Cripple Creek

City of Cripple Creek, Colorado
—  City  —
Entering Cripple Creek
Location in Teller County and the State of Colorado
Coordinates: 38°44′50″N 105°10′45″W / 38.74722°N 105.17917°W / 38.74722; -105.17917
Country	United States
State	State of Colorado
County	Teller County Seat[1]
Incorporated	June 9, 1892[2]
Government
- Type	Statutory City[1]
- Mayor	Dan Baader[3]
Area
- Total	1.1 sq mi (2.9 km2)
- Land	1.1 sq mi (2.9 km2)
- Water	0 sq mi (0 km2)
Elevation	9,494 ft (2,894 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	1,115
- Density	1,013.6/sq mi (384.5/km2)
Time zone	MST (UTC-7)
- Summer (DST)	MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP Code[4]	80813
Area code(s)	719
FIPS code	08-18530
GNIS feature ID	0204769
Website	City of Cripple Creek

The City of Cripple Creek is a Statutory City that is the county seat of Teller County, Colorado, United States.^[5] Cripple Creek is a former gold mining camp located 44 miles (71 km) southwest of Colorado Springs near the base of Pikes Peak. The Cripple Creek Historic District, which received National Historic Landmark status in 1961, includes part or all of city and includes surrounding area. The population was 1,115 at the 2000 census.

History

At an elevation of 9,494 feet and just below timberline, for many years Cripple Creek's high valley was considered no more important than a cattle pasture. Many prospectors avoided the area after the misnamed Mount Pisgah hoax, a mini gold rush caused by salting (adding gold to worthless rock).^[6]

View of Cripple Creek, circa 1900

Cripple Creek, 1957

On October 20, 1890, however, Robert Miller "Bob" Womack discovered a rich ore and the last great Colorado gold rush was on. Thousands of prospectors flocked to the region, and before long W. S. Stratton located the famous Independence lode, one of the largest gold strikes in history. In three years, the population increased from 500 to 10,000 by 1893. Though $500,000,000 worth of gold ore was dug from Cripple Creek, Womack himself would die, penniless, on August 10, 1909. [1]

By 1900 Cripple Creek and its sister city, Victor, were substantial communities.

During the 1890s, many of the miners in the Cripple Creek area joined a miners' union, the Western Federation of Miners (WFM). A significant strike took place in 1894, marking one of the few times in history that a sitting governor called out the national guard to protect miners from forces under the control of the mine owners. By 1903 the allegiance of the state government had shifted, however, and Governor James Peabody sent the Colorado National Guard into Cripple Creek with the goal of destroying union power in the gold camps. The WFM strike of 1903 and the governor's response precipitated the Colorado Labor Wars, a struggle that took many lives.

Through 2005, the Cripple Creek district produced about 23.5 million troy ounces (731 tonnes) of gold. The old underground mines are exhausted, but open pit mining has operated since 1994 east of Cripple Creek, near its sister city of Victor, Colorado.

With many empty storefronts and picturesque homes, Cripple Creek once drew interest as a ghost town. At one point the population dropped to a few hundred, although Cripple Creek was never entirely deserted. In the 1970s and 1980s travelers on photo safari might find themselves in a beautiful decaying historic town. A few restaurants and bars catered to tourists who could drive by weathered empty homes with lace curtains still hanging in broken windows.

Colorado voters allowed Cripple Creek to establish legalized gambling in 1991. Cripple Creek has a population of around 1500 residents and is currently more of a gambling and tourist town than a ghost town. Casinos now occupy many historic buildings. Casino gambling has been successful in bringing revenue and vitality back into the area.

Culture

Downtown Cripple Creek in January.

The Cripple Creek and Victor Narrow Gauge Railroad, a narrow gauge train ride from Cripple Creek passes several small ghost towns, goldmines, and glory holes. The Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine provides tours into a real gold mine led by a real gold miner.^[7]

In 2006 Cripple Creek broke ground on the new Pikes Peak Heritage Center. Constructed at a cost over $2.5 million, the building is over 11,000 square feet (1,000 m²) of educational displays. State of the art electronics are used throughout the building and there is also a theatre showing historical films about the area. Admission is free and there is no retail space in the building, so as to enhance the educational experience of visitors.

Cripple Creek is also home to the Butte Opera House, a theatre first managed by the Mackin family (previous owners of the Imperial Hotel and producers of a long-running, much-loved melodrama theatre company). The Butte is currently the home of the Thin Air Theatre Company that produces shows year-round.

From May through October, Cripple Creek features events like chili cook-offs, ice sculpture displays and pony express races. Cripple Creek also features a 1200-seat outdoor concert venue with several concerts through the season.

Geography

Overlooking the environs surrounding the city.

Cripple Creek is located at 38°44′50″N 105°10′45″W / 38.74722°N 105.17917°W / 38.74722; -105.17917 (38.747294, -105.179283)^[8].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 1.1 square miles (2.9 km²), all of it land.

Volcanic history

The gold-bearing area of the Cripple Creek district was the core of an ancient volcano of six square miles. Cripple Creek is in the Thirtynine Mile volcanic field. Free gold was found near the surface but at depth unoxidized tellurides and sulfides were found.

Demographics

As of the census^[9] of 2000, there were 1,115 people, 494 households, and 282 families residing in the city. The population density was 988.7 people per square mile (381.0/km²). There were 737 housing units at an average density of 653.5/sq mi (251.8/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 92.29% White, 0.90% African American, 2.15% Native American, 0.81% Asian, 1.43% from other races, and 2.42% from two or more races. 6.01% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 494 households out of which 23.3% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.7% were married couples living together, 7.9% had a female householder with no husband present, and 42.9% were non-families. 30.4% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.26 and the average family size was 2.82.

In the city the population was spread out with 22.2% under the age of 18, 10.4% from 18 to 24, 29.2% from 25 to 44, 30.2% from 45 to 64, and 8.0% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 104.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 100.0 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $39,261, and the median income for a family was $41,685. Males had a median income of $27,600 versus $25,000 for females. The per capita income for the city was $19,607. About 4.7% of families and 6.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.8% of those under age 18 and 6.1% of those age 65 or over.

Students are served by the Cripple Creek-Victor High School.

See also

Looking east on Bennett Avenue, early 20th century

• Colorado municipalities
• Colorado Springs Metropolitan Statistical Area
• Front Range Urban Corridor
• Gold Belt Tour National Scenic and Historic Byway
• South Central Colorado Urban Area
• Pearl de Vere

References

External links

• City website
  • CDOT map of Cripple Creek
• Travel website for Cripple Creek
• Cripple Creek at GhostTowns.com

• Cripple Creek, Colorado is at coordinates 38°44′50″N 105°10′45″W / 38.747294°N 105.179283°W / 38.747294; -105.179283 (Cripple Creek, Colorado)Coordinates: 38°44′50″N 105°10′45″W / 38.747294°N 105.179283°W / 38.747294; -105.179283 (Cripple Creek, Colorado)

v • d • e Municipalities and communities of Teller County, Colorado County seat: Cripple Creek Cities Cripple Creek | Victor | Woodland Park Town Green Mountain Falls‡ Unincorporated communities Altman | Crystola | Divide | Florissant Footnotes ‡This populated place also has portions in an adjacent county or counties