Durango, Colorado
Encyclopedia
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
and the most populous city of La Plata County
La Plata County, Colorado
La Plata County is the fourteenth most populous of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. The county was named for the La Plata River and the La Plata Mountains. "La plata" is the Spanish language word for "silver". The United States Census Bureau estimated that the...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The United States Census Bureau
United States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
said that the city population was 16,887 in 2010 census.
History
The town was organized in September 1881 by the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad (D&RG) to serve the San Juan mining district. The D&RG chose a site south of Animas City for its depot after Animas City refused to pay a dowry to the D&RG. The city is named after Durango, MexicoDurango, Mexico
Durango, Mexico, may refer to:*The state of Durango, one of the 32 component federal entities of the United Mexican States*Durango, Durango, capital city of the State of Durango...
, which was named after Durango, Spain. The word Durango originates from the Basque
Basque language
Basque is the ancestral language of the Basque people, who inhabit the Basque Country, a region spanning an area in northeastern Spain and southwestern France. It is spoken by 25.7% of Basques in all territories...
word "Urango" meaning "water town".
Geography
Durango is located at 37°16′N 107°52′W at an elevation of 1988 metres (6512 feet). According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 6.8 square miles (17.6 km²).
Attractions
Durango is nestled in the Animas River Valley surrounded by the San Juan MountainsSan Juan Mountains
The San Juan Mountains are a high and rugged mountain range in the Rocky Mountains in southwestern Colorado. The area is highly mineralized and figured in the gold and silver mining industry of early Colorado. Major towns, all old mining camps, include Creede, Lake City, Silverton, Ouray, and...
. The Animas River
Animas River
Animas River is a river in the western United States, a tributary of the San Juan River, part of the Colorado River System. The Spanish named the river "Rio de las Animas Perdidas", "River of the Lost Souls". It is also the last free-flowing river in Colorado. The river's free-flowing status...
—El Río de las Animas—runs through downtown and boasts gold medal fly fishing
Fly fishing
Fly fishing is an angling method in which an artificial 'fly' is used to catch fish. The fly is cast using a fly rod, reel, and specialized weighted line. Casting a nearly weightless fly or 'lure' requires casting techniques significantly different from other forms of casting...
waters, and is popular for whitewater rafting, kayaking and canoeing. Durango is also popular for outdoor activities like hiking, mountain biking, road biking, backpacking, rock climbing, hunting, off-roading, year-round fishing, kayaking and golfing.
Durango is near five major ski areas, including Purgatory at Durango Mountain Resort
Durango Mountain Resort
Durango Mountain Resort, also known by its former name Purgatory is a ski resort located in the San Juan Mountains of Southwest Colorado, north of the town of Durango. It was originally opened in 1965 and offers 85 trails, including 2 terrain parks, the Paradise Freestyle Arena and Pitchfork...
, located twenty-five minutes north of downtown. Located thirty-five miles west of Durango is Mesa Verde National Park
Mesa Verde National Park
Mesa Verde National Park is a U.S. National Park and UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Montezuma County, Colorado, United States. It was created in 1906 to protect some of the best-preserved cliff dwellings in the world...
, a UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
World Heritage Site known for its Ancestral Puebloan Cliff Dwellings.
Durango is most known for the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, a heritage railway
Heritage railway
thumb|right|the Historical [[Khyber train safari|Khyber Railway]] goes through the [[Khyber Pass]], [[Pakistan]]A heritage railway , preserved railway , tourist railway , or tourist railroad is a railway that is run as a tourist attraction, in some cases by volunteers, and...
, which travels from Durango to the historic mining town of Silverton, Colorado
Silverton, Colorado
The town of Silverton is a Statutory Town that is the county seat of, and the only incorporated municipality in, San Juan County, Colorado, United States. Silverton is a former silver mining camp, most or all of which is now included in a federally designated National Historic Landmark District,...
on steam-powered trains
Steam locomotive
A steam locomotive is a railway locomotive that produces its power through a steam engine. These locomotives are fueled by burning some combustible material, usually coal, wood or oil, to produce steam in a boiler, which drives the steam engine...
with rolling stock dating back to the 1920s and before.
