Craig, Colorado
Craig, Colorado | |
---|---|
PO Box) | |
Area code | 970 |
FIPS code | 08-17760 |
GNIS feature ID | 2410255[6] |
Website | www |
Craig is a
History
Founded by William H. Tucker, Craig was incorporated as a city on July 15, 1908. The town was named for one of the town's financial backers, Reverend William Bayard Craig.[8][9]
Craig became the county seat when Moffat County was created out of the western portion of Routt County on February 27, 1911. In the same area as Craig, at the confluence of the Yampa River (then known as the Bear River) and Fortification Creek, were previous towns known as Yampa (as early as 1885) and Windsor (as early as 1878). In 1878, the area consisted of a number of ranches and at least two businesses: Himley's Ferry (which allowed crossing of the Yampa River) and Peck's Store (a one-room trading post).
In the 1970s and early 1980s, the largest power generation plant in Colorado[10] and several coal mines were constructed near Craig.
Geography
At the
Climate
Under the
The record high temperature is 101 °F (38 °C), which occurred first on July 9, 2021, July 10, 2021, and most recently July 17, 2023, while the record low is −51 °F (−46 °C), which occurred on February 6, 1989.
Climate data for Craig, Colorado, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1981–present | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 52 (11) |
61 (16) |
77 (25) |
81 (27) |
91 (33) |
99 (37) |
101 (38) |
98 (37) |
96 (36) |
86 (30) |
72 (22) |
59 (15) |
101 (38) |
Mean maximum °F (°C) | 43.4 (6.3) |
47.6 (8.7) |
63.1 (17.3) |
74.0 (23.3) |
81.9 (27.7) |
90.9 (32.7) |
95.0 (35.0) |
92.7 (33.7) |
87.7 (30.9) |
76.6 (24.8) |
63.6 (17.6) |
47.9 (8.8) |
95.4 (35.2) |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 30.6 (−0.8) |
35.7 (2.1) |
48.2 (9.0) |
58.5 (14.7) |
69.1 (20.6) |
81.2 (27.3) |
89.2 (31.8) |
86.5 (30.3) |
77.2 (25.1) |
62.3 (16.8) |
46.6 (8.1) |
32.2 (0.1) |
59.8 (15.4) |
Daily mean °F (°C) | 16.8 (−8.4) |
22.2 (−5.4) |
34.0 (1.1) |
42.9 (6.1) |
51.8 (11.0) |
60.9 (16.1) |
68.3 (20.2) |
66.3 (19.1) |
57.1 (13.9) |
44.4 (6.9) |
31.8 (−0.1) |
18.7 (−7.4) |
42.9 (6.1) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 3.0 (−16.1) |
8.6 (−13.0) |
19.8 (−6.8) |
27.3 (−2.6) |
34.5 (1.4) |
40.6 (4.8) |
47.3 (8.5) |
46.0 (7.8) |
36.9 (2.7) |
26.4 (−3.1) |
17.1 (−8.3) |
5.3 (−14.8) |
26.1 (−3.3) |
Mean minimum °F (°C) | −21.3 (−29.6) |
−18.0 (−27.8) |
−1.0 (−18.3) |
12.8 (−10.7) |
22.6 (−5.2) |
30.3 (−0.9) |
37.4 (3.0) |
36.1 (2.3) |
24.2 (−4.3) |
11.6 (−11.3) |
−3.0 (−19.4) |
−18.0 (−27.8) |
−27.6 (−33.1) |
Record low °F (°C) | −44 (−42) |
−51 (−46) |
−24 (−31) |
−2 (−19) |
12 (−11) |
23 (−5) |
30 (−1) |
25 (−4) |
10 (−12) |
−14 (−26) |
−21 (−29) |
−39 (−39) |
−51 (−46) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.91 (23) |
0.89 (23) |
0.99 (25) |
1.67 (42) |
1.63 (41) |
0.99 (25) |
0.93 (24) |
0.97 (25) |
1.75 (44) |
1.48 (38) |
0.99 (25) |
0.90 (23) |
14.10 (358) |
Average snowfall inches (cm) | 15.5 (39) |
13.4 (34) |
12.2 (31) |
5.8 (15) |
0.8 (2.0) |
0.1 (0.25) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.3 (0.76) |
2.9 (7.4) |
10.6 (27) |
14.6 (37) |
76.2 (193.41) |
Average extreme snow depth inches (cm) | 11.2 (28) |
9.8 (25) |
6.6 (17) |
2.9 (7.4) |
1.0 (2.5) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
2.3 (5.8) |
5.0 (13) |
9.2 (23) |
12.9 (33) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 10.0 | 9.5 | 10.0 | 11.2 | 10.1 | 6.7 | 7.5 | 8.9 | 7.4 | 9.2 | 8.2 | 9.9 | 108.6 |
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 8.3 | 6.4 | 5.6 | 2.4 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 1.4 | 5.3 | 6.9 | 37.0 |
Source 1: NOAA (snow/snow days 1981–2010)[11][12] | |||||||||||||
Source 2: National Weather Service[13] |
Demographics
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1910 | 392 | — | |
1920 | 1,297 | 230.9% | |
1930 | 1,418 | 9.3% | |
1940 | 2,123 | 49.7% | |
1950 | 3,080 | 45.1% | |
1960 | 3,984 | 29.4% | |
1970 | 4,205 | 5.5% | |
1980 | 8,133 | 93.4% | |
1990 | 8,091 | −0.5% | |
2000 | 9,189 | 13.6% | |
2010 | 9,464 | 3.0% | |
2020 | 9,060 | −4.3% | |
U.S. Decennial Census |
As of the
