La Jara (1880, 7,602 feet), named in Spanish for the local willows, started with a D&RG water tank before a station was built in 1883. The La Jara Town Company platted areas on both sides of the tracks for an agricultural community. An artesian well was drilled on the east side of the tracks for the new business area along a main street stretching east from the depot. Stock raising and farming were augmented as warehouses were built for storage and shipping. Extensive Mormon settlement is commemorated by a handsome Mormon Moderne church. From a peak of around 2,000 in the 1930s, population has dwindled to about 700.
The Conejos County Agricultural Museum, 2 miles south of La Jara on U.S. 285 at the County Arena Grounds, is a casual collection of farm machinery, including harvesters, tractors, and giant hay derricks.
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