Durango hosted the first-ever Mountain Bike World Championships
Mountain Bike World Championships
The UCI Mountain Bike & Trials World Championships are the world championship events for mountain bike racing events in cross country, downhill, four-cross and trials riding events. It is organized by the Union Cycliste Internationale , and winners are presented with a gold medal and are entitled...
in 1990.
Durango is also home to the Snowdown Festival, an event which includes fireworks and a parade. The parade is the centerpiece and usually occurs the last Friday of January or the first Friday of February. Along with the nearby town of Pagosa Springs, Durango also hosts the annual Music in the Mountains
Music in the Mountains
Music in the Mountains is an annual summer classical music festival located in Durango and Pagosa Springs, Colorado, with additional performances in other regional towns. Performances are held from early July through early August and feature performances by both professional and student artists...
summer music festival, which features performances by many of the world's finest classical musicians.
Main Avenue cuts through Downtown Durango, home to clothing boutique
Boutique
A boutique is a small shopping outlet, especially one that specializes in elite and fashionable items such as clothing and jewelry. The word is French for "shop", via Latin from Greek ἀποθήκη , "storehouse"....
s, restaurants, newsstands
Newsagent
A newsagent's shop , newsagency or newsstand is a business that sells newspapers, magazines, cigarettes, snacks and often items of local interest. In Britain and Australia, these businesses are termed newsagents...
, tourist and gift shops, a mall, bars, lounges and other businesses. Many buildings downtown are several stories high and include apartments in the upper levels. Durango's two oldest hotels, The General Palmer and The Strater Hotel, are both at the South end of Main Avenue, one and two blocks away from the train station, respectively. It is also home to many restaurants. Many serve specialty foods including Mexican
Mexican cuisine
Mexican cuisine, a style of food that originates in Mexico, is known for its varied flavors, colourful decoration and variety of spices and ingredients, most of which are native to the country. The cuisine of Mexico has evolved through thousands of years of blending indigenous cultures, with later...
, Italian
Italian cuisine
Italian cuisine has developed through centuries of social and political changes, with roots as far back as the 4th century BCE. Italian cuisine in itself takes heavy influences, including Etruscan, ancient Greek, ancient Roman, Byzantine, Jewish and Arab cuisines...
, French
French cuisine
French cuisine is a style of food preparation originating from France that has developed from centuries of social change. In the Middle Ages, Guillaume Tirel , a court chef, authored Le Viandier, one of the earliest recipe collections of Medieval France...
, Thai and Japanese
Japanese cuisine
Japanese cuisine has developed over the centuries as a result of many political and social changes throughout Japan. The cuisine eventually changed with the advent of the Medieval age which ushered in a shedding of elitism with the age of shogun rule...
and others serve American
Cuisine of the United States
American cuisine is a style of food preparation originating from the United States of America. European colonization of the Americas yielded the introduction of a number of ingredients and cooking styles to the latter...
favorites. Main Avenue is walked by thousands of tourists each week, making it the most popular shopping and relaxing tourist destination in Durango.
Transportation and business
Durango is served by U.S. Highway 160 (the Old Spanish TrailOld Spanish Trail (trade route)
The Old Spanish Trail is a historical trade route which connected the northern New Mexico settlements near or in Santa Fe, New Mexico with that of Los Angeles, California and southern California. Approximately long, it ran through areas of high mountains, arid deserts, and deep canyons. It is...
) and U.S. Highway 550. Part of U.S. 550 offers high-speed access (primarily a 4-lane, divided highway) to Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
. North of Durango, 550 is nicknamed the Million Dollar Highway.
