Yuma County Place Names

Abarr: Abarr is now a ghost town on Highway 59 north of Joes but survives as a community name. Abarr was established about 1921 as a general store and in 1923 was named for Ethel (Abarr) Hoffman, wife of the store owner when the post office opened. The Abarr post office was in operation from 1923 until 1947 when mail service was provided from the Joes post office. According to local tradition, Abarr had a split personality - buildings on the east side of Highway 59 were in Brownsville and the west side in Abarr. During the 1950's and 1960's there was a grandstand and rodeo arena on the east side of Highway 59, with a stock-car-racing track around the arena. (Also see Brownsville.)

Alva: Alva was the original name for what is now Idalia. The Alva post office (1887-1888) and townsite were located about a mile and a half west of Idalia. According to local legend, the original townsite was abandoned and the town of Alva moved to the present Idalia townsite because of a dispute over access and water with the landowner. In 1888, the post office moved and was renamed Idalia.

Alvin: Rural post office and store in northeast Yuma County, Alvin was named for local homesteader Alvin Davis. The Alvin post office and store operated from 1910 to 1929 in at least three different locations. Mail service was provided out of Wray after 1929.

Alvin Cemetery: See Johnson Family Cemetery

Arikaree River: The Arikaree's headwaters are in Lincoln County northeast of Limon. The river flows generally northeast to where it joins the North Fork of the Republican River near Haigler, Nebraska. The Arikaree has also been known as the Middle Fork and the Dry Fork of the Republican. (See spelling footnote.)

Arlene: Rural post office located about 3 miles southwest of Wauneta. Arlene operated from 1916 to 1918. After 1918 mail service was provided from Wray.

Armel: Now a ghost town, Armel was named by Armel Breninger who built a store on his homestead and was first postmaster. The Armel post office operated from 1903 until 1958 when mail service was moved to Wray. The townsite and school were located a half mile north of the Armel Cemetery on County Road PP.

Armel Cemetery: The Armel Cemetery is located at the intersection of County Roads 15 and PP. It was established in 1906 as a church cemetery and is still in use as a public cemetery.

Arnold: Short-lived post office about five miles south of Wauneta that operated from March to September 1914. The postmaster was Mrs. Emma Arnold.

Avoca: Post office that operated from 1889 to 1891 southwest of Heartstrong. According to a 1898 map the Avoca community population was 20.

Baseline, The: The 40° North Latitude line runs east and west in the middle of Yuma County and is the baseline for the 6th Principal Meridian land survey township grid. 40° North was the dividing line between the 1854 Kansas and Nebraska Territories and separated Weld from Arapahoe county in the 1861 Colorado Territory. While Yuma County was formed in 1889, the thirty-five townships south of the baseline were not part of the county until the borders of Arapahoe, Adams, Washington and Yuma counties were redrawn in 1903.

Beecher's Island Battlefield: Site of 1868 nine-day battle between a fifty member Army scouting party under the command of Col. George Forsyth out of Fort Wallace, Kansas and a band of Arapahoe, Sioux and Cheyenne. The site is named for Lt. Fred Beecher who was killed in the battle. The battlefield is located on the Arikaree River at County Road KK, some 16 miles south of Wray and 9 miles north of US 36. Beecher's Island Battlefield has been a joint Kansas-Colorado historical site since 1905. There has been a reunion held at the battlefield in September of every year since 1899.

Beecher, Beecher Island and Glory: The first Beecher post office was established in 1902 and operated until 1905. It was re-established as the Glory post office in 1924 and six months later was renamed Beecher Island. The post office operated out of the Beecher Island store until 1958 when mail service was moved to Wray. The store and a garage continued to operate until 1964. The Beecher townsite is now a parking area across the road from the Beecher Island Battlefield and church. All the buildings have recently been torn down.

Bethany Church: Six miles south of Yuma "in the Cochrane neighborhood" - built in 1915, it shared ministers 1930-1960 with Pleasant Valley Brethren (Evangelical United Brethren).

Bethel Church: One mile east, then five and a half miles south of Eckley - dedicated as a Presbyterian church in 1915. It was in the "South Eckley" or Eureka area.

