Editing South Fork, Colorado

{{short description|Town in Colorado, United States}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
|official_name            = Town of South Fork, Colorado
|other_name               = 
|native_name              = 
|settlement_type          = [[Town]]
|motto                    = 
<!-- images and maps  ----------->
|image_skyline            = SouthForkColoradoFromAguaRamonMountainNovember2011.JPG
|imagesize                = 
|image_caption            = South Fork as seen from the summit of Agua Ramon Mountain
|image_flag               = 
|image_map                = File:Rio Grande County Colorado Incorporated and Unincorporated areas South Fork Highlighted 0872395.svg
|mapsize                  = 250px
|map_caption              = Location of South Fork in Rio Grande County, Colorado.
|image_map1               = 
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<!-- Location ------------------>
|subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
|subdivision_name         = {{USA}}
|subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
|subdivision_name1        = {{flag|Colorado}}
|subdivision_type2        = [[List of counties in Colorado|County]]<ref name=COMun>{{cite web | url = http://www.dola.state.co.us/dlg/local_governments/municipalities.html | title = Active Colorado Municipalities | publisher = [[Colorado|State of Colorado]], Department of Local Affairs | access-date = September 1, 2007 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20091212060308/http://www.dola.state.co.us/dlg/local_governments/municipalities.html | archive-date = December 12, 2009 }}</ref>
|subdivision_name2        = [[Rio Grande County, Colorado|Rio Grande County]]
|subdivision_type3        = 
|subdivision_name3        = 
|subdivision_type4        = 
|subdivision_name4        = 
<!-- Politics ----------------->
|government_footnotes     = 
|government_type          = [[Colorado municipalities#Statutory town|Statutory Town]]<ref name=COMun/>
|leader_title             = 
|leader_name              = 
|leader_title1            = 
|leader_name1             = 
|established_title        = <!-- Settled -->
|established_date         = 
|established_title2       = [[Municipal corporation|Incorporated]]
|established_date2        = May 19, 1992<ref name=MuniIncCO>{{cite web | url = http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/muninc.html | title = Colorado Municipal Incorporations | publisher = [[Colorado|State of Colorado]], Department of Personnel & Administration, Colorado State Archives | date = December 1, 2004 | access-date = September 2, 2007}}</ref>
|established_title3       = <!-- Incorporated (city) -->
|established_date3        = 
|unit_pref                = Imperial
|area_footnotes           = <ref name="CenPopGazetteer2019">{{cite web|title=2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files|url=https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2019_Gazetteer/2019_gaz_place_08.txt|publisher=United States Census Bureau|access-date=July 1, 2020}}</ref>
|area_total_km2           = 6.47
|area_land_km2            = 6.47
|area_water_km2           = 0.00
|area_total_sq_mi         = 2.50
|area_land_sq_mi          = 2.50
|area_water_sq_mi         = 0.00
|population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
|population_footnotes     = <ref name="Census 2020">{{cite web |url=https://data.census.gov/profile/South_Fork_town,_Colorado?g=160XX00US0872395 |title=South Fork town, Colorado |author=United States Census Bureau|date= |website= |publisher= |access-date=April 5, 2023 |quote=}}</ref>
|population_note          = 
|population_total         = 510
|population_density_km2   = auto
|population_density_sq_mi = auto
|timezone                 = [[Mountain Time Zone|Mountain (MST)]]
|utc_offset               = -7
|timezone_DST             = [[Mountain Time Zone|MDT]]
|utc_offset_DST           = -6
|coordinates              = {{coord|37|40|18|N|106|37|40|W|region:US-CO|display=inline,title}}
|elevation_footnotes      = <ref name=gnis/>
|elevation_ft             = 8216
<!-- Area/postal codes & others -------->
|postal_code_type         = [[ZIP code]]<ref name=ZIPcode>{{cite web|url = http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/citytown.jsp | title = ZIP Code Lookup| format = [[JavaScript]]/[[HTML]] | publisher = [[United States Postal Service]] | access-date=January 3, 2008}}</ref>
|postal_code              = 81154
|area_code                = [[Area code 719|719]]
|blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
|blank_info               = 08-72395
|blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
|blank1_info              = 2413307<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|2413307}}</ref>
|website                  = [https://townofsouthfork.colorado.gov/ Town of South Fork]
|footnotes                = 
}}

'''South Fork''' is a [[Colorado municipalities#Statutory town|statutory town]] in [[Rio Grande County, Colorado|Rio Grande County]], [[Colorado]], United States. It lies at the confluence of the [[South Fork Rio Grande|South Fork]] and [[Rio Grande]] rivers. The population was 510 at the [[United States Census, 2020|2020 census]].<ref name="Census 2020" />

==Geography==

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of {{convert|2.4|sqmi|km2}}, all land.

