Lamar, Colorado
Lamar, Colorado | ||
---|---|---|
FIPS code 08-43110 | | |
GNIS feature ID | 203835[3] | |
Website | City Website |
Lamar is the
History
Lamar was founded on May 24, 1886, by Issac Holmes.
The northern site of the Pierre Auger Observatory of ultra-high energy cosmic rays is planned to be built near Lamar.[12]
Geography and climate
The city lies in southeastern Colorado in northwestern Prowers County on the south side of the Arkansas River floodplain. Las Animas is about twenty miles to the west.[13]
According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.2 square miles (11 km2), all land.
Transportation
Lamar receives intercity passenger rail service at the Lamar Amtrak Station via Amtrak's Southwest Chief, which runs between Chicago and Los Angeles. There is also intercity bus service provided by Bustang. Lamar is the last eastbound stop of the Lamar-Pueblo-Colorado Springs Outrider line.
Highways
- US 50 is an east–west highway running from California to Maryland. It is also the main route to Pueblo and Las Animas.
- Prowers County Road 196 (state has abandoned the highway) is an 11.4-mile (18.3 km) stretch that connects around Lamar to Wiley.
- US 85 in Deadwood, South Dakota.
Climate
According to the
Climate data for Lamar, Colorado (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1893–present) | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
Record high °F (°C) | 82 (28) |
86 (30) |
94 (34) |
98 (37) |
103 (39) |
111 (44) |
111 (44) |
110 (43) |
106 (41) |
99 (37) |
89 (32) |
82 (28) |
111 (44) |
Mean maximum °F (°C) | 66.3 (19.1) |
72.3 (22.4) |
82.9 (28.3) |
88.9 (31.6) |
95.7 (35.4) |
102.7 (39.3) |
103.7 (39.8) |
101.6 (38.7) |
98.3 (36.8) |
90.3 (32.4) |
78.6 (25.9) |
66.5 (19.2) |
105.2 (40.7) |
Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 45.1 (7.3) |
49.2 (9.6) |
60.2 (15.7) |
68.4 (20.2) |
77.7 (25.4) |
88.7 (31.5) |
93.3 (34.1) |
90.6 (32.6) |
83.5 (28.6) |
69.9 (21.1) |
56.4 (13.6) |
45.5 (7.5) |
69.0 (20.6) |
Daily mean °F (°C) | 29.4 (−1.4) |
33.1 (0.6) |
43.3 (6.3) |
52.2 (11.2) |
62.2 (16.8) |
73.1 (22.8) |
78.1 (25.6) |
75.7 (24.3) |
67.5 (19.7) |
53.0 (11.7) |
39.9 (4.4) |
30.0 (−1.1) |
53.1 (11.7) |
Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 13.7 (−10.2) |
17.0 (−8.3) |
26.3 (−3.2) |
36.1 (2.3) |
46.8 (8.2) |
57.5 (14.2) |
62.9 (17.2) |
60.9 (16.1) |
51.5 (10.8) |
36.0 (2.2) |
23.3 (−4.8) |
14.4 (−9.8) |
37.2 (2.9) |
Mean minimum °F (°C) | −1.5 (−18.6) |
2.1 (−16.6) |
10.3 (−12.1) |
21.4 (−5.9) |
32.7 (0.4) |
45.3 (7.4) |
54.5 (12.5) |
53.0 (11.7) |
37.8 (3.2) |
21.1 (−6.1) |
8.7 (−12.9) |
−1.9 (−18.8) |
−7.2 (−21.8) |
Record low °F (°C) | −29 (−34) |
−30 (−34) |
−23 (−31) |
8 (−13) |
20 (−7) |
33 (1) |
43 (6) |
40 (4) |
23 (−5) |
1 (−17) |
−12 (−24) |
−23 (−31) |
−30 (−34) |
Average precipitation inches (mm) | 0.33 (8.4) |
0.42 (11) |
0.72 (18) |
1.46 (37) |
1.93 (49) |
2.53 (64) |
2.81 (71) |
2.78 (71) |
1.19 (30) |
1.08 (27) |
0.48 (12) |
0.46 (12) |
16.19 (411) |
Average snowfall inches (cm) | 6.3 (16) |
5.4 (14) |
4.7 (12) |
1.7 (4.3) |
0.1 (0.25) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
2.1 (5.3) |
3.6 (9.1) |
5.9 (15) |
29.8 (76) |
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 2.7 | 3.0 | 4.2 | 5.8 | 7.5 | 7.4 | 8.3 | 7.4 | 4.6 | 4.3 | 3.4 | 3.2 | 61.8 |
Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 2.2 | 2.0 | 1.5 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.4 | 1.3 | 2.1 | 10.4 |
Source: NOAA[14][15] |
Demographics
Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
---|---|---|---|
1890 | 566 | — | |
1900 | 987 | 74.4% | |
1910 | 2,977 | 201.6% | |
1920 | 2,512 | −15.6% | |
1930 | 4,233 | 68.5% | |
1940 | 4,445 | 5.0% | |
1950 | 6,829 | 53.6% | |
1960 | 7,369 | 7.9% | |
1970 | 7,797 | 5.8% | |
1980 | 7,713 | −1.1% | |
1990 | 8,343 | 8.2% | |
2000 | 8,869 | 6.3% | |
2010 | 7,804 | −12.0% | |
2020 | 7,687 | −1.5% | |
U.S. Decennial Census |
As of the
There were 3,102 households, out of which 42.2% were married couples living together, 15.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.2% were non-families. 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals living alone, and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.07.
