Mining can be a fickle thing and many towns rose and fell alongside mines. Some mines may pay out for years while others last just a few. The Isabelle Shaft was one of the short-lived mines in northern Fremont County.
Located 22 miles northwest of Cañon City, Taclamur was the town that sprung up alongside the Isabelle Shaft. Main service was established to Taclamur by December 1901 with a tri-weekly route. Originally, the Isabelle mine was owned by three owners: C.G. Tackaberry, E. M. Lamont, and W. H. Murray. The town was named after all three of the men with “Tac” coming from Tackaberry, “la” coming from Lamont, and “mur” from Murray. As the Cañon City Clipper put it on December 10, 1901, “Taclamur is an odd name, but Fremont county people must get used to it, as it is the name of a mining district, and of a post-office within the limits of the county, and from now on will come into common use.”
The Fremont Mines Company purchased the mine in July 1901 and mined gold, silver, lead, and copper. According to the Cañon City Record on November 7, 1901, it was estimated the company would $500 daily with all the machinery they had working in the mine. Despite that, after only few years the mining efforts subsided and around 1905 the post office was already closed.
The information presented in this article is compiled using research conducted by the Royal Gorge Regional Museum and History Center.