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Morgan County Place Names
Legend
- Dot Color- Indicates
- Green - Places from modern maps.
- Red - Stops from old railroad maps. There are two main rail lines. The Burlington (Story, Brush, Ft Morgan, Wiggins, Bronco) and the Union Pacific (Balzac, Snyder, Weldona, Orchard.) There is also a bridge route connecting the two lines (Union Junction, Hillrose, Brush).
- Yellow - Stage stations on the 1860s-1870s Overland Stage Route. Note that the Overland branched near the Fort Morgan military camp. The "Cutoff" went cross-country to Denver City and the main route went on west along the South Platte.
- Dark Blue - Other place names. See gazetteer listings below.
The base map showing rivers, road net and county lines was downloaded from the US Census Tiger Map Service. The overlay showing railroads, places and stage lines is my own.
Gazetteer
- Note: There are several places listed that are not reflected on the map above.
- Adena
- Rural post office that operated from 1910 to 1947. Located east of Hoyt.
- Antelope Springs
- Rural post office from 1911 to 1917. Located about 8 miles north of Snyder. Named for nearby Antelope Creek.
- Balzac
- Stop on the Union Pacific RR about 3 miles northeast of Union Junction. Shown on 1902 to 1950s maps. Named after the French author.
- Beaver
- First stop northeast of the junction of the Burlington and Burlington bridge route. Some three miles east of Brush.
- Beaver Station (aka Beaver Creek)
- Stage station on the 1860s Overland Stage route. Was still shown on 1890s maps. Also South Platte crossing and cattle shipping point on the old Texas - Montana Trail. Located northwest of Hillrose - not the same place as the Beaver rail stop.
- Beef Siding
- RR siding on the Union Pacific on the 1923 map. Same location as the Narrows RR stop (1916-1927).
- Bijou / Bijou Station
- Stage station on the 1860s Overland Stage route. Named for Bijou Creek which entered the Platte at the station.
- Bijou
- Stop on the Burlington RR 6 miles west of Fort Morgan.
- Bijouview / Bijou View
- Rural post office that operated from 1914-1921. Located about 8 miles south of Valley.
- Bronco
- Railroad stop shown on the Burlington line on 1916 to 1920s maps. Located about 5 miles southwest of Wiggins.
- Brush
- Town was platted in 1881 beside the Burlington RR tracks that were laid that year. Incorporated in 1884. Named for Jared Brush, a Colorado cattleman who became Lt. Governor in 1894. Brush was a "cow-town" until the Great Western sugar plant was built in 1906.
- Camden
- Stop on the Burlington RR on 1907-1924 maps. Located about six miles east of Brush.
- Camp Tyler, Fort Wardell, Old Fort Morgan
- Camp Tyler was a Civil War military camp established in 1864 on the South Platte Overland Stage route very near the present Fort Morgan townsite. It was renamed Fort Wardell in 1865 and Fort Morgan in 1866 to honor Col. C.A. Morgan of the U.S. Volunteers. The Fort Morgan military post was abandoned in 1868.
- Carr
- Stop on the Burlington railroad 3 miles west of Fort Morgan. The stop has had a rather confused name history. It has been called the Ensign (1885 map), Carr (1902 map), Hobson (1920s map), Lamb (1924 & 1955 map) and Maudru (1970 map) stop.
- Cooper
- Stop on the Union Pacific RR about 6 miles northeast of Snyder on 1916-1923 maps.
- Corona
- The Corona post office operated from 1874 to 1878. The Wiggins rail stop and post office was established very near the Corona site in 1882.
- Cotsworth
- 1882-1883 post office and station on the Burlington RR about 11 miles west of Fort Morgan.
- Cottonwood Spring
- On 1885 map about 15 miles north of Weldona.
- Deuel (aka Debel, Devell)
- Post office and station established in 1883 on the Union Pacific across the Platte from Fort Morgan. The townsite was platted in 1886. The Deuel station was renamed North Fort Morgan in 1900 when the Deuel post office was relocated several miles west to the Weldona townsite. The Deuel post office at Weldona was finally renamed Weldona in 1907.
- Dodd
- Station and post office on the Union Pacific about 8 miles northeast of Fort Morgan. Post office operated 1904 to 1907. Still shown on 1920s maps.
