Manhattan, Colorado facts for kids
Manhattan is a ghost town located about 4 miles (6.4 km) north of Rustic in Larimer County, Colorado, United States. It sits high up in the mountains at an elevation of 8,474 feet (2,583 m). Manhattan became a mining town after gold was discovered there in September 1886. However, it was difficult to mine the area, and only small amounts of gold were found. Because of this, most people moved away by the early 1900s. The land was later bought by the United States Forest Service. By 1933, the few buildings that were left were taken apart because they were seen as a fire danger. Today, only a cemetery remains.
History of Manhattan
Manhattan began as a gold mining camp. A "rich strike" of gold was found west of Fort Collins in September 1886. This discovery was made between the Seven Mile and Elk Horn creeks. Many miners quickly rushed to the area along Manhattan Creek.
The town was officially planned out in 1887. A post office opened there in March of that same year. At first, people lived in tents. By the end of October 1887, about 100 miners were in town. They had made 125 claims, which meant they marked out areas where they hoped to find gold. A school opened the month before, serving Manhattan and nearby areas like Rustic.
Not much gold was found, and it was expensive to dig deep into the earth to reach the deposits. In 1888, only about 50 people lived in Manhattan. A new discovery in the fall of 1890 led to a small boom, and more buildings were constructed. Sadly, two people died in a mine explosion at the Black Hawk mine on November 13, 1892.
By 1898, about 300 people lived in Manhattan. But this number quickly dropped to 50 by 1899. The post office closed at the end of 1900. The school also closed in 1904. A new school was later built in Elk Horn, which became part of the Fort Collins school system in 1970.
About 300 men worked in mines like the Laugh-a-lot and Little Tipsy. However, the town never became as big as some newspapers predicted.
Katie Lawder's Story
A radio show called Our Gal Sunday and a book titled A Lady from Colorado were based on the life of Katie Lawder. Katie was an Irish immigrant who became an orphan at age 12. She moved to Colorado when she was 18. In 1888, she married Cecil Ernest Moon, an Englishman who later became a wealthy noble. Katie would travel to England with her husband, bringing her cowgirl clothes and Western ways with her. Eventually, she and Cecil divorced. She then lived only in Colorado and wanted to still be called Lady Cecil Moon. By 1901, she bought a ranch for US$2,500.
Manhattan's Later Years
The town of Manhattan later became owned by the United States Forest Service. In the 1930s, it was used as a site for the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). The CCC was a government program that put young men to work on conservation projects during the Great Depression. Some of Manhattan's buildings were moved, and the rest were burned by the Forest Service in the 1930s to prevent fires. Today, the Manhattan Cemetery is the only remaining part of the old town.
Manhattan Today
Almost nothing is left of the town of Manhattan. You might find a few flat spots where cabin foundations once were, but these are usually hidden by tall grasses.
The area around Manhattan is still considered a mining district. As of December 31, 2021, there are 57 active "lode claims" and 16 active "placer claims." These are areas where people can still legally look for minerals. In late 2020, Manhattan and the surrounding mining district were affected by the Cameron Peak Fire, a large wildfire.
