Query: G.N.I.S.

Chama is located on the Rio Chama, 6.5 miles (10 km) south of the Colorado border. According to the United States Census Bureau, the village has a total area of 2.6 square miles (6.7 km2), all of it land.

Chama was originally part of the Tierra Amarilla Land Grant. In 1880 the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad began construction of its San Juan Extension from Antonito, Colorado westward toward a mining district in the northern San Juan Basin of Colorado. The railroad needed an engine terminal for helper locomotives, near to the western foot of the steep gradient toward Cumbres Pass. It chose a site on the western bank of the Rio Chama where the railroad crossed it, for the terminal and its supporting townsite, naming the village for the river crossing. Train service began on February 1, 1881, and a post office was established that year.

Elevation: 7871ft, 2399m.

Articles that refer to this location:

• Colorado and New Mexico Highway 17: Chama; 
• Field Notes: 20 Oct 2024; 

A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M,
N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z

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Date and time this article was prepared:7:38:50 PM, 12/9/2024.