San Juan County, Colorado

Infobox U.S. County
county = San Juan County
state = Colorado


founded year = 1876
founded date = January 31
seat wl = Silverton
largest city wl = Silverton
city type = town
area_total_sq_mi = 388
area_total_km2 = 1006
area_land_sq_mi = 387
area_land_km2 = 1003
area_water_sq_mi = 1
area_water_km2 = 2
area percentage = 0.22%
census yr = 2000
pop = 558
density_sq_mi = 1.4403
density_km2 = 0.5561
time zone = Mountain
UTC offset = -7
DST offset = -6
footnotes =
Least populous Colorado county

web = www.sanjuancountycolorado.us
named for =

San Juan County is the least populous of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado in the United States. The county name is the Spanish language name for Saint John, the name Spanish explorers gave to a river and the mountain range in the area. The county population was 558 at U.S. Census 2000.cite web | url = http://www.census.gov/popest/counties/files/CO-EST2006-ALLDATA.csv | title = Annual County Population Estimates and Estimated Components of Change: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2006 (CO-EST2006-alldata) | format = CSV | work = 2006 Population Estimates | publisher = United States Census Bureau, Population Division | date = 2007-03-22 | accessdate = 2007-05-11] The county seat and the only municipality in the county is the Town of Silverton.

History

Mining operators in the San Juan mountain area of Colorado formed the San Juan District Mining Association (SJDMA) in 1903, as a direct result of a Western Federation of Miners proposal to the Telluride Mining Association for the eight hour day, which had been approved in a referendum by 72 percent of Colorado voters.Roughneck—The Life aand Times of Big Bill Haywood, Peter Carlson, 1983, page 65. The new association consolidated the power of thirty-six mining properties in San Miguel, Ouray, and San Juan counties.The Corpse On Boomerang Road, Telluride's War On Labor 1899-1908, MaryJoy Martin, 2004, page 201. The SJDMA refused to consider any reduction in hours or increase in wages, helping to provoke a bitter strike.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 388 square miles (1,006 km²), of which, 387 square miles (1,003 km²) of it is land and 1 square miles (2 km²) of it (0.22%) is water. The County is located in the heart of the San Juan Mountains of Colorado, with numerous peaks above 14,000 feet in height. It has the highest mean elevation of any county in the United States, at 11,240 feet (3,426 m). [http://cohp.org/records/mean_elevation/mean_elevations.html]

Adjacent counties

*Ouray County, Colorado - north
*Hinsdale County, Colorado - east
*La Plata County, Colorado - south
*Montezuma County, Colorado - southwest
*Dolores County, Colorado - west
*San Miguel County, Colorado - northwest

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 558 people, 269 households, and 157 families residing in the county. The population density was 1 people per square mile (1/km²). There were 632 housing units at an average density of 2 per square mile (1/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.13% White, 0.72% Native American, 0.18% Asian, 0.36% Pacific Islander, 0.72% from other races, and 0.90% from two or more races. 7.35% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 269 households out of which 23.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.90% were married couples living together, 8.90% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.30% were non-families. 36.80% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.80% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.06 and the average family size was 2.63.

In the county the population was spread out with 20.10% under the age of 18, 4.30% from 18 to 24, 28.10% from 25 to 44, 40.50% from 45 to 64, and 7.00% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 110.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 112.40 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $30,764, and the median income for a family was $40,000. Males had a median income of $30,588 versus $19,545 for females. The per capita income for the county was $17,584. About 13.50% of families and 20.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 29.40% of those under age 18 and 7.10% of those age 65 or over.

As of November, 2006 the one and only local school had 53 students in grades k-12.

Cities and towns

*Animas Forks
*Eureka
*Howardsville
*Middleton
*Needleton
*Silverton

National historic sites

*Durango-Silverton Narrow-Gauge Railroad National Historic District
*Shenandoah-Dives (Mayflower) Mill
*Silverton National Historic District

National forests and wilderness

*Rio Grande National Forest
*San Juan National Forest
*Uncompahgre National Forest
*Weminuche Wilderness

Trails

*Colorado Trail
*Continental Divide National Scenic Trail

cenic byways

*Alpine Loop Scenic Byway
*San Juan Skyway National Scenic Byway

ee also

*Colorado census statistical areas
*Colorado counties
*Colorado municipalities
*State of Colorado

References

External links

* [http://www.sanjuancountycolorado.us/ San Juan County Government website]
* [http://www.silvertoncolorado.com/ Silverton Chamber of Commerce]
* [http://www.stanwyck.com/cogenweb/cocounties.html Colorado County Evolution by Don Stanwyck]
* [http://www.coloradohistory.org/ Colorado Historical Society]