Clear Creek County, Colorado

Clear Creek County, Colorado
Location in the state of Colorado
Colorado's location in the U.S.
Founded	November 1, 1861
Named for	Clear Creek
Seat	Georgetown
Largest city	Idaho Springs
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	396.46 sq mi (1,027 km²) 395.45 sq mi (1,024 km²) 1.01 sq mi (3 km²), 0.25%
Population  - (2000)  - Density	9,322 23.5/sq mi (9.1/km²)
Time zone	Mountain: UTC-7/-6
Website	co.clear-creek.co.us

Crystalline gold specimen from the Dixie mine, Lamartine District, SW of Idaho Springs, Colorado. Size: 1.8 x 0.9 x 0.2 cm.

Clear Creek County is one of the 64 counties of the state of Colorado of the United States. The county population was 9,322 at U.S. Census 2000. The county seat is Georgetown. Despite its location in the Rocky Mountains, Clear Creek County is part of the Denver-Aurora Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Denver-Aurora-Boulder Combined Statistical Area.

History

Clear Creek County was one of the original 17 counties created by the Colorado legislature on 1 November 1861, and is one of only two counties (along with Gilpin) to have persisted with its original boundaries unchanged. It was named after Clear Creek, which runs down from the continental divide through the county. Idaho Springs was originally designated the county seat, but the county government was moved to Georgetown in 1867.

Geography

According to the 2000 census, the county has a total area of 396.46 square miles (1,026.8 km²), of which 395.45 square miles (1,024.2 km²) (or 99.75%) is land and 1.01 square miles (2.6 km²) (or 0.25%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Jefferson County, Colorado - east
• Gilpin County, Colorado - northeast
• Park County, Colorado - south
• Summit County, Colorado - west
• Grand County, Colorado - northwest

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 9,322 people, 4,019 households, and 2,608 families residing in the county. The population density was 24 people per square mile (9/km²). There were 5,128 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile (5/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 96.37% White, 0.28% Black or African American, 0.73% Native American, 0.36% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 1.02% from other races, and 1.20% from two or more races. 3.87% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 4,019 households out of which 28.20% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.60% were married couples living together, 6.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.10% were non-families. 27.20% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.30% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.81.

In the county the population was spread out with 22.60% under the age of 18, 5.60% from 18 to 24, 32.60% from 25 to 44, 32.20% from 45 to 64, and 7.10% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 108.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 110.20 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $50,997, and the median income for a family was $61,400. Males had a median income of $41,667 versus $30,757 for females. The per capita income for the county was $28,160. About 3.00% of families and 5.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.80% of those under age 18 and 5.60% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

Clear Creek County, Colorado

• Downieville-Lawson-Dumont
• Empire
• Georgetown
• Idaho Springs
• Silver Plume
• St. Mary's

Historic areas

• Georgetown Loop Historic Mining & Railroad Park
• Georgetown-Silver Plume National Historic District

National forests and wilderness

• Pike National Forest
• Roosevelt National Forest
• James Peak Wilderness
• Mount Evans Wilderness

Scenic trails and byways

• American Discovery Trail
• Continental Divide National Scenic Trail
• Grays Peak National Recreation Trail
• Mount Evans National Recreation Trail
• Guanella Pass Scenic Byway
• Mount Evans Scenic Byway

See also

• Outline of Colorado
• Index of Colorado-related articles
• Arapahoe County, Kansas Territory
• Montana County, Jefferson Territory
• Colorado census statistical areas
• Colorado counties
• Colorado metropolitan areas
• Colorado municipalities
• Denver-Aurora Metropolitan Statistical Area
• Denver-Aurora-Boulder Combined Statistical Area
• Front Range Urban Corridor
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Clear Creek County, Colorado

External links

• Clear Creek County Government website
• Clear Creek County Colorado Tourism and Visitors Site
• Colorado Historical Society