Ward, Colorado

Infobox Settlement
official_name = Town of Ward, Colorado
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settlement_type = Town
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image_caption = Historic buildings in Ward, Colorado


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mapsize = 250px
map_caption = Location in Boulder County and the state of Colorado


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subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_name = USA
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_name1 = flag|Colorado
subdivision_type2 = Countycite web | url = http://www.dola.state.co.us/dlg/local_governments/municipalities.html | title = Active Colorado Municipalities | format = HTML | publisher = State of Colorado, Department of Local Affairs | accessdate = 2007-09-01]
subdivision_name2 = Boulder County
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government_type = Home Rule Municipality
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established_title = Founded
established_date = 1860
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established_title3 = Incorporated
established_date3 = June 9, 1896cite web | url = http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/muninc.html | title = Colorado Municipal Incorporations | format = HTML | publisher = State of Colorado, Department of Personnel & Administration, Colorado State Archives | date = 2004-12-01 | accessdate = 2007-09-02]
area_magnitude =
unit_pref = Imperial
area_footnotes =
area_total_km2 = 1.5
area_land_km2 = 1.5
area_water_km2 = 0
area_total_sq_mi = 0.6
area_land_sq_mi = 0.6
area_water_sq_mi = 0
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population_as_of = 2000
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population_total = 169
population_density_km2 = 112.7
population_density_sq_mi = 281.7
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timezone = Mountain (MST)
utc_offset = -7
timezone_DST = MDT
utc_offset_DST = -6
latd = 40 |latm = 4 |lats = 20 |latNS = N
longd = 105 |longm = 30 |longs = 36 |longEW = W
elevation_footnotes =
elevation_m = 2880
elevation_ft = 9450
postal_code_type = ZIP codecite web|url = http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/citytown.jsp | title = ZIP Code Lookup| format = JavaScript/HTML | publisher = United States Postal Service | accessdate=2008-01-08]
postal_code = 80481
area_code = 303
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 08-82735
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = [http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=gnispq:3:::NO::P3_FID:0178487 0178487]
website =
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Ward (elevation convert|9450|ft|m|0|sp=us) is a Home Rule Municipality in Boulder County, Colorado, United States. The population was 169 at the 2000 census. The town is a former mining settlement founded in 1860 in the wake of the discovery of gold at nearby Gold Hill. Once one of the richest towns in the state during the Colorado Gold Rush, it is located on a mountainside at the top of Left Hand Canyon, near the Peak-to-Peak Highway (State Highway 72) northwest of Boulder.

Description

The town is well-known in the region for its rustic feel as an anti-establishment counterculture mountain community, with residents forming an enclosed community wary of outsiders. The town is likewise often viewed with suspicion and puzzlement even by many citizens of liberal-leaning Boulder. The town has received both admiration for its acceptance of outcasts and social misfits, as well as criticism as being a lawless haven for drug users, criminals, and the mentally ill as well as some really neat and interesting people. Its high elevation renders it snowbound in heavy snows, with snow lingering throughout much of the springtime. Its abundance of beautiful buildings from the 19th century heyday, including two churches that date from the 1890s, has made it an off-beat tourist attraction in recent decades, and is sometimes erroneously described as a ghost town. In addition to the many refurbished buildings, the town is filled with rusted out and broken down cars, giving it the feeling of a haven for cars who have seen better days. Its location at the top of Left Hand Canyon also makes it a frequent destination for recreational bicyclists from nearby Boulder.

The town was named for Calvin Ward, who prospected a claim on the site known as Miser's Dream. The town boomed the following year with the discovery by Cyrus W. Deardorff of the Columbia vein. Over the next several decades the population fluctuated, growing from several hundred to several thousand before declining once again. The mines in the area remained profitable for many decades, with one mine eventually producing over 2 million ounces (62 metric tons) of silver. The city was incorporated in June 1896. The railroad reached the area in 1898, arriving over the Whiplash and Switzerland Trail, which climbed over 4,000 feet (1220 m) from Boulder over the course of 26 miles (42 km). In 1901 over 50 buildings were destroyed by a devastating fire, although the profitability of the mines led to the immediate rebuilding of the town. The town was largely deserted by the 1920s, but the construction of the Peak-to-Peak Highway in the 1930s led to a revival of the town.

The town has several businesses along its main street, including a coffee shop and general store.

Geography

Ward is located at coor dms|40|4|20|N|105|30|36|W|city (40.072347, -105.510131)GR|1.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.6 square miles (1.5 km²), all of it land.

Demographics

As of the censusGR|2 of 2000, there were 169 people, 71 households, and 40 families residing in the town. The population density was 296.9 people per square mile (114.5/km²). There were 82 housing units at an average density of 144.1/sq mi (55.5/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 98.82% White, and 1.18% from two or more races.

There were 71 households out of which 35.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 39.4% were married couples living together, 14.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.3% were non-families. 26.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 1.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.38 and the average family size was 3.02.

In the town the population was spread out with 27.2% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 35.5% from 25 to 44, 30.2% from 45 to 64, and 0.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 103.6 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.2 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $33,750, and the median income for a family was $50,313. Males had a median income of $26,250 versus $28,750 for females. The per capita income for the town was $14,900. None of the population or families were below the poverty line.

ee also

*State of Colorado
**Colorado cities and towns
***Colorado municipalities
**Colorado counties
***Boulder County, Colorado
**Colorado metropolitan areas
***Boulder Metropolitan Statistical Area
***Denver-Aurora-Boulder Combined Statistical Area
***North Central Colorado Urban Area
***Front Range Urban Corridor
*United States Forest Service
**Roosevelt National Forest

References

External links

* [http://www.cmca.gen.co.us/Municipality.cfm?MunicipalityID=226 Town of Ward contacts]
** [http://www.dot.state.co.us/App_DTD_DataAccess/Downloads/CityMaps/Ward.pdf CDOT map of the Town of Ward]
* [http://ward-colorado.20megsfree.com/ Ward, Colorado: a slice of Applachia in the Rockies]
* [http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/co/ward.html Ghosttowns.com: Ward, Colorado] (note Ward is not actually a true ghost town, despite the claim of this site.
* [http://www.boulderhistorymuseum.org/history.timeline.html Chronology of Boulder History]
* [http://members.aol.com/JKA80122/boulder.html Ghost of Boulder County: Ward]
* [http://wardcolorado.googlepages.com Ward, Colorado, a revitalized gold-mining ghost town]
* [http://wardcoloradoartists.googlepages.com/home Artists of Ward and the Indian Peaks]