Flagler, Colorado
town in Kit Carson County, Colorado, United States
Flagler is a statutory town in western Kit Carson County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 567 at the 2020 United States census. Flagler is near Exit 395 on I-70.
History
The town was established in 1888 as a small settlement near the then-new Rock Island Railroad. The area has had several names, and prior to the settlement of the town, the location had been home to a combined general store and post office, owned by W.H. Lavington, and named Bowser in memory of the owner's favorite dog who had died. When the town was founded, the town was named Malowe after Rock Island Railroad attorney M. A. Lowe. The town was later renamed after Henry Flagler, railroad builder and oil man, at the request of his daughter who liked the area.
The Flagler, Colorado, post office opened on October 12, 1888, and the Town of Flagler was incorporated on November 2, 1916.
Geography
At the 2020 United States census, the town had a total area of 876 acres (3.547 km2), all of it land.
Climate
Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 612 people, 271 households, and 171 families residing in the town.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Flagler, Colorado” as town in Kit Carson County, Colorado, United States. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as town in Kit Carson County, Colorado, United States. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 20, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2269065. VIAF identifies the subject as 152579105. The Library of Congress control number is n91024093. Authority coordinates are 39.294, -103.066. 3 of 5 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2020, 1888, 1916 and 2000.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Flagler, Colorado”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Flagler, Colorado primary sources, Flagler, Colorado archive and Flagler research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Flagler, Colorado”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Flagler, Colorado” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.