Editing Westcliffe, Colorado

{{short description|Town in Colorado, United States}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox settlement
<!-- Basic info  ---------------->
 | name                     = Westcliffe, Colorado
 | nickname                 = 
 | settlement_type          = [[Town]]
 | motto                    = 
<!-- images and maps  ----------->
 | image_skyline            = Hornpeak.JPG
 | image_caption            = [[Horn Peak]] of the [[Sangre de Cristo Range]] viewed from Westcliffe
 | image_flag               = 
 | flag_size                = 
 | image_seal               = 
 | seal_size                = 
 | image_map                = File:Custer County Colorado Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Westcliffe Highlighted 0883450.svg
 | mapsize                  = 250x200px
 | map_caption              = Location of Westcliffe in Custer County, Colorado.
 | image_map1               = 
 | map_caption1             = 
 | image_dot_map            = 
<!-- Location ------------------>
 | subdivision_type         = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
 | subdivision_name         = {{USA}}
 | subdivision_type1        = [[U.S. state|State]]
 | subdivision_name1        = {{flag|Colorado|name=State of 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        = [[Custer County, Colorado|Custer County]] - [[County seat|seat]]<ref name=CountySeatsCO>{{cite web|url=http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/hs/cntyseat.html|title=Colorado County Seats|publisher=[[State of Colorado]], Department of Public Health and Environment|access-date=December 31, 2007}}</ref>
 | subdivision_type3        = 
 | subdivision_name3        = 
<!-- Politics ----------------->
 | government_footnotes     = 
 | government_type          = [[Colorado municipalities#Statutory town|Statutory Town]]<ref name=COMun/>
 | leader_title             = [[Mayor]]
 | leader_name              = Paul Wenke{{citation needed|date=July 2024}}
 | leader_title1            = <!-- for places with, say, both a mayor and a city manager -->
 | leader_name1             = 
 | established_title        = <!-- Settled -->
 | established_date         = 
 | established_title2       = <!-- Incorporated (town) -->
 | established_date2        = 
 | established_title3       = [[Municipal corporation|Incorporated]]
 | established_date3        = November 21, 1887<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>
<!-- Area    --------------------->
 | 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           = 3.20
 | area_land_km2            = 3.20
 | area_water_km2           = 0.00
 | area_total_sq_mi         = 1.24
 | area_land_sq_mi          = 1.24
 | area_water_sq_mi         = 0.00
<!-- Population   ----------------------->
 | population_as_of         = [[2020 United States census|2020]]
 | population_footnotes     = <ref name="Census 2020">{{cite web |url=https://data.census.gov/profile/Westcliffe_town,_Colorado?g=160XX00US0883450 |title=Westcliffe town, Colorado |author=United States Census Bureau|date= |website= |publisher= |access-date=March 31, 2023 |quote=}}</ref>
 | population_note          = 
 | population_total         = 435
 | population_density_km2   = auto
 | population_density_sq_mi = auto
<!-- General information  --------------->
 | timezone                 = [[Mountain Time Zone|Mountain (MST)]]
 | utc_offset               = -7
 | timezone_DST             = [[Mountain Time Zone|MDT]]
 | utc_offset_DST           = -6
 | coordinates              = {{coord|38|07|48|N|105|27|45|W|region:US_type:city|display=inline,title}}
 | elevation_footnotes      = <ref name=gnis/>
 | elevation_ft             = 7871
<!-- 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 8, 2008 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20101122200027/http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/citytown.jsp | archive-date = November 22, 2010 }}</ref>
 | postal_code              = 81252
 | area_code                = [[Area code 719|719]]
 | blank_name               = [[Federal Information Processing Standard|FIPS code]]
 | blank_info               = 08-83450
 | blank1_name              = [[Geographic Names Information System|GNIS]] feature ID
 | blank1_info              = 2413471<ref name=gnis>{{GNIS|2413471}}</ref>
 | website                  = {{URL|www.townofwestcliffe.com|townofwestcliffe.com}}
 | footnotes                = 
 | official_name            = 
}}

