Thurman, Colorado

Thurman, Colorado
Unincorporated community
Thurman, Colorado is located in Colorado
Thurman, Colorado
Thurman, Colorado
Location within the state of Colorado
Coordinates: 39°44′29″N 103°13′04″W / 39.74139°N 103.21778°W / 39.74139; -103.21778
Country United States
State State of Colorado
CountyWashington County[1]
EstablishedAbout 1902
Elevation
[1]
4,876 ft (1,486 m)
Time zoneUTC-7 (MST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC-6 (MDT)
ZIP Code
80801[2]
GNIS feature ID0195021

Thurman is an unincorporated rural hamlet in Washington County, Colorado, United States. It was originally a Mennonite settlement. There are no businesses or services now located in Thurman, and only a couple of farm homes.

History

Thurman was established about 1902. The Thurman Post Office opened in July 1904, but closed on August 10, 1924: the US Post Office at Anton (ZIP 80801) now serves Thurman.[2][3] The town once boasted a population of over 150 people, but declined after a 1924 tornado killed ten people meeting at a home.[4] By the 1970s, the Mennonite population had relocated, along with their church building, to Joes, Colorado.[citation needed]

Geography

Thurman is located at 39°59′06″N 103°21′07″W / 39.98500°N 103.35194°W / 39.98500; -103.35194 (39.590648,-103.210749). Thurman is located at the intersection along unpaved county roads County Roads 3 and CC, 9 miles south of Anton in southern Washington County, about 6 miles north of the Lincoln county line.[5]

1924 tornado

On Sunday, August 10, 1924, storm clouds were forming after an unusually hot day with temperatures reaching 96 °F (36 °C). Afternoon rains began and stopped at about 12:30 pm. Suddenly things became quiet, but the clouds turned a dark black color; at about 1:00 pm, two local farmers spotted a large 0.5 miles (0.80 km) wide tornado about 3 miles (4.8 km) to the west. The tornado, which traveled in a north-easterly direction, struck Thurman with winds exceeding 210 mph (340 km/h) and demolished almost every building. The tornado, which was thought to be an F4 to low end F5, killed 10 people, making it the deadliest tornado in Colorado history. After the tornado, the population declined and many who survived moved to nearby towns and the post office closed. The cemetery is all that remains today.[4][6][7][8]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. October 25, 2007. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
  2. ^ a b "ZIP Code Lookup" (JavaScript/HTML). United States Postal Service. Retrieved September 3, 2009.
  3. ^ Bauer, William H.; James L. Ozment; John H. Willard (1990). Colorado Post Offices 1859-1989. The Colorado Railroad Museum. ISBN 0-918654-42-4.
  4. ^ a b Linda Houston (December 24, 2009). "Thurman, CO Tornado, Aug 1924 - Fatal Storm". Archived from the original on March 11, 2012.
  5. ^ "Thurman Populated Place Profile / Washington County, Colorado Data".
  6. ^ "Tornado Stories". The Tornado Project. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
  7. ^ "Thurman Tornado August 10th, 1924". National Weather Service. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
  8. ^ "Thurman, CO F4 Tornado – August 10, 1924". Tornado Talk. August 26, 2022. Retrieved October 9, 2023.