Durango has a regional shopping center which is smaller than the Wal-mart and is served by a major regional airport for southwestern Colorado—La Plata Regional Airport (actually located near Ignacio). Durango-La Plata County Airport
Durango-La Plata County Airport
Durango-La Plata County Airport is a public airport located 10 miles southeast of the central business district of Durango, a city in La Plata County, Colorado, USA. The airport covers and has one runway.- Airlines and destinations :...
is serviced by Lynx Aviation (Frontier Airlines
Frontier Airlines
Frontier Airlines, Inc., is an American airline headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, United States. The carrier, which is a subsidiary and operating brand of Republic Airways Holdings, operates flights to 83 destinations throughout the United States, Mexico, and Costa Rica and maintains hubs at...
), United Express/SkyWest (United Airlines
United Airlines
United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees United Air Lines, Inc., is the world's largest airline with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Continental...
), US Airways Express/Mesa Air (US Airways
US Airways
US Airways, Inc. is a major airline based in the U.S. city of Tempe, Arizona. The airline is an operating unit of US Airways Group and is the sixth largest airline by traffic and eighth largest by market value in the country....
), and in the summer by American Eagle (American Airlines
American Airlines
American Airlines, Inc. is the world's fourth-largest airline in passenger miles transported and operating revenues. American Airlines is a subsidiary of the AMR Corporation and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas adjacent to its largest hub at Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport...
).
Durango Transit provides several bus routes that serve the community, including Fort Lewis College. Ignacio Road Runner provides bus service to the nearby towns of Ignacio and Bayfield with four trips daily on weekdays and one on Saturdays. Both services share the new Durango Transit Center (opened August 2010) as a hub.
Colleges
- Fort Lewis CollegeFort Lewis CollegeFort Lewis College is a public liberal arts college in Durango, Colorado.-History:Military FortThe original site of Fort Lewis College began southwest of its present location back in 1880. Set up originally as a Military Fort for the 22nd Regimental Infantry which occupied the land from...
is situated on a 500 ft mesaMesaA mesa or table mountain is an elevated area of land with a flat top and sides that are usually steep cliffs. It takes its name from its characteristic table-top shape....
(bluff) overlooking downtown Durango, and is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and SchoolsNorth Central Association of Colleges and SchoolsThe North Central Association of Colleges and Schools , also known as the North Central Association, is a membership organization, consisting of colleges, universities, and schools in 19 U.S. states, that is engaged in educational accreditation...
. - Southwest Colorado Community College, a branch of Pueblo Community CollegePueblo Community CollegePueblo Community College is a two-year institution of higher learning located in Pueblo, Colorado. PCC traces its history to the founding of Southern Colorado Junior College in 1933. In 1937 SCJC became part of the Pueblo County Junior College District, and was renamed Pueblo Junior College...
, is located in the Central Business District, on Camino del Rio. - San Juan Basin Technical College, located outside of Cortez, ColoradoCortez, ColoradoThe city of Cortez is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Montezuma County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 8,482 at the 2010 census...
, 45 miles away, offers EMT certification in Durango.
Demographics
As of the censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of 2000, there were 13,922 people, 5,492 households, and 2,603 families residing in the city. The population density
Population density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 2,052.4 people per square mile (792.8/km²). There were 5,819 housing units at an average density of 857.8 per square mile (331.4/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 86.84% White, .5% African American, 5.51% Native American, 0.74% Asian, 0.11% Pacific Islander, 4.12% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 2.17% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 10.31% of the population.
There were 5,492 households out of which 22.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.2% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 9.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 52.6% were non-families. 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.23 and the average family size was 2.83.
In the city, 16.6% of residents are under the age of 18, 26.1% from 18 to 24, 27.2% from 25 to 44, 19.4% from 45 to 64, and 10.7% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 29 years. For every 100 females there are 104.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 103.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $34,892, and the median income for a family is $50,814. Males have a median income of $31,812 versus $25,022 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city is $19,352. 17.2% of the population and 7.3% of families live below the poverty line. 11.2% of those younger than 18 and 8.9% of those 65 and older live below the poverty line.