==History==
South Fork was once the site of [[sawmill|timber mill]]ing operations.<ref name="DenverPostJune23">{{cite news|url=http://www.denverpost.com/coloradowildfires2013/ci_23518316/winds-shift-west-fork-fire-northwest-toward-creede |title=West Fork fire complex at nearly 66,200 acres and feeding on beetle-ravaged forests |date = June 23, 2013 | author=Bruce Finley |newspaper=[[Denver Post]]}}</ref>

South Fork was founded in 1882, by which date its location was already marked by the presence of a coaching post, dating from the construction of the railroad connection of the [[Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad|Rio Grande Western Railroad]] line to [[Creede, Colorado|Creede]], which had been built to support the Creede [[silver mine]].   It was only in 1992 that South Fork achieved independent [[List of cities and towns in Colorado|statutory town]] status, making it the youngest statutory town in [[Colorado|the state]].   Originally the principal economic activities involved forestry and mining, but in recent decades these have been overtaken in the employment statistics by tourism.

South Fork made Colorado headlines during the Summer of 2020 when its town board announced that solicitations for donations was unlawful within town limits. This was in response to a local farmer's market in which one of its vendors was asking people for donations to the [[Black Lives Matter]] movement and the [[NAACP]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.9news.com/article/news/local/south-fork-tells-farm-owners-asking-for-donations-is-not-allowed/73-f5f21917-b164-4491-851a-a69c0ae9e501 | title=Southern Colorado town tells farm owners asking for donations isn't allowed after BLM drive | date=October 2, 2020 }}</ref>

==Popular Culture==
South Fork's Riverbend Resort was the filming location of fictional 'Kamp Komfort' in the 1983 hit movie ''[[National Lampoon's Vacation]]''.

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|align=left
|2000= 604
|2010= 386
|2020= 510
}}
[[Image:South Fork, Colorado outskirts.jpg|thumb|left|Housing on the outskirts of town]]
South Fork has about 600 permanent residents, but a substantially larger summer population due to seasonal residents and visitors.<ref name=DenverPostJune23/>

<!--As of the [[census]]<ref name="GR2">{{cite web|url=https://www.census.gov|publisher=[[United States Census Bureau]]|access-date=January 31, 2008|title=U.S. Census website}}</ref> of 2000, there were 604 people, 274 households, and 187 families residing in the town. The population density was {{convert|255.2|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 580 housing units at an average density of {{convert|245.1|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|units&nbsp;|units|}}. The racial makeup of the town was 92.88% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 0.17% [[African American (U.S. Census)|African American]], 0.33% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.17% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], 2.98% from [[Race (United States Census)|other races]], and 3.48% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 12.42% of the population.

There were 274 households, out of which 25.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 58.0% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.4% were non-families. 27.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 2.63.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 21.7% under the age of 18, 7.1% from 18 to 24, 24.5% from 25 to 44, 29.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.5% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 43 years. For every 100 females, there were 96.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.6 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $36,667, and the median income for a family was $45,417. Males had a median income of $32,188 versus $19,063 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $26,128. About 4.1% of families and 6.1% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 6.7% of those under age 18 and 1.6% of those age 65 or over.-->
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==See also==
{{Portal|Colorado}}
*[[San Juan Mountains]]

==References==
{{Reflist|2}}

==External links==
* {{Official website|https://townofsouthfork.colorado.gov/}}
* [http://dtdapps.coloradodot.info/staticdata/Downloads/CityMaps/SOUTH%20FORK.pdf CDOT map of the Town of South Fork]

{{Rio Grande County, Colorado}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Towns in Rio Grande County, Colorado]]
[[Category:Towns in Colorado]]
[[Category:Colorado populated places on the Rio Grande]]