Lamar, Colorado

Lamar is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Prowers County, Colorado, United States.[8] The city population was 7,804 at the 2010 United States Census. The city was named after Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II[9] during the period that he was Secretary of the Interior in the futile hope that the then town would be named as the land office.

Lamar, Colorado
Home Rule Municipality
Main Street facing north in downtown (2007)
Location of Lamar in Prowers County, Colorado.
Coordinates: 38°05′14″N 102°37′15″W[1]
CountryUnited States
StateColorado
CountyProwers
IncorporatedDecember 5, 1886[2]
Government
 • TypeHome Rule Municipality[3]
 • MayorKirk Crespin[4]
Area
 • Total5.20 sq mi (13.47 km2)
 • Land5.18 sq mi (13.41 km2)
 • Water0.02 sq mi (0.05 km2)
Elevation3,619 ft (1,103 m)
Population
 (2010)
 • Total7,804
 • Estimate 
(2018)[6]
7,656
 • Density1,454.72/sq mi (561.64/km2)
Time zoneUTC−7 (Mountain (MST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC−6 (MDT)
ZIP code[7]
81052
Area code(s)719
FIPS code08-43110
GNIS feature ID203835[1]
WebsiteCity Website

History

Lamar was founded on May 24, 1886 by Issac Holmes.[10] It was named after Lucius Lamar, who was the Secretary of the Interior at that time. The first town elections were held in December, and C. M. Morrison became the town's first mayor. In 1889 Prowers Country was established, and Lamar was elected to house the county's government. Throughout its history, Lamar has suffered from fires and floods. The town was also greatly affected by the Dust Bowl, and as such participated in projects led by the Civil Works Administration, Federal Emergency Relief Administration, and the Works Progress Administration.

The northern site of the Pierre Auger Observatory of ultra-high energy cosmic rays is planned to be built near Lamar.[11]

Restored railroad depot and Lamar visitor center

Geography and climate

The city lies in southeastern Colorado in northwestern Prowers County on the south side of the Arkansas River floodplain. Las Animas is about twenty miles to the west.[12]

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 4.2 square miles (11 km2), all land.

Transportation

Lamar receives intercity passenger rail service at the Lamar Amtrak Station via Amtrak's Southwest Chief, which runs between Chicago and Los Angeles. There is also intercity bus service provided by Bustang. Lamar is the last eastbound stop of the Lamar-Pueblo-Colorado Springs Outrider line.

Highways

Climate
Climate data for Lamar, Colorado
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °F (°C) 82
(28)		 87
(31)		 89
(32)		 98
(37)		 103
(39)		 111
(44)		 111
(44)		 110
(43)		 106
(41)		 99
(37)		 89
(32)		 82
(28)		 111
(44)
Average high °F (°C) 45
(7)		 49
(9)		 59
(15)		 69
(21)		 78
(26)		 88
(31)		 93
(34)		 91
(33)		 83
(28)		 70
(21)		 56
(13)		 45
(7)		 68.83
(20.46)
Average low °F (°C) 14
(−10)		 18
(−8)		 27
(−3)		 36
(2)		 47
(8)		 58
(14)		 63
(17)		 61
(16)		 51
(11)		 37
(3)		 24
(−4)		 15
(−9)		 37.58
(3.10)
Record low °F (°C) −29
(−34)		 −30
(−34)		 −5
(−21)		 8
(−13)		 27
(−3)		 38
(3)		 49
(9)		 40
(4)		 23
(−5)		 8
(−13)		 −12
(−24)		 −23
(−31)		 −15
(−26)
Average precipitation inches (mm) 0.44
(11)		 0.48
(12)		 0.87
(22)		 1.32
(34)		 2.12
(54)		 2.39
(61)		 2.36
(60)		 2.51
(64)		 1.35
(34)		 1.01
(26)		 0.52
(13)		 0.52
(13)		 15.84
(402)
Average snowfall inches (cm) 6.5
(17)		 5.0
(13)		 5.0
(13)		 1.8
(4.6)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.0
(0.0)		 0.1
(0.25)		 1.4
(3.6)		 3.3
(8.4)		 6.1
(15)		 29.2
(74)
Source: Accuweather, NOAA[13]

Demographics
Historical population
CensusPop.%±
1890566—
190098774.4%
19102,977201.6%
19202,512−15.6%
19304,23368.5%
19404,4455.0%
19506,82953.6%
19607,3697.9%
19707,7975.8%
19807,713−1.1%
19908,3438.2%
20008,8696.3%
20107,804−12.0%
Est. 20187,656[6]−1.9%
U.S. Decennial Census[14]

As of the census[15] of 2010, there were 7,804 people, 3,102 households, and 1,980 families living in the city. The population density was 1,858.1 people per square mile (717.4/km²). There were 3,666 housing units at an average density of 872.9/sq mi (337.0/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 78.6% White, 0.7% African American, 1.0% Native American, 0.4% Asian, 0.0% Pacific Islander, 16.3% from other races, and 3.0% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 39.7% of the population.

