Rosita, Colorado
| Rosita, Colorado | |
|---|---|
| — Town — | |
 |
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| Coordinates: 38°05′50″N 105°20′10″W / 38.09722°N 105.33611°WCoordinates: 38°05′50″N 105°20′10″W / 38.09722°N 105.33611°W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Colorado |
| County | Custer County[1] |
| Founded | 1872 |
| Government | |
| • Type | ghost town |
| Elevation[1] | 2,685 m (8,809 ft) |
| Time zone | MST (UTC-7) |
| • Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) |
| ZIP code[2] | Westcliffe 81252 |
| Area code(s) | 719 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0192319 |
Rosita was a silver mining town — now a ghost town — in Custer County, Colorado, United States. Rosita is Spanish for little rose. Although the old town has almost entirely disappeared (the former post office building is now an operating restaurant),[3] the surrounding area has been largely developed into semi-rural home sites.
The town was used in the filming of the 1958 western movie Saddle the Wind.
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History [edit]
Rosita was founded in late 1872 by prospectors attracted by discoveries of silver. The town was composed of tents and log cabins, but soon had stores, carpenters, a hotel, saloon, blacksmith shop, and an assayer. By 1874 the town had more than a thousand residents and 400 buildings. A US post office opened in 1874, and in September 1874 the Rosita Index began as a weekly newspaper. Rosita took the seat of Custer County away from Ula (now also a ghost town) in 1878.
Despite some rich strikes in the Pocahantas and Humboldt mines, the silver veins around Rosita ran out of ore in a few years. In the early 1880s, Rosita was surpassed by the nearby mining towns of Querida and Silver Cliff. After a bitter four-year fight, Silver Cliff took the county seat from Rosita in the 1886 election, and Rosita declined further. The US post office was closed in 1966.[4] ZIP code 81252 now serves Rosita, but mail must be addressed to Westcliffe.[2]
Geography [edit]
Rosita is at an elevation of 8809 feet (2685 m), at 38°05′50″N 105°20′10″W / 38.09722°N 105.33611°W.
See also [edit]
List of ghost towns in Colorado
References [edit]
| Historical populations | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1880 | 1,008 |
|
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| 1890 | 304 | −69.8% | |
| 1900 | 110 | −63.8% | |
| 1910 | 42 | −61.8% | |
| 1920 | 45 | 7.1% | |
| 1930 | 27 | −40.0% | |
- ^ a b "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ^ a b "ZIP Code Lookup" (JavaScript/HTML). United States Postal Service. Retrieved 2008-01-02.
- ^ Letter Drop Inn Restaurant - Fine Dining in Historic Rosita Colorado
- ^ Gayle Turk (1975) Wet Mountain Valley, Colorado Springs: Little London Press, p.9-21.
External links [edit]
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