Mineral County

History

Before the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo was signed in 1848, all of what is now western Colorado was occupied by the Nuche, commonly known as the Ute people. In 1866, Kit Carson, Ouray, and Nicaagat negotiated a treaty that created the Ute Indian Reservation in 1868 in the western one-third of the Territory of Colorado. In 1869, White prospectors, illegally trespassing on the reservation, discovered silver in the San Juan Mountains. Seeking to open the San Juan Mountains to mining, the Brunot Agreement, ratified by Congress on April 24, 1874, forced the Ute people to cede all of the San Juan Mountains. Buoyed by renewed mining, Colorado became the 38th State on August 1 1876.

In the summer of 1889, prospector Nicholas C. Creede (nee William Harvey) discovered indications of silver along Willow Creek in Saguache County, and on June 26, 1890, Creede and G.L. Smith staked the Holy Moses mining claim. Several silver mining camps soon sprang up in the gulch, and the Creede Mining District was created in 1891. On May 12, 1891, the Willow, Colorado, post office opened, and on July 1, 1891, the name was changed to Creede. On January 25, 1892, the Amethyst, Colorado, post office opened near the Amethyst Mine at Jimtown just 1.1 miles (1.8 km) south of the Creede post office. The population of the area soon exceeded 7,000.

The two Creedes

In 1892, two rival municipalities named Creede were incorporated in the Creede Mining District. On March 19, 1892, the Town of Creede was incorporated around the Creede post office. On June 13, 1892, the rival City of Creede was incorporated around the Amethyst post office. On March 27, 1893, Mineral County was created, and on November 7, 1893, county voters selected the City of Creede as the new county seat. However, the City of Creede continued to use the Amethyst postal address.

In an attempt to avoid further confusion, the United States Post Office Department changed the name of the Creede post office to North Creede, Colorado, on November 28 1908, and changed the name of the Amethyst post office to Creede, Colorado, on February 9, 1909.

As silver mining declined, both municipalities lost population, and in 1916, the City of Creede became a statutory town, but continued to use the appellation City of Creede to distinguish itself from its northern rival. On April 15, 1919, the North Creede post office closed, and the Town of Creede soon ceased operation. It was not until July 23, 2026, that the Colorado Secretary of State declared the Town of Creede abandoned.

The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) uses the name "Town of the City of Creede" to identify the county seat and sole surviving municipality of Mineral County.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 878 square miles (2,270 km2), of which 876 square miles (2,270 km2) is land and 2.0 square miles (5.2 km2) (0.2%) is water.

Adjacent counties

Saguache County - northeast

Rio Grande County - east

Archuleta County - south

Hinsdale County - west

Major highways

U.S. Highway 160

State Highway 149

National protected areas

Rio Grande National Forest

San Juan National Forest

La Garita Wilderness

Weminuche Wilderness

Trails and byways

Colorado Trail

Continental Divide National Scenic Trail

Lake Fork National Recreation Trail

Silver Thread Scenic Byway

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 865. Of the residents, 10.6% were under the age of 18 and 34.2% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 56.8 years. For every 100 females there were 97.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 97.7 males. 0.0% of residents lived in urban areas and 100.0% lived in rural areas.

The racial makeup of the county was 91.2% White, 0.3% Black or African American, 0.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.0% from some other race, and 7.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 5.4% of the population.

There were 424 households in the county, of which 19.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 22.9% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 26.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 1,215 housing units, of which 65.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 80.2% were owner-occupied and 19.8% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.2%.

2000 census

At the 2000 census, there were 831 people in 377 households, including 251 families, in the county. The population density was 1 people per square mile (0.39 people/km2). There were 1,119 housing units at an average density of 1 units per square mile (0.39 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 96.87% White, 0.84% Native American, 0.12% from other races, and 2.17% from two or more races. 2.05% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 377 households 22.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.00% were married couples living together, 5.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.40% were non-families. 28.10% of households were one person and 9.80% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 2.70.

The age distribution was 20.50% under the age of 18, 4.70% from 18 to 24, 24.80% from 25 to 44, 32.70% from 45 to 64, and 17.30% 65 or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 104.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.10 males.

The median household income was $34,844 and the median family income was $40,833. Males had a median income of $28,750 versus $19,375 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,475. About 9.30% of families and 10.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.70% of those under age 18 and 10.60% of those age 65 or over.

Mineral County has an extremely high proportion of land under federal ownership, with 95% of the county under the management of the federal government (It houses an office of, and is surrounded by, the Rio Grande National Forest).

2015

As of 2015 the largest self-reported ancestry groups in Mineral County, Colorado are:

Politics

Like neighboring Hinsdale County, Mineral County leans Republican. It has only voted for Democrats twice since 1968 (although heavy third-party swing had a major role to play in each). Up through 1968, it was a Democratic-leaning swing county.

Communities

Town

Creede

Unincorporated communities

Spar City

Wagon Wheel Gap

Ghost towns

Bachelor City

Wason, Colorado

Weaver