Abandoned Towns

Ghost town record · Dolores County, Colorado

Rico

Town in Colorado, United States.

Record

About Rico

Rico is a town in eastern Dolores County, Colorado, United States. It was settled in 1879 as a silver mining center in the Pioneer Mining District; today it functions as a historic and tourism site.

This is a site record: what public sources say about Rico, gathered in one place. We haven't written a full guide yet, so history, current access and photos are still to come. Treat the status as unknown until a guide confirms it.

Map

Where Rico is

USGS topographic map around Rico
USGS topographic map, The National Map (public domain). The pin marks the coordinates in the record; old townsites are often a little off.

Historic maps

10 historic USGS maps cover Rico

Topographic sheets from the USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection (public domain), oldest first. Older sheets often show the camp, mines and roads while the place was alive. The downloads are large map scans; USGS topoView shows them in the browser.

Directions

Getting there

Google Maps directionsApple MapsOpenStreetMap

Before you go

  • Many ghost town sites are on private land, active mining claims or tribal land. Check land status and ask permission.
  • Roads to old townsites are often unmaintained dirt. Map apps may route over closed or impassable tracks.
  • Removing artifacts from public land is illegal under federal and most state laws.

Nearby

Other sites near Rico

Straight-line distance to other mapped sites in our Colorado index.

Sources

Sources

  1. ghosttowns.com, "Rico": county, roads, climate, best time to visit, remains.
  2. Wikipedia, "Rico, Colorado": coordinates and summary.
  3. Wikidata Q765104.
  4. USGS GNIS 204670.
  5. USGS 3D Elevation Program, elevation at the coordinates.
  6. USGS The National Map and Historical Topographic Map Collection (public domain).