LaPorte Station Site

Short description|Historical place in Colorado, United States}}

LaPorte Station Site
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Location	2505 N. Overland Trail Laporte, Colorado
Coordinates	40°37′22″N105°08′20″W / 40.6228°N 105.1389°W / 40.6228; -105.1389
Built for	Early pioneers, Overland Stage and Mail

LaPorte Station, was a rest stop for early American pioneers in wagon trains heading west on the Overland Trail. The site on the south side of the City of Laporte in Larimer County, Colorado. The station was on the east banks of Cache la Poudre River. LaPorte is French for the door or the gateway, used as Laporte is the gateway to the northern part of Larimer County and on into Wyoming. ^[1] The LaPorte Station had good year-round water from Cache la Poudre River. The site was an Overland home station, with a repair shop, hot food, and Housing. ^[2] The LaPorte Station is on the route of the Overland Stage and Mail used from 1863 to 1869, which ran from Denver to Salt Lake. At the LaPorte Station, travelers had to cross the Cache la Poudre River. Starting in 1864, a ferry service was available to travelers. ^[3] Travelers to the LaPorte Station arrived from either Spring Creek Station to the south or the Sherwood Station to the southeast. The Spring Creek Station route heads to Denver. ^[4] The Sherwood Station route heads to the Big Bend Station, and the eastern Overland route. From LaPorte Station, the Overland Trail travels north to the next stop, Bonner Springs Station in 1862, and the Park Creek Station starting in 1863. ^[4] Along the Overland Trail north, the wagon and statechouch wheel ruts can still be seen in places. The Overland Trail north follows alongside U.S. Route 287. ^{[3] [4]}

The LaPorte Station was the headquarters of the Mountain Division of the Overland Trail Stage Route. As such, the LaPorte Station did not vanish like so many of the other stations, but became the town of LaPorte. ^[5] A stone marker was installed in 1916, in Lions Park, just south of 2505 North Overland Trail, Laporte, Colorado to mark the place of the former LaPorte Station. ^[6]

With the opening of the Union Pacific Railroad's first transcontinental railroad in 1868, ^[7] the wagon trains started to end. ^{[8] [9] [10] [11]}

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Larimer County, Colorado

References

1. 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. 31.
2. "The Overland Stage: 8 – LaPorte to Virginia Dale – The New American Digest". October 26, 2025.
3. "The Overland Trail--Stations From LaPorte to Virginia Dale--Last updated 03/07/00". losthistory.net.
4. "The Overland Trail in Wyoming | WyoHistory.org". www.wyohistory.org.
5. "LaPorte, Colorado Overland Trail Station--Last updated 01/28/01". losthistory.net.
6. "Overland Trail Stage Stop".
7. "The Union Pacific Transcontinental Railroad: Pursuing What's Possible and Making it Happen". Union Pacific.
8. Duhamel, Dominick (May 14, 2024). "1867 Big Wyoming: Capturing Wyoming Rail History".
9. "Overland Trail". www.visitlaramie.org.
10. "Overland Stage II--Wyoming Tales and Trails". www.wyomingtalesandtrails.com.
11. "Great Days Of The Overland Stage". AMERICAN HERITAGE.