On Friday I read sad news about a long time roadside attraction in Colorado. The frontier town attraction Buckskin Joe is set to close on September 12th. The new owner is to dismantle the buildings and move the town to an undisclosed location and rumor is to make it into a haunted town attraction. Since I had not been there (it was on my list of items to see), I traveled to the Royal Gorge to see the park before it closed. The town has a wonderful history, first being named after a true ghost town located in the nearby mountains. The attraction was built in 1958 saving the most historic and only standing building in the original Buckskin Joe. Other buildings were added by purchasing buildings from other Ghost Towns or being constructed on site. I will be covering the unfortunate demise of the town all next week. First up is a vintage souvenir slide of the entrance to the park.
A view of the entrance today.
The candy store with the Buckskin Joe Stagecoach out front.
The stagecoach still in existence.
One of the attraction's main draw was the daily gunfights on the dusty streets.
A modern view of a gunfight on the streets.
Finally, a western town is not complete with a bar.
The town still has a very nice bar, though not as nice as the vintage bar.
How sad that this is closing. At least it will not be going away entirely... it'll be interesting to know if we hear anything about the haunted town.
ReplyDeleteMeanwhile, I love your "then and now" pictures. It must have been strange being there, knowing it would close so soon.
Darn, Buckskin Joe had to be cut on our last drive through. Now I wish it hadn't been.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to your pictures, Patrick.