- Ensign
- Stop on the Burlington railroad 3 miles west of Fort Morgan. The stop has had a rather confused name history. It has been called the Ensign (1885 map), Carr (1902 map), Hobson (1920s map), Lamb (1924 & 1955 map) and Maudru (1970 map) stop.
- Fort Morgan (also see Camp Tyler)
- Established as a Burlington railroad stop in 1881 near the site of the 1860s fort of the same name. Townsite was platted in 1884 and incorporated in 1887. Became the county seat in 1889 when Morgan County was established.
- Fort Wardell (see Camp Tyler)
- Fremont
- Stage station on the 1860s Overland Stage route. Named for the nearby Fremont's Orchard. Across the Platte from the town of Orchard.
- Fremont's Orchard
- Place name derived from a 1842 campsite used by Lt. Fremont's party near a grove of trees on the south bank of the South Platte.
- Gary
- Rural post office that operated from 1899 to 1954. Located 13 miles south of Brush.
- Giese
- Stop on the Burlington railroad bridge line between Brush and Union Junction.
- Goodrich
- Established in 1882 as a Union Pacific railroad stop. Post office established in 1908. Town platted in 1916.
- Grahame Ranch
- Stage station on the Fort Morgan cutoff of the 1860s Overland Stage route. Station was located about 7 miles southeast of Wiggins at the Grahame Ranch headquarters.
- Griffin
- Stop on the Burlington railroad east of Vallery.
- Hillrose
- Established as a stop on the Burlington railroad bridge line north of Brush. Town was platted in 1900 and incorporated in 1919.
- Hobson
- Stop on the Burlington railroad 3 miles west of Fort Morgan. The stop has had a rather confused name history. It has been called the Ensign (1885 map), Carr (1902 map), Hobson (1920s map), Lamb (1924 & 1955 map) and Maudru (1970 map) stop.
- Hoyt
- Rural post office established in 1906. Named after the Hoyt family who settled in the area in the 1880s.
- Hurley
- Stop on the Union Pacific RR about 3 miles northeast of Fort Morgan.
- Junction House / Junction Station
- Stage station and post office on the 1860s Overland Stage route north of today's Brush. The Junction House post office operated from 1864 to 1866 when it was relocated west to the Fort Morgan military post. Probably named Junction Station because it was where the Overland routes from Denver via the "Cutoff" and from stations west along the South Platte joined. The stage station was still shown on the 1885 map.
- Lamb
- Stop on the Burlington railroad 3 miles west of Fort Morgan. The stop has had a rather confused name history. It has been called the Ensign (1885 map), Carr (1902 map), Hobson (1920s map), Lamb (1924 & 1955 map) and Maudru (1970 map) stop.
- Littleville
- Located about 10 miles south of Wiggins on 1942 map. Named for the local grocery store owner.
- Lodi
- Stop on the Burlington RR about 4 miles west of Brush on 1911 to 1934 maps.
- Log Lane Village
- First site, now abandoned, was a saloon and liquor store outside of "dry" Fort Morgan. Current town was platted in 1955 during the oil boom.
- Long Meadows
- On current map, 10 miles south of Wiggins.
- Manchester
- Stop on the Union Pacific shown on 1882 map about six miles northeast of Fort Morgan.
- Maudru
- Stop on the Burlington railroad 3 miles west of Fort Morgan. The stop has had a rather confused name history. It has been called the Ensign (1885 map), Carr (1902 map), Hobson (1920s map), Lamb (1924 & 1955 map) and Maudru (1970 map) stop.
- 1920s map shows a town of Mandru just north of the Hobson RR Stop.
- Morgan (also see North Fort Morgan)
- Shown north of Fort Morgan on the Union Pacific RR on 1887 map. Also shown as a UP stop 2 miles east of Deuel on an 1885 map..
- Moseley
- Stop on the Burlington RR about 2 miles east of Fort Morgan on 1916 to 1927 maps.
- Narrows
- Stop on the Union Pacific RR about 8 miles west of Fort Morgan on 1916 to 1927 maps. Same place as the 1923 Beef Siding.
- Nelson
- Stop on the Burlington railroad 3 miles west of Brush on the 1916-1970 maps.
- North Fort Morgan (also see Deuel and Morgan)
- Station and townsite on the Union Pacific RR across the Platte from Fort Morgan. Established in 1882 as Deuel. Platted in 1886. Renamed North Fort Morgan in 1900 when the Deuel post office was relocated to the present Weldona townsite.
