New effort to preserve history of Colorado town founded on alcohol
OLD COLORADO CITY, Colo. (KRDO) - A Wednesday morning ceremony brought out more people than expected, honoring the new historical marker signifying what was once the rebellious town of Ramona.
“It would have been a pretty loud and exciting place to be, and today, you see no remnants of it on the landscape,” explained Leah Davis Witherow with the Colorado Springs Pioneer’s Museum.
In 1913, then “Colorado City” outlawed alcohol.
So, a handful of saloon owners bought land just north of the city, moved their businesses, and founded Ramona.
“After work, somebody could come here and get a cold beer,” said Barbara Swet, President of the Old Colorado City Historical Society.
Barbara was dressed as Lavina Donaldson, the mother of one of Ramona’s first mayors who lived on St. Vrain.
“Coincidentally, I live on the other side of the hill on St. Vrain… the real me,” Barbara joked.
It was a small but lively town.
“[There were] so few people when they started the town, that they all rotated the jobs,” Barbara explained. “So, for a few months you’d be the treasurer, for a few months you’d be the mayor.”
It’s no surprise that Ramona was full of rule-breakers and trouble-makers, stealing water from Colorado City’s hydrants, betting, drinking a bit too much, and fighting in the streets.
“Very rebellious,” Barbara laughed.
It was all fun and games - for three years.
Then, statewide prohibition took effect, and Ramona, as people knew it, disappeared just about as quickly as it went up.
Technically, the town still existed until it was annexed by Colorado Springs decades later.
If you want to learn even more about Ramona, you can head over to the Old Colorado City History Center.
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