Palmer Divide Research

Palmer Divide Research

A shared, working map of the history of the Palmer Divide, the high ground between Denver and Colorado Springs. It holds 200 places, from the gold camps of 1858 and the stage stops of the 1860s to the sawmills, dairies, fox farms and one-room schools that came after; 62 of them are living communities today. Each place has a page with what we know and where it comes from. If you know more, or can show us we're wrong, please tell us.

Click any point for its history and sources. Switch on the USGS maps of 1889–1894 or Scott's historic trails in the map's key.Open the map full screen →

Browse by kind of place

Some of the vanished towns

All 200 places, A to Z →

Help us find these

We know of 39 more places from post-office records, old newspapers and family histories, but not yet where they stood. A deed, a photograph with a landmark in it, or a family memory can be enough to put one on the map. See the list →

How this map is made

Places go on the main map when their location is reasonably sure, usually because two independent sources agree. Each point says how it was found and how close it is likely to be: a U.S. Geological Survey name point, a street address, a land-patent section or a written description. Places known from only one source, such as Glenn R. Scott's 1999 trail map or Place Names of Colorado, sit in separate layers that are off until you switch them on.

Native American graves and artifact sites are shown only at the nearest named place. Many of the places here are private property today; please ask before visiting. More on the method and the sources is on the about page.

Contribute

This is a working map, not a finished history. The research continues, and the site is updated every few weeks (last on 2026-10-06). Family papers, photographs, land records, corrections and questions are all useful. Send what you know