Black Wolf: Short-lived 1885 rural post office established by postmaster Thomas Bermingham. According to the postal service, Black Wolf was located northwest of Wray but it seems much more likely that the post office was located at the Bermingham & McGavoch ranch headquarters on Black Wolf Creek near where it joins the Arikaree.

Black Wolf Creek: The Black Wolf joins the Arikaree just east of Beecher Island. The Black Wolf's headwaters are in the breaks immediately south of Vernon and it flows generally east to the Arikaree. While it is usually dry today, the Black Wolf was a constantly flowing stream until the 1960s. Its tree shaded banks and ponds were the site of many early family, church and school picnics.

Bolton: Rural post office that operated northeast of Armel from 1900 to 1901 when it was moved to the Clough Valley area in Kansas.

Bonny: Bonny was a rural post office that operated from 1915 to 1924 just inside Kit Carson County. The name was resurrected for the Bonny Dam reservoir and state recreation area on the South Fork near Hale built in the early 1950s.

Bowles' Bar 11 Ranch: The Bar 11 was headquartered near Robb starting in 1876. That year Joseph Bowles moved his Bar 11 ranch operation into the area from the San Luis Valley because the valley became too crowded for him. He owned more than 8500 head of cattle and 500 horses and ran them on the open range around the headwaters of Chief Creek and the North Fork. When other cattlemen moved into the area the Bar 11 ran some 65 miles of wire fence to preserve the ranch home range. In 1885, after a change in public land use law, the ranch fences came down to allow settlers access to all public lands. The Bowles operation continued on a much reduced scale until 1899.

Brownsville: Established about 1915 by Doctor Donald C. Brown, drug store owner, barber, veterinarian and unlicensed general practitioner, on his homestead south of Happyville. Dr. Brown moved his business to the Abarr townsite about 1922 where he became the first Abarr postmaster. According to local tradition Abarr occupied the west side of the road at the new townsite and Brownsville the east. According to local stories the first application for establishment of what would become the Abarr post office was for it to operate under the name Brownsville but the Postmaster General turned it down as being "to common."

Bryant: Rural post office that operated in Phillips County from 1888 to 1904 when it was moved into northwest Yuma County. Bryant was named for the Bryant family who were early settlers in the southwest corner of Phillips County. Mattie Turner was the first Yuma County postmaster. The Bryant post office closed in 1916 and mail service was provided from Burdett in Washington County.

Brunerville: Early townsite platted about 1890 on Hans Bruner's land at the railroad siding that is now Schramm. While Mr. Bruner talked the railroad into naming the siding after his new town and had a "ribbon cutting ceremony" attended by local dignitaries and most of the citizens, it is thought that he failed to sell a single lot. Brunerville disappeared from the Yuma County map shortly after 1910 when Baron Von Schramm talked the railroad into renaming the siding for his new townsite and post office located across the tracks.

Burlington Railroad (B&M, B&K, B&C, CB&Q, BN, BN&SF): The Burlington and Missouri railroad laid track through what is now Yuma County in 1882 and by the 1890s provided daily passenger service from Denver to Chicago. The Burlington line has operated under many names as illustrated by the initials above. The last merger created the Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railroad company.; —; The 1882 arrival of the railroad signaled the beginning of the end of the open range, big ranch, period in local history and the start of the individual family farm and ranch. The change was fueled by railroad land promotions in the east and in Europe to attract new customers and by Congress changing the U.S. land laws in 1885 to favor individual land ownership over BLM owned, common use, open range.

Carson Valley: Valley is a voting and census precinct in the northeast corner of Yuma County. Local news from part of this section of the county was published in the Wray Rattler under the by-line "Carson Valley News," no doubt named for the Carson family, early settlers in the area.

C Bar C: The C Bar C Ranch, established about 1870 was owned by Peter Campbell and was one of the first ranches in Yuma County. Ranch headquarters was near today's Laird.
C Bar C (spelled Seebarsee by the post master general) was the official name of the Laird post office from 1892-1899. (See Laird.)

