Howbert, Colorado facts for kids
Howbert was a small town that existed for a short time, from 1887 to 1933, in central Colorado. It was located in southeastern Park County. The town started as a stop for the former Colorado Midland Railway. It was named after Irving Howbert, who helped create the railway. He was also a banker, a silver mine owner, and a founder of Colorado Springs. Even though the town was named after him, Irving Howbert never actually lived there. Today, Howbert and two nearby towns are completely underwater, covered by the Eleven Mile Reservoir.
A Town Called Howbert
Howbert began as a place for ranchers. In August 1907, a huge sale of eight thousand cattle happened there. Before the railroad arrived, the community was called Dell's Camp. This name probably came from B. R. Dell, who opened a general store in the area.
The U.S. Post Office opened in Howbert in December 1887. The next year, 125 building plots were marked out on land owned by James M. Petty. To help the growing town, B. R. Dell built a three-story building in 1888. His store and the post office were on the first floor. The basement was used for storage, and the top floor served as a church and meeting hall.
The South Park Hotel, owned by Hardy and Josephine Epperson, also opened in Howbert in 1888. It had a restaurant and a shop for making shoes. Howbert had many services for its residents. It had a railroad depot, a school, a drugstore, a telegraph office, a blacksmith shop, and a sawmill. There were also two or three saloons and about twenty-five houses. The town also had a cemetery, but its exact location is now unknown.
Life in Howbert
The 1910 United States Census showed 35 families living in Howbert. By the 1930 census, which was the last one, there were 107 people in 31 families. Parties and celebrations were important in Howbert. Almost everyone attended the annual ball.
In November 1888, there was a big election party with a barbecue and a dance. This was when Benjamin Harrison won against U.S. President Grover Cleveland. The party was the result of a bet. Whichever side lost the bet paid for the celebration. Both beef and mutton were served at the party.
Howbert was about 40 miles from Fairplay, the county seat. That's where doctors and law enforcement officers were available. In December 1889, Howbert had eight cases of a serious illness, which was likely Rocky Mountain spotted fever. This sickness is often spread by the bite of lice or ticks.
In May 1894, Father John Lewis Dyer, a Methodist missionary, was hurt while in Howbert. But he got better and lived for another seven years. In August 1915, thirty-three passengers were injured on an eastbound Colorado Midland train. The train was on a trip for people to see and photograph wildflowers. The trains crashed near the town of Idlewild. The engineers couldn't see each other because of the canyon walls. The Colorado Midland Railway stopped running in 1918. Its tracks were removed by 1921 to make way for a highway.
The End of Howbert
The city and county of Denver needed more water as they grew. Because of this, the Eleven Mile Canyon Dam was built between 1930 and 1932. The public school in Howbert was moved just before 1930. In 1933, when the dam was finished, the South Platte River flooded Howbert, Idlewild, and Freshwater Station, along with nearby ranches.
An extension of the dam in 1957 buried even more ranch land. The reservoir could then hold almost 98,000 acre-feet of water. At that time, the dam created the largest artificial body of water in Colorado. It is still one of seven reservoirs that provide drinking water to the Denver area.
Even though Howbert was once called "the liveliest town in the county for its size," very little remains of it today. There is a Howbert Campground in the area that is still used.