'''Westcliffe''' is a [[Colorado municipalities#Statutory town|statutory town]] that is the [[county seat]] of [[Custer County, Colorado|Custer County]], [[Colorado]], United States.<ref name="GR6">{{cite web|url=http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx|access-date=June 7, 2011|title=Find a County|publisher=National Association of Counties}}</ref><ref name=CountySeatsCO/>  At the [[2020 U.S. Census]], the population was 435.<ref name="Census 2020" />

==History==
<gallery widths="180px">
File:D&RGW Train Depot In Westcliffe, Colorado.jpg|The restored D&RGW depot in August 2022
Image:Westcliffe CO Main Street 2006 09 01.jpg|Shopping lane in downtown Westcliffe
</gallery>
Westcliffe had its start in 1881 when the [[Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad]] was extended to that point.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BOTa5gUx4x0C&q=Monte+Vista%2C+Colorado&pg=PT298 | title=John Fielder's Best of Colorado | publisher=Big Earth Publishing | date=2002 | access-date=November 4, 2013 | author=Fielder, John | pages=297}}</ref>

==Geography==
Westcliffe is located west of the geographic center of Custer County in the [[Wet Mountain Valley]], between the [[Wet Mountains]] to the east and the [[Sangre de Cristo Range]] to the west. The town of [[Silver Cliff, Colorado|Silver Cliff]] is immediately to the east of Westcliffe.

According to the [[United States Census Bureau]], the town has a total area of {{convert|3.2|km2|order=flip}}, all of it land.<ref name="Census 2010">{{cite web| url=http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/G001/1600000US0883450| archive-url=https://archive.today/20200212181518/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/G001/1600000US0883450| url-status=dead| archive-date=February 12, 2020| title=Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Westcliffe town, Colorado| publisher=U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder| access-date=June 24, 2014}}</ref>

===Climate===
{{Weather box   <!-- Infobox begins -->
| single line = Y
| location    = Westcliffe, Colorado, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1895&ndash;present
|collapsed = Yes
|Jan record high F = 65
|Feb record high F = 69
|Mar record high F = 74
|Apr record high F = 78
|May record high F = 88
|Jun record high F = 95
|Jul record high F = 96
|Aug record high F = 94
|Sep record high F = 90
|Oct record high F = 82
|Nov record high F = 79
|Dec record high F = 72

|Jan avg record high F = 55.3
|Feb avg record high F = 56.5
|Mar avg record high F = 64.6
|Apr avg record high F = 70.4
|May avg record high F = 78.4
|Jun avg record high F = 86.3
|Jul avg record high F = 88.1
|Aug avg record high F = 85.1
|Sep avg record high F = 81.4
|Oct avg record high F = 74.9
|Nov avg record high F = 64.4
|Dec avg record high F = 56.2
|year avg record high F = 88.9

<!-- Average high temperatures -->
| Jan high F  =39.6
| Feb high F  =41.7
| Mar high F  =49.6
| Apr high F  =56.4
| May high F  =65.8
| Jun high F  =76.9
| Jul high F  =80.6
| Aug high F  =78.0
| Sep high F  =72.4
| Oct high F  =61.3
| Nov high F  =48.9
| Dec high F  =39.8
<!-- Mean daily temperature -->
| Jan mean F  =23.9
| Feb mean F  =26.9
| Mar mean F  =34.6
| Apr mean F  =41.0
| May mean F  =49.5
| Jun mean F  =58.7
| Jul mean F  =62.8
| Aug mean F  =61.1
| Sep mean F  =54.7
| Oct mean F  =43.7
| Nov mean F  =32.8
| Dec mean F  =23.9
<!-- Average low temperatures -->
| Jan low F  =8.3
| Feb low F  =12.1
| Mar low F  =19.6
| Apr low F  =25.7
| May low F  =33.3
| Jun low F  =40.6
| Jul low F  =44.9
| Aug low F  =44.1
| Sep low F  =37.0
| Oct low F  =26.1
| Nov low F  =16.7
| Dec low F  =8.0