Cemeteries: See the Cemetery map and locator page. Also see individual listings here for Alvin, Armel, Delto Family, Downey Family, Eckley, Evangelical Lutheran, Friend, German Lutheran, Gilstrap Family, Glendale, Grandview, Hanshaw Family, Idalia, Idler Family, Joes Mennonite, Johnson Family, Jones Family, Kingston, Kirk, Landsman, Lansing, Lakeview, Long Family, Lucas, Mildred, New Hope Mennonite, Olivet, Pleasant Valley, St. Johns, Schlake, Spring Valley, Triangle, Vernon, Wray and Yuma.

Center: Rural school district north of Joes. Center is also the name of a census and voting precinct in the same area.

Chief Creek also known as Papoose Creek: The headwaters of Chief Creek are just east of Eckley. Chief Creek joins the North Fork of the Republican just west of Wray.

Clarkville: Located in northwest Yuma County on Highway 59, Clarkville was established in 1933 by Ted Clark who opened a store on the southwest corner of the intersection and was the first postmaster. The Clarkville post office operated from 1938 to 1954 when mail service was provided out of Haxtun. The Clark family also had a fuel delivery operation south of the store. The church was a half-mile east of the store.

Condon (aka Condon's Corner): The community of Condon was established about 1885 three miles northeast of present day Vernon on the northwest corner of a quarter section homesteaded by Bryon E. Condon, the first editor and publisher of the Wray Rattler. In 1888 the Wales post office was moved from the John Wales homestead, renamed Condon and Mr. Condon's father-in-law George B. Vaughn, who owned a store in Condon, became postmaster. The post office was moved to the new Vernon townsite in 1892.

Copper Kettle Creek: The Copper Kettle flows generally east and joins the Arikaree south of Vernon. Its headwaters are in the sand hills east of Mildred.

Coyote Creek: Tributary of the Red Willow. The headwaters of Coyote Creek are southeast of Sterling in Logan County. Coyote Creek joins the Red Willow from the northwest, south of Clarkville.

Crystal Springs: Crystal Springs was a C Bar C line shack and cattle roundup camp located some nine miles northeast of Wray. The townsite of Crystal Springs was established about 1888 and had disappeared by 1895. The town of Crystal Springs briefly had a newspaper but was never able to claim a post office.

Delto Family Cemetery: Located just north of the Kit Carson County line a mile west of US 385, the abandoned Delto Family Cemetery has three known burials. The only surviving marker is that of Christian J (1831-1895) and Ernsta (1840-1888) Delto.

Downey Family Cemetery: Located on the Thomas Downey (1826-1896) homestead 10 miles east of Idalia near the intersection of Rd 7 and MM. The cemetery has about ten known Downey & Rolow family graves but no markers. Established in 1896, the last known burial was in 1911.

Dry Willow: Dry Willow Creek joins the Arikaree from the west, south of Laird. The Rosenkrans Ranch was headquartered on the Dry Willow near the Arikaree.

Eckley: Post office established in 1883 at a Burlington and Missouri railroad water stop. The Eckley rail stop and post office were named for Adam Eckles who was local foreman of the Bowles Ranch. The town of Eckley was established in 1889 and was incorporated in 1920. Current zip code is 80727.

Eckley Cemetery: The Eckley Cemetery is located just east of Eckley on the south side of the highway. It was established in 1908 and is still in use.

Evangelical Lutheran Church Cemetery: Also known as the Spring Valley Cemetery and the Landsman Cemetery. Located north of the Kit Carson County line and a mile and a half west of US 385. The cemetery was established in 1888 and the last of the twenty known burials was in 1908.

Ford: Rural post office that operated from 1909 to 1917 in northern Yuma County. Ford was named for the first postmaster Candacy Ford. The Ford post office closed when the Wages post office opened.
July 1910, the Rattler tr[ptyrf "A new town has been established eight miles south of Bryant, Colorado which has been named Ford. The village consists of a store, postoffice, blacksmith shop, and a number of residences. Mail is delivered twice a week from Yuma."

Fox: Rural post office that operated near the Fox Ranch from 1890 to 1912. Mail service from Kirk after 1912.

Friend: Thriving community west of Idalia with several stores and a post office that operated from 1887 to 1901. It also had a newspaper until 1890. The town was named after Friend, Nebraska, which was the hometown of several of the original townsfolk. Mail service was from Idalia after 1901. Local lore says that Friend simply gave up when railroad track crews quit laying track in St Francis, Kansas instead of continuing west through Friend to Limon as surveyed.

