Montrose, Colorado
| City of Montrose, Colorado | |
|---|---|
| Home Rule Municipality | |
|
Main Street | |
| Motto: "Quality Of Life Is Our Commitment " | |
 Location in Montrose County and the State of Colorado | |
| Coordinates: 38°28′37″N 107°51′56″W / 38.47694°N 107.86556°WCoordinates: 38°28′37″N 107°51′56″W / 38.47694°N 107.86556°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Colorado |
| County | Montrose County Seat[1] |
| Incorporated | May 1, 1882[2] |
| Government | |
| • Type | Home Rule Municipality[1] |
| • Mayor | Bob Nicholson[3] |
| • City Manager | William E. Bell[4] |
| Area | |
| • Total | 11.9 sq mi (30.8 km2) |
| • Land | 11.9 sq mi (30.8 km2) |
| • Water | 0.1 sq mi (0.2 km2) |
| Elevation | 5,647 ft (1,721 m) |
| Population (2015) | |
| • Total | 19,217 |
| • Density | 1,614.8/sq mi (4,182.3/km2) |
| Time zone | MST (UTC-7) |
| • Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) |
| ZIP codes[5] | 81401, 81402 (PO Box), 81403 |
| Area code(s) | 970 |
| FIPS code | 08-51745 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0203328 |
| Website | City of Montrose |
The City of Montrose is the Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Montrose County, Colorado, United States.[6] The city population was 19,132 at the 2010 United States Census. The main road that leads in and out of Montrose is U.S. Highway 50.
History
Montrose was incorporated on May 2, 1882 and named after Sir Walter Scott's novel A Legend of Montrose. The Denver & Rio Grande railroad building west toward Grand Junction reached Montrose later in 1882, and the town became an important regional shipping center. A branch railroad line served the mineral-rich San Juan Mountains to the south.
In 1909 the US government completed construction of the Gunnison Tunnel, which provided irrigation water from the Gunnison River in the Black Canyon to the Uncompahgre Valley, helping turn Montrose into an agricultural hub. The Uncompahgre Project is one of the oldest of those in the area by the US Bureau of Reclamation.
Today the canal is also used for recreation: water rushing through the canal below the tunnel creates a kayak-surfing spot called the M-wave.[7] Tourist and recreation opportunities are important to the regional economy. Montrose is a gateway to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park to the east of town; in the winter, it is a transportation hub for ski areas of the San Juan Mountains to the south.
Early in the area's history, prehistoric people lived in the Montrose vicinity and left rock art panels at the Shavano Valley Rock Art Site from 1000 BC or earlier until about AD 1881. The panels recorded cultural events and were a means of artistic expression. The site is listed on the Colorado State Register of Historic Properties and the National Register of Historic Places.[8]
Montrose is the birthplace of the acclaimed American screenwriter and novelist Dalton Trumbo, who scripted films including Roman Holiday, Exodus, Spartacus, and Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo.
Geography
Montrose is located at 38°28′37″N 107°51′56″W / 38.47694°N 107.86556°W (38.476952, -107.865544).[9]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 11.5 square miles (30 km2), all of it land.
Demographics
As of the census[10] of 2000, there were 12,344 people, 5,244 households, and 3,319 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,076.3 people per square mile (415.5/km²). There were 5,581 housing units at an average density of 486.6 per square mile (187.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 89.01% White, 0.44% African American, 0.98% Native American, 0.58% Asian, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 6.55% from other races, and 2.38% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 17.36% of the population.
There were 5,244 households out of which 28.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.8% were married couples living together, 10.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.7% were non-families. 31.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 16.2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29 and the average family size was 2.88.
In the city the population was spread out with 23.9% under the age of 18, 7.2% from 18 to 24, 25.8% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 20.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 90.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 87.2 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $33,750, and the median income for a family was $42,017. Males had a median income of $30,674 versus $21,067 for females. The per capita income for the city was $18,097. About 11.3% of families and 14.7% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.9% of those under age 18 and 9.8% of those age 65 or over.
| Historical population | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Census | Pop. | %± | |
| 1890 | 1,330 | — | |
| 1900 | 1,217 | −8.5% | |
| 1910 | 3,254 | 167.4% | |
| 1920 | 3,581 | 10.0% | |
| 1930 | 3,566 | −0.4% | |
| 1940 | 4,764 | 33.6% | |
| 1950 | 4,964 | 4.2% | |
| 1960 | 5,044 | 1.6% | |
| 1970 | 6,496 | 28.8% | |
| 1980 | 8,722 | 34.3% | |
| 1990 | 8,854 | 1.5% | |
| 2000 | 12,344 | 39.4% | |
| 2010 | 19,132 | 55.0% | |
| Est. 2014 | 19,045 | [11] | −0.5% |
Climate
Montrose features a semi-arid-Continental climate zone. It sits on high grasslands in the Uncompahgre Valley of Western Colorado. Snowfall does occur during the winter, but snow is usually short lived in this region due to the high altitude, and abundant sunshine.
