Eureka, Colorado

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Eureka, Colorado
ghost town
Remains of The Sunnyside Mill at Eureka, Colorado.jpg
Remains of the Sunnyside Mill in Eureka, in May 2018
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Eureka
Location of Eureka, Colorado.
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Eureka
Eureka (Colorado)
Coordinates: 37°52′47″N107°33′54″W / 37.8797°N 107.5651°W / 37.8797; -107.5651 (Eureka, Colorado) [1]
Country United States
State Colorado
County San Juan [2]
Government
 • Type unincorporated community
 • Body San Juan County [2]
Elevation
[1]
9,863 ft (3,006 m)
Time zone UTC−07:00 (MST)
 • Summer (DST) UTC−06:00 (MDT)
ZIP code [3]
Silverton 81433
Area codes 970/748
GNIS place ID 187402

Eureka is an extinct mining town in northeastern San Juan County, Colorado, United States, along the Animas River, between Silverton and Animas Forks. [4] [5] The town derives its name from the Greek interjection Eureka! [6] The Eureka post office operated from August 9, 1875, until April 30, 1942. [7]

Contents

History

Remains of an abandoned house in Eureka, June 2019 Remains Of An Abandoned House at Eureka, Colorado.jpg
Remains of an abandoned house in Eureka, June 2019

Charles Baker's group of prospectors found traces of placer gold in the San Juan Mountains in 1860 at Eureka. Forced out by the Ute Tribe in 1861, who had been awarded the area in a US treaty, the prospectors returned in 1871, when lode gold was found in the Little Giant vein at Arrastre Gulch near Silverton, Colorado. The miners were allowed to stay after the Brunot Treaty of 13 September 1873. In exchange for giving up 4 million acres, the Southern Ute Indian Reservation received $25,000 per year. [8] : 49  The Eureka, Colorado Territory, post office operated from August 9, 1875, until April 30, 1942. [7] The Silverton, Colorado, post office (ZIP code 81433) now serves the area. [3]

Remains of the Sunnyside Mill in Eureka, July 2020 Remains of the Sunnyside Mill at the Ghost Town of Eureka, Colorado.jpg
Remains of the Sunnyside Mill in Eureka, July 2020

The original mill was closed (reasons unknown) but to replace it, the Gold Prince Mill from Animas Forks was deconstructed and moved to the Eureka townsite to become the Sunnyside mill. In 1896, Eureka was connected to the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad via the Silverton Northern Railroad. Although the community grew steadily — not like a boomtown — it quickly declined after 1939, when the Sunnyside Mill closed for the last time. Today, the original townsite gravel roads remain, and debris litters the area. The only remaining structure is the Eureka jail, which has been restored. Foundations of the Sunnyside Mill and various remains of other structures still exist today.

Geography

Eureka was located in northeastern San Juan County at coordinates 37°52′47″N107°33′54″W / 37.8797°N 107.5651°W / 37.8797; -107.5651 (Eureka, Colorado) and elevation 9,863 feet (3,006 m). [1]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Eureka, Colorado". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior . Retrieved December 4, 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Colorado Counties". Colorado Department of Local Affairs . Retrieved December 4, 2025.
  3. 1 2 "ZIP Code Lookup". United States Postal Service . Retrieved December 4, 2025.
  4. ↑ Eureka History
  5. ↑ The Silverton Railroads
  6. ↑ Dawson, John Frank. Place names in Colorado: why 700 communities were so named, 150 of Spanish or Indian origin. Denver, CO: The J. Frank Dawson Publishing Co. p. 20.
  7. 1 2 Bauer, William H.; Ozment, James L.; Willard, John H. (1990). Colorado Post Offices 1859–1989. Golden, Colorado: Colorado Railroad Historical Foundation. ISBN   0-918654-42-4.
  8. ↑ Voynick, S.M., 1992, Colorado Gold, Missoula: Mountain Press Publishing Company, ISBN   0878424555
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