Friend Cemetery: Exact location is unknown today but the cemetery was about 5½ miles west of Idalia. The Friend Cemetery was established about 1890 "two miles west of Friend" and was abandoned before 1910. Most (if not all) of those buried at Friend were reinterred in surrounding local cemeteries.

Georgeston: Georgeston was the name used for the general store that operated in the 1930s and early 1940s on US 36 near what is now County Road U. It was probably named for George Race who owned the land in the 1920s. From 1937 to 1941 it was operated by Sylvia and Harvey McDonald.

German Lutheran Cemetery: See Evangelical Lutheran Cemetery

Gilstrap Family Cemetery: Located a mile south of US 36 and a mile past the east end of Rd 11 near the Kansas line. There are a dozen marked graves of members of the Jacob and Rosa Gilstrap family. Established in 1893 the last known burial was in 1936.

Glendale: School established in 1886 two miles east of what is now Vernon. Glendale was the first name for the Vernon community and was used as the 1900 census precinct name for the part of Arapahoe County north of the Arikaree.

Glendale Cemetery: Also called the Vernon Cemetery, the Glendale cemetery was established in 1886 near the Glendale school. The cemetery is still in use.

Glory: See Beecher Island

Grandview Cemetery: Also known as the Wray Cemetery, Grandview was established in 1886 as a private cemetery on the bluffs south of Wray. A public cemetery since 1900, it is still in use..

Gurney: Rural post office named for the first postmaster, Gurney Blake. Gurney was established in Kansas in 1884 and was moved across the state line into Yuma County in 1907. Gurney was located southeast of Armel near the earlier Rogers site. The Gurney post office closed in 1923.

H4 Gulch Line Camp: See Olive Canyon.

Hale: Post office and later a store in southeast Yuma County. The Hale post office opened in May 1890 at the Alonzo F. Rockwell home. According to Lee Yount's diary, in early 1894 a mail carrier found Mr. Rockwell dead. Temporary postmasters operated the Hale P.O. until October 30, 1900 when Mrs. Hannah Taylor was appointed to operate the Hale P.O. out of the Bennett Taylor store. The Hale store and post office continued to operate under various owners until 1984 when the local post office was discontinued.

Hanshaw Cemetery: The Hanshaw Family Cemetery, also known as the Lakeview Cemetery, was established 2 miles northeast of Laird in 1919 by the Edward Hanshaw family. Now a public cemetery, there are about a dozen graves and it is still in infrequent use.

Happyville: Rural post office established in 1910 southwest of Eckley on land owned by the first postmaster Richard Gilmore. Cleve Mason built a store and there was also a barber shop. Mr. Mason sold his store to a co-op but stayed on as postmaster. In 1920 Mason had a falling out with the co-op. He opened a new and bigger store on his homestead two miles west and for a time Mr. Mason operated the Happyville post office out of the new store without getting the blessing of the location change from the postmaster general. In May 1921 a new Happyville postmaster was appointed to replace him. The Happyville co-op store building burned late in 1921 and the post office was officially closed in February 1922.

Heartstrong, Hartstrong, Happyville Townsite: Established in 1920 by Cleve Mason on his homestead two miles west of Happyville. Mr. Mason built a store and platted a townsite he named "Happyville." When he ran into troubles with the postmaster general about moving the Happyville post office without permission he applied for a new post office with Maybelle Tucker as postmaster. The Heartstrong post office "officially" opened in May 1921 and operated until 1940. The 1922 Standard Atlas of Yuma County shows the Heartstrong post office located at the Happyville townsite two miles west of the Happyville post office. The community was locally known as Happyville well into the 1940s when for some reason Heartstrong became the favored name.

Hermes: Rural post office in southern Yuma County that operated from 1908 to 1919.

Holy Joe Creek: The Holy Joe enters the North Fork just east of Wray. The creek and the pond of the same name just north of Wray were named for Joseph Masters the 1882-1883 Wray postmaster and railroad station agent. Joseph "Holy Joe" Masters was a 'sky pilot' who held occasional religious services and didn't hesitate to try to save his cowboy customers.

