St. Vrain is a

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), an American Western film by Harry L. Fraser * ''Ghost Town'' (1956 film), an American Western film by All ...

located in

Weld County Weld County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 328,981. The county seat is Greeley. Weld County comprises the Greeley, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is included in the Denv ...

, Colorado, United States. The town was located adjacent to the frontier

trading post A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded. Typically the location of the trading post would allow people from one geographic area to tr ...

of Fort Saint Vrain northeast of the confluence of

Saint Vrain Creek St. Vrain Creek (often known locally as the St. Vrain River) is a tributary of the South Platte River, approximately long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 25, 2011 ...

and the

South Platte River The South Platte River is one of the two principal tributaries of the Platte River. Flowing through the U.S. states of Colorado and Nebraska, it is itself a major river of the American Midwest and the American Southwest/Mountain West. It ...

Etymology

The town of St. Vrain was named for nearby Fort Saint Vrain, which in turn took its name from Ceran de Hault de Lassus de Saint-Vrain, its founder. The historic Saint Vrain was known as

Veranus of Cavaillon Saint Veranus of Cavaillon (french: Véran, ''Vrain''; it, Verano) (died c. 590) was a French saint, with a cultus in Italy. He was born at Vaucluse and was bishop of Cavaillon. Gregory of Tours writes of miracles performed by Veranus, includi ...

, a sixth-century French Christian bishop.

History

Fort Saint Vrain was built in 1837 in the unorganized territory. After the fort closed, the area remained an important meeting point and place of refuge. On May 30, 1854, the area became part of the new

Territory of Nebraska The Territory of Nebraska was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until March 1, 1867, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Nebraska. The Nebraska ...

. Gold was discovered upstream along the South Platte River in July 1858, and the area prospered from the prospector traffic along the South Platte River Trail. A post office was established at St. Vrain on January 18, 1859, and later that year, the St. Vrain Claims Club platted the Town of St. Vrain to avoid claim jumping. The extralegal

Territory of Jefferson The Territory of Jefferson was an extralegal and unrecognized United States territory that existed from October 24, 1859 until the creation of the Colorado Territory on February 28, 1861. The Jefferson Territory, named for Founding Father and Un ...

was organized on October 24, 1859, and on November 28, 1859, the Jefferson Territory created 12 counties including St. Vrain's County and designated St. Vrain as the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

. The Jefferson Territory was superseded by the

Territory of Colorado The Territory of Colorado was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 28, 1861, until August 1, 1876, when it was admitted to the Union as the State of Colorado. The territory was organized in the ...

on February 28, 1861, and on November 1, 1861, the Colorado Territory designated St. Vrain as the county seat of the new

. Gradually, more accessible towns along the trail overtook St. Vrain. In 1868, the Weld County seat was moved to Latham (in present-day Greeley.) In 1875, the St. Vrain post office was moved to Platteville. In 1951, a farmer plowed up most of the area of the town and little evidence of its existence remains.

Notes

References

External links

State of Colorado

Weld County

History Colorado
{{Authority control 1848 establishments in the United States County seats in Colorado Ghost towns in Colorado Former populated places in Weld County, Colorado

Etymology

History

See also

Notes

References

External links