Notable residents or natives
- Tom DanielsonTom DanielsonTom Danielson is a professional road racing cyclist. Previously riding for the Saturn Team on the U.S. Pro Circuit, and for Fassa Bortolo in Europe, Danielson is currently a member of , but rode for the Discovery Channel team between 2005 and 2007.Danielson currently holds the record for the...
- Steve CarltonSteve CarltonSteven Norman Carlton , nicknamed "Lefty", is a former Major League Baseball left-handed pitcher. He pitched from 1965-1988 for six different teams in his career, but it is his time with the Philadelphia Phillies where he received his greatest acclaim as a professional and won four Cy Young Awards...
(Former Major League Baseball Pitcher) - Andrea JaegerAndrea JaegerAndrea Jaeger is a former World No. 2 professional tennis player from the United States whose brief but highly successful tennis career ended prematurely due to major shoulder injuries. Jaeger reached the singles final of Wimbledon in 1983 and the French Open in 1982...
(Former professional Tennis Player) - Missy GioveMissy GioveMelissa "Missy" Giove is a former professional downhill mountain biker. Her nickname is The Missile.Giove was one of mountain-bike racing's first mainstream female superstars, did some ads for Reebok, is the all-time leader in NORBA downhill wins with 14, and is second on the World Cup list with 11...
- Ned OverendNed OverendEdmund Overend , the son of a U.S. diplomat, started in mountain biking in the early 1980s. He appeared in "the world's first mountain biking video, aptly named, The Great Mountain Biking Video," released in 1988 by New & Unique Videos of San Diego, California...
- Elaine YoungsElaine YoungsElaine Youngs is an American beach volleyball player.As of 2010, Youngs has won 51 professional beach volleyball tournaments in her career. In addition, she won a bronze medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics with teammate Holly McPeak. In 2002, she was named MVP of the AVP.Youngs graduated from UCLA...
- Bob RollBob RollBob Roll is a former American professional cyclist, author, and television sports commentator. He was a member of the 7-Eleven Cycling Team until 1990 and competed for the Motorola Cycling Team in 1991. In 1992 Roll moved to Greg LeMond’s Z team and added mountain biking to his racing...
- John ColeJohn ColeJohn Cole is a British journalist and broadcaster. He was the BBC's Political Editor from 1981 to 1992.John Cole was educated at the Belfast Royal Academy and at the University of London...
- Travis BrownTravis Brown (cyclist)Travis Brown is an American professional bicycle racer. He competes in cross-country mountain bike and cyclo-cross races but has also raced on road bicycles.-External links:**...
- Ross Anderson (skier)Ross Anderson (skier)Ross Anderson is a FIS World Cup/Professional alpine Skier as well as Native American speed skier. He broke the former American Indian Record in 1997 with a speed of 137.86 mph flying by the former American Indian Record Holder held by Stew Young from the Tulalip tribe with a speed of...
- Ed StasiumEd StasiumEd Stasium is an American record producer and engineer who has worked on albums by The Ramones, Talking Heads, The Smithereens and Living Colour.- History :Stasium first surfaced in 1970 fronting the band Brandywine, appearing on their sole LP Aged....
- Tom TullyTom TullyTom Tully was an American actor.-Biography:Born in Durango, Colorado, Thomas Kane Tulley served in the United States Navy, was a private pilot and worked as junior reporter for the Denver Post before going into acting because he felt the pay was better. Tully started out on stage before eventually...
, actor on The LineupThe Lineup (TV series)The Lineup is an American police drama which aired on CBS radio from 1950 to 1953 and on CBS television from 1954 to 1960, possibly in response to NBC's hit Dragnet.... - Todd WellsTodd WellsTodd Wells is a professional bicycle racer specializing in cyclo-cross and mountain bike racing from the United States. Todd Resides in Durango, Co...