There were 3,525 households, out of which 38.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.3% were married couples living together, 9.6% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.0% were non-families. 25.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 8.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.53 and the average family size was 3.05.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 28.5% under the age of 18, 9.6% from 18 to 24, 30.1% from 25 to 44, 21.9% from 45 to 64, and 9.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.4 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $41,091, and the median income for a family was $45,504. Males had a median income of $38,038 versus $21,806 for females. The
Transportation
Craig was the terminus of the never-finished Denver and Salt Lake Railway. While the tracks still exist to Craig, the effort to finish this line was abandoned, and the tracks to Craig became a spur route.[15]
Steamboat Transit Service (SST) provides three daily departures in the morning in summer and three in winter from Craig that travel through Hayden, Milner and Steamboat II before arriving in
Colorado's Bustang Service also provides transportation to the Front Range of Colorado.
Hunting
Craig is, according to the local chamber of commerce, "Elk Hunting Capital of the World".[16]
Notable people
- Edwin C. Johnson (January 1, 1884 – May 30, 1970) was an American politician of the Democratic Party who served as both governor of and U.S. senator from the state of Colorado.
- Jennifer LeRoy (b. January 7, 1974) is an American model and actress. She was chosen as Playboy's Playmate of the Month in February 1993.
- Lance Corporal in the United States Marine Corps who became known when Lt. Col. Michael Strobl escorted his remains from Iraq. Lt. Col. Strobl recorded his account of the escort in "Taking Chance", an article which was later made into a full-length movie by HBO under the same title.
- Dennis Preece (March 4, 1940 - April 25, 1997) was a Hall of Fame wrestling coach who attended the local high school in Craig, Colorado graduating in 1958.
- Angus Ellis Taylor (October 13, 1911 – April 6, 1999) was a Mathematician and Chancellor of UC Santa Cruz.
See also
References
- ^ a b c "Active Colorado Municipalities". Colorado Department of Local Affairs. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
- ^ "Colorado Counties". State of Colorado, Colorado Department of Local Affairs, Division of Local Government. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
- ^ "2014 U.S. Gazetteer Files: Places". United States Census Bureau. July 1, 2014. Retrieved January 5, 2015.
- ^ "Colorado Municipal Incorporations". State of Colorado, Department of Personnel & Administration, Colorado State Archives. December 1, 2004. Retrieved September 2, 2007.
- ^ a b c d "Decennial Census P.L. 94-171 Redistricting Data". United States Census Bureau, United States Department of Commerce. August 12, 2021. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
- ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Craig, Colorado
- ^ "ZIP Code Lookup". United States Postal Service. Archived from the original (JavaScript/HTML) on November 4, 2010. Retrieved September 6, 2007.
- ^ "Profile for Craig, Colorado, CO". ePodunk. Archived from the original on April 4, 2012. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
- ^ Dawson, John Frank (1954). Place names in Colorado: why 700 communities were so named, 150 of Spanish or Indian origin. Denver, CO: The J. Frank Dawson Publishing Co. p. 15.
- ^ 1. Craig, Colorado Chamber of Commerce Website
- ^ "U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access – Station: Craig Moffat CO AP, CO (1991–2020)". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
- ^ "U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access – Station: Craig 4 SW, CO(1981–2020)". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
- ^ "NOAA Online Weather Data – NWS Grand Junction". National Weather Service. Retrieved February 9, 2023.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved January 31, 2008.
- ^ "The Moffat Railroad". Museum of Northwest Colorado. Archived from the original on January 12, 2019. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
- ^ "Hunting in Craig and Moffat County, Colorado". Archived from the original on November 1, 2017. Retrieved November 15, 2017.