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Fountain, Colorado

Coordinates: 38°41′38″N 104°41′53″W / 38.69389°N 104.69806°W / 38.69389; -104.69806
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Fountain, Colorado
Home rule municipality[1]
City of Fountain[1]
Fountain, Colorado circa 1942.
Fountain, Colorado circa 1942.
Motto: 
"Pure Colorado"
Location of the City of Fountain in El Paso County, Colorado.
Location of the City of Fountain in El Paso County, Colorado.
Fountain is located in the United States
Fountain
Fountain
Location of the City of Fountain in the United States.
Coordinates: 38°41′38″N 104°41′53″W / 38.69389°N 104.69806°W / 38.69389; -104.69806
Country United States
State Colorado
CountyEl Paso County[1]
Home rule municipalityApril 23, 1903[2]
Government
 • TypeHome rule municipality[1]
 • MayorSharon Thompson
Area
[3]
 • Total22.526 sq mi (58.341 km2)
 • Land22.501 sq mi (58.277 km2)
 • Water0.025 sq mi (0.064 km2)
Elevation
[4]
5,545 ft (1,690 m)
Population
 (2020)[3]
 • Total29,802
 • Density1,324/sq mi (511/km2)
 • Metro
755,105 (79th)
 • Front Range
5,055,344
Time zoneUTC−07:00 (MST)
 • Summer (DST)UTC−06:00 (MDT)
ZIP code
80817[5]
Area code719
FIPS code08-27865
GNIS feature ID0193616
Major Routes
WebsiteCity of Fountain

The City of Fountain is a home rule municipality located in El Paso County, Colorado, United States.[1] The city population was 29,802 at the 2020 United States Census, a +15.31% increase since the 2010 United States Census.[3] Fountain is a part of the Colorado Springs, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Front Range Urban Corridor.

Fountain is located 10 miles (16 km) south of downtown Colorado Springs and just east of Fort Carson. Fountain and the Colorado Springs suburbs Security and Widefield make up the "Fountain Valley" community.[6]

History

Fountain was built in 1859 as a railroad shipping center for local ranches and farms. The town was named for Fountain Creek[7] and was incorporated in 1900.[8]

A train wreck, "The Blast", as it is now known, occurred in Fountain during the spring of 1888. Just after three in the morning on May 14, 1888, a freight train carrying eighteen tons of explosives and a passenger train collided in the city. The accident killed three people: Charles F. Smith, a Fountain lumber dealer originally from Keokuk, Iowa, Henry Hutchins, a Fountain merchant and Mrs. Sarah Widrig a local hat maker from Fountain. (There are conflicting reports of others who may not have died immediately, but later as a result of injuries from the crash.)[9]

The blast from the collision created a very loud explosion that could be heard from miles away. The crash destroyed a nearby church, a grocery store and created a large crater in the ground forty feet in diameter and fifteen feet deep.[9]

The cause of the wreck was attributed to a pair of unruly vagrants who were kicked off of the freight train north of Fountain in Colorado Springs. After an investigation by The Rocky Mountain News, it was later reported that one of the two vagrants murdered a third man, Frank Shipman, on the freight train. Shipman was returning from visiting his brother in Pueblo, Colorado. The unidentified vagrants and Shipman had been arguing and Shipman was struck hard in the head killing him. The men attempted to dispose of Shipman's dead body and cover-up the crime by disconnecting the train car Shipman's body was in. The train car Shipman's body was in, three other train cars carrying the explosive naphtha, and the caboose of the freight train were disconnected by the men and sent southbound towards Fountain. Meanwhile, a passenger train was traveling northbound on the same tracks. The collision followed. Thirty riders on board the northbound passenger train were able to escape the locomotive before the collision thanks to a frantic warning from the conductor. Twenty-eight people were injured. The vagrants suspected at the root of Shipman's murder and the train wreck were never found and no one was ever charged with a crime.[10]

"The Blast" remains an important event in the city's history. It is commemorated with an annual street dance held at Fountain's City Hall Plaza each July.

In 1999, Fountain was chosen as "America's Millennium City" by The New York Times.[11] Fountain was named an "All-America City" in 2002 by the National Civic League.[12] The city is the home of Pikes Peak International Raceway.