- Chris MossChris MossChristopher Vashon Moss is an American basketball player, playing the power forward position. He currently plays for Deutsche Bank Skyliners.- Clubs :* West Virginia University - NCAA - 1997/2001...
- Shan WellsShan wellsShan Wells is a North American sculptor and political illustrator. He attended Art Center College of Design in California and the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, where he studied under Andrew Drummond and completed a Master of Fine Arts in 1998....
- Greg HerboldGreg HerboldGreg "H-Ball" Herbold is an american mountain bike racer. He was inducted into the Mountain Bike Hall of Fame in 1996.Greg Herbold won the first dual slalom race at Mammoth Mountain in 1987...
(First downhill mountain biking World Champion - Durango 1990) - Steve PaxtonSteve PaxtonSteve Paxton is an experimental dancer and choreographer. His early background was in gymnastics while his later training included three years with Merce Cunningham and a year with José Limón. As a founding member of the Judson Dance Theater, he performed works by Yvonne Rainer and Trisha Brown...
- Will HobbsWill HobbsWill Hobbs is an American young-adult novelist. Hobbs was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.-Selected publications:*Ghost Canoe*Beardance*Bearstone*The Big Wander*Changes in Latitudes*Far North*Jason's Gold*Kokopellis Flute...
, young adult fiction author
Sister cities
DurangoDurango, Durango
-Climate:The city of Durango has a semi-arid climate, classified as Bsk in the Koppen system. The climate is temperate in the western portion , with the average annual temperature being 15 °C and consisting of an average annual rainfall of 1,600 millimeters. In the eastern region, the average...
, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
Durango, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
See also
- Animas RiverAnimas RiverAnimas River is a river in the western United States, a tributary of the San Juan River, part of the Colorado River System. The Spanish named the river "Rio de las Animas Perdidas", "River of the Lost Souls". It is also the last free-flowing river in Colorado. The river's free-flowing status...
- Colorado municipalitiesColorado municipalitiesThe U.S. state of Colorado currently has 271 active incorporated municipalities, including 196 towns, 73 cities, and two consolidated city and county governments.-Municipal government:...
- Durango TelegraphDurango TelegraphThe Durango Telegraph is an independent weekly publication based in Durango, Colorado. The Telegraph began publication on August 22, 2002...
- Durango HeraldDurango HeraldThe Durango Herald is a daily newspaper in Durango, Colorado. The first edition of the Herald came out June 30, 1881. Two years later, the Herald merged with the Record, which had started publishing in 1880, seven months before the Herald. The modern Herald traces its roots to both papers but the...
- Durango Micropolitan Statistical AreaDurango Micropolitan Statistical AreaThe Durango Micropolitan Statistical Area is a United States Census Bureau defined Micropolitan Statistical Area located in the Durango area of the State of Colorado. The Durango Micropolitan Statistical Area is defined as La Plata County, Colorado. The Micropolitan Statistical Area had a...
- Durango Mountain ResortDurango Mountain ResortDurango Mountain Resort, also known by its former name Purgatory is a ski resort located in the San Juan Mountains of Southwest Colorado, north of the town of Durango. It was originally opened in 1965 and offers 85 trails, including 2 terrain parks, the Paradise Freestyle Arena and Pitchfork...
- Durango-Silverton Narrow-Gauge Railroad National Historic District
- La Plata County, ColoradoLa Plata County, ColoradoLa Plata County is the fourteenth most populous of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. The county was named for the La Plata River and the La Plata Mountains. "La plata" is the Spanish language word for "silver". The United States Census Bureau estimated that the...
- Mesa Verde National ParkMesa Verde National ParkMesa Verde National Park is a U.S. National Park and UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Montezuma County, Colorado, United States. It was created in 1906 to protect some of the best-preserved cliff dwellings in the world...
- Million Dollar Highway
- Old Spanish National Historic Trail
- State of Colorado