Evergreen is an

unincorporated town An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

, a

post office A post office is a public facility and a retailer that provides mail services, such as accepting letters and parcels, providing post office boxes, and selling postage stamps, packaging, and stationery. Post offices may offer additional serv ...

, and a census-designated place (CDP) located in and governed by Jefferson County,

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...

, U.S. The CDP is a part of the

Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area Denver is the central city of a conurbation region in the U.S. state of Colorado. The conurbation includes one continuous region consisting of the six central counties of Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield, Denver, Douglas, and Jefferson. The Denver re ...

. The Evergreen post office has the ZIP Codes 80439 and 80437 (for post office boxes). At th
United States Census 2020
the population of the Evergreen CDP was 9,307. The Evergreen Metropolitan District provides services.

History

The Evergreen post office has been in operation since 1876. The community was named for

evergreen In botany, an evergreen is a plant which has foliage that remains green and functional through more than one growing season. This also pertains to plants that retain their foliage only in warm climates, and contrasts with deciduous plants, which ...

trees surrounding the town. The Colorado Blue Spruce Monument is located in the town, in honor of the Colorado state tree.

Geography

Evergreen sits at an elevation of in the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...

, 19 miles west of

Denver, Colorado Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

. Its addresses are oriented according to the

Street_system_of_Denver The oldest part of Denver, Colorado, now the neighborhoods of Auraria Campus, LoDo, much of downtown, and Five Points, is laid out on a grid plan that is oriented diagonal to the four cardinal directions. The rest of the city, including the easte ...

. The Evergreen CDP has an area of , including of water, most of which being the Evergreen Reservoir.

Climate

According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

system, Evergreen has an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ( ...

, abbreviated "Cfb" on climate maps.

Demographics

The

United States Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau (USCB), officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. Federal Statistical System, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The Census Bureau is part of the ...

initially defined the for the

Law and government

Since Evergreen is an unincorporated area, services usually provided by a city's government are provided by multiple agencies. The county maintains the roads (less State Highway 74), oversees planning and zoning, provides primary and secondary education through its school district and provides law enforcement through its sheriff's office. Evergreen Fire/Rescue provides fire protection and emergency medical response service. Water and sewer services operate under the administration of the Evergreen Metropolitan District.

Transportation

The two major roads in Evergreen are State Highway 74 and County Highway 73. Highway 74 runs south from

Interstate 70 Interstate 70 (I-70) is a major east–west Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway in the United States that runs from Interstate 15, I-15 near Cove Fort, Utah, to a park and ride lot just east of Interstate 695 (Maryland), I-695 in ...

through Bergen Park and northern Evergreen to downtown, then turns east and follows Bear Creek Canyon to its end at State Highway 8 near Red Rocks Park. Highway 73 runs south from downtown Evergreen to connect with U.S. Highway 285 in Conifer. Bus service in Evergreen is offered by Denver

Regional Transportation District The Regional Transportation District, more commonly referred to as RTD, is the regional agency operating public transit services in eight out of the twelve counties in the Denver-Aurora-Boulder Combined Statistical Area in the U.S. state of Col ...

. TheRide regional routes E and Z run to downtown Denver and there is call-n-Ride curb-to-curb transportation service in town.

Sites of interest

Evergreen Lake, a popular recreation area, was created by damming Bear Creek in 1927. It sits above downtown Evergreen, which includes a mix of historic buildings and local businesses, including the well-known entertainment venue and restaurant The Little Bear. In the winter, ice skating is offered at Evergreen Lake. The skating season usually runs from mid-to-late December (approximately Christmas) to late March depending upon ice thickness and weather. Evergreen Lake is the venue of the annual Skate the Lake celebration that takes place on New Year's Eve and the Evergreen Pond Hockey Championship which usually takes place in the first weekend of January. Registered Historic Places in Evergreen include: *

Bergen Park Bergen Park is a park near Evergreen, Colorado. It is on the National Register of Historic Places. Bergen Park was established in 1859 when pioneer settler Thomas Cunningham Bergen built a log cabin on his land and named his property. See also ...

Dedisse Park Dedisse Park is a Denver Mountain Park located in Jefferson County, Colorado, USA. It was originally the scenic mountain ranch of 1860s pioneer Julius C. Dedisse; this of land was purchased by the City & County of Denver in 1919. In 1927-28 Denv ...

* Evergreen Conference District * Everhardt Ranch * Fillius Park * Hiwan Homestead * Humphrey House *

O'Fallon Park O'Fallon Park is a municipal park in St. Louis, Missouri, that opened in 1908. Description The park is named after John O'Fallon, a colonel who fought in the War of 1812 and nephew of William Clark. The park is 126.63 acres and was once part of O ...

* Pence Park

Major parks

Evergreen is surrounded by thousands of acres of land in the

Denver Mountain Parks The Denver Mountain Parks system contains more than of parklands in the mountains and foothills of Jefferson, Clear Creek, Douglas, and Grand counties in Colorado, west and south of Denver. Owned and maintained by the City and County of Denver ...

and Jefferson County Open Space park systems. The Denver Mountain Parks in the area are

, Corwina Park,

, Dillon Park, Fillius Park,

and Pence Park in Indian Hills. The Jefferson County Open Space Parks are Alderfer/Three Sisters, Elk Meadow, Lair o' the Bear, and Mount Falcon Park in Indian Hills. Hiwan Golf Club, a country club located just east of

, is Evergreen's only country club. Popular both in the summer and the winter, Evergreen Lake and its "Lake House" are recreational focal points for the region.