Hughes: Rural post office establisthed in 1913 northwest of Abarr near the Washington County line. Hughes was named for Henry D. Hughes who owned the land and married the first Hughes postmistress, Martha Jackson. In 1915 the post office was moved southwest of Abarr to the farmstead of Fred Shelters, the second postmaster, where it remained until it closed in 1954. (The map shows the 1915-1954 location.)

Idalia: First named Alva, the post office was renamed Idalia in 1888 after the town of Alva picked up and moved. The name Idalia is a variation of "Ida Lee" the wife of an early settler. Idalia is home to one of the four county school districts. The Idalia post office is still open with zipcode 80735. Local cemeteries are the Lucas Cemetery and St. Johns Cemetery.

Idler Family Cemetery: Located just west of the intersection of Roads M and 7 north of Kirk, the Idler Family Cemetery was established in 1896 as a final resting place for the seven children of Gotthilf and Catherine Idler - Andreas, Anna, Charles, Christoph, David, Henry and Joseph, who died that summer of diptheria. Catherine (1854-1924), Gotthilf (1855-1942) and another son Emil (1897-1975) are also buried there.

Jaqua: Short-lived 1919 post office established northeast of Hale on the farm of A.H. Keiver who was the postmaster. The Jaqua post office was later re-established in Kansas. The Jaqua community is still shown on the Kansas map just east of the Colorado-Kansas state line.

Joes: The first postmaster, Charles N. White, wanted to use his middle name Norman as the name of the post office which was turned down by the Postmaster General because it was "to common". At a loss Mr. White noted that several sons of local settlers were named Joseph and reapplied. The Joes post office was established in 1912 and is still in operation with a zipcode of 80822.

Joes Mennonite Cemetery (aka Joes Cemetery): Established in 1896 at the New Hope Mennonite Church 1½ miles east of Joes it is still in use. The church is now the Liberty Baptist Church.

Johnson Family Cemetery: Located 4 1/2 miles east of Wauneta on the Johnson family homestead, this private cemetery had two known burials, both of them children buried about 1920. It is now abandoned and is maintained by the landowner. This cemetery has also been referred to as the Triangle Cemetery, the Wauneta Cemetery and the Alvin Cemetery.

Jones Family Cemetery: Private cemetery located on the Jones ranch south of Laird. Two known burials -
Robert B. Jones (1934-1991) and Barbara "Janie" [Parker] Jones (1935-2003).

Kingston: Established southwest of Armel about 1885, Kingston was abandoned before 1890 in favor of nearby Lansing.

Kingston Cemetery: Also known as the Lansing Cemetery, the abandoned Kingston cemetery was established in 1887. The last known burial was in the 1940s. The cemetery grounds are now maintained by the East Yuma County Cemetery District.

Kirk: Community in southwestern Yuma county. The Kirk area was settled starting about 1883. The Kirk post office and store opened in 1887. The name is a contraction of "Niekirk" created by the first postmaster, George Niekirk. Kirk is still an active community with a zip of 80824.

Kirk Cemetery: Established in 1892 about a mile southwest of town and still in use.

Laird: Post office and townsite established in 1887 on the railroad east of Wray. While many sources credit the name to Senator James Laird of Nebraska, the town and the earlier railroad stop were probably named for local settler Jacob Laird who had purchased land just west of town in 1882 when the tracks were laid. From 1892 to 1899 the Laird post office was renamed Seebarsee after the earlier C Bar C ranch. Renamed Laird in 1899 the post office closed in 1988 after 101 years of operation. While the RR station, school, post office and most stores have closed or moved to Wray, the town of Laird still exists.

Lakeview Cemetery: See Hanshaw Cemetery

Landsman: Rural post office that operated in southern Yuma County and northern Kit Carson County from 1883 to 1918 near Landsman Creek. The Landsman post office moved back and forth across the county line several times. The post office directory shows entries for Elbert, Arapahoe (twice), Kit Carson and Yuma counties.

Landsman Cemetery: See Evangelical Lutheran Church Cemetery

Lansing: Townsite and post office from 1886 to 1910. After 1910 mail service was provided from Armel. Early Lansing had several businesses in addition to the post office. A newspaper, the Kingston Lariat, operated at Lansing from 1886-1889.

