Nucla, Colorado

Town of Nucla, Colorado
—  Town  —
Location in Montrose County and the state of Colorado
Coordinates: 38°16′0″N 108°32′50″W / 38.266667°N 108.54722°W / 38.266667; -108.54722Coordinates: 38°16′0″N 108°32′50″W / 38.266667°N 108.54722°W / 38.266667; -108.54722
Country	United States
State	Colorado
County[1]	Montrose
Incorporated (town)	March 14, 1915[2]
Government
– Type	Statutory Town[1]
Area
– Total	0.7 sq mi (1.8 km2)
– Land	0.7 sq mi (1.8 km2)
– Water	0 sq mi (0 km2)
Elevation[3]	5,787 ft (1,764 m)
Population (2000)
– Total	734
– Density	1,048.6/sq mi (407.8/km2)
Time zone	Mountain (MST) (UTC-7)
– Summer (DST)	MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP code[4]	81424
Area code(s)	970
FIPS code	08-54935
GNIS feature ID	0185887

Nucla is a Statutory Town in Montrose County, Colorado, United States. The population was 734 at the 2000 census. Its name comes from the town's founders intent that it serve as a "nucleus" for the surrounding farms and mines, although it has since come to be associated with the growth of uranium mining in the region.

Geography

Nucla is located at 38°16′0″N 108°32′50″W / 38.266667°N 108.54722°W / 38.266667; -108.54722 (38.266775, -108.547146)^[5].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.7 square miles (1.8 km²), all of it land. Nucla is located in an area of desert land, surrounding the Uncompahgre National Forest.

Demographics

As of the census^[6] of 2000, there were 734 people, 311 households, and 208 families residing in the town. The population density was 1,036.0 people per square mile (399.2/km²). There were 369 housing units at an average density of 520.8 per square mile (200.7/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.69% White, 1.09% Native American, 0.14% Asian, 0.54% from other races, and 3.54% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 3.68% of the population.

There were 311 households out of which 31.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.8% were married couples living together, 11.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.8% were non-families. 30.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 14.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.91.

In the town the population was spread out with 28.6% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 24.3% from 25 to 44, 27.9% from 45 to 64, and 12.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 93.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 89.9 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $28,466, and the median income for a family was $33,636. Males had a median income of $32,417 versus $21,726 for females. The per capita income for the town was $12,982. About 14.4% of families and 17.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23.4% of those under age 18 and 12.1% of those age 65 or over.

History

There are several prehistoric sites near Nucla on the Colorado State Register of Historic Properties:^[7]

• Cottonwood Cave is a large rock shelter inhabited by 270 BC and the earliest date at which corn was found in the state of Colorado.
• Tabeguache Cave is another prehistoric rock shelter.
• Tabeguache Pueblo is an example of an early, dispersed Ancient Pueblo settlement, inhabited about AD 1100 and later abandoned.

Notable residents

• Bill Symons, Canadian Football Hall of Famer.
• Mikael Smith, 12th Colorado 4x State Wrestling Champion
• "Cowboy" Larry Lane, Professional wrestler, former Nucla High teacher and coach
• Torvald Thyssen, WWII combat mountaineer and engineer, designer of the spring-loaded climbing cam.
• Tucker Lane, Multiple state wrestling champ and 4-time Warior Classic champ
• Rob McCabe, 2X State Champion, 1st Collegiate All-American, 2X Wrestling All-American at Adams State, placing 4th both times at 125 pounds in 2005 and 2006
• Thomas "Truck" Stevenson 2000 1A Football State Champions. 2X All State Football. Played Division 2 football at Fort Lewis College. 2X All-RMAC 1st Team Defensive Lineman and 2X National Football Foundation & Hall of Fame ALL-Colorado Defensive Lineman. Lead Fort Lewis to its best season in 20 years to 7-4 winning the Dixie Bowl in 2006. Coached defensive line at Fort Lewis in 2005,2007,2008 seasons.
• Dan Aldrich, Cowboy Poet Extrordinaire

Local Artists

• Neva Wilson Acrylic Landscape Artist.
• Buzz Zatterstrom
• Cynthia Sampson Web Link http://www.zebrajazzstudio.com/

References

1. ^ ^{a b} "Active Colorado Municipalities". State of Colorado, Department of Local Affairs. http://www.dola.state.co.us/dlg/local_governments/municipalities.html. Retrieved 2007-09-01. 
2. ^ "Colorado Municipal Incorporations". State of Colorado, Department of Personnel & Administration, Colorado State Archives. 2004-12-01. http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/muninc.html. Retrieved 2007-09-02. 
3. ^ "US Board on Geographic Names". United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-25. http://geonames.usgs.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
4. ^ "ZIP Code Lookup" (JavaScript/HTML). United States Postal Service. http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/citytown.jsp. Retrieved November 26, 2007. 
5. ^ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. http://www.census.gov/geo/www/gazetteer/gazette.html. Retrieved 2011-04-23. 
6. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
7. ^ National & State Registers. Colorado Historical Society, Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation. Retrieved 10-8-2011.

External links

• Nucla Naturita Area Chamber of Commerce
• NUCLA UNION CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
• CDOT map of the Town of Nucla