Education

Evergreen is served by the Jefferson County Public Schools. Schools in the Evergreen CDP include: *Bergen Valley Elementary School and Wilmot Elementary School *Evergreen Middle School * Evergreen High School Some other areas with Evergreen addresses to the south fall into the area for

Conifer High School Conifer High School is a secondary school in Conifer, an unincorporated town located in the foothills of Jefferson County, southwest of Denver, Colorado, United States. The school is located about 20 minutes southwest of SH 470 and a short dist ...

. Most students in the Evergreen area go to Evergreen Middle School. There are four elementary schools in the Evergreen area; Bergen Meadow, Bergen Valley, Wilmot, and Marshdale Elementary. Residents with Evergreen addresses west of the Clear Creek County line are served by Clear Creek Schools with students attending King-Murphy Elementary, Clear Creek Middle School, and Clear Creek High School. Private schools in Evergreen include Evergreen Academy, Evergreen Country Day School, Grace Christian School, and Montessori School Of Evergreen. Charter schools in Evergreen include Rocky Mountain Academy of Evergreen. It serves students K–8th grade. Open Enrollment - Jefferson Country school district is an open enrollment district. As long as there is sufficient space you can enroll your child in any Jefferson County school.

Notable residents

Jeffrey Ashby Jeffrey Shears Ashby (born June 16, 1954) is an American mechanical engineer, and former naval officer and aviator, test pilot and NASA astronaut, a veteran of three Space Shuttle missions. He is a retired Captain in the U.S. Navy. He currently w ...

, astronaut graduated from Evergreen High School in 1972 * Berkley Breathed, cartoonist, author, director, and screenwriter *

Jasmine Cresswell Jasmine Rosemary Cresswell (born 1941 in Wales) is a best-selling author of over 50 romance novels as Jasmine Cresswell and Jasmine Craig. Biography Jasmine Rosemary Cresswell was born in Wales and educated in London. After graduating early ...

, romance novelist *

Diane Mott Davidson Diane Mott Davidson (born ) is an American author of mystery novels that use the theme of food, an idea she got from Robert B. Parker. Several recipes are included in each book, and each novel title is a play on a food or drink word. Her story ...

, author *

Nate Dern Nate Dern (born November 30, 1984) is an American writer and actor. His first book, ''Not Quite a Genius'', was published by Simon & Schuster on August 8, 2017. Dern is a senior writer at Funny Or Die and the former artistic director of the Uprig ...

, author and comedian *

Joanne Greenberg Joanne Greenberg (born September 24, 1932, in Brooklyn, New York) is an American author who published some of her work under the pen name of Hannah Green. She was a professor of anthropology at the Colorado School of Mines and a volunteer Emerge ...

, author * Scott Hamilton, Olympic gold medal figure skater *

Gary Hart Gary Warren Hart (''né'' Hartpence; born November 28, 1936) is an American politician, diplomat, and lawyer. He was the front-runner for the 1988 Democratic presidential nomination until he dropped out amid revelations of extramarital affairs. ...

, U.S. senator and diplomat * John Hinckley, Jr., shot President Ronald Reagan, lived in Evergreen *

Noah Hoffman Noah Hoffman (born August 1, 1989) is a retired American Olympic cross-country skier. He competed for the United States at the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi, Russia, and in the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea. Personal Hoffm ...

, Olympic cross country skier *

Kevin Kouzmanoff Kevin Kouzmanoff (born July 25, 1981) is an American former professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland Indians, San Diego Padres, Oakland Athletics, Colorado Rockies and Texas Rangers. Ko ...

, MLB player grew up in Evergreen and graduated from Evergreen High School in 1999 *

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album ''Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of ''Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (197 ...

, singer and songwriter owned a 44-acre ranch in Evergreen for several years *

Trey Parker Randolph Severn "Trey" Parker III (born October 19, 1969) is an American actor, animator, filmmaker, and composer. He is known for co-creating ''South Park'' (since 1997) and '' The Book of Mormon'' (2011) with his creative partner Matt Stone. ...

South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boys Stan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand th ...

co-creator graduated from Evergreen High School in 1988 *

Jake Roper Jacob Alexander Roper (born January 25, 1987) is an American Internet celebrity primarily known for hosting the Vsauce3 YouTube channel, which is part of the YouTube channel brand Vsauce. Career Prior to working on YouTube, Roper used his fil ...

, Internet personality *

Peter Scanavino Peter Muller Scanavino (born February 29, 1980) is an American actor. He currently stars as ADA Dominick "Sonny" Carisi Jr. in the long-running NBC crime/legal drama series '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit''. Career Since 2005, Scanavino ha ...

, actor

References

External links

Evergreen @ Colorado.comEvergreen @ UncoverColorado.comEvergreen Metropolitan DistrictEvergreen Park & Recreation DistrictEvergreen Area Chamber of CommerceThe Evergreen ExperienceHistoric Downtown EvergreenJefferson County websiteJeffco Public Schools
{{authority control Census-designated places in Jefferson County, Colorado Census-designated places in Colorado Denver metropolitan area