Lansing Cemetery: See Kingston Cemetery

Leslie: Town site on Yuma-Washington County line in northwest Yuma County. The Leslie post office operated on the Washington County side of main street from 1888 to 1896.

Liberty: Consolidated school district for Joes/Kirk/Cope area.

Logan: Rural post office that operated from 1887 to 1901 east of Idalia. Mail service from Lansing after 1901. Logan was also home to some businesses and two short-lived newspapers.

Long Family Cemetery: Established in 1893, this small abandoned family cemetery is located 10 miles south of Wray on the homestead of John E. Long. All five known burials are members of the Long family and include John (died 1898) and his wife Sarah (died 1900). There are two surviving markers.

Lucas Memorial Cemetery: Established by the Lucas family three miles west of Idalia in 1901 and donated to the community when the nearby Friend Cemetery was abandoned. Lucas is still in use as a public cemetery.

Ludlum: Short-lived rural post office that operated from 1889 to 1890 north of Yuma. The postmaster was Alexander Ludlum.

Lutheran Cemetery: See Spring Valley

Magee: Census and voting precinct in the northwest corner of Yuma County.

Mildred: Rural post office that operated from 1910 to 1954 twenty miles south of Eckley. Local history relates that it was named for the daughter of one of the residents. Many sources credit the name to Mildred Eastin (born 1908, died 1911) a daughter of Nick Eastin.

Mildred Cemetery: Located on County Road U about 18 miles south of Eckley, the now abandoned Mildred cemetery was in use from 1912 to 1932. There are 16 known burials listed on the central directory stone erected in the 1960s by the community.

New Hope Mennonite Church Cemetery: Also known as the Joes Mennonite Cemetery, the cemetery was established in 1896 at the New Hope Mennonite Church 1½ miles east of Joes and is still in use. The church is now the Liberty Baptist Church.

Newton: Rural post office in southern Yuma County that operated from 1889 to 1918.

North Fork of the Republican River: The headwaters of the North Fork are south of Eckley near the Baseline. The river flows generally northeast to Wray where it is joined by Chief Creek and then flows east through Laird into Nebraska where it joins the Arikaree near Haigler and the South Fork near Benkleman.

Olive Canyon, Olive Ranch, H4 Gulch: Olive Creek canyon is located two miles east of Wray and derives its name from the Isom Prentice "Print" Olive line camp which was located in the canyon in the 1870s. Print Olive, a native of Texas who found the grass greener in the Nebraska sandhills, wintered several herds of cattle wearing his H4 brand in the Wray area in the last half of the 1870s. J.T. "Tom" Wray worked for Olive before he signed on as foreman with the C Bar C ranch.

Olive Lake, Olive Lake Resort: In 1898 a dam was built by the Laird Land and Ditch company in Olive Creek canyon to store water for the Laird irrigation ditch creating Olive Lake. An ice house to store ice blocks cut from the lake was one of the first buildings built at the lake. Ed Wolfe stocked Olive lake with fish about 1907 and it soon became a local boating, picnic and fishing mecca. The facilities were expanded by John Remington in the 1920s to include canoe rentals, a swimming beach, dance hall and roller skating rink. When the Olive Lake dam washed out (the last of many times) in the late 1930s the railroad got a court order to prevent rebuilding. The rest of the facilities closed during World War II and never reopened.

Olivet Nazarene Cemetery: Located 6 miles north of Kirk at the original Nazarene Church site, the Olivet Cemetery was established in 1915 and deeded to the Nazarene Church by the Stahley family. The cemetery is still in use with occasional burials. The church has been moved to the town of Kirk.

Pleasant Valley Cemetery: Located southeast of Clarkville, the Pleasant Valley Cemetery was established in 1909 as a church cemetery and is still in use as a public cemetery. South of the cemetery at the intersection of County Roads 53 and P is the United Methodist Church which was previously called the Evangelical United Brethren Church.

Red Willow Creek, Rock Creek: The Red Willow, now named Rock Creek on USGS maps, originates in Washington County west of Burdett and flows generally east to where it disappears in the sand at the edge of the sand hills north of Eckley. Tributaries are Surveyor Creek, with headwaters south of Akron, and Coyote Creek, flowing out of Logan County, which both join the Red Willow south of Clarkville.