- Omar
- Stop on the Burlington RR on 1924 and 1955 maps. Same location as Bronco on earlier maps. However, the 1955 map shows the Omar siding located in Weld County, a half-mile west of the border.
- Orchard
- The Orchard post office and Union Pacific railroad stop was established in 1882. Town was platted in 1890. Named for Fremont's Orchard located on the other side of the Platte.
- Pawnee
- Post office that operated from 1903 to 1944 at Union Junction. Name is still on modern maps.
- Rock Creek
- Stage station on the Fort Morgan Cutoff of the 1860s Overland Stage route. Located about 4 miles northwest of today's Hoyt.
- Snyder
- Rail stop and post office established in 1882 on the Union Pacific north of Brush. Town platted in 1897. Named after a local cattleman.
- Station
- Shown on the Union Pacific RR just west of North Fort Morgan on a 1923 map.
- Story
- Stop on the Burlington RR about 6 miles east of Brush on 1916 to 1924 maps.
- Trowell Ranch
- Stop on 1902 to 1970s maps on the Burlington railroad bridge line about 2 miles north of Hillrose.
- Union, Union Junction
- Railroad junction on the north bank of the Platte north of Hillrose where the Burlington bridge line joins the Union Pacific tracks. Site of the Pawnee post office.
- Vallery
- Station and post office (1907-1919) on the Burlington RR about 7 miles west of Fort Morgan. Vallery townsite platted in 1908. Named for John Vallery, general freight agent for the CB&Q RR.
- Weldon Valley
- 1880 post office located at Fremont's Orchard. (Across the South Platte from Orchard.)
- Weldona (also see Deuel)
- Railroad stop on the Union Pacific. Town platted in 1893. Post office established 1907. Area may have been settled as early as 1866. Named after the Weldon Valley where it is located.
- White
- Rail stop on the Burlington route on 1970 map. Located about a mile west of Hillrose.
- Wiggins
- The Wiggins railroad stop was established in 1882 near site of former Corona (1874-1878) post office. First Wiggins post office operated 1882 to 1896. Current town was platted in 1908 and the post office was reestablished the same year. Wiggins was named after a Hudson's Bay Co. employee "Old Scout" Wiggins who first came to the area in 1834 and guided one of Fremont's Colorado expeditions in the 1840s.
- The primary sources for this listing were:
- o Colorado Post Offices 1859-1989, William H. Bauer, James L. Ozment and John H. Willard, copyright 1990, published by The Colorado Railroad Museum, Golden, Colorado, ISBN 0-918654-42-4.
- o Atlas of Colorado Ghost Towns, Volume 2, by Leanne C. Boyd and H. Glenn Carson, copyright 1985, published by Cache Press, Deming, New Mexico, ISBN 0-9416120-35-2
Morgan County Rail History
Many of the place names listed here are related to railroad stops so a few general comments about Morgan County railroad time lines and track locations will probably aid your research. It should be noted that named railroad stops from period rail maps may have been settlements with a station, flag stops serving an area, a water stop, an industrial spur or a simple siding to let trains meet on the single track main line.
The Union Pacific Railroad laid the first tracks across the high plains from Omaha to Utah after the Civil War. The UP main line bypassed most of Colorado and the railroad built a branch line south from Cheyenne, Wyoming to service Denver. This was followed by the Kansas Pacific RR (a UP RR subsidiary) Kansas City - Denver route in 1870 through Cheyenne Wells, Kit Carson and Limon.
In 1881-1882 the Burlington and Missouri River (later the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy) Railroad extended their main line from St. Joseph, Missouri into Denver. The Burlington main line followed the south bank of the South Platte through most of Morgan County.
In 1882, with the Burlington RR poised to siphon off the northeast Colorado rail traffic, the Union Pacific added a new branch line from Julesburg to Denver creating a direct Omaha - Denver routing. This UP branch line followed the north bank of the South Platte through Morgan County.
Later in the 1880s the Burlington added a new route through Holyoke and Sterling to Cheyenne where it joined the UP main line. About 1900 the Burlington acquired trackage rights on the UP from Sterling into Morgan County where a new "bridge route" was laid from Union Junction (Pawnee post office) to Brush where it joined the Burlington main line.
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