Cisco is a ghost town in Grand County, Utah, United States near the junction of State Route 128 (SR‑128) and Interstate 70 (I‑70). The town started in the 1880s as a saloon and water-refilling station for the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad. As work crews and, later, travelers came through, stores, hotels and restaurants sprang up to accommodate them. Nearby cattle ranchers and sheep herders in the Book Cliffs north of town began using Cisco as a livestock and provisioning center. Around the turn of the 20th century, over 100,000 sheep were sheared at Cisco before being shipped to market. Then oil and natural gas were discovered. People began traveling more and Cisco continued to grow. Then the bottom fell out. The town's decline coincided with the demise of the steam locomotive. A declining economy crashed when Interstate 70 came through and bypassed Cisco altogether.
The town site contains many relics of a typical old west railroad town. Cisco survived long enough into the 20th century to be assigned a ZIP Code, 84515. Unfortunately for history and railroad buffs, the ghost town's easy access and proximity to the freeway have lured vandals; the relics are heavily damaged and the town is littered with abandoned vehicles.
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