|Jan avg record low F = -13.7
|Feb avg record low F = -12.6
|Mar avg record low F = -3.1
|Apr avg record low F = 5.2
|May avg record low F = 19.8
|Jun avg record low F = 30.3
|Jul avg record low F = 37.9
|Aug avg record low F = 35.8
|Sep avg record low F = 23.9
|Oct avg record low F = 5.6
|Nov avg record low F = -7.6
|Dec avg record low F = -15.9
|year avg record low F = -19.8

|Jan record low F = -41
|Feb record low F = -46
|Mar record low F = -31
|Apr record low F = -25
|May record low F = -2
|Jun record low F = 17
|Jul record low F = 25
|Aug record low F = 20
|Sep record low F = 4
|Oct record low F = -12
|Nov record low F = -29
|Dec record low F = -39

<!-- Total precipitation, this should include rain and snow. -->
| precipitation colour    =  green
| Jan precipitation inch  =0.48
| Feb precipitation inch  =0.58
| Mar precipitation inch  =1.06
| Apr precipitation inch  =1.56
| May precipitation inch  =1.41
| Jun precipitation inch  =0.79
| Jul precipitation inch  =2.66
| Aug precipitation inch  =1.98
| Sep precipitation inch  =0.90
| Oct precipitation inch  =0.95
| Nov precipitation inch  =0.69
| Dec precipitation inch  =0.53

|unit precipitation days = 0.01 in
|Jan precipitation days = 3.7
|Feb precipitation days = 4.7
|Mar precipitation days = 6.6
|Apr precipitation days = 6.8
|May precipitation days = 6.9
|Jun precipitation days = 5.8
|Jul precipitation days = 11.6
|Aug precipitation days = 11.6
|Sep precipitation days = 5.9
|Oct precipitation days = 5.1
|Nov precipitation days = 4.1
|Dec precipitation days = 4.3

<!-- Snowfall -->
| Jan snow inch  =8.4
| Feb snow inch  =10.4
| Mar snow inch  =15.0
| Apr snow inch  =19.6
| May snow inch  =4.3
| Jun snow inch  =0.0
| Jul snow inch  =0.0
| Aug snow inch  =0.0
| Sep snow inch  =0.9
| Oct snow inch  =8.4
| Nov snow inch  =8.5
| Dec snow inch  =8.8

|unit snow days = 0.1 in
|Jan snow days = 3.7
|Feb snow days = 4.6
|Mar snow days = 5.7
|Apr snow days = 4.4
|May snow days = 1.2
|Jun snow days = 0.0
|Jul snow days = 0.0
|Aug snow days = 0.0
|Sep snow days = 0.3
|Oct snow days = 1.8
|Nov snow days = 3.4
|Dec snow days = 4.1

|source 1 = NOAA<ref name = NOAA>
{{cite web
|url = https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/access/services/data/v1?dataset=normals-monthly-1991-2020&stations=USC00058931&format=pdf&dataTypes=MLY-TMAX-NORMAL,MLY-TMIN-NORMAL,MLY-TAVG-NORMAL,MLY-PRCP-NORMAL,MLY-SNOW-NORMAL
|publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
|title = U.S. Climate Normals Quick Access – Station: Westcliffe, CO
|access-date = March 8, 2023
}}
</ref>
|source 2 = National Weather Service<ref name = NOWData>
{{cite web
|url = https://www.weather.gov/wrh/climate?wfo=pub
|publisher = National Weather Service
|title = NOAA Online Weather Data – NWS Pueblo
|access-date = March 8, 2023
}}
</ref>
}}

