Manassa, Colorado

The Town of Manassa is the Statutory Town that is the most populous municipality in Conejos County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 991 at the 2010 United States Census.

This small town is surrounded by farms and ranches, with a small amount of residential development on its outskirts. A mostly agricultural community, there are few business establishments in the town. A small-town feel abounds with no traffic control signals or stop lights.

The U.S. Post Office ZIP code for Manassa is 81141, and the area code is 719.

History

Today, approximately half of Manassa's residents are of Spanish and Mexican heritage. Migration patterns reflect people from northern New Mexico settled this area in the mid 19th century. Many are the descendants of colonists from the Spanish colonial period beginning in 1598 with Juan de Oñate's colonization of New Mexico. Most of the other citizens of Manassa are the descendants of the Mormon pioneers who founded Manassa in 1879, and named the town after Manasseh, a son of the Israelite Joseph.