In the city, the population was spread out, with 27.8% under the age of 18, 10.4% from 18 to 24, 23.4% from 25 to 44, 24.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.8 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $31,521, and the median income for a family was $43,588. Males working full-time and year-round had a median income of $31,621 versus $30,148 for females. The
Education
Lamar is part of School District RE-2,[17][18] and it is home to Lamar Community College.[19]
Economy and health care
Lamar was originally founded as a town with an agriculture-based economy. In 1981, German bus manufacturer Neoplan opened a manufacturing plant employing 650, but it closed down in 2006.[20][21] Lamar has increasingly relied on tourism.[11]
Prowers Medical Center, a critical access hospital, serves Lamar and Prowers County. The hospital has an emergency department that is a level IV trauma center.[22]
Notable people
Notable individuals who were born in or have lived in Lamar include:
- U.S. Senator from Colorado[23]
- Marvin Ash (1914-1974), jazz pianist[24]
- Ken Curtis (1916-1991), actor, singer[25]
- Scott Elarton (1976- ), baseball pitcher[26]
- Curt Gentry (1931-2014), journalist, non-fiction author[27]
- Gerald Gregg (1907-1985), illustrator, book cover artist[28]
- U.S. Representative from California[29]
- Floyd D. Hall (1916-2012), pilot, airline executive[30]
- Sharon Herbaugh (1954 - 1993), war correspondent for the Associated Press[31]
- Wesley Tuttle (1917-2003), singer-songwriter, guitarist[32]
- Sandy Vance (1947- ), baseball pitcher[33]
See also
- Colorado
- Madonna of the Trail monument
- National Old Trails Road
- Santa Fe National Historic Trail
- The Lamar Ledger
References
- ^ a b c "Active Colorado Municipalities". State of Colorado, Colorado Department of Local Affairs, Division of Local Government. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
- ^ "Colorado Counties". State of Colorado, Colorado Department of Local Affairs, Division of Local Government. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
- ^ a b c "Lamar". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
- ^ "Colorado Municipal Incorporations". State of Colorado, Department of Personnel & Administration, Colorado State Archives. December 1, 2004. Retrieved September 2, 2007.
- ^ "2009 - 2011 City Elected Officials". City of Lamar. Retrieved November 25, 2011.
- ^ "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
- ^ a b United States Census Bureau. "Lamar city; Colorado". Retrieved April 20, 2023.
- ^ "ZIP Code Lookup". United States Postal Service. Archived from the original (JavaScript/HTML) on November 4, 2010. Retrieved November 13, 2007.
- ^ "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
- ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Government Printing Office. p. 180.
- ^ a b "City of Lamar, Colorado Cultural Resource Survey: Architectural & Historical Survey Report" (PDF). historycolorado.com. October 2012. Retrieved October 3, 2017.
- ^ "Pierre Auger Observatory - Northern Auger Site". Archived from the original on July 9, 2011. Retrieved July 14, 2011.
- ISBN 0899332889
- ^ "NOWData – NOAA Online Weather Data". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
- ^ "Summary of Monthly Normals 1991–2020". National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
- ^ "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
- ^ Lamar School District Archived 2011-08-11 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Lamar School District RE-2". Retrieved January 10, 2014.
- ^ "About LCC". Retrieved January 10, 2014.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
- ^ "Casper Star-Tribune from Casper, Wyoming". Newspapers.com. November 30, 2005. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
- ^ "Prowers Medical Center". American Hospital Directory. February 2, 2024. Retrieved March 17, 2024.
- ^ "Allott, Gordon Llewellyn, (1907-1989)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. U.S. Congress. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- ^ Edwards, Bill. "Marvin E. Ashbaugh". RagPiano.com. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- ^ "Ken Curtis (I)". IMDb. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- ^ "Scott Elarton". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- ^ Nolte, Carl (July 19, 2014). "Curt Gentry dies: best-selling writer of Manson, Hoover books". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- ^ "Summary Bibliography: Gerald Gregg". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- ^ "Grisham, Wayne Richard, (1923-2011)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. U.S. Congress. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- ^ Hevesi, Dennis (May 3, 2012). "Floyd D. Hall, Head of Eastern Airlines, Dies at 96". The New York Times. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
- ^ "Obituary: Sharon Herbaugh". October 23, 2011.
- ^ "Wesley Tuttle [Obituary]". The Independent. October 15, 2003. Archived from the original on July 30, 2011. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
{{cite news}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Sandy Vance". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved June 21, 2016.
Further reading
- The National Old Trails Road To Southern California, Part 1 (LA to KC); Automobile Club Of Southern California; 64 pages; 1916. (Download 6.8MB PDF eBook)
- Thomas Lamar Coughlin "Those Southern Lamars" ISBN 0-7388-2410-0