===Dark skies===
Westcliffe, and neighboring [[Silver Cliff, Colorado]], are recognized as IDA International Dark Sky Communities by The [[International Dark-Sky Association]]. Gentle persuasion has resulted in residents and business in the towns and surrounding ranch land reducing the amount of [[light pollution]].<ref name="NYT81216">{{cite news |author1=Jack Healy |title=Colorado Towns Work to Preserve a Diminishing Resource: Darkness |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/13/us/colorado-dark-sky-project-stars-perseid.html |access-date=August 13, 2016 |work=[[The New York Times]] |date=August 12, 2016}}</ref>

Locals have set up a free observatory in an old period building with a "roll-off" roof to open up the 14-inch [[Schmidt-Cassegrain telescope]] with computer-guided pointing and tracking to the skies overhead. Named the Smokey Jack Observatory, it was built in 2015.<ref name=dp20190718>{{Cite web|url=https://www.denverpost.com/2019/07/18/dark-sky-colorado-westcliffe-silver-cliff-stargazing/|title=WATCH: Visit a dark sky observatory for free stargazing in southern Colorado|date=July 18, 2019|access-date=August 26, 2019}}</ref><ref name=darkskies20190721>[https://www.darkskiescolorado.org/smokey-jack-observatory Smokey Jack Observatory, Dark skies of the Wet Mountain Valley], www.darkskiescolorado.org, accessed July 21, 2019.</ref>

==Demographics==
{{US Census population
|align=left|1890= 192
|1900= 256
|1910= 232
|1920= 338
|1930= 335
|1940= 429
|1950= 390
|1960= 306
|1970= 243
|1980= 324
|1990= 312
|2000= 417
|2010= 568
|2020= 435
}}
<!--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 417 people, 194 households, and 108 families residing in the town. The population density was {{convert|367.1|PD/sqmi|PD/km2|sp=us|adj=off}}. There were 246 housing units at an average density of {{convert|216.6|/mi2|/km2|disp=preunit|units&nbsp;|units|}}. The racial makeup of the town was 95.44% [[White (U.S. Census)|White]], 1.92% [[Native American (U.S. Census)|Native American]], 0.24% [[Asian (U.S. Census)|Asian]], and 2.40% from two or more races. [[Hispanic (U.S. Census)|Hispanic]] or [[Latino (U.S. Census)|Latino]] of any race were 2.16% of the population.

There were 194 households, out of which 23.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 46.9% were [[Marriage|married couples]] living together, 6.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 44.3% were non-families. 42.3% of all households were made up of individuals, and 19.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.11 and the average family size was 2.91.

In the town, the population was spread out, with 22.3% under the age of 18, 6.5% from 18 to 24, 23.3% from 25 to 44, 31.9% from 45 to 64, and 16.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 98.8 males.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}}

The median income for a household in the town was $23,125, and the median income for a family was $36,250. Males had a median income of $28,542 versus $18,750 for females. The [[per capita income]] for the town was $14,047. About 14.4% of families and 20.4% of the population were below the [[poverty line]], including 29.5% of those under age 18 and 10.3% of those age 65 or over.{{citation needed|date=July 2019}}-->
{{clear}}

== Notable people ==
*[[Gordon Clark]] (1902–1985), philosopher and theologian, buried near Westcliffe
*[[Anne Kimbell]] (1932–2017), actress and founder of the Westcliffe Center for the Performing Arts<ref name=wmt>{{cite news |title=Stage and screen star Anne Kimbell Relph dies |url=http://www.wetmountaintribune.com/home.asp?i=1001&p=6 |work=Wet Mountain Tribune |date=June 1, 2017 |access-date=June 11, 2017}}</ref>
*[[Adolph Treidler]] (1886–1981), artist, born in Westcliffe

==See also==
{{portal|Colorado}}
*[[Custer County, Colorado]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Westcliffe, Colorado}}
*[http://www.townofwestcliffe.com/ Town of Westcliffe official website]

{{clear}}

{{Custer County, Colorado}}
{{Colorado|show}}
{{Colorado county seats}}

{{authority control}}

[[Category:Towns in Custer County, Colorado]]
[[Category:Towns in Colorado]]
[[Category:County seats in Colorado]]