Virginia Dale, Colorado

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Virginia Dale, Colorado
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settlement_type = Town
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image_caption = Shuttered cafe and post office in Virginia Dale


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pushpin_label_position = none
pushpin_map_caption = Location in the state of Colorado
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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = USA
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = flag|Colorado
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name2 = Larimer County
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government_type = unincorporated town
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established_title = Founded
established_date = 1862
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founder = Jack Slade
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timezone = MST
utc_offset = -7
timezone_DST = MDT
utc_offset_DST = -6
latd= 40
latm= 57
lats= 01
latNS=N
longd= 105
longm= 20
longs= 34
longEW=W
elevation_footnotes = GR|3
elevation_m = 2144
elevation_ft = 7034
postal_code_type = ZIP code
postal_code = 80536 (Livermore)
area_code = 970
blank_name = GNIS feature ID
blank_info = [http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=gnispq:3:::NO::P3_FID:0170131 0170131]
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Virginia Dale is a tiny unincorporated town located in northwestern Larimer County, Colorado, United States. Virginia Dale is situated in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains on U.S. Highway 287, approximately 45 mi (72 km) northwest of Ft. Collins and approximately 4 mi (6 km) south of the Wyoming border. In the late 19th century, it was the site of a famous stop of the Overland Trail. Today largely nothing remains of the original settlement.

The town was founded in 1862 by Jack Slade as a division point on the Overland Trail. Slade named the post after his wife Virginia. The post became widely known around the country by newspaper writers and other travelers. The town was described by Mark Twain in his novel "Roughing It". From 1864 to 1866, the town also served as a camping place for emigrant trains moving westward, because the Bozeman Trail through the Powder River Country in Wyoming was closed by order of the federal government. The closure was due to hostilities with the Native Americans (see Red Cloud's War), forcing emigrant parties along a southerly route through Denver and Fort Collins. In 1865 Vice President Schuyler Colfax was detained at the post by Native American raids.

After the construction of the Union Pacific Railroad in 1867, the stage stop was abandoned. Settlers began moving into the area in 1872, establishing the first school in 1874. The first church was built in 1880. The community was formerly the site of a post office and cafe along Highway 287 until the 1990s, when the cafe and post office were shut down. The area continues to be a region of cattle ranching. The original 1874 school still stands along U.S. Highway 287 and the original stage station still stands a short distance east of the highway. The U.S. Post Office at Livermore (ZIP Code 80536) now serves Virginia Dale postal addresses.cite web | date = January 3 2007 | url = http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/citytown.jsp | title = ZIP Code Lookup| format = JavaScript/HTML | publisher = United States Postal Service | accessmonthday = January 3 | accessyear = 2007]

Geography

Virginia Dale is located at coor dms|40|57|01|N|105|20|34|W|city (40.95431,-105.34867).

References

External links

* [http://www.over-land.com/virginia/vdale.html The Overland Trail: Virginia Dale]
* [http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/co/virginiadale.html Ghosttowns.com: "Virginia Dale"]