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Colorado State...
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Colorado Counties
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Colorado Counties
Colorado currently has sixty-four counties. The counties of Colorado are important components
of government since the state has no secondary civil subdivisions such as townships. Two counties, the City and
County of Denver and the City and County of Broomfield, have consolidated city and county governments..
No organized counties of the District of Louisiana, the Territory of Missouri, or the Territory of Nebraska
existed within the present boundaries of the State of Colorado. |
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Gunnison County, Colorado
Gunnison County History, Geography, Demographics, Cities and Towns, and Education
County Seat: Gunnison
Year Organized: 1877
Square Miles: 3,239 |
Court House: 200 E Virginia Avenue
County Courthouse
Gunnison, CO 81230-2248
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Etymology - Origin of County Name
Gunnison County is named in honor of John Williams Gunnison, the U.S. Army captain who explored the
region.
Demographics:
County QuickFacts: Census Bureau Quick
Facts
History
Gunnison County is located in the heart of the Colorado Rockies. It was named after Captain John W. Gunnison, who
explored the area with a party of 60 men in 1853. The County boasts of some unusual town names such as Bacon, Citizen,
Dinner Station, Old Man's Cabin, Ruby, Pie Plant, Tin Cup and Yule Creek.
The first settlement was Richardson's Colony which was founded in 1874 on the site of present-day Gunnison. It was
abandoned shortly thereafter. In 1877 the Ute Indian Agency of Los Pinos was established. In the same year Gunnison
County was carved out of Lake County. By 1879 Professor Sylvester Richardson and Colorado Governor John Evans decided to
try again and founded the town site of Gunnison. Gunnison became the County Seat and the courthouse was finished in
1880. Pitkin County was carved out in 1881, and 2 years later, in 1883 the Counties of Delta, Mesa and Montrose were
also carved out.
Geography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 3,260 square miles (8,443 kmē),
of which, 3,239 square miles (8,388 kmē) of it is land and 21 square miles (54 kmē) of it (0.64%) is
water.
The elevation of the county ranges from 7,000' to 14,000'. Summers are pleasant, but Gunnison County
is noted as being one of the coldest areas of Colorado in the winter (-20 degrees is common).
Approximately 85% of Gunnison County is Federal land owned by the United States Forest Service, Bureau
of Land Management (BLM) and Curecanti National Recreation Area. The economic base is tourism, skiing,
education, mining and ranching. Western State College of Colorado is located in Gunnison. The college
has an enrollment of approximately 2,500 students. Gunnison County population was 11, 931 in July 1995.
The town of Marble, located in northern Gunnison County, is the site of the Colorado Yule Marble Company
which produced the marble used to build many famous buildings and monuments in America, including the
Lincoln Memorial and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
Crested Butte was established in 1879 as a coal mining region, but nowadays is a popular ski area and
resort town.
Neighboring Counties:
- North: Pitkin County
- East: Chaffee County
- Southeast: Saguache County
- Southwest: Hinsdale County; Ouray County; Montrose County
- Northwest: Delta County; Mesa County
Cities and Towns:
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- Crested Butte |
town |
Incorporated Area |
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- Gunnison
(County Seat) |
city |
Incorporated Area |
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- Mount Crested Butte |
town |
Incorporated Area |
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- Pitkin |
town |
Incorporated Area |
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- Salida |
city |
Incorporated Area |
County Resources:
Enter County Resources and Information Here
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County Resource Guide
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The history of our nation can be seen as a prolonged struggle to define the relative roles and powers of our governments: federal, state, and local. And the names we've given our counties, our most locally based jurisdictions, reflects the "characteristic
features of our country!"
But age, size and colorful names of our counties isn't the only reason to explore counties' role in American history, or the history of county government itself. In fact, the story of county government reflects the larger meanings of American history.
Today's counties are the most flexible, locally responsive and creative governments in the US. They are the most diverse, varying in size, population, geography, and governmental structure. In their politics and policies, they express a 1990's political slogan "Think globally,
act locally." |
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