Map of Grand Lake town

The Town of Grand Lake is a statutory town located in Grand County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 410 at the 2020 United States Census.

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Grand Lake location map. Where is Grand Lake town?

History

Established in 1881, Grand Lake sits at an elevation of 8,369 feet (2,551 m) and derives its name from the lake on whose shores it is situated: Grand Lake, the largest natural body of water in Colorado. The town of Grand Lake was originally an outfitting and supply point for the mining settlements of Lulu City, Teller City, and Gaskill, but today is a tourist destination adjacent to the western entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park, which surrounds the lake and the town on three sides. Grand Lake was the Grand County seat of government from 1882 to 1888. It was incorporated on June 23, 1944.

The Kauffman House is an NRHP-listed rustic log house that functioned as a hotel from its construction in 1892 until 1946. The Grand Lake Area Historical Society purchased the house in 1973 and converted it into a museum as the only pre-20th century log hotel remaining in Grand Lake.

Fred N. Selak, ″The Hermit of Grand Lake″

Frederick Nicholas Selak (1865–1926) was an early pioneer of the Grand Lake area. He operated a stage line with his brother as well as saloons and other businesses in the early days of Grand Lake. When he died he owned 300 acres of land in and around Grand Lake as well as interest in two mining operations.

In 1926 Selak lived alone in a small log cabin about 3 miles outside of Grand Lake. He was referred to as “The Hermit of Grand Lake”, but was known to have loaned money to locals, and rumored to have stashed up to $500,000 on his property. After friends became concerned they had not seen Selak for over a week, they checked on him, found his house had been ransacked, floorboards torn up, and Selak nowhere to be found. An investigation by the local Sheriff was unable to identify any leads. The intrigue surrounding the hermit and his wealth made the crime mystery a national story. An article in True Detective Mysteries magazine described the crime in the June, 1930 issue. The article had the title Echo Mountain′s Hanging Spectre and was written by A. G. Gertz of The Denver Post.

Selak’s sister in California, Lillian Coffee, and her husband, Lawrence W. Coffee, were notified when Selak went missing. The two traveled to Colorado to assist in locating her brother. Lawrence Coffee was credited for helping identify the two suspects that would later confess to Selak’s murder.

The two men had hanged Selak July 21 as retaliation related to a fencing dispute. When found on August 17, Selak’s remains were still hanging from the pine tree where he was killed almost a month earlier. Selak’s murderers said they only found $75 and some old coins when they searched Selak’s property. It was the coins that alerted Coffee as to who the perpetrators might be. Rumors of the hidden cash persisted. In March, 1927, convinced there must be more valuables or cash stashed somewhere on the property, the townspeople planned a search of his property as soon as the snow cleared.

The two perpetrators, Arthur Osborn, 22 at the time of the murder, and his cousin, Ray Noakes, 21, were found guilty and given the death penalty. Like the man they killed, they themselves were hanged. They were executed in Cañon City, Colorado on March 30, 1928.

East Troublesome Fire

On October 14, 2020, the East Troublesome Fire ignited north of Parshall. The wildfire rapidly spread eastward toward Grand Lake and into Rocky Mountain National Park. As many as 794 firefighters fought the wildfire as it consumed 193,812 acres (784 km) of forest and rangeland to become the second most extensive Colorado wildfire in recorded history. Thousands were evacuated, more than 300 homes were destroyed, and two residents were killed. The wildfire became the most expensive in Colorado history with insured losses alone of $543 million.

The Bulldozer Rampage

On June 4th, 2004 a man named Marvin Heemeyer wrecked havoc over the small town of Granby, Grand Lake. Marvin Heemeyer is known for his rampage the “Killerdozer rampage”. The incident began over a zoning dispute which happened when Cody Docheff decided to build a concrete batch plant right next to Heemeyers land. Heemeyers became very mad and decided to sue the town and Docheff, but was ultimately unsuccessful. Over the course of 18 months, Heemeyer altered a bulldozer and thus began his plan to wreck the town that he thought wronged him. This bulldozer included armors of steel and concrete with three rifles mounted to the sides. On the day of June 4, 2004 Marvin Heemeyer drove his bulldozer through the town and began shooting whoever he felt took away from him. Heemeyer shot at officers and other electives that he thought wronged him. He then proceeded to run over trucks, cars, and other buildings. Heemeyer wanted to cause as much havoc as possible and even drove into a library full of children. While he didn’t know who was or was not in the buildings he still decided to continue with his plan, whether or not the people who harmed him were there. In the end, Marvin’s bulldozer got stuck in a hardware store which caused him to take his own life.  

Grand Lake Road Map

Grand Lake city Satellite Map

Geography

Grand Lake is located in northeastern Grand County at 40°15′2″N 105°49′28″W / 40.25056°N 105.82444°W / 40.25056; -105.82444 (40.250493, -105.824323). U.S. Route 34 (Trail Ridge Road) runs through the western side of the town, entering Rocky Mountain National Park just north of town and leading 45 miles (72 km) across the mountains to Estes Park. To the southwest, US 34 leads 15 miles (24 km) to Granby.

At the 2020 United States Census, the town had a total area of 662 acres (2.679 km) including 1.7 acres (0.007 km) of water.

Climate

Due to its elevation, Grand Lake has a subalpine climate (Köppen climate classification Dfc) with a short growing season, averaging just 49 days per year. Temperatures are chilly at night even through the summer months, and only three months have an average temperature of above 10 °C (50 °F).

See also