Radium, elevation , is a small rural
unincorporated community
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 ...
in southwestern
Grand County,
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, 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 wes ...
,
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
. The community sits in the mountains along an isolated stretch of
Colorado River
The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...
downstream from
Gore Canyon and southwest of
Kremmling. The mainline of the
Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad
The Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad , often shortened to ''Rio Grande'', D&RG or D&RGW, formerly the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad, was an American Class I railroad company. The railroad started as a narrow-gauge line running south from D ...
(now the
Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...
) runs past the community, which is accessible by dirt and gravel roads only. The community of Radium consists of a cluster of houses on the north side of a bridge on the Colorado. The primary local industry is livestock ranching. The community is named for the element
radium
Radium is a chemical element with the symbol Ra and atomic number 88. It is the sixth element in group 2 of the periodic table, also known as the alkaline earth metals. Pure radium is silvery-white, but it readily reacts with nitrogen (rathe ...
, which was formerly mined in Colorado in the early 20th century.
The Radium Recreation Site, part of the Upper Colorado River Special Recreation Management Area managed by the Bureau of Land Management, is on the south bank of the Colorado River across from the community.
Radium Hot Springs
Radium Hot Springs, informally and commonly called Radium, is a village of 1,339 residents situated in the East Kootenay region of British Columbia. The village is named for the hot springs located in the nearby Kootenay National Park. From Ban ...
is located on the river bank, a few miles south of Radium, and about 15 miles from Kremmling.
See also
References
External links
Photos of Radium Hot SpringsRadium Quad topgraphic map
Unincorporated communities in Grand County, Colorado
Unincorporated communities in Colorado
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