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Climate
The city's nickname, "the Climate Capital of Colorado", derives from the combination of unique geography and elevation protecting the city from harsh weather conditions. The average daily high temperature in January is warmer in Cañon City than in Grand Junction, even though the elevation of Cañon City is higher.
The average minimum temperature in January is . During July, overnight lows are on average. Cañon City has a semi-arid climate
A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of se ...
(Köppen climate classification
The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...
'' ''BSk'''').
Neighborhoods
As Cañon City has grown, the city has both annexed surrounding communities and developed new subdivisions to create the city that exists today.
*Dawson Ranch
*Eagle Heights
*Fireman's Bluff
*Four Mile Ranch
*Gold Cañon
*Meadowbrook
*Orchard Park
*South Cañon, a historic neighborhood located on the west side south of the Arkansas River
The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. It generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's source basin lies in Colorado, specifically ...
*Sunrise Mesa
*Western Meadows
*Wolf Park
*Five Star Mobile Home park
Parks and recreation
Cañon City is home to many city-owned parks, as well as parks owned by the Cañon City Area Recreation and Park District.
City-owned parks
*Centennial Park, commonly known as "Duck Park"
*Denver & Rio Grande Western Park, commonly known as "Depot Park"
*Greydene Park
*Magdalene Park
*Margaret Park (originally Margarette Park)
*Mountain View Park, home of the city's skate park
*Red Canyon Park, a park located north of the city
*Royal Gorge Park, home of the Royal Gorge Bridge and Park
*Rudd Park
*Temple Canyon Park
*Veterans Park, known for Entertainment in the Park concerts during the summer
Cañon City Area Recreation and Park District
The Cañon City Area Recreation and Park District, commonly called the Rec District, was created in 1965 to better serve the community's recreational needs with parks, the R.C. Icabone Pool (a public swimming pool), a dog park, an archery range and a ropes course along with a rec district office with a community room.
The following parks are operated and owned by the Rec District:
*John Griffin Park, located near the Sell's Avenue Trailhead of the Riverwalk
*Harrison Park, the former playground of the former Harrison Elementary School which had been relocated to a newer, larger school building housing both elementary and middle school students
*Pathfinder Regional Park, a joint-managed park located in the county between Cañon City and Florence
Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025.
Florence ...
*Rouse Park
In addition, the city maintains the Tunnel Drive Trail, a four-mile long out-and-back trail that follows the course of an old irrigation canal. The trailhead is located at the west end of Tunnel Drive, just inside the city limits.
The Guy U. Hardy Award for Service to Outdoor Recreation was created in the name of Guy U. Hardy to recognize people in the community who "help preserve, protect and advocate for providing outdoor recreation opportunities." Hardy had a significant impact on outdoor recreational opportunities in the Royal Gorge area.
Demographics
As of the 2020 census
A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...
, there were 17,141 people residing in the city. The population density
Population density (in agriculture: Standing stock (disambiguation), 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 geog ...
was . The racial makeup of the city was 95.4% 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 ...
, 1.0% 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 ...
, 0.6% Native American, 0.1% Asian, and 1.5% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 10.2% of the population. There were 7,448 households, out of which 22.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them. The average household size was 2.05.
The age distribution was 22.6% under the age of 18 and 24.6% who were 65 years of age or older. Women represent 52% of the population.
The median income for a household in the city was $46,464. 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 city was $25,232. About 17.1% 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 ...
.
Law
Along with a police department, sheriff's office and detention center, and a municipal court, Cañon City is home to the courts for Fremont County and the 11th Judicial District of Colorado. It has been described as "America’s cheeriest prison town".
Government
Cañon City is governed via the Council–manager government
The council–manager government is a form of local government commonly used for municipalities and counties in the United States and Ireland, in New Zealand regional councils, and in Canadian municipalities. In the council-manager government, ...
system. The city council consists of seven members who are elected from districts. The mayor
In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...
is elected by the entire city.
Economy
The area being situated along the Arkansas River has allowed for soil suitable to orchards, ranching, and farming, but has largely grown to rely on the large number of state and federal prisons in the area, as well as to tourism, education, manufacturing, medicine and many other sectors.
Major employers
Cañon City depends on the Colorado Department of Corrections
The Colorado Department of Corrections is the principal department of the Colorado state government that operates the state prisons. It has its headquarters in the Springs Office Park in unincorporated El Paso County, Colorado, near Colorad ...
and federal prison system, and its tourism industry which includes the Royal Gorge Route Railroad, Royal Gorge Bridge and Park, Red Canyon Park, The Abbey winery, and various other attractions. The major local employers include downtown shops, the entrepreneurial TechSTART initiative that attracts major technology-based entrepreneurs, and Centura Health (owner of St. Thomas More Hospital and the Progressive Care Center).
