Grand County, Colorado

Infobox U.S. County
county = Grand County
state = Colorado


founded year = 1874
founded date = February 2
seat wl = Hot Sulphur Springs
largest city wl = Granby
city type = town
area_total_sq_mi = 1870
area_total_km2 = 4842
area_land_sq_mi = 1847
area_land_km2 = 4783
area_water_sq_mi = 23
area_water_km2 = 59
area percentage = 1.23%
census yr = 2005
pop = 13211
density_sq_mi = 7
density_km2 = 3
time zone = Mountain
UTC offset = -7
DST offset = -6
footnotes =
web = co.grand.co.us
named for =

Grand County is the 21st most extensive of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. The county population was 12,442 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 is Hot Sulphur Springs.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,870 square miles (4,842 km²), of which, 1,847 square miles (4,783 km²) of it is land and 23 square miles (59 km²) of it (1.23%) is water.

Adjacent counties

*Larimer County, Colorado - northeast
*Gilpin County, Colorado - east
*Boulder County, Colorado - east
*Clear Creek County, Colorado - southeast
*Summit County, Colorado - south
*Eagle County, Colorado - southwest
*Jackson County, Colorado - northwest
*Routt County, Colorado - northwest

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 12,442 people, 5,075 households, and 3,217 families residing in the county. The population density was 7 people per square mile (3/km²). There were 10,894 housing units at an average density of 6 per square mile (2/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 95.15% White, 0.48% Black or African American, 0.43% Native American, 0.68% Asian, 0.10% Pacific Islander, 2.00% from other races, and 1.15% from two or more races. 4.36% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 23.8% were of German, 12.6% Irish, 10.0% English and 7.3% American ancestry according to Census 2000.

There were 5,075 households out of which 28.10% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.70% were married couples living together, 5.20% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.60% were non-families. 24.80% 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 2.37 and the average family size was 2.85.

In the county the population was spread out with 21.80% under the age of 18, 9.00% from 18 to 24, 34.70% from 25 to 44, 26.80% from 45 to 64, and 7.80% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 37 years. For every 100 females there were 112.70 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 115.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $47,759, and the median income for a family was $55,217. Males had a median income of $34,861 versus $26,445 for females. The per capita income for the county was $25,198. About 5.40% of families and 7.30% of the population were below the poverty line, including 7.90% of those under age 18 and 6.10% of those age 65 or over.

Cities and towns

*Fraser
*Granby
*Grand Lake
*Hot Sulphur Springs
*Kremmling
*Radium
*Tabernash
*Winter Park

History

When Grand County was created February 2, 1874 it was carved out of Summit County and contained land to the western and northern borders of the state, which is now in present day Moffat County and Routt County. It was named after Grand Lake and the Grand River, an old name for the Colorado River, which has its headwaters in the county. On January 29, 1877 Routt County was created and Grand County shrunk down to its current western boundary. When valuable minerals were found in North Park, Grand County claimed the area as part of its county, a claim Larimer County also held. It took a decision by the Colorado Supreme Court in 1886 to declare North Park part of Larimer County, setting Grand County's northern boundary.

National park

*Rocky Mountain National Park

National recreation area

*Arapaho National Recreation Area

National forests

*Arapaho National Forest
*Routt National Forest

National wilderness areas

*Byers Peak Wilderness
*Indian Peaks Wilderness
*Never Summer Wilderness
*Ptarmigan Peak Wilderness
*Sarvis Creek Wilderness
*Vasquez Peak Wilderness

National trail

*Continental Divide National Scenic Trail

Bicycle routes

*Great Parks Bicycle Route
*TransAmerica Trail Bicycle Route

cenic byways

*Colorado River Headwaters National Scenic Byway
*Trail Ridge Road/Beaver Meadow National Scenic Byway

ee also

*Saratoga County, Jefferson Territory
*Colorado census statistical areas
*Colorado counties
*Colorado municipalities

References

External links

* [http://co.grand.co.us/ Grand County Government website]
* [http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/arnf/recreation/anra/ Arapaho National Recreation Area website]
* [http://www.stanwyck.com/cogenweb/cocounties.html Colorado County Evolution by Don Stanwyck]
* [http://www.coloradohistory.org/ Colorado Historical Society]
* [http://www.gcld.org Grand County Library District website]
* [http://www.grandcountynews.com Grand County News website]
* [http://www.grand-county.com Grand County Tourism Board website]
* [http://nationalregisterofhistoricplaces.com/CO/grand/state.html National Register of Historic Places listing for Grand County]
* [http://www.nps.gov/romo/ Rocky Mountain National Park website]
* [http://www.winterpark-info.com Winter Park and Fraser Valley Chamber of Commerce website]