The Town of Calhan is a Statutory Town located in El Paso County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 762 at the

2020 United States Census The United States census of 2020 was the twenty-fourth decennial United States census. Census Day, the reference day used for the census, was April 1, 2020. Other than a pilot study during the 2000 census, this was the first U.S. census to of ...

. Calhan is a part of the Colorado Springs, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Front Range Urban Corridor. The town straddles

U.S. Highway 24 U.S. Route 24 (US 24) is one of the original United States highways of 1926. It originally ran from Pontiac, Michigan, in the east to Kansas City, Missouri, in the west. Today, the highway's eastern terminus is in Independence Township, Mich ...

. With Calhan sitting at an elevation of 6,535 feet (1,992 meters) above sea level, Calhan is the highest non-mountain town in the United States. It is the site of the

Calhan Paint Mines Archeological District Calhan Paint Mines is an archeological district located on the eastern plains of Colorado in El Paso County, one mile south of Calhan. The Paint Mines Interpretive Park is "a unique blending of geological, archaeological, historical and ecologi ...

, a popular natural attraction.

History

Calhan was established in 1888 as a water station for the now-defunct Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad, with the first

steam locomotive A steam locomotive is a locomotive that provides the force to move itself and other vehicles by means of the expansion of steam. It is fuelled by burning combustible material (usually coal, oil or, rarely, wood) to heat water in the locomot ...

arriving on November 5, 1888. The town was named by and for Michael Calahan, who had the contract to lay railroad tracks from the Colorado/ Kansas border to Colorado Springs. However, when the town's first U.S. Post Office opened on November 24, 1888, the middle "a" had been dropped and the town was registered as "Calhan." The town was incorporated as a Statutory Town in 1919. The town grew quickly, but it wasn't until 1906 that the

Calhan Rock Island Railroad Depot Calhan Rock Island Railroad Depot is a historic railroad station located in Calhan, Colorado, United States. The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad provided transportation between Colorado Springs and Kansas Kansas () is a state in th ...

was built to meet the growing needs of the area.

Jesse N. Funk Corporal Jesse Nathaniel Funk (August 20, 1888 – March 21, 1933) was a United States Army soldier and a recipient of the United States military's highest decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions in World War I. He earned the medal wh ...

was a rancher in Calhan when the United States joined the First World War in 1917. Having enlisted in 1915,

Private Private or privates may refer to: Music * " In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorde ...

Funk was sent to France to support the

Allied An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

efforts at the Battle of Saint-Mihiel. There on 31 October 1918, Funk rescued two wounded officers from

no man's land No man's land is waste or unowned land or an uninhabited or desolate area that may be under dispute between parties who leave it unoccupied out of fear or uncertainty. The term was originally used to define a contested territory or a dump ...

while under machine gun fire, for which Funk received the Medal of Honor. In 1993, the Orthodox Church in America established the Protection of the Holy Virgin community, a female monastic community. Until they moved further west to Lake George in 1995, the monastics rented a home in Calhan.

Geography

Calhan Colorado cemetery by David Shankbone

Calhan is located at (39.035395, -104.299835). At the

, the town had a total area of , all of it land.

Climate

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 896 people, 347 households, and 246 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 376 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 96.99% White, 0.22% Native American, 0.67% Asian, 0.22% from other races, and 1.90% from two or more races. Hispanic or

Latino Latino or Latinos most often refers to: * Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America * Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States * The people or cultures of Latin America; ** Latin A ...

of any race were 1.90% of the population. There were 347 households, out of which 39.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.3% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognized union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children, and between t ...

living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.1% were non-families. 25.4% of all households were made up of individuals, and 14.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.11. In the town, the population was spread out, with 29.7% under the age of 18, 7.4% from 18 to 24, 28.1% from 25 to 44, 20.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 86.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.8 males. The median income for a household in the town was $35,735, and the median income for a family was $50,000. Males had a median income of $32,135 versus $24,659 for females. The per capita income for the town was $19,266. About 3.7% of families and 8.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 5.4% of those under age 18 and 12.0% of those age 65 or over.

Notable people

, Medal of Honor, World War I *

Trista Vick-Majors Trista Vick-Majors is an American Assistant Professor in Biological Sciences at Michigan Tech. She is an Antarctic biogeochemist and microbial ecologist, best known for her work showing that microorganisms are present under the Antarctic ice s ...

, Antarctic researcher

Education

Students are served by

Calhan School District RJ-1 The Calhan School District RJ-1 is a public school district serving in northeastern El Paso County, Colorado as well as parts of southern Elbert County. Serving a relatively small population, the entire educational range of the district, from pre ...

Attractions

*The El Paso County Fair *Calhan SummerFest, held the Friday before the El Paso County Fair opens *The annual Homecoming Parade, held in late September/early October *El Paso County Speedway

Transportation

runs directly through town. Calhan is served by U.S. 24 as it heads to Limon from Colorado Springs.

References

External links

Town of Calhan websiteCDOT map of the Town of CalhanCalhan High School
{{authority control Towns in El Paso County, Colorado Towns in Colorado