There were 3,102 households out of which 42.2% were married couples living together, 15.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 36.2% were non-families. 31.8% of all households were made up of individuals living alone and 12.8% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.43 and the average family size was 3.07.

In the city, the population was spread out with 27.8% under the age of 18, 10.4% from 18 to 24, 23.4% from 25 to 44, 24.3% from 45 to 64, and 14.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 34.1 years. For every 100 females, there were 93.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 88.8 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $31,521, and the median income for a family was $43,588. Males working full-time and year-round had a median income of $31,621 versus $30,148 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,944. About 21.4% of families and 24.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 34.1% of those under age 18 and 15.1% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Lamar is part of School District RE-2,[16][17] and it is home to Lamar Community College.[18]

Economy

Lamar was originally founded as a town with an agriculture-based economy. In 1982 the German bus manufacturer Neoplan opened a manufacturing plant employing 650, but it closed down in 2006. Lamar has increasingly relied on tourism.[10]

Notable people

Notable individuals who were born in or have lived in Lamar include:

See also

References
  1. "Lamar". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey.
  2. "Colorado Municipal Incorporations". State of Colorado, Department of Personnel & Administration, Colorado State Archives. 2004-12-01. Retrieved 2007-09-02.
  3. "Active Colorado Municipalities". State of Colorado, Department of Local Affairs. Archived from the original on 2009-12-12. Retrieved 2007-09-01.
  4. "2009 - 2011 City Elected Officials". City of Lamar. Retrieved 2011-11-25.
  5. "2016 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved Jul 25, 2017.
  6. "Population and Housing Unit Estimates". Retrieved August 25, 2019.
  7. "ZIP Code Lookup". United States Postal Service. Archived from the original (JavaScript/HTML) on November 4, 2010. Retrieved November 13, 2007.
  8. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved 2011-06-07.
  9. Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. Government Printing Office. p. 180.
  10. "City of Lamar, Colorado Cultural Resource Survey: Architectural & Historical Survey Report" (PDF). historycolorado.com. October 2012. Retrieved 2017-10-03.
  11. "Pierre Auger Observatory - Northern Auger Site". Archived from the original on 2011-07-09. Retrieved 2011-07-14.
  12. Colorado Atlas & Gazetteer, DeLorme, 12th ed., 2015, p. 99 ISBN 0899332889
  13. "Lamar Weather". Accuweather. Retrieved August 7, 2019.
  14. "Census of Population and Housing". Census.gov. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  15. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 2018-02-27.
  16. Lamar School District Archived 2011-08-11 at the Wayback Machine
  17. "Lamar School District RE-2". Retrieved 10 January 2014.
  18. "About LCC". Retrieved 10 January 2014.
  19. "Allott, Gordon Llewellyn, (1907-1989)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. U.S. Congress. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
  20. Edwards, Bill. "Marvin E. Ashbaugh". RagPiano.com. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
  21. "Doug Brocail". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
  22. "Ken Curtis (I)". IMDb. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
  23. "Scott Elarton". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
  24. Nolte, Carl (2014-07-19). "Curt Gentry dies: best-selling writer of Manson, Hoover books". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
  25. "Summary Bibliography: Gerald Gregg". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
  26. "Grisham, Wayne Richard, (1923-2011)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. U.S. Congress. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
  27. Hevesi, Dennis (2012-05-03). "Floyd D. Hall, Head of Eastern Airlines, Dies at 96". The New York Times. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
  28. https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/obituary-sharon-herbaugh-1456492.html
  29. "Kenneth Kester's Biography". Vote Smart. Retrieved 2016-06-21.
  30. "Wesley Tuttle [Obituary]". The Independent. 2003-10-15. Archived from the original on July 30, 2011. Retrieved 2016-06-21.CS1 maint: unfit url (link)
  31. "Sandy Vance". Baseball-Reference.com. Retrieved 2016-06-21.

Further reading
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