Ridgway, Colorado
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ridgway is a town in Ouray County, Colorado, United States. The population was 713 at the 2000 census. The area is famous as the filming site of the John Wayne western movie True Grit, and still has a True Grit Cafe, full of John Wayne memorabilia. The town served as the setting for Fort Smith and the most notable scene was the hanging in the main city park.
The Uncompahgre River runs through the town, and provides ample trout fishing for its residents, as does the Ridgway State Park and Reservoir, just north of Ridgway a mile or two.
Wildlife is ample; deer, elk, bear, coyotes and eagles are a common sight in and around town.
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[edit] History
Ridgway began as a railroad town, serving the nearby mining towns of Telluride and Ouray, pronounced yu-ray. The town site sits at the northern terminus of the Rio Grande Southern Railroad where it meets with Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad running between Montrose and Ouray. Ridgway was located about 3 miles (5 km) south of the existing town of Dallas. Articles of incorporation were filed on 22 May 1890 and granted on 4 March 1891. Ridgway was named after Denver and Rio Grande Railroad superintendent Robert M. Ridgway.
The Rio Grande Southern filed for abandonment on 24 April 1952 and the Denver and Rio Grande Western abandoned the line between Ridgway and Ouray on 21 March 1953. The line between Ridgway and Montrose was upgraded from narrow gauge to standard gauge and Ridgway continued to be a shipping point until the line to Montrose was abandoned in 1976 as result of a reservoir being built on the Uncompahgre River.
[edit] Geography
Ridgway is located at (38.151934, -107.756870)GR1, at an altitude of 6900 feet.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 5.2 km² (2.0 mi²), all land.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 713 people, 285 households, and 190 families residing in the town. The population density was 137.6/km² (356.1/mi²). There were 318 housing units at an average density of 61.4/km² (158.8/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 94.25% White, 1.82% Native American, 0.28% Asian, 0.70% from other races, and 2.95% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.77% of the population.
There were 285 households out of which 38.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.5% were married couples living together, 10.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.0% were non-families. 24.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 2.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.50 and the average family size was 2.97.
In the town the population was spread out with 28.8% under the age of 18, 4.8% from 18 to 24, 34.2% from 25 to 44, 26.6% from 45 to 64, and 5.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 35 years. For every 100 females there were 102.0 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 95.4 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $40,903, and the median income for a family was $45,208. Males had a median income of $31,597 versus $26,250 for females. The per capita income for the town was $20,084. About 3.2% of families and 4.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.9% of those under age 18 and none of those age 65 or over.
[edit] Transportation
Ridgway lies at the junction of U.S. Highway 550 and Colorado State Highway 62, which has the only traffic light in Ouray County.
[edit] External links
- Ridgway Chamber of Commerce
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