Prisons
Prisons have served an important significance to both Cañon City and the surrounding areas of Fremont County, as well as to the state of 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 ...
. The Museum of Colorado Prisons has been given the role of preserving and presenting the past of the state's corrections system. Colorado Department of Corrections
The Colorado Department of Corrections is the principal department of the Colorado state government that operates the state prisons. It has its headquarters in the Springs Office Park in unincorporated El Paso County, Colorado, near Colorad ...
operates the Colorado Territorial Correctional Facility in Cañon City. In addition to several correctional facilities near Cañon City in unincorporated area
An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...
s in Fremont County, Colorado State Penitentiary, the location of the state death row and execution chamber[Death Row FAQ]
"
Archive
Colorado Department of Corrections
The Colorado Department of Corrections is the principal department of the Colorado state government that operates the state prisons. It has its headquarters in the Springs Office Park in unincorporated El Paso County, Colorado, near Colorad ...
. Retrieved on August 15, 2010. is in Fremont County. Other state prisons in Fremont County include Arrowhead Correctional Center, Centennial Correctional Facility, Fremont Correctional Facility, Four Mile Correctional Center, ADX Florence,
and Skyline Correctional Center.
On October 3, 1929, a riot at the prison claimed 13 lives.
The Colorado Women's Correctional Facility near Cañon City in unincorporated Fremont County was decommissioned on June 4, 2009.
Tourism
From Cañon City's Downtown Historic District located in the heart of the city to the Royal Gorge Bridge, there are many places to see and visit in the area.
Media
Cañon City is home to a daily newspaper, called the '' Cañon City Daily Record''; an FM radio station, Star Country 104.5 FM; and a long-running AM radio station, known as KRLN NewsRadio 1400 AM.
Transportation
Transportation in the Cañon City area consists of cab service, shuttle bus service, and a downtown wagon ride. The Royal Gorge Bridge trolley had also been used during special events (it was destroyed in the Royal Gorge Fire, but it was reserved for use by the Royal Gorge Bridge & Park. Jeep tours and Segway tours are also available to explore local parks such as Red Canyon Park or scenic places such as Skyline Drive
Skyline Drive is a National Parkway that runs the entire length of the National Park Service's Shenandoah National Park in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, generally along the ridge of the mountains. The drive's northern terminus is at ...
.
The town is served by the Fremont County airport (1V6) which is 6 miles to the East and currently has no scheduled passenger service. Within an hour's drive is the Colorado Springs Airport with daily service by major airlines.
Major roads and highways
The area is served by one state and one U.S. highway with a mix of city and county roads to navigate the city or connect to neighboring areas.
State and national highways
* U.S. Highway 50 - named Royal Gorge Boulevard from 1st Street to 15th Street in downtown Cañon
* State Highway 115 - connects the city to nearby Florence and Penrose, ending in Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs is the most populous city in El Paso County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. The city had a population of 478,961 at the 2020 census, a 15.02% increase since 2010. Colorado Springs is the second-most populous c ...
City and county roads
*4th Street - connecting Downtown with South Cañon, Oak Creek Grade, Prospect Heights, and Capitol Hill
*5th Street - serves as a north-south connector from Downtown north, allows traffic from Skyline Drive to return to U.S. 50
*9th Street - serves as a carrier of CO 115 from the roundabout to the junction with U.S. 50, heads north and ends at Washington Street
*15th Street - main route north to the hospital, a fire station and a small cluster of businesses
*Orchard Avenue
*Raynolds Avenue/Ash Street - runs from center of East Cañon to CO 115 via a county road, changes to a gravel road and becomes Chandler Road
*MacKenzie / Four Mile Lane - routed to connect from CO 115 as a carrier of CR 20 until the city limits, at Hwy 50, heads north as Four Mile Lane
Bus service
*Cañon City is part of Colorado's Bustang network. It is on the Alamosa-Pueblo Outrider line.
Scenic routes
*Skyline Drive
Skyline Drive is a National Parkway that runs the entire length of the National Park Service's Shenandoah National Park in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, generally along the ridge of the mountains. The drive's northern terminus is at ...
, major scenic route overlooking Cañon City that was originally built by local inmates at the Territorial Prison
Railroads
*The Union Pacific Railroad
The Union Pacific Railroad is a Railroad classes, Class I freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Pacific is the second largest railroad in the United Stat ...
mothballed the Tennessee Pass line in 1997. In 1998 Rock and Rail LLC was formed, and began operating on the former Union Pacific track between Cañon City and Parkdale. It also operates between Pueblo and Cañon City on lines purchased from the UP Railway. The tourist line Cañon City and Royal Gorge Railroad also operates on the RRRR's track.
Education
:''See also Cañon City School District''
Cañon City's school system is under the direction of the Cañon City School District Fremont RE-1. The district currently has four elementary schools, one charter school, one school serving as both an elementary school and middle school, one middle school and one high school, Cañon City High School.
