Rifle Colorado

Rifle had a Livery Stable about where the Midland Hotel would be built.
It was called the Pioneer Stable and was operated by J. J. Claussen.
It burned in the 1902 fire and was not rebuilt.
Across the street and just east of the Marker Hotel was the Reveille newspaper office. The photo of their building shows the previous business there was named Pioneer something. Wonder if it was tied to the stable?
And note, another stable burned in 1902. It was on the west side of Railroad across from the Winchester, by the alley. It was called Meeker Stable because it was part of the Rifle Meeker stagecoach line. It was not rebuilt.
With those two burned, Rifle only had the Collins Livery remaining, though it was called the Rifle Livery by then.
That created an opportunity and a new brick livery called City Stable was built on west 3rd where the Rex theater would later be. And the Rex was later remodeled into the Moose Lodge.
Believe that City Stable also soon burned. It was replaced right across on the north side of 3rd. That building remains. It soon became a veterinary hospital. Then a machine shop / auto repair shop.
Shortly later Fay Gorham built a new stable a block north of the 2nd City Stable.
The only other stable was The Red Barn at about 5th and Railroad, west side. It was Gorham's first stable. Until his business outgrew it.

Freighters leaving Rifle, Colo. Date:1890-1900
View of Conestoga wagons, men, and horses, in Rifle, Garfield County, Colorado; the Roan Cliffs are in the background.
Physical Description: 1 photo print ; 13 x 21 cm (5 x 8 in.)
Subject: Rifle (Colo.)--19th century Covered wagons--Colorado--Rifle--19th century
Geographic Area: Rifle (Colo.)
Related Material: Image File: ZZR710013172
Type of Material: Photographic prints:
Notes: Title hand-written on back of photo print.
R7100131721
Denver Public Library Special Collections

Rifle, Colo. Date:1890-1900
Shows wooden buildings in the town of Rifle (Garfield County), Colorado, including a Presbyterian Church and privies. Physical Description: 1 photo print on album page ; 10 x 12 cm (4 x 4 1/2 in.)
Born-Digital or Analog: Analog
Subject: Rifle (Colo.)--19th century Cities and towns--Colorado--Rifle--19th century Presbyterian churches--Colorado--Rifle--19th century Privies--Colorado--Rifle--19th century
Geographic Area: Rifle (Colo.)
Collection: Photographs - Western History
Related Material: Image File: ZZR710021104
Type of Material: Photographic prints
Original Material Found in Collection: C Photo Album 109. Colorado 1890s
Notes: Image mounted with X-21103; on verso X-21105, and X-21106. Title hand written on album page. R7100211042
Denver Public Library Special Collections.

     

Rifle's first City Hall was on west 3rd south side just east of West Avenue. It was completed on January 2, 1908. The building remains today. It held the fire department, police department, jail, and the city offices. It was replaced March 20, 1952 by the dedication of the building on the SW corner 4th and East Avenue.

Current image of original city hall

The busses say "Rifle Consolidated Schools"

according to AI: Based on the historical details visible in the photograph, this image was most likely taken in the early-to-mid 1910s (roughly between 1912 and 1917). Here is why: The Vehicles ("Kid Hacks"): These are early motorized school buses, often called "school hacks" or "kid hacks." They represent the transitional period when traditional wooden, horse-drawn carriage bodies were first mounted onto early automobile or truck chassis (such as early Ford Model T or International Harvester frames).Design Features: The perimeter wooden bench seating, open or lightly paneled sides with roll-up canvas curtains for weather protection, and solid rubber tires (visible on the spoked wheels) are classic hallmarks of motorized student transport manufactured between 1912 and World War I. By the 1920s, bus designs rapidly evolved to feature fully enclosed glass windows and more uniform, factory-built bodies. Historical Context: In Colorado, the consolidation of rural school districts into "Consolidated Schools" to pool resources and provide motorized transportation gained significant momentum during the 1910s.It is a fantastic snapshot of early rural automotive history in Rifle!

Photo about 1920

Rifle High School 1942

Rifle High School 1948

Rifle Band

Rifle Bank

Rifle Ferry

Rifle Graduates

Rifle Phone Directory

Court was held upstairs and the jail was to the left end down the stairs. The library was the middle door. This building now serves as the Rifle Heritage Center and is a fabulous museum with lots of information about Rifle and the surrounding area.

1993 Flood in Rifle Colorado ~ Worst Flood Rifle, May 15, 1993.
It came out of the Government Creek Drainage Basin with a wall of water as high as 10 feet in places.
At the confluence of Government and Rifle Creeks, the flow was 2,950 cubic feet per second.

    

                                                                                 

               

                  

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