Republican River: See Arikaree, North Fork and South Fork.

Robb: Siding on the railroad between Wray and Eckley established in 1882. The Robb post office operated from 1889 to 1893 and again for a brief time in 1920. The Robb townsite was platted in 1890 and homes and businesses existed there until the 1930s. Starting in the 1880s, the Robb siding was a major cattle shipping point for sandhill ranches including the Bowles Ranch.

Robbers Roost: The 1870s "Roost" was located in a large bowl almost surrounded by sand hills about six miles west of the later Mildred post office. A small lake, hay meadows and a stream that flowed southeast to join the Arikaree about a mile and a quarter west of the current Road U bridge made it a secluded natural headquarters location. Those calling the Roost home preyed on travelers on the Smoky Hill and Platte roads and on cattle drives headed north. Outlaw occupation of the Roost ended when ranches were established along the Republican and Arikaree Rivers in the late 1870s. It was later headquarters for the River Bend ranch.

Rock Island: Late 1880's place located about two miles southeast of the present day Joes. Why the two bachelors who lived there named their claim Rock Island is unknown. Rock Island was remembered by early settlers because the dug well on the farmstead was the primary source of drinking water until settlers could dig wells on their own land. On an adjoining claim across from the bachelors' home was an empty house where many stayed until they built homes on their own claim.

Rogers: Rural post office that operated from 1886 to 1888 east of Armel. The Rogers post office was about a mile north of the 1907 Gurney post office location shown on my map.

Saint John's Cemetery: Established in 1887 across the road from Saint John's Church 2½ miles southeast of Idalia, the cemetery is still in use.

Schlake Cemetery: Private cemetery established in the late 1880s or early 1890s on the homestead of William Schlake north of Yuma. The Schlake Cemetery was abandoned in the 1920s. No markers, evidence of grave locations or burial records exist today but there were probably upwards of twenty members of local families buried there that were never moved. Located at what is now the northeast corner of the intersection of County Roads C and 52.

Schramm: Located east of Yuma, the 1910 townsite was named for the founder, Baron Raimond Von Horrum Schramm, a wealthy German immigrant who owned several businesses in Yuma. The Schramm post office operated from 1913 to 1925. The rail siding and grain elevator complex across the road from the townsite are still known as Schramm.

Seebarsee: Post office spelling for C Bar C. See Laird.

Shields: Rural post office that operated from 1887 to 1894 near the Shields' "Wine Glass" ranch on the Arikaree northwest of Idalia. Daniel Shields was first postmaster.

South Fork of the Republican River: Headwaters of the South Fork are east of Limon in Lincoln County. The South Fork flows generally northeast through the southeast corner of Yuma County toward its junction with the North Fork at Benkleman, Nebraska.

Spring Canyon: Creek that joins the Arikaree from the southwest between Road U and Z. Spring Canyon was a major source of water for early settlers in the Friend and Idalia area who had to haul it in barrels to their homesteads until wells could be dug.

Spring Valley Cemetery: See Evangelical Lutheran Church Cemetery.

Steffens: Also known as Steffins, this rural post office located west of Heartstrong on the Washington County line operated from 1915 to 1919. It was named for the first postmaster, John Steffens.

Sullivan: Name of a mail route that ran south and west from the Yuma post office. The route was probably named for the Sullivan Ranch in Washington County which would have been near the end of the route.

Surveyor Creek: Surveyor Creek's headwaters are south of Akron in Washington County. It joins the Red Willow from the southwest, south of Clarkville in Yuma County.

Triangle Cemetery: See Johnson Family Cemetery

Valley: Voting and census precinct in the northeast corner of Yuma County. Local news from part of this section of the county was published in the Wray Rattler under the by-line "Carson Valley News."

Vernon: Vernon was established in 1892 on 40 acres of land sold to the town by A. J. Miller. George Vaughn, postmaster at Condon, was convinced to close the Condon post office after a petition was circulated favoring the new town. The Vernon post office opened in 1892 with Francis Boatman as postmaster and is still in operation with a zipcode of 80755. The Vernon name was a compromise by the townsite committee after several other favored names failed to gain approval. Supposedly it came from the name of a traveling minister that several of the committee members knew. Other sources credit the name to George Washington's home at Mt. Vernon, VA.

