our history

To understand the history behind the Historic Crescent Ranch Resort, you have to first begin to understand the history behind Divide, Colorado.

The “Center of the Known Universe” was originally known as Hayden’s Divide, named for the surveyor who helped map out the region in the late 1800’s. Divide sits atop Ute Pass – just west of Woodland Park, east of Florrisant and sits to the northwest of Pike’s Peak. It was founded in 1870 and is said to be the first permanent settlement in Teller County.

Most of the locals back then were either ranchers or farmers. Ranchers, including the Crescent Cattle Company – the ranch that gave the Historic Crescent Ranch Resort it’s name – raised cattle and the farmers grew iceberg lettuce.

Around 1887, the Colorado Midland Railway came to town and played a significant role in the growth of Divide. So much so, that it is said that the town size doubled when the railway began laying tracks. At it’s peak, Divide became a hopping town simply by being a hub between Colorado Springs and Leadville or the mining towns of Cripple Creek and Victor.

During this time, Silas and Attie Thompson decided to build a saw mill and, more importantly to us, a lodge. The lodge became a great place to stay and rest for miners and ranchers passing through. Then, as the mill flourished, the Thompson’s decided to build 5 cabins to house the hired help for the mill and many guests to the area.

Over the years, the Historic Crescent Ranch Resort has change hands a number of times and has been many different things to many different people. To our knowledge, the last time it was open to the public was for horse boarding. The last time it was open to the public as a resort was back in the late 1980’s and very early 1990’s. Besides a resort, it has been a youth retreat, a retirement community, a personal residence and a motel.

We are excited to begin the journey of reopening this historic property to the public – though we know it is going to be a bit of a journey to get there. Simply getting water to stay in the pipes has been quite a challenge in the first two weeks – but we are up to it, because this place deserves it!

Our first cabin, The Thompson Cabin, is completely renovated and ready for you to enjoy! Check out the available dates here! We hope to have the second cabin available by October of 2021.