Lincoln County is a

county A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

located in the U.S. 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 ...

. As of the 2020 census, the population was 5,675. 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 ...

is Hugo. The county obtains its name in memory of the United States President

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln (February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was the 16th president of the United States, serving from 1861 until Assassination of Abraham Lincoln, his assassination in 1865. He led the United States through the American Civil War ...

. County was formed from portions of Bent and Elbert counties in 1889 from a restructuring of Colorado counties.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and (0.3%) is water. The main watersheds include the Arikaree and Republican Rivers in the northern part of the county and the Big Sandy, Rush, and

Horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 mi ...

Creeks in the southern part of the county. Big Sandy and Rush Creeks ultimately drain into 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 ...

Adjacent counties

* Washington County - north * Kit Carson County - east * Cheyenne County - east * Crowley County - south * Kiowa County - south * Elbert County - west * El Paso County - west * Arapahoe County - northwest * Pueblo County - southwest

Major highways

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 ...

* *

U.S. Highway 24 * US 40

U.S. Highway 40 * US 287

U.S. Highway 287 * Colorado 71

State Highway 71 * Colorado 94

State Highway 94

Government

Lincoln County's government is based in the county courthouse in Hugo which is the office of the board of three elected commissioners and a county administrator, as well as the county sheriff, county clerk and recorder, county assessor, county treasurer, county coroner, and the county court (the trial court of limited jurisdiction for county affairs). Lincoln County is part of the 18th Colorado Judicial District — the state trial court of general jurisdiction — with judicial matters conducted in the Littleton and

Centennial A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century. Notable events Notable centennial events at a national or world-level include: * Centennial Exhibition, 1876, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ...

courthouses in Arapahoe County. Lincoln County's government operation also includes a department of social services, land use office, road and bridge department, human services department, public health department, mobile library services, probation department, county landfill, county fairgrounds, and county extension service.

Demographics

At the 2000 census there were 6,087 people in 2,058 households, including 1,389 families, in the county. The population density was . There were 2,406 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the county was 86.30% White, 4.96% Black or African American, 0.94% Native American, 0.56% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 5.65% from other races, and 1.56% from two or more races. 8.53% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. Of the 2,058 households 33.70% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.30% were married couples living together, 8.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 32.50% were non-families. 29.00% of households were one person and 13.00% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.04. The age distribution was 23.90% under the age of 18, 7.10% from 18 to 24, 33.00% from 25 to 44, 21.80% from 45 to 64, and 14.30% 65 or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 130.90 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 140.70 males. The median household income was $31,914 and the median family income was $39,738. Males had a median income of $25,742 versus $22,188 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,510. About 8.10% of families and 11.70% 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 14.40% of those under age 18 and 11.50% of those age 65 or over.

Communities

Towns

* Arriba *

Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...

* Hugo * Limon

Unincorporated communities

* Bovina * Boyero * Karval * Punkin Center

Historic trail

* Smoky Hill Trail The name "Smoky Hill" comes from the appearance of the misty or smoky hills that the westward travelers viewed on their journey from

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

and

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

Territories and Missouri toward the Colorado Gold Rush starting in 1858. Gold, had been discovered in the Cherry Creek, near

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 ...

. The image of the misty hills and valleys along the route west gave the name to the trail for these travelers — the Smoky Hill Trail. Parts of the trail can still be seen as a two-track road on the

Eastern Plains The Eastern Plains of Colorado refers to a region of the U.S. state of Colorado east of the Rocky Mountains and east of the population centers of the Front Range. Geography The Eastern Plains are part of the High Plains, which are the weste ...

in what was once

Kansas Territory The Territory of Kansas was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 30, 1854, until January 29, 1861, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the United States, Union as the Slave and ...

but now is Colorado. The section of the Smoky Hill Trail which passes through much of the High Plains has become known as the "starvation trail." This section of the trail proved to be the most difficult, due to a lack of water, yet the

Plains Indians Plains Indians or Indigenous peoples of the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies are the Native American tribes and First Nations peoples who have historically lived on the Interior Plains (the Great Plains and Canadian Prairies) of North ...

of the day considered this region as prime hunting ground."History of Smoky Hill Trail." SmokyHillBound.com http://www.smokyhillbound.com/history-smoky-hill-trail-area

References

External links

Official websiteColorado Historical Society
{{coord, 38.98, -103.52, display=title, type:adm2nd_region:US-CO_source:UScensus1990 Colorado counties 1889 establishments in Colorado Eastern Plains Populated places established in 1889