Antonito (in Spanish Antoñito) is a

statutory town In India, the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), also called municipalities, are self-government institutions responsible for the administration of cities, towns, and transitional areas within a state or Union Territory. The 74th amendment to the Const ...

located in Conejos County,

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

, United States. The town population was 647 at the 2020 United States census.

History

Antonito began life as a sheep herding camp known as San Antonio Junction, referring to its proximity to the Conejos and San Antonio rivers. When the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad built its line south from Alamosa, the town was renamed Antonito and became an important town on the railroad line. The San Antonio, Colorado, post office moved north to Antonito on January 24, 1881, and the Town of Antonito was incorporated on December 29, 1889. There are currently no major industries located in Antonito, but the historic Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad has one terminus in Antonito and the other in Chama, New Mexico. The C&TS also has maintenance facilities and rail yard in the town. The Colorado Pacific Rio Grande Railroad continues to operate the rail line from Antonito to Alamosa. In 2015, a Colorado State Highway project rebuilt the stretch of Highway 285 that runs through town. The new highway has helped beautify the downtown area and improve traffic flow. The city has a number of unique buildings, including a historic Denver & Rio Grande Western Railroad depot, one of only a few lava rock depots still existing in the United States. Currently in a state of disrepair, a grant to restore the building is in the works. Cano's Castle, a folk-art home constructed by a local resident, attracts attention from tourists and local residents alike. Just south of town, Colorado Parks and Wildlife and Conejos County have jointly developed an outdoor shooting range with areas for rifle sighting as well as target practice ranges for various types of rifles and handguns. An indoor archery range and nearby hunting and fishing opportunities attract outdoor enthusiasts. A library, tire repair shop and a new medical clinic have opened in recent years and

Family Dollar Family Dollar Stores, Inc. is an American variety store chain founded in 1959 by Leon Levine in Charlotte, North Carolina. With over 8,000 locations in all states except Alaska and Hawaii, it was once the second largest retailer of its type in th ...

recently built a store in Antonito. The South Conejos School District recently constructed a new South Conejos Jr. and Sr. High School in the town. Several scenes from the prologue of

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ''Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade'' is a 1989 American action adventure film directed by Steven Spielberg from a screenplay by Jeffrey Boam, based on a story by George Lucas and Menno Meyjes. It is the third installment in the Indiana Jone ...

were filmed in and around Antonito, including scenes depicting the Jones family home. This century-old structure is currently used as a

bed and breakfast A bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. In addition, a B&B sometimes has the hosts living in the house. ''Bed and breakfast'' is also used to ...

. The town is known for its many murals, most of them painted by Fred Haberlein. Antonito is the location of the oldest church building and congregation in Colorado, Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church, built in 1857. Following the legalization of cannabis in Colorado, Antonito took advantage of its location along the

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

border (where cannabis was illegal until 2022) to become a destination for New Mexico residents seeking to legally purchase cannabis. The tax revenue resulted in a $295,000 annual increase to the city budget.

Geography

Antonito is located in the

San Luis Valley The San Luis Valley is a region in south-central Colorado with a small portion overlapping into New Mexico. The valley is approximately long and wide, making it the largest alpine valley in the world. It extends from the Continental Divide on ...

near the southern border of Colorado along U.S. Highway 285. It is north to Alamosa and south to U.S. Route 64 at Tres Piedras,

. At the 2020 United States census, Antonito had a total area of , all of it land. Antonito is the southern terminus of the San Luis and Rio Grande Railroad and the eastern terminus of the steam powered, narrow gauge Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad, which runs westwards to Osier, Colorado, and Chama, New Mexico.

Demographics

At the 2000 census, there were 873 people, 357 households and 234 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 396 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 61.40%

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

, 0.11%

African American African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...

, 3.55% Native American, 0.23% Asian, 31.96% from other races, and 2.75% from two or more races.

Hispanic The term Hispanic () are people, Spanish culture, cultures, or countries related to Spain, the Spanish language, or broadly. In some contexts, Hispanic and Latino Americans, especially within the United States, "Hispanic" is used as an Ethnici ...

or Latino of any race were 90.26% of the population. There were 357 households, of which 33.9% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 37.8% were married couples living together, 20.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.2% were non-families. 31.9% of all households were made up of individuals, and 16.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the average family size was 3.09. 28.8% of the population were under the age of 18, 8.4% from 18 to 24, 23.1% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 18.3% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 91.4 males. The

median household income The median income is the income amount that divides a population into two groups, half having an income above that amount, and half having an income below that amount. It may differ from the mean (or average) income. Both of these are ways of und ...

was $19,205 and the median family income was $23,162. Males had a median income of $25,417 compared with $17,500 for females. The

per capita income Per capita income (PCI) or average income measures the average income earned per person in a given area (city, region, country, etc.) in a specified year. In many countries, per capita income is determined using regular population surveys, such ...

for the town was $10,047. About 26.4% of families and 29.6% of the population 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 ...

, including 36.3% of those under age 18 and 22.5% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

* Carlos F. Lucero, judge of the

United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit (in case citations, 10th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: * District of Colorado * District of Kansas * Dist ...

* Joe Mondragon, jazz musician * Joe Vigil, running coach

References

External links