A Brief History of Idalia
Idalia’s surrounding farms preserve the history of settlement and agriculture on Yuma County’s eastern plains. Louis Fleer Sr. homesteaded the original Fleer Ranch parcel in 1886, while Franz Helling established a 160-acre homestead in 1887. Edward Pfeiler acquired another nearby farm in 1886; its first dugout home was replaced by a native-rock house in 1909. Later arrivals continued that pattern of building homes and working the land. Carl Helling homesteaded near Idalia in 1907, initially living in a sod house. History Colorado’s Centennial Farms records document these families’ combinations of grain cultivation and livestock raising.