San Miguel County, Colorado

San Miguel County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 8,072. The county seat is Telluride. The county is named for the San Miguel River.

History San Miguel County was given the Spanish language name for "Saint Michael" due to the nearby San Miguel River. On February 27, 1883, Ouray County was split to form San Miguel County. Originally the San Miguel County portion was to retain the name Ouray County with the new portion called Uncompahgre County.

Mining operators in the San Juan mountain area of Colorado formed the San Juan District Mining Association (SJDMA) in 1903, as a direct result of a Western Federation of Miners proposal to the Telluride Mining Association for the eight-hour day, which had been approved in a referendum by 72 percent of Colorado voters.Roughneck—The Life and Times of Big Bill Haywood, Peter Carlson, 1983, page 65. The new association consolidated the power of thirty-six mining properties in San Miguel, Ouray, and San Juan counties.The Corpse On Boomerang Road, Telluride's War On Labor 1899–1908, MaryJoy Martin, 2004, page 201. The SJDMA refused to consider any reduction in hours or increase in wages, helping to provoke a bitter strike.

In 1875, the Smuggler gold vein was discovered near Telluride. The Smuggler-Union, Tomboy, and Liberty Bell mines combined produced over a hundred tons of gold by 1920, third in the state of Colorado.Voynick, S.M., 1992, Colorado Gold, Missoula: Mountain Press Publishing Company,

Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.2%) is water.

Adjacent counties Montrose County - north Ouray County - east San Juan County - southeast Dolores County - south San Juan County, Utah - west

Major highways State Highway 62 State Highway 141 State Highway 145

National protected areas Lizard Head Wilderness Mount Sneffels Wilderness Old Spanish National Historic Trail Telluride National Historic District Uncompahgre National Forest

Trails and byways Great Parks Bicycle Route San Juan Skyway National Scenic Byway Unaweep/Tabeguache Scenic and Historic Byway Western Express Bicycle Route

Demographics

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 8,072. Of the residents, 19.3% were under the age of 18 and 14.2% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 41.0 years. For every 100 females there were 111.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 111.5 males. 56.8% of residents lived in urban areas and 43.2% lived in rural areas.

+San Miguel County, Colorado – Racial and ethnic compositionRace / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic)Pop 2000Pop 2010% 2000% 2010White alone (NH)5,9596,5146,75790.37%88.52%83.71%Black or African American alone (NH)1019200.15%0.26%0.25%Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH)4933470.74%0.45%0.58%Asian alone (NH)4952550.74%0.71%0.68%Pacific Islander alone (NH)4400.06%0.05%0.00%Other race alone (NH)258440.38%0.11%0.55%Mixed race or Multiracial (NH)59992670.89%1.35%3.31%Hispanic or Latino (any race)4396308826.66%8.56%10.93%Total6,5947,3598,072100.00%100.00%100.00%

The racial makeup of the county was 85.8% White, 0.3% Black or African American, 1.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 4.9% from some other race, and 7.2% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 10.9% of the population.

There were 3,597 households in the county, of which 26.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 22.4% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 32.5% of all households were made up of individuals and 8.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.

There were 6,551 housing units, of which 45.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 59.7% were owner-occupied and 40.3% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 16.4%.

2000 census

At the 2000 census there were 6,594 people, 3,015 households, and 1,423 families living in the county. The population density was . There were 5,197 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 93.57% White, 0.29% Black or African American, 0.85% Native American, 0.74% Asian, 0.08% Pacific Islander, 3.37% from other races, and 1.11% from two or more races. 8.6% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 3,015 households 22.80% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.30% were married couples living together, 5.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 52.80% were non-families. 32.70% of households were one person and 2.50% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.18 and the average family size was 2.77.

The age distribution was 17.60% under the age of 18, 9.90% from 18 to 24, 43.30% from 25 to 44, 25.80% from 45 to 64, and 3.40% 65 or older. The median age was 34 years. For every 100 females there were 120.80 males. For every 100 females age eighteen 18 and over, there were 126.40 males.

The median household income was $48,514 and the median family income was $60,417. Males had a median income of $35,922 versus $30,278 for females. The per capita income for the county was $35,329. About 6.60% of families and 10.40% of the population were below the poverty line, including 11.10% of those under age 18 and 8.00% of those age 65 or over.

Other statistics

In June 2021, U.S. News & World Report ranked the San Miguel County as having the best life expectancy in the United States at 100+ years old.

Among all counties in Colorado, San Miguel County has the highest percentage of adults over 25 with at least a bachelor's degree, with 65.2% measured between 2019 and 2023.

Politics For most of the 20th century, San Miguel County was a national bellwether. It voted for the winner in every presidential election from 1912 to 1984. Since 1988, the county has become one of the most Democratic in Colorado and the nation, largely due to the presence of the Telluride Ski Resort and the influx of liberal-minded voters in the 1960s and 1970s. These trends have made San Miguel similar in vein to other heavily Democratic ski resort counties like Blaine County in Idaho, Teton County in Wyoming, and Pitkin County within Colorado. In the 2000 presidential election, San Miguel County was Green Party candidate Ralph Nader's best countywide performance in the country with 17.2% of the vote.

Communities

Towns Mountain Village Norwood Ophir Sawpit Telluride (county seat)

Census-designated place

Placerville

Unincorporated communities Ames Egnar Pandora Sams Slick Rock Tomboy (ghost town)

Education School districts include: - Text list

Telluride School District R-1 Norwood School District R-2J Dolores County School District RE-2

San Miguel County, Colorado

Bron en licentie