La Foret, Colorado facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
La Foret, Colorado
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| Country | United States |
| State | Colorado |
| County | El Paso |
| Elevation | 7,231 ft (2,204 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (Mountain Standard Time) |
| Zip code |
80908
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| Area code(s) | 719 |
La Foret is a small community in El Paso County, Colorado. It's not a city with its own government, but rather a populated area. You can find La Foret near Shoup Road and Colorado State Highway 83, not far from Interstate 25.
Most people living in La Foret travel to nearby Colorado Springs or Black Forest for work and shopping. A big part of life in La Foret centers around the La Foret Conference and Retreat Center. This center is home to the famous Ponderosa Lodge. The lodge was built in 1928 by Jacques Benedict and is a very important historic building. It is listed on both the U.S. National Register of Historic Places and the Colorado State Register of Historic Properties.
Contents
Discovering La Foret's Past
The history of La Foret is quite similar to that of its neighbor, Black Forest. It also shares a past with the larger area known as "The Pineries" along the Palmer Divide.
Early Settlers and Lumber Mills
La Foret was first settled in the 1850s. In those early days, it was mainly a community focused on lumber. People worked in mills, cutting down trees for wood. This was a very important industry for the area.
From Lumber to Ranching
Around the 1880s, the amount of lumber being cut in La Foret started to decrease. Because of this, ranching became the main way people made a living. Even though ranching grew, some lumbering continued off and on until the 1950s.
La Foret Today
Today, La Foret is mostly a quiet, somewhat rural area. It serves as a suburb for people who work in Colorado Springs. It also connects to the larger Denver Metropolitan Area.
