The Town of Gypsum is the

home rule municipality Statutory city may refer to: * Statutory city (Austria), an Austrian municipality acting as a district administrative authority * Statutory city (Czech Republic), a Czech city with special privileges * Statutory city (United States), a city in the ...

that is the most populous municipality in Eagle 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 8,040 at the 2020 United States census, a +24.13% increase since the 2010 United States Census. Gypsum is a part of the Edwards, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area. Gypsum is the home of an American Gypsum drywall plant and mine.

History

The town was named for nearby

gypsum Gypsum is a soft sulfate mineral composed of calcium sulfate Hydrate, dihydrate, with the chemical formula . It is widely mined and is used as a fertilizer and as the main constituent in many forms of plaster, drywall and blackboard or sidewalk ...

deposits, and was incorporated in 1911.

Geography

Gypsum is located in western Eagle County in the valley of the Eagle River, a west-flowing tributary of the

Colorado River The Colorado River () is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and in northern Mexico. The river, the List of longest rivers of the United States (by main stem), 5th longest in the United St ...

. U.S. Route 6 passes through the center of town, leading east (upriver) to

Eagle Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family of the Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of Genus, genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus ''Aquila ( ...

, the

county seat A county seat is an administrative center, seat of government, or capital city of a county or parish (administrative division), civil parish. The term is in use in five countries: Canada, China, Hungary, Romania, and the United States. An equiva ...

Interstate 70 Interstate 70 (I-70) is a major east–west Interstate Highway in the United States that runs from Interstate 15, I-15 near Cove Fort, Utah, to Interstate 695 (Maryland), I-695 and Maryland Route 570 (MD 570) in Woodlawn, Baltimo ...

runs along the northern edge of Gypsum, with access from Exit 140. I-70 leads east to

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

and west to Grand Junction. At the 2020 United States census, the town had a total area of including of water.

Climate

This climate type is dominated by the winter season, a long, bitterly cold period with short, clear days, relatively little precipitation mostly in the form of snow, and low humidity. According to the

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 ...

system, Gypsum has a

subarctic climate The subarctic climate (also called subpolar climate, or boreal climate) is a continental climate with long, cold (often very cold) winters, and short, warm to cool summers. It is found on large landmasses, often away from the moderating effects of ...

, abbreviated "Dfc" on climate maps.

Demographics

As of the

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 ...

of 2000, there were 3,654 people, 1,150 households, and 917 families residing in the town. The population density was . There were 1,210 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the town was 81.28%

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 ...

, 0.16%

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

, 1.31% Native American, 0.22% Asian, 0.05%

Pacific Islander Pacific Islanders, Pasifika, Pasefika, Pacificans, or rarely Pacificers are the peoples of the list of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Pacific Islands. As an ethnic group, ethnic/race (human categorization), racial term, it is used to describe th ...

, 15.00% from other races, and 1.97% 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 31.31% of the population. There were 1,150 households, out of which 51.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 68.8% were

married couples Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

living together, 6.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 20.2% were non-families. 12.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 1.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 3.17 and the average family size was 3.47. In the town, the population was spread out, with 33.1% under the age of 18, 8.8% from 18 to 24, 38.7% from 25 to 44, 17.2% from 45 to 64, and 2.2% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females, there were 110.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 109.7 males. The median income for a household in the town was $59,671, and the median income for a family was $62,384. Males had a median income of $40,139 versus $29,764 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 $21,790. About 4.4% of families and 5.5% 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 6.4% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.

Infrastructure

Transportation

Gypsum is the location of the Eagle County Regional Airport (EGE), a popular regional airport used in the winter to transport skiers to nearby Vail, to the east. Gypsum is also the location of several CORE TRANSIT stops, there are stops at Jules Dr, Eagle Valley High School, Eagle County Regional Airport, Cooley Mesa Rd, and Navajo Rd. $1 fee for youth and $3 fee for adults, and for the elderly, a $1 fee.

Education

* Eagle Valley High School * Gypsum Creek Middle School * Red Hill Elementary School * Gypsum Elementary School

American Gypsum

The largest industry in the town is American Gypsum's (formerly Centex and before that, Eagle Gypsum Limited)

drywall Drywall (also called plasterboard, dry lining, wallboard, sheet rock, gib board, gypsum board, buster board, turtles board, slap board, custard board, gypsum panel and gyprock) is a panel made of calcium sulfate dihydrate (gypsum), with or with ...

plant. The facility produces a variety of wallboard products, which is shipped by both rail and truck. The company also operates an open pit gypsum mine in the hills north of town. The mine currently in operation is the second to have been located in the area. Its grade is quickly dropping, and the company intends to close and reclaim it soon. A new mine, roughly a mile away, has been permitted, and is currently in the development stage. Unlike most surface mines, which utilize drill and blast methods to recover material, the Eagle mine uses machines similar to pavement mills (Wirtgen 2200 SM Surface Miners) to cut swaths through the relatively soft rock. Front-end loaders then sort the material by color (white is gypsum, brown is waste) and load it into trucks to be hauled either to the plant or to waste piles.

References

External links

Town of Gypsum website
{{authority control Towns in Eagle County, Colorado Towns in Colorado