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History · Fairplay

Fairplay dates to 1859, and 6 of its places are on the National Register

Most of Fairplay was built recently: 9% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1994. 6 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 28 buildings. Below: 3 old photos and papers, maps from 1960 on, and the census since 1890.

1859founded
6on the National Register
9%homes built before 1940
3old photos & papers
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Fairplay’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Fairplay began

When was Fairplay founded?

1859

Fairplay dates its founding to 1859 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1890.

First census: 301 in 18902020 census: 724167 years
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1862.The full story ↓

What stands out about Fairplay’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

A history waiting to be writtenOnly 3 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.A historic districtThe South Park City Museum takes in 28 historic buildings.Landmarks on the Register6 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · Help out

Start Fairplay’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Fairplay’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewPostcard of the town of Fairplay in the…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the National Register

6 listings protect 34 historic buildings

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
6
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
34
each building in a district counts
first listed
1974
Summer Saloon
Summer SaloonSouth Park Lager Beer BrewerySouth Park Community ChurchPark County Courthouse and JailFairplay HotelSouth Park City Museum, built 1959
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

High Victorian Carpenter Gothic1
Rustic1
Summer SaloonBuilding
South Park Lager Beer BreweryBuilding
South Park Community ChurchHigh Victorian Carpenter Gothic
Park County Courthouse and JailBuilding
Fairplay HotelRustic
South Park City MuseumBuilt 1959

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

The story

How Fairplay came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Fairplay.

Read it all →

A historic gold mining settlement, the town was founded in 1859 during the early days of the Pike's Peak Gold Rush. The town was named by settlers who were upset by the generous mining claims given to the earliest prospectors and promised a more equitable system for its residents. The Fair Play, Colorado Territory, post office opened on August 2, 1861, and on November 7, 1867, county voters selected Fair Play as the new seat of Park County, Colorado Territory. The Town of Fair Play was incorporated on November 15, 1872, and changed the spelling of its name to Fairplay on October 1, 1924.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Fairplay, 1859 to 1960

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1859
    FoundingFairplay is established
  3. 1862Post officeThe Fairplay post office opens
  4. 1880In the archivePostcard of the town of Fairplay in the late 1800s - DPLA - a9a14d84171804fac9c2d6b2ed193…
  5. 1890In the archiveView of houses and buildings at Fairplay in the late 1800s - DPLA - 428cb56cadd82e0fb49ea…
  6. 20th century
  7. 1900In the archivePhotographic postcard depicting an old road crossing a river at Fairplay in the early 190…
  8. 1959BuiltSouth Park City Museum is built
  9. 1960On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
By decade

Fairplay, decade by decade

3 decades in the archive, from the 1880s to the 1900s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1880s–1900s3 items
Postcard of the town of Fairplay in the late 1800s - DPLA - a9a14d84171804fac9c2d6b2ed193adf1880–1900Postcard of the town of Fairplay in the late 1800s - …PostcardView of houses and buildings at Fairplay in the late 1800s - DPLA - 428cb56cadd82e0fb49ea6a70892588fc. 1890View of houses and buildings at Fairplay in the late …Photographic postcard depicting an old road crossing a river at Fairplay in the early 1900s - DPLA - 032af1e10aec4e5dd7…1900–1910Photographic postcard depicting an old road crossing …Postcard
1910s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today9 recent
South Park Lager Beer Brewery2010South Park Lager Beer BreweryRocky Mountains2010Rocky MountainsInside Subway Restaurant2010Inside Subway RestaurantCloudy morning, upper Beaver Creek Valley, Mount Silverheels in the background, Looking N-NW, Park County, CO2010Cloudy morning, upper Beaver Creek Valley, Mount Silv…Gold nuggets (placer gold) (near2007Gold nuggets (placer gold) (nearFairplayBurroRacer2007FairplayBurroRacerFairplay 180 degrees2007Fairplay 180 degreesCOMap-doton-Fairplay2005COMap-doton-FairplaySouthPark-Colorado2003SouthPark-Colorado
On the map

Fairplay on the map in 1960

The U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Fairplay.

Fairplay on the 1960 USGS map1960Fairplay West sheet · 1:24,000

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Fairplay.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

Postcard of the town of Fairplay in the late 1800s - DPLA - a9a14d84171804fac9c2d6b2ed193adf
Retake this viewPostcard of the town of Fairplay in the late 1800s - DPLA - a9a14d84171804fac9c2d6b2ed193adf, 1880–1900

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Fairplay’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Fairplay, census by census

02004006008001900192019401960198020002020Peak: 739

Between 183 and 739 people in every census since 1890.

14 censuses, 1890–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Fairplay’s Wikipedia page.

Questions about Fairplay’s history

What year was Fairplay founded?

In 1859, according to Wikidata. Fairplay’s post office opened in 1862, and the census of 1890 counted 301 people here.

What is on the National Register in Fairplay?

6 listings: 5 buildings, among them the Summer Saloon (listed 1974, the first), and 1 historic district, the South Park City Museum, with 28 contributing buildings. 34 historic buildings in all.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →

From Wikimedia Commons (12), the National Register of Historic Places (6), Wikipedia, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.