La Plata County is a county located in the U.S. state of

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 the ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 55,638. The

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or civil parish. The term is in use in Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, Taiwan, and the United States. The equivalent term shire town is used in the US ...

is Durango. The county was named for the La Plata River and the

La Plata Mountains The La Plata Mountains are a small subrange of the San Juan Mountains in the southwestern part of Colorado, United States. They are located on the border between Montezuma and La Plata counties, about northwest of Durango. Their name is Spanish ...

. "La plata" means "the silver" in Spanish. La Plata County comprises the Durango, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area. The county is home to Durango Rock Shelters Archeology Site, the type site for the Basketmaker II period of

Anasazi The Ancestral Puebloans, also known as the Anasazi, were an ancient Native American culture that spanned the present-day Four Corners region of the United States, comprising southeastern Utah, northeastern Arizona, northwestern New Mexico, ...

culture.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.4%) is water.

Adjacent counties

* San Juan County - north * Hinsdale County - northeast * Archuleta County - east * San Juan County,

New Mexico ) , population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano) , seat = Santa Fe, New Mexico, Santa Fe , LargestCity = Albuquerque, New Mexico, Albuquerque , LargestMetro = Albuquerque metropolitan area, Tiguex , Offi ...

- south *

Montezuma County Montezuma County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the population was 25,849. The county seat is Cortez, Colorado, Cortez. Mesa Verde National Park, Canyons of the Ancients N ...

- west * Dolores County - northwest

Major Highways

U.S. Highway 160 U.S. Route 160 (US 160) is a 1,465 mile (2,358 km) long east–west United States highway in the Midwestern and Western United States. The western terminus of the route is at U.S. Route 89 (Arizona), US 89 five miles (8 km) ...

U.S. Highway 550 * Colorado 140

State Highway 140 * Colorado 151

State Highway 151 * Colorado 172

State Highway 172

Demographics

As of the

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

of 2000, there were 43,941 people in the county, organized into 17,342 households and 10,890 families. The

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopu ...

was 26 people per square mile (10/km²). There were 20,765 housing units at an average density of 12 per square mile (5/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 87.31%

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White ...

, 5.78% Native American, 0.40% Asian, 0.31%

Black Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white ha ...

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

, 0.05%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the Pacific Islands. As an ethnic/ racial term, it is used to describe the original peoples—inhabitants and diasporas—of any of the three major subregions of O ...

, 3.90% from other races, and 2.25% from two or more races. 10.40% of the population were

Hispanic The term ''Hispanic'' ( es, hispano) refers to people, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or Hispanidad. The term commonly applies to countries with a cultural and historical link to Spain and to viceroyalties for ...

or Latino of any race. There were 17,342 households, out of which 29.60% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.90% were married couples living together, 8.70% had a female householder with no husband present, and 37.20% were non-families. 24.80% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.10% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 2.92. In the county, the population was spread out, with 22.70% under the age of 18, 13.90% from 18 to 24, 29.00% from 25 to 44, 25.10% from 45 to 64, and 9.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 103.60 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 103.10 males. The median income for a household in the county was $40,159, and the median income for a family was $50,446. Males had a median income of $32,486 versus $24,666 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or total income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. It is calculated by dividing the area's total income by its total population. Per capita i ...

for the county was $21,534. 11.70% of the population and 6.70% of families were below the

poverty line The poverty threshold, poverty limit, poverty line or breadline is the minimum level of income deemed adequate in a particular country. The poverty line is usually calculated by estimating the total cost of one year's worth of necessities for ...

. Out of the total population, 9.30% of those under the age of 18 and 7.70% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.

Communities

City

* Durango

Towns

* Bayfield *

Ignacio Ignacio is a male Spanish and Galician name originating either from the Roman family name Egnatius, meaning born from the fire, of Etruscan origin, or from the Latin name " Ignatius" from the word "Ignis" meaning "fire". This was the name of s ...

Census-designated place

Southern Ute The Southern Ute Indian Reservation (Ute dialect: Kapuuta-wa Moghwachi Núuchi-u) is a Native American reservation in southwestern Colorado near the northern New Mexico state line. Its territory consists of land from three counties; in descendin ...

* Marvel

Other unincorporated communities

* Allison * Bondad * Breen * Falfa * Gem Village * Hermosa *

Hesperus In Greek mythology, Hesperus (; grc, Ἕσπερος, Hésperos) is the Evening Star, the planet Venus in the evening. He is one of the ''Astra Planeta''. A son of the dawn goddess Eos (Roman Aurora), he is the half-brother of her other son, ...

Kline Kline may refer to: * Kline (surname) Places * Klinë, a.k.a. Klina, in Kosovo United States: * Kline, Colorado * Kline, Iowa, in Des Moines County, Iowa * Kline, Louisiana, in Ouachita Parish, Louisiana * Kline, Pennsylvania, in Cla ...

* Mayday *

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

* Redmesa * Tiffany

Ghost towns

* Greysill Mines * La Plata * Parrott City Parrott
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Politics

In its early years La Plata County generally leaned towards the Democratic Party. Only Benjamin Harrison in 1888, and the three landslide victories of Theodore Roosevelt, Warren G. Harding and

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gre ...

saw the county vote Republican before

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. In the period between 1940 and 1988, however, the county – like Colorado generally – took a turn towards supporting the Republican Party, with the result that between 1940 and 2000 the only Democrat to obtain a majority in the county was Lyndon Johnson in 1964. Since

John Kerry John Forbes Kerry (born December 11, 1943) is an American attorney, politician and diplomat who currently serves as the first United States special presidential envoy for climate. A member of the Forbes family and the Democratic Party, he ...

became the first candidate in sixteen years from either party to gain a majority in La Plata County in the 2004 election, the county has tended towards the Democratic Party:

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...

’s 2008 share of the vote was the highest for a Democrat since

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...

's 92 years prior. In the 2020 election, Joe Biden handily won majority of the vote in the county, with a higher share of the vote than the previous presidential elections.

Recreation

National forest and wilderness

* San Juan National Forest * Weminuche Wilderness

National historic district

* Durango-Silverton Narrow-Gauge Railroad National Historic District

Trails

Colorado Trail The Colorado Trail is a long-distance trail running for from the mouth of Waterton Canyon southwest of Denver to Durango in Colorado, United States. Its highest point is above sea level, and most of the trail is above . Despite its high elevat ...

* Old Spanish National Historic Trail

Bicycle route

Great Parks Bicycle Route The Great Parks Bicycle Route is a two-part bicycle touring route developed and mapped by Adventure Cycling Association. Great Parks North runs 751.5 miles (1209.4 km) from Jasper, Alberta, Canada, to Missoula, Montana, U.S. Great Parks South extend ...

Scenic byway

San Juan Skyway National Scenic Byway The San Juan Skyway Scenic and Historic Byway is a All-American Road, National Forest Scenic Byway, and Colorado Scenic and Historic Byway located in Dolores, La Plata, Montezuma, San Juan, and San Miguel counties, Colorado, ...

References

External links

La Plata County Government websiteColorado Historical SocietyLa Plata County Central ReservationsAccess Durango, Colorado Community Portal
{{authority control Colorado counties 1874 establishments in Colorado Territory Populated places established in 1874