Nathrop is an

unincorporated town An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

, a

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...

, and a census-designated place (CDP) located in and governed by Chaffee County,

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 ...

United States 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 territorie ...

. The Nathrop post office has the ZIP code 81236. At the

United States Census 2010 The United States census of 2010 was the twenty-third United States national census. National Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2010. The census was taken via mail-in citizen self-reporting, with enumerators servin ...

, the population of the 81236

ZIP Code Tabulation Area ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs) are statistical entities developed by the United States Census Bureau for tabulating summary statistics. These were introduced with the Census 2000 and continued with the 2010 Census and 5 year American Community S ...

was 1,017 including adjacent areas.

History

Nathrop was named for Charles Nachtrieb, owner of the townsite. In 1880, the

Denver and Rio Grande Railroad Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the United ...

built through Nathrop as part of their Tennessee Pass line. The tracks were placed out of service in 1997, but

Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

, present-day owner of the line, may reach an agreement to reopen it.

Geography

The Nathrop CDP has an area of , all land.

Ruby Mountain

Ruby Mountain is a

rhyolite Rhyolite ( ) is the most silica-rich of volcanic rocks. It is generally glassy or fine-grained (aphanitic) in texture, but may be porphyritic, containing larger mineral crystals (phenocrysts) in an otherwise fine-grained groundmass. The mineral ...

outcrop located about one mile northeast of Nathrop. Small spessartite

garnet Garnets () are a group of silicate minerals that have been used since the Bronze Age as gemstones and abrasives. All species of garnets possess similar physical properties and crystal forms, but differ in chemical composition. The different s ...

crystals are found throughout the outcropping. Small pebbles of black

obsidian Obsidian () is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extrusive rock, extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It is an igneous rock. Obsidian is produced from felsic lava, rich in the lighter elements s ...

referred to as "Apache tears" by collectors can also be found in the talus rock at the base of the cliffs. Spessartine-49374

Demographics

The

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

defined the for the

Attractions

Alpine Tunnel Alpine Tunnel is a narrow gauge railroad tunnel located east of Pitkin, Colorado on the former Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad route from Denver to Gunnison. At an elevation of , it was the first tunnel constructed through the Conti ...

Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area The Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area (AHRA) is one of the United States' most popular locations for whitewater rafting and kayaking on the Arkansas River. There is a total of 150 miles of water that extends from Leadville, Colorado to Pueblo, C ...

Browns Canyon National Monument Browns Canyon National Monument is a national monument in Chaffee County, Colorado, that was designated as such by President Barack Obama under the Antiquities Act on February 19, 2015. The site will be centered along the Arkansas River between B ...

Mount Princeton Mount Princeton is a high and prominent mountain summit of the Collegiate Peaks in the Sawatch Range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The fourteener is located in San Isabel National Forest, southwest ( bearing 225°) of the Town of ...

San Isabel National Forest San Isabel National Forest is located in central Colorado. The forest contains 19 of the state's 53 fourteeners, peaks over high, including Mount Elbert, the highest point in Colorado. It is one of eleven national forests in the state of Color ...

* St. Elmo

References

External links

Nathrop @ Colorado.comNathrop @ UncoverColorado.comHistory of NathropArkansas Headwaters Recreation AreaBrowns Canyon National MonumentChaffee County websiteSan Isabel National Forest website
{{authority control Census-designated places in Chaffee County, Colorado Census-designated places in Colorado Colorado populated places on the Arkansas River