| Climate data for Montrose, Colorado | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Average high °F (°C) | 35.8 (2.1) |
42.4 (5.8) |
52.7 (11.5) |
62.2 (16.8) |
72.1 (22.3) |
83.2 (28.4) |
88.3 (31.3) |
85.2 (29.6) |
77.2 (25.1) |
64.9 (18.3) |
50.1 (10.1) |
37.6 (3.1) |
62.6 (17) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 12.3 (−10.9) |
19.9 (−6.7) |
26.5 (−3.1) |
33.5 (0.8) |
41.3 (5.2) |
48.8 (9.3) |
54.7 (12.6) |
53.0 (11.7) |
45.0 (7.2) |
34.5 (1.4) |
23.1 (−4.9) |
13.9 (−10.1) |
33.9 (1.1) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.62 (15.7) |
0.49 (12.4) |
0.65 (16.5) |
0.87 (22.1) |
0.87 (22.1) |
0.50 (12.7) |
0.80 (20.3) |
1.24 (31.5) |
1.00 (25.4) |
1.02 (25.9) |
0.61 (15.5) |
0.68 (17.3) |
9.35 (237.5) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 6.9 (17.5) |
3.7 (9.4) |
3.3 (8.4) |
1.5 (3.8) |
0.2 (0.5) |
0.0 (0) |
0.0 (0) |
0.0 (0) |
0.0 (0) |
0.6 (1.5) |
2.8 (7.1) |
6.1 (15.5) |
25.1 (63.8) |
| Source: www.wrcc.dri.edu/[13] | |||||||||||||
Transportation
Montrose Regional Airport serves the Montrose area with regional service to Denver. As the nearest major airport to the Telluride Ski Area, Montrose sees heavy seasonal service.
Major highways
US 50 runs east-west, crossing 12 states. It links Sacramento, California with Ocean City, Maryland. In Colorado, it connects Montrose to Grand Junction, Gunnison and Pueblo.
US 550 comes all the way from Bernalillo, New Mexico (just north of Albuquerque), via Durango and Ridgway, reaching its end at the corner of Townsend Avenue and Main Street, in Montrose.
In popular culture
- The 2011 video game Homefront is set mostly in Montrose, where a resistance movement in 2027 is defying Korean occupation in the U.S.
- In the A&E reality show, Dog the Bounty Hunter, Montrose is featured in 4 episodes.
- Scenes from the motion picture releases The Sheepman, How the West Was Won and the original version of True Grit (1969 film) were filmed in Montrose and the surrounding area.
- The television series, Then Came Bronson, starring Michael Parks, had the episodes “Old Tigers Never Die; They Just Run Away” and “Mating Dance for Tender Grass” filmed in and around Montrose.[14]
See also
- Outline of Colorado
- State of Colorado
- Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
- Colorado Mesa University
- Montrose Botanic Gardens
- Old Spanish National Historic Trail
- Ute Indian Museum
References
- 1 2 "Active Colorado Municipalities". State of Colorado, Department of Local Affairs. Retrieved 2007-09-01.
- ↑ "Colorado Municipal Incorporations". State of Colorado, Department of Personnel & Administration, Colorado State Archives. 2004-12-01. Retrieved 2007-09-02.
- ↑ "Council Members". City of Montrose, Colorado. Retrieved 2013-10-08.
- ↑ "City Manager". City of Montrose, Colorado. Retrieved 2013-10-08.
- ↑ "ZIP Code Lookup" (JavaScript/HTML). United States Postal Service. Retrieved November 23, 2007.
- ↑ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
- ↑ Jared Seiler, Dave Fusilli Jared Seiler and Alex Hoetz surfing the M-Wave in Montrose Colorado, YouTube, 6 September 2007.
- ↑ National & State Registers for Montrose County, Colorado. Colorado Historical Society, Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation. Retrieved 10-8-2011.
- ↑ "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. 2011-02-12. Retrieved 2011-04-23.
- ↑ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
- ↑ "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2014". Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ↑ "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
- ↑ http://www.wrcc.dri.edu/cgi-bin/cliMAIN.pl?co5717
- ↑ "Then came Bronson". Montrose Daily Press (Wick Communications). 2008-02-28. Retrieved 2014-01-02.
External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Montrose, Colorado. |
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Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Montrose, Colorado. |
- City of Montrose official website
- VisitMontrose official visitor website
- Montrose County website
- Official City Street Map
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