. Their denomination is shown or implied by size, color or shape. They are oft ...
with the value of $1.00, issued by the Rawley Mine Commissary in Bonanza, Colorado
The Town of Bonanza is a statutory town located in Saguache County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 17 at the 2020 United States Census. Formerly known as Bonanza City, Bonanza is a largely abandoned former silver mining town ...
.
Capitol City, Colo.jpg, Capitol City, Colorado
Capitol City is an extinct silver mining town located in Hinsdale County, Colorado, United States. Founded as Galena City in 1877, the townsite is located on the Alpine Loop National Scenic Back Country Byway at at an elevation of . The Cap ...
.
CaribouCO.jpg, Caribou, Colorado
Caribou is a former silver-mining town, now a ghost town near Nederland in Boulder County, Colorado, United States. It was named after the Caribou silver mine nearby. The Caribou Ranch recording studio is several miles away, on the road from N ...
circa 1911.
CaribouCO-2005.jpg, Caribou, Colorado
Caribou is a former silver-mining town, now a ghost town near Nederland in Boulder County, Colorado, United States. It was named after the Caribou silver mine nearby. The Caribou Ranch recording studio is several miles away, on the road from N ...
in 2005.
Dyerville1.jpg, The remains of an old cabin at Dyersville, Colorado.
Eastonville side house.JPG, An abandoned house in Eastonville, Colorado.
ArcadeSaloon-EldoraColorado-1898-DPL.jpg, The Arcade Saloon in Eldora, Colorado
Eldora (pronounced el-DOH-ruh), previously known as "Eldorado" then "El-Dora", then Eldora or Camp Eldorado, and still called Happy Valley,Bauer, Carolyn (1987). ''Colorado Ghost Towns: Remnants of Colorado's Mining Days''. American Traveler Press. ...
in 1898.
EurekaCO.jpg, Remains of the old ore mill in Eureka, Colorado
Eureka is a mining ghost town in San Juan County, Colorado, United States, along the Animas River, between Silverton and Animas Forks. The town derives its name from the Greek interjection Eureka!
History
Charles Baker's group of prospect ...
.
Bassick-Mine.jpg, Remains of the Bassick silver mine, Querida, Colorado
Querida (also called Bassick City) is a ghost town in Custer County, Colorado, United States. The town was built to serve the surrounding silver mines, the most important of which was the Bassick mine. ''Querida'' is Spanish for "beloved."
Geo ...
.
Co goosttown st elmo1.jpg, Saint Elmo, Colorado in 2005.
See also
*
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
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Bibliography of Colorado
The location of the State of Colorado in the United States of America
This is a bibliography of the U.S. State of Colorado.
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General history
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*Sibley, George. ''Water Wranglers - The 75- ...
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Index of Colorado-related articles
This is an alphabetical list of articles related to the U.S. State of Colorado.
0–9
* .co.us – Internet second-level domain for the State of Colorado
* 4 Corners
** 4 Corners Monument
* 6th Principal Meridian
* 10-mile Range
* 10t ...
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Outline of Colorado
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the U.S. state of Colorado:
Colorado – 22nd most populous, the eighth most extensive, and the highest in average elevation of the 50 United States. Colorado ...
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Colorado statistical areas
The U.S. state of Colorado has twenty-one statistical areas that have been delineated by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). Statistical areas are important geographic delineations of population clusters used by the OMB, the United States ...
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Geography of Colorado
The geography of the U.S. State of Colorado is diverse, encompassing both rugged mountainous terrain, vast plains, desert lands, desert canyons, and mesas. Colorado is a landlocked U.S. state. In 1861, the United States Congress defined the ...
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History of Colorado
The region that is today the U.S. State of Colorado has been inhabited by Native Americans and their Paleoamerican ancestors for at least 13,500 years and possibly more than 37,000 years. The eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains was a major ...
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List of counties in Colorado
The U.S. State of Colorado is divided into 64 counties. Two of these counties, the City and County of Broomfield and the City and County of Denver, have consolidated city and county governments. Denver serves as the state capital. Counties are ...
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List of places in Colorado
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* List of places in Colorado G through O
P-Z
* List of places in Colorado P through Z
References
{{Reflist ...
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List of mountain passes in Colorado
This is a list of some important mountain passes in the Rocky Mountains of the U.S. State of Colorado.
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Mountain passes and highway summits traversed by improved roads
Mountain summit highways
Mountain passes traversed by unimproved ...
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List of mountain peaks of Colorado
This is a list of major mountain peaks in the U.S. State of Colorado.
This article comprises three sortable tables of major mountain peaksThis article defines a significant summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence, and a m ...
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List of mountain ranges of Colorado
This is a list of the major mountain ranges in the U.S. State of Colorado. All of these ranges are considered subranges of the Southern Rocky Mountains.
As given in the table, topographic elevation is the vertical distance above the reference ...
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List of populated places in Colorado
A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to:
People
* List (surname)
Organizations
* List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America
* SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...
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List of census-designated places in Colorado
The U.S. has 210 census-designated places. The United States Census Bureau defines certain unincorporated communities as census-designated places (CDPs) for enumeration in each decennial census. The Census Bureau defined 187 CDPs in Colorado fo ...
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List of county seats in Colorado
This is a list of County seat#United States, county seats in the United States, U.S. Colorado, State of Colorado and its predecessors: the Colorado Territory, Territory of Colorado and the extralegal Jefferson Territory, Territory of Jefferson.
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List of forts in Colorado
This is a list of military and trading forts established in the U.S. State of Colorado.
History
The initial forts, built in the first half of the 19th century, were early communities of commerce between Native Americans, trappers, and trader ...
***List of ghost towns in Colorado
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List of historic places in Colorado
There are more than 1,500 properties and historic districts in Colorado listed on the National Register of Historic Places. They are distributed over 63 of Colorado's 64 counties; only the City and County of Broomfield has none.
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C ...
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List of municipalities in Colorado
The U.S. State of Colorado has 272 active incorporated municipalities, comprising 197 towns, 73 cities, and two consolidated city and county governments. At the 2020 United States Census, 4,299,942 of the 5,773,714 Colorado residents (74.47%) ...
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**List of rivers of Colorado
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List of protected areas of Colorado
This is a list of protected areas of the U.S. state of Colorado.
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Federal lands
The United States federal government owns 36.23% of Colorado's total land area.
National Park System
The National Park System includes 23 areas in Colorad ...
References
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External links
Colorado state government websiteColorado tourism websiteHistory Colorado websiteFull Resolution Ghost Town and Historic Photos by Coloradopast.comColorado Ghost Town Photos by Rocky Mountain Profiles
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ghost towns in Colorado, List of
Colorado geography-related lists
Colorado history-related lists
Lists of places in Colorado
Colorado, List of ghost towns in
Colorado, List of ghost towns in