Thurman, Colorado
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2023}}
{{Infobox settlement
|name = Thurman, Colorado
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|settlement_type = Unincorporated community
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|pushpin_map =Colorado
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|pushpin_map_caption =Location within the state of Colorado
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|subdivision_type = Country
|subdivision_name = {{USA}}
|subdivision_type1 = State
|subdivision_name1 = {{Flag|Colorado|name=State of Colorado}}
|subdivision_type2 = County
|subdivision_name2 = Washington County{{cite web|url=http://geonames.usgs.gov|accessdate=2008-01-31|title=US Board on Geographic Names|publisher=United States Geological Survey|date=2007-10-25}}
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|established_title = Established
|established_date = About 1902
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|timezone = MST
|utc_offset = -7
|timezone_DST = MDT
|utc_offset_DST = -6
|coordinates = {{coord|39|44|29|N|103|13|04|W|region:US_type:city|display=inline,title}}
|elevation_m =
|elevation_ft = 4876
|postal_code_type = ZIP Code
|postal_code = 80801{{cite web | url = http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/citytown.jsp | title = ZIP Code Lookup| format = JavaScript/HTML | publisher = United States Postal Service | accessdate = September 3, 2009}}
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|blank_info = [http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=gnispq:3:::NO::P3_FID:0195021 0195021]
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Thurman is an unincorporated rural hamlet in Washington County, Colorado, United States. It was originally a Mennonite settlement. There are no businesses or services now located in Thurman, and only a couple of farm homes.
History
Thurman was established about 1902. The Thurman Post Office opened in July 1904, but closed on August 10, 1924: the US Post Office at Anton (ZIP 80801) now serves Thurman.{{cite book | last = Bauer | first = William H. |author2=James L. Ozment |author3=John H. Willard | title = Colorado Post Offices 1859-1989 | publisher = The Colorado Railroad Museum | year = 1990 | isbn = 0-918654-42-4 }} The town once boasted a population of over 150 people, but declined after a 1924 tornado killed ten people meeting at a home.{{cite web|url=https://www.gendisasters.com/colorado/14525/thurman-co-tornado-aug-1924-fatal-storm|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120311162149/https://www.gendisasters.com/colorado/14525/thurman-co-tornado-aug-1924-fatal-storm|archivedate=2012-03-11|title=Thurman, CO Tornado, Aug 1924 - Fatal Storm|date=2009-12-24|author=Linda Houston}} By the 1970s, the Mennonite population had relocated, along with their church building, to Joes, Colorado.{{cn|date=October 2021}}
Geography
Thurman is located at {{Coord|39|59|06|N|103|21|07|W|type:city}} (39.590648,-103.210749). Thurman is located at the intersection along unpaved county roads County Roads 3 and CC, 9 miles south of Anton in southern Washington County, about 6 miles north of the Lincoln county line.{{cite web | url=http://colorado.hometownlocator.com/co/washington/thurman.cfm | title=Thurman Populated Place Profile / Washington County, Colorado Data }}
1924 tornado
On Sunday, August 10, 1924, storm clouds were forming after an unusually hot day with temperatures reaching {{convert|96|F|C}}. Afternoon rains began and stopped at about 12:30 pm. Suddenly things became quiet, but the clouds turned a dark black color; at about 1:00 pm, two local farmers spotted a large {{convert|0.5|mi}} wide tornado about {{convert|3|mi}} to the west. The tornado, which traveled in a north-easterly direction, struck Thurman with winds exceeding {{cvt|210|mph}} and demolished almost every building. The tornado, which was thought to be an F4 to low end F5, killed 10 people, making it the deadliest tornado in Colorado history. After the tornado, the population declined and many who survived moved to nearby towns and the post office closed. The cemetery is all that remains today.{{cite web|url=http://www.tornadoproject.com/cellar/stories.htm|title=Tornado Stories|work=The Tornado Project|accessdate=2023-10-09}}{{cite web|url=https://www.weather.gov/bou/1924ThurmanTornado|accessdate=2023-10-09|title=Thurman Tornado August 10th, 1924|work=National Weather Service}}{{cite web|url=https://www.tornadotalk.com/thurman-co-f4-tornado-august-10-1924/|date=2022-08-26|title=Thurman, CO F4 Tornado – August 10, 1924|work=Tornado Talk|accessdate=2023-10-09}}
See also
References
{{Reflist|2}}
{{Washington County, Colorado}}
{{authority control}}
Category:Unincorporated communities in Washington County, Colorado