Chaffee County, Colorado

Chaffee County, Colorado
Location in the state of Colorado
Colorado's location in the U.S.
Founded	February 10, 1879
Named for	Jerome B. Chaffee
Seat	Salida
Largest city	Salida
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	1,015.01 sq mi (2,629 km²) 1,013.45 sq mi (2,625 km²) 1.55 sq mi (4 km²), 0.15%
Population  - (2000)  - Density	16,242 16/sq mi (6/km²)
Time zone	Mountain: UTC-7/-6
Website	www.chaffeecounty.org

Chaffee County is one of the 64 counties of the state of Colorado of the United States. The county population was 16,242 at U.S. Census 2000. The county seat is Salida.

History

Chaffee County has a confusing origin. Between February 8 and February 10, 1879, Carbonate County was created by the Colorado legislature out of northern Lake County. On February 10 the two counties were renamed, with the southern part of Lake County becoming Chaffee County, and Carbonate County becoming Lake County. Chaffee County is known as the “Heart of the Rockies”. It was named for Jerome B. Chaffee, Colorado's first United States Senator.

Geography

Arkansas River between the La Plata and Twin Lakes. Chaffee County, Colorado. Taken in 1873 for the Department of the Interior. General Land Office. U.S. Geological and Geographic Survey of the Territories. (1874 - 06/30/1879)

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 1,015.01 square miles (2,628.9 km²), of which 1,013.45 square miles (2,624.8 km²) (or 99.85%) is land and 1.55 square miles (4.0 km²) (or 0.15%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Lake County, Colorado - north
• Park County, Colorado - northeast
• Fremont County, Colorado - southeast
• Saguache County, Colorado - south
• Gunnison County, Colorado - west
• Pitkin County, Colorado - northwest

Demographics

Chaffee County, Colorado

As of the census of 2000, there were 16,242 people, 6,584 households, and 4,365 families residing in the county. The population density was 16 people per square mile (6/km²). There were 8,392 housing units at an average density of 8 per square mile (3/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 90.94% White, 1.58% Black or African American, 1.09% Native American, 0.44% Asian, 0.05% Pacific Islander, 4.21% from other races, and 1.69% from two or more races. 8.58% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 6,584 households out of which 25.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 56.70% were married couples living together, 6.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.70% were non-families. 28.40% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.20% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.77.

In the county the population was spread out with 19.70% under the age of 18, 7.70% from 18 to 24, 28.00% from 25 to 44, 27.50% from 45 to 64, and 17.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 42 years. For every 100 females there were 113.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 116.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $34,368, and the median income for a family was $42,043. Males had a median income of $30,770 versus $22,219 for females. The per capita income for the county was $19,430. About 7.40% of families and 11.70% of the population were below the poverty line, including 17.30% of those under age 18 and 10.20% of those age 65 or over.

Ghost towns

• Nathrop
• St. Elmo
• Vicksburg
• Winfield

Cities and towns

• Americus
• Belleview
• Browns Canon
• Buena Vista
• Centerville
• Cleora
• Futurity
• Garfield
• Granite
• Hamilton
• Johnson Village
• Maysville
• Newett
• Poncha Springs
• Princeton
• Riverside
• Rockdale
• St. Elmo
• Salida
• Smeltertown
• Stonewall
• Turret

Recreation area

• Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area

National forest and wilderness

• Buffalo Peaks Wilderness
• Collegiate Peaks Wilderness
• San Isabel National Forest

Trails

• American Discovery Trail
• Colorado Trail
• Continental Divide National Scenic Trail

Bicycle routes

• Great Parks Bicycle Route
• Western Express Bicycle Route

See also

• Outline of Colorado
• Index of Colorado-related articles
• Colorado counties
• Colorado municipalities
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Chaffee County, Colorado

External links

• Chaffee County Clerk of Court
• Chaffee County Government website
• Colorado County Evolution by Don Stanwyck
• Colorado Historical Society