Fort Lyon, Colorado

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Fort Lyon, Colorado
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Fort Lyon (2013)
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Fort Lyon
Location within Bent County and Colorado
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Fort Lyon
Fort Lyon (the United States)
Coordinates: 38°05′48″N103°09′07″W / 38.09667°N 103.15194°W / 38.09667; -103.15194 [1]
Country United States
State Colorado
County Bent
Elevation
[1]
3,888 ft (1,185 m)
Time zone UTC−7 (MST)
  Summer (DST) UTC−6 (MDT)
ZIP Code
81054 [2]
Area code 719
GNIS ID 204828 [1]

Fort Lyon is an unincorporated community and U.S. Post Office in Bent County, Colorado, United States. [1]

Contents

History

A post office called Fort Lyon was established in 1862. [3] The Fort Lyon Post Office had the ZIP Code 81038, though the zip code for nearby Las Animas (81054) is also used. [2]

The community was named after Nathaniel Lyon, an officer in the American Civil War. [4]

The ghost town of Sheridan, in Logan County, Kansas, became a railhead for westbound freight to the Santa Fe Trail on a 120-mile (190 km) wagon road to the area. [5]

Some German prisoners of war were buried at Fort Lyon and built furniture and worked on local roads. [6]

Geography

Fort Lyon is located at 38°05′48″N103°09′07″W / 38.09667°N 103.15194°W / 38.09667; -103.15194 (38.096741,-103.152008).

Climate

According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Fort Lyon has a semi-arid climate, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps. [7]

Notable people

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Fort Lyon, Colorado", Geographic Names Information System , United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior
  2. 1 2 "ZIP Code Lookup". United States Postal Service. December 15, 2006. Archived from the original (JavaScript/HTML) on November 22, 2010. Retrieved December 15, 2006.
  3. "Post offices". Jim Forte Postal History. Archived from the original on March 6, 2016. Retrieved June 25, 2016.
  4. 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. 22.
  5. "Travel the Trail: Map Timeline 1866-1873". Santa Fe National Historic Trail. National Park Service. Retrieved April 19, 2020.
  6. Lloyd, R. Scott, "Wreath-laying honors WWI German prisoners buried at Fort Douglas", Deseret News, November 14, 2010. Retrieved March 28, 2011.
  7. Climate Summary for Fort Lyon, Colorado
  8. Virginia - Google Books. January 5, 2010. Retrieved December 4, 2012 via Google Books.
  9. Henry, Guy V., "Enoch Steen", Military Record of Army and Civilian Appointments in the United States Army (Volume II), D. Van Nostrand Publisher, New York, New York, 1873, p. 193.
  10. Burdick, Alfred S., ed. (December 1922). "Brigadier General Walter D. McCaw". The American Journal of Clinical Medicine. New York, NY: A. S. Burdick. pp. 859–860 via Google Books.
  11. "Assistant Surgeon W. D. McCaw". Kansas City Times . Kansas City, MO. November 28, 1884. p. 5 via Newspapers.com.
  12. Martin, P. 2.
  13. Sides, 2006, pp. 482–483