Fraser
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- Fraser 80442
- Town Hall - 726-5491
- Police, non-emergency - 722-7779
- Fire District Office - 726-5824
- Post Office - 726-5578
- Visitor Center - 726-8312
www.frasercolorado.com
Still the Icebox of the Nation
In this fast-growing resort area, a few thought it best to change the town’s time-honored “Icebox of the Nation” nickname. “Not so fast,” said others. “The motto is a source of pride and part of the town’s history.” And there’s no need to chill the icebox tagline. The town is keeping its motto.
Fraser gained the nickname in the 1950s when it was the location of a national weather station. Since Fraser sits in a mountain valley where cold air settles, it regularly made the evening news as the coldest spot in the country. (Hwy 40 through town is named Zerex Avenue after the company supplied residents with free antifreeze one winter.) To the relief of many in Colorado, the weather station has been closed.
In the late 1980s, Fraser filed for a copyright on the icebox tagline, sparking an uproar in International Falls, Minnesota, which has a cold-weather-testing industry. Fraser agreed to use the icebox slogan only in Colorado. As one resident put it, “Taking away the motto won’t make the area any warmer.” The mild summer temperatures and cobalt blue skies, however, make up for any winter dips in temperature.
William Zane Cozens was the first to homestead in the Fraser Valley, bringing his family here from Central City. The town started as the site of a large sawmill and lumber companies became the focus of business. During World War II, Fraser had a German prisoner-of-war logging camp. President Eisenhower made numerous visits with friends to fish in St. Louis Creek and the Fraser River. Doc Susie, Fraser’s legendary pioneer physician, was county coroner during the construction of the Moffat Tunnel.