Fountain Valley Town Hall

In 2008, in a controversial move, the city of Fountain purchased a 480-acre (1.9 km2) ranch, the H2O Ranch in Custer County, for $3.5 million. The city was interested in the prime water rights on the property totaling 700 acre-feet (860,000 m3) a year. Fountain is in the process of drying out the ranch and moving through the water courts to actually receive some of that water. They claim that they should be able to successfully receive 600 of that 700 acre-feet (860,000 m3) after the water courts have made their decisions. It is expected that Fountain will separate the water from the ranch and then sell the ranch separately.[13][14]

In 2014, Cop Car began filming in Fountain.[15]

In 2020, Fountain water was considered safe to drink after a long running contamination problem with PFCs (perflourinated compounds) being leaked into the water table by the nearby Air Force base.[16] According to a recent study, PFCs have been shown to cause penile shrinkage.[17]

Geography

Fountain is located at 38°41′38″N 104°41′53″W / 38.69389°N 104.69806°W / 38.69389; -104.69806 (38.693787, -104.698156).[18]

At the 2020 United States Census, the town had a total area of 14,416 acres (58.341 km2) including 16 acres (0.064 km2) of water.[3] The eponymous Fountain Creek flows south through the city.

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note%±
188099—
1910431—
192059538.1%
1930577−3.0%
1940571−1.0%
195071324.9%
19601,602124.7%
19703,515119.4%
19808,324136.8%
19909,98419.9%
200015,19752.2%
201025,84670.1%
202029,80215.3%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the census[19] of 2000, there were 15,197 people, 5,039 households, and 4,061 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,085.7 inhabitants per square mile (419.2/km2). There were 5,219 housing units at an average density of 372.9 per square mile (144.0/km2). The racial makeup of the city was 75.07% White, 8.74% African American, 1.41% Native American, 2.01% Asian, 0.55% Pacific Islander, 6.71% from other races, and 5.50% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 15.06% of the population.

There were 5,039 households, out of which 49.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.7% were married couples living together, 13.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 19.4% were non-families. 14.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 3.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.01 and the average family size was 3.33.

In the city, the population was spread out, with 34.5% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 34.3% from 25 to 44, 17.0% from 45 to 64, and 5.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 29 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $42,121, and the median income for a family was $44,735. Males had a median income of $31,192 versus $24,000 for females. The per capita income for the city was $15,975. About 5.9% of families and 8.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 10.6% of those under age 18 and 14.7% of those age 65 or over.

Transportation

Fountain has a municipal run bus that links the city with Pikes Peak State College.[20] Fountain is also part of the Bustang network, which provides it intercity transportation. It is along the Lamar-Pueblo-Colorado Springs Outrider line.[21]

Notable people

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Active Colorado Municipalities". Colorado Department of Local Affairs. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  2. ^ "Colorado Municipal Incorporations". State of Colorado, Department of Personnel & Administration, Colorado State Archives. 2004-12-01. Retrieved 2007-09-02.
  3. ^ a b c d "Decennial Census P.L. 94-171 Redistricting Data". United States Census Bureau, United States Department of Commerce. August 12, 2021. Retrieved September 21, 2021.
  4. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  5. ^ "ZIP Code Lookup". United States Postal Service. August 18, 2007. Archived from the original (JavaScript/HTML) on November 4, 2010. Retrieved August 18, 2007.
  6. ^ "Fountain Valley Chamber of Commerce". chamber.fountaincolorado.org. Archived from the original on 23 December 2004. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  7. ^ "Profile for Fountain, Colorado, CO". ePodunk. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
  8. ^ "Fountain, Colorado". City-Data.com. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
  9. ^ a b "A WHOLE TOWN WRECKED; A COLLISION FOLLOWED BY A TERRIBLE EXPLOSION. THREE PERSONS INSTANTLY KILLED, THREE FATALLY INJURED, AND MANY OTHERS SERIOMSLY HURT". Query.nytimes.com. 15 May 1888. Retrieved 28 October 2017.
  10. ^ Lane, Brian; Gregg, Wilfred (13 April 2004). The Encyclopedia of Mass Murder: A Chillling Collection of Mass Murder Cases. Running Press. ISBN 9780786713561. Retrieved 28 October 2017 – via Google Books.
  11. ^ Bennet, James (December 5, 1999). "A Few of Our Favorite Things". The New York Times.
  12. ^ "2002 All-America City". chamber.fountaincolorado.org. Archived from the original on 9 March 2005. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  13. ^ "City buys Valley water rights". Wet Mountain Tribune. Retrieved 2008-06-26.
  14. ^ Cloud, David S. (2020-01-30). "'Our voices are not being heard': Colorado town a test case for California PFAS victims". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2020-02-02.
  15. ^ "Colorado Springs duo remain separated from Kevin Bacon". Gazette Telegraph. Retrieved 2014-06-13.
  16. ^ "City of Fountain says water is safe to drink". 13 October 2020.
  17. ^ "Nonstick Frying Pans can cause P**** to Shrink".
  18. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
  19. ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
  20. ^ "Transit Route" (PDF). Fountain Colorado. City of Fountain.
  21. ^ "Bustang Schedules". RideBustang. CDOT.
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