Vernon Cemetery: See Glendale Cemetery.

Wages: Rural post office that operated from 1917 to 1950 in northern Yuma County. Wages was named for the first postmaster, Middleton Wages. The post office was inside the store/gas station, across the road from a grade school. On another corner was a church which is still standing at the intersection of County Roads 58 and V.
: February 1914 Ora Joslin wrote "The Christian preacher was down to the school house 4 miles west of here a week ago yesterday and then yesterday he and the Methodist preacher both came. The Methodist preacher preached as fine a sermon as I ever heard. They have a splendid Sunday School every Sunday. The Christian preacher comes once a month. Think he is real nice. You know yesterday was church going day. The churches in town (except the Baptist) joined together and had cards and tags printed to give everyone. They even went out into the country with autos to tag people for church. Am sending you a couple. The blue one I wore so it looks rather old but thought you would like it anyway. They had pink ones too. We took dinner at Mr. Wages Sunday. They invited us last Sunday. They live near the school house."

Wales: The first post office in the Vernon area, the Wales post office was located on the John Wales farmstead a mile southwest of today's Vernon and operated from 1887 to 1888 when the post office was moved to George Vaughn's store in Condon.

Wauneta: Wauneta was established about 1925 north of Wray. It had a blacksmith and garage, a school and a store but never had a post office. It was named for Wauneta Atwood, daughter of Sid Atwood who owned the store. The community hall is still in active use.

Waverly: Established in 1908, about twelve miles northeast of Yuma, Waverly had a church, high school / grade school, store and garage but never had a post office. The school was closed in 1943 and the site was abandoned by 1960.

Weld City: Located about 30 miles northeast of Yuma on the old Eckley-Julesburg trail, Weld City was established before 1887 by R.W. Wilson and John Morrow. It never had a post office and the townsite was abandoned before 1900. The Weld City name survives as a voting precinct in same area.

Witherbee: Rural post office in the northeastern corner of the county that operated from 1912 to 1918. Witherbee was named after the Witherbee family who were early settlers in the area.

Wray: Rail stop and post office established in 1882 named for James Thomas "Tom" Wray, foreman of the C-C Ranch when the rail line was laid. The Wray townsite was platted in 1886 and the town was incorporated in 1889. Wray has been the county seat since 1902 and has a zipcode of 80758.

Wray Cemetery: See Grandview Cemetery

Yuma: The Yuma post office was established in 1885 at the earlier Yuma rail siding and water stop. The town was platted in 1886, was incorporated in 1887, and was the county seat from 1889 to 1902. The Yuma post office zipcode is 80759.; —; The derivation of the Yuma name depends on your source.; Many sources credit the county name to the Indian tribe that was the namesake for the "Yuma Point" arrow heads found in the area. (see Yuma footnote); The popular local version of the story is that Yuma was named for an Indian of the "Yuma" tribe who was working for the Burlington and Missouri railroad construction crew in 1882. This original nameless Yuma Indian, the namesake of the Yuma school sports teams since the 1940s, was killed in a construction accident and is buried in an unmarked grave beside the railroad tracks somewhere east of town. Fans of this version of the story have placed a stone at the historical marker three miles east of Yuma memorializing the burial.

Yuma Cemetery: Established in 1888 on land donated by John Wescott a mile east of Yuma on County Road 39. The Yuma Cemetery is still in use.

The spelling of "Arickaree" depends on its context. The river valley is the Arikaree. The town and post office are Arickaree.

The "Yuma Indian tribe" is apparently a bit of fiction. Following standard practice archeologists named the local Yuma style point for the place it was first found and not the prehistoric people who made it. The Yuma point style dates from about the same geological era as the Folsom point. It should be noted, a "Yuman" group of Indian tribes of which the Mohave and Cocopah are probably best known, who speak dialects of the same root language, did exist into modern times along the Colorado River in what is now southwest Arizona and southern California. Fort Yuma, Arizona established in 1840 was in the midst of this tribal group.

Yuma County, Colorado Place Names

Yuma County, Colorado
Place Names