Conifer, Colorado
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| Conifer |
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| Settled | 1860s |
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| ZIP code | 80433 |
| Area code(s) | 303, 720 |
Conifer, Colorado (ZIP Code 80433) is a census-designated place (CDP) on U.S. Route 285 in Jefferson County, Colorado where Mary Cheney lived. It is also the birthplace of South Park co-creator Trey Parker and child actress Amy Bruckner. Conifer's population was around 13,000 in 2005.
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[edit] History
Known in the 1860's as Bradford Junction, Conifer is familiar today to locals as the place where the "Yellow Barn" stands. Bradford Junction was a stop on the stagecoach road to South Park, and a well was dug there in 1864. The community started where Gill's Gulch flows into North Turkey Creek. A few buildings were erected, including a tavern, rest house, and general store. Bradford Junction deteriorated by the 1890's when the stagecoach road was replaced by the Denver and South Park railroad, which moved the center of development from the near Front Range to the frontiers of Colorado and the gold fields.
By the 1920's the area was simply known as Conifer while Aspen Park and Marshdale grew as separate entities unto themselves. In 1932 the oldest general store in the area burned down, to be replaced by a succession of shopping centers, punctuated by the current Safeway and shopping center. In its heyday, the area was primarily a cattle ranching area, and there is still some ranching in southern parts of the community.
There are several areas of new development in the community, including a new Safeway center completed in late 2006 and a King Soopers center with a Qdoba, Wendy's, and a few other convenience stores, which was completed in 2005. Highway 73 from Evergreen underwent some upgrades in 2005, and included much needed turning lanes at Bradford Junction by the Yellow Barn, and straitening in front of the High School. North Turkey Creek was re-routed significantly after the construction.
In late 2005 a man was murdered in the nearby village of Aspen Park under suspicious circumstances, and the crime has yet to be solved.
[edit] Education
Students living within Jefferson County attend Jefferson County schools. Those neighborhood schools are West Jefferson Elementary School, West Jefferson Middle School and Conifer High School. Prior to 1996, high school students matriculated to Evergreen High School in neighboring Evergreen.
Students living in Park County west of Conifer Junction attend Platte Canyon Schools. Those neighborhood schools are Deer Creek Elementary School, Fitzsimmons Middle School, and Platte Canyon High School.
The high schools in Evergreen and Conifer are considered sports rivals. In early 2004 the "Spirit Rock" next to the driveway of Conifer High School was bombed, causing a stir in the community, and in the summer of 2004 a small forest fire ignited next to the the school due to a broken electrical wire.
[edit] Landmarks
- The Clifton House Inn, Jefferson County Register of Historic Places
- The Conley Coffee Shop, Jefferson County Register of Historic Places
- The Lubin-Blakeslee Place at Meyers Ranch, Conifer, Jefferson County Register of Historic Places
- Midway House at Meyers Ranch, built 1889, National Register of Historic Places 5JF.303
- Original Elk Creek Fire House, Jefferson County Register of Historic Places
- Pleasant Park School, built 1894, Colorado Register of Historic Places 5JF.972
- Yellow Barn at Bradford Junction, built 1918, Jefferson County Register of Historic Places
[edit] Trivia
- Conifer is depicted in the South Park episode "The Return of the Fellowship of the Rings to the Two Towers" as the home of the fictional Two Towers video store.
- The Aspen Park neighborhood of Conifer was home to the Coney Island hot dog stand from 1970 until 2006, when it was moved to Bailey, Colorado.
- A magnitude 3.1 tremor centered on Berrian Mountain about 1 mile north of Conifer occurred on November 1, 1981, at 8:03 p.m. MST.
