What we know

Proposed as 'Laverne' and named for the postmaster, who wrote that she had held back because the prospect for settlement was discouraging but had since much improved. A special office supplied from Elbert, a mile off the Elbert-Fondis route; Fondis about 4 miles northeast, Bijou Basin 7-8 south; about 135 people. PO Jan. 16, 1897 to Sept. 29, 1900, mail to Elbert.

Where it was

SW1/4 of Sec. 35, T9S R63W, from Mrs. M. J. Chenoweth's post office site report, begun on the department's letter of March 4, 1895 and returned in late 1896; the diagram's mark is in Sec. 35 (NARA M1126, S-0113), via the BLM PLSS survey grid. Good to about a quarter mile.

Placed from a written description, such as a land section, a distance from a landmark or an old survey note.

See it on the map

Sources

S-0064: Wikipedia, "List of post offices in Colorado" (A–F, G–O, P–Z) and town articles
S-0065: Colorado Council of Genealogical Societies, Place Names of Colorado (1999), PDF hosted by the Denver Public Library
S-0066: Jim Forte Postal History, U.S. post office database (postalhistory.com)
S-0067: USPS Postmaster Finder (webpmt.usps.gov)
S-0113: U.S. Post Office Department, Reports of Site Locations, 1837–1950 (NARA microfilm M1126), Colorado rolls 73 and 74: Douglas, Elbert and El Paso counties
S-0120: Bureau of Land Management, National Public Land Survey System (PLSS) data: CadNSDI section and quarter-section polygons, Colorado

Sources are named in the text above. Numbers such as S-0080 refer to our source list. Most newspaper quotations were read in the Colorado Historic Newspapers Collection. Long quotations from recent books are shortened here.

Know more about Chenoweth?

Corrections, family stories, photographs, deeds, letters and maps are all welcome. Messages and files come to Michael Christensen privately; nothing appears on the site until it has been checked, and you'll be credited the way you ask.