Cañon City's higher education needs are served by the Pueblo Community College Fremont Campus, located on the west end of the city along U.S. Highway 50.
Places of interest
Listed on the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...
* Cañon City Downtown Historic District
*Cañon City Municipal Building
The Cañon City Municipal Building was built in 1927. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983.
It is a two-story brick Moderne architecture, Moderne-style building with an H-shaped plan, designed by architect Eugene Gro ...
, also known as the Royal Gorge Regional Museum and History Center
* Cañon City Post Office and Federal Building
* Cañon City State Armory
Other sites
* Colorado State Penitentiary
* Colorado Territorial Correctional Facility
* Holy Cross Abbey (Cañon City, Colorado)
* Museum of Colorado Prisons
* Peabody Mansion, home of the Cañon City Chamber of Commerce
* Royal Gorge Bridge and Park
* Royal Gorge Route Railroad
Defunct sites
* Buckskin Joe, closed in 2010
Notable people
* Edgar Allen, anatomist and physiologist
* Robert Wesley Amick, artist
* Don Bendell, writer
* Jack Christiansen, NFL hall-of-famer (Detroit Lions
The Detroit Lions are a professional American football team based in Detroit. The Lions compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. The team plays their home game ...
)
* Donald S. Fredrickson, medical researcher, former director of the National Institutes of Health
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. It was founded in 1887 and is part of the United States Department of Health and Human Service ...
and first president of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute
The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) is an American non-profit medical research organization headquartered in Chevy Chase, Maryland with additional facilities in Ashburn, Virginia. It was founded in 1953 by Howard Hughes, an American busin ...
; born in Cañon City
* Kent Haruf, novelist, gradauted from high school in Cañon City
* Skip Konte, musician, "Wizard of all Northern Realms"
*Vice Admiral
Vice admiral is a senior naval flag officer rank, usually equivalent to lieutenant general and air marshal. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral.
Australia
In the Royal Australian Navy, the rank of Vice ...
Emory S. Land ( U.S. Navy), born in Cañon City
* Bird Millman, stage name of Jeannadean Engleman, Circus Aerialist, born in Cañon City
* James Hamilton Peabody, former 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 ...
governor
In popular culture
The movie ''Canon City'' (1948) depicts the real-life 1947 escape of 12 prisoners from nearby Colorado State Penitentiary.
A diner in Cañon City is the setting of the song "Navajo Rug", which was named by the Western Writers of America as one of the Top 100 Western Songs of all time.
A fictional version of the city is depicted in Philip K. Dick's alternate history
Alternate history (also referred to as alternative history, allohistory, althist, or simply A.H.) is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which one or more historical events have occurred but are resolved differently than in actual history. As ...
novel '' The Man in the High Castle'' (1963) and its eponymous 2015 television series adaptation. Cañon City is in an ostensibly-demilitarized
A demilitarized zone (DMZ or DZ) is an area in which treaties or agreements between states, military powers or contending groups forbid military installations, activities, or personnel. A DZ often lies along an established frontier or boundary ...
"neutral zone" between the puppet regimes of the Japanese Pacific States, in the west, and Greater Nazi Reich, in the east, in the former United States.
Sister cities
Cañon City's sister cities
A sister city or a twin town relationship is International relations, a form of legal or social agreement between two geographically and politically distinct localities for the purpose of promoting cultural and commercial ties.
While there ar ...
are:
* Chalchicomula de Sesma, Mexico
* Kahoku, Japan
* Valday, Russia
See also
*Cañon City, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area
A canyon (; archaic British English spelling: ''cañon''), gorge or chasm, is a deep cleft between escarpments or cliffs resulting from weathering and the erosion, erosive activity of a river over geologic time scales. Rivers have a natural tend ...
* Front Range Urban Corridor
* List of county seats in Colorado
* List of crossings of the Arkansas River
*List of municipalities in Colorado
The U.S. Colorado, State of Colorado has 273 municipal corporation, active municipalities, comprising 198 towns, 73 City, cities, and two Consolidated city-county, consolidated city and county governments. The Denver, City and County of Denver ...
* List of populated places in Colorado
*List of post offices in Colorado
A list is a set of discrete items of information collected and set forth in some format for utility, entertainment, or other purposes. A list may be memorialized in any number of ways, including existing only in the mind of the list-maker, but ...
* Colorado State Penitentiary
* Royal Gorge
References
External links
City of Cañon City official website
Cañon City news and information
from the '' Cañon City Daily Record''
Cañon City & Royal Gorge Visitor Information
Cañon City Chamber of Commerce
State of Colorado
History Colorado
{{DEFAULTSORT:Canon City, Colorado
Cities in Fremont County, Colorado
Cities in Colorado
County seats in Colorado
Colorado populated places on the Arkansas River
1860 establishments in Kansas Territory