Lake County was one of the original 17 counties created by the Colorado legislature on November 1, 1861. As originally defined, Lake County included a large portion of western Colorado to the south and west of its present boundaries. The county was named forTwin Lakes.
Placer gold was found at Colorado Gulch in 1863 as part of theColorado Gold Rush.[3]: 30
With its many reductions in size, Lake County's designated county seat also changed multiple times within just a few years, residing successively inOro City (from 1861),Lourette (from 1863),Dayton (from 1866), andGranite (from 1868).
By 1878, Lake County had been reduced to an area including only present-day Lake andChaffee counties. On February 8, 1879, the Colorado legislature renamed Lake County,Carbonate County. However, this designation name only lasted for two days, until Chaffee County was split off from Carbonate's southern section on February 10 and the remaining northern portion was redesignated Lake County with its current county seat ofLeadville.
According to theU.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 384 square miles (990 km2), of which 377 square miles (980 km2) is land and 7.0 square miles (18 km2) (1.8%) is water.[4] It is the fourth-smallest county in Colorado by area.
As the courthouse with the highest elevation in the United States, the Lake County courthouse in Leadville is the "highest court" in the land.
As of the2020 census, the county had a population of 7,436. Of the residents, 20.9% were under the age of 18 and 12.5% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 36.0 years. For every 100 females there were 116.4 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 121.2 males. 61.0% of residents lived in urban areas and 39.0% lived in rural areas.[10][11][12]
Lake County, Colorado – Racial and ethnic composition Note: the US Census treats Hispanic/Latino as an ethnic category. This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category. Hispanics/Latinos may be of any race.
There were 3,075 households in the county, of which 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 19.1% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 30.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.[11]
There were 4,303 housing units, of which 28.5% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 65.6% were owner-occupied and 34.4% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 1.3% and the rental vacancy rate was 7.6%.[11]
As of the2000 census, there were 7,812 people, 2,977 households, and 1,914 families living in the county. Thepopulation density was 21 people per square mile (8.1 people/km2). There were 3,913 housing units at an average density of 10 units per square mile (3.9 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 77.60%White, 0.18%Black orAfrican American, 1.25%Native American, 0.31%Asian, 0.05%Pacific Islander, 17.99% fromother races, and 2.62% from two or more races. 36.14% of the population wereHispanic orLatino of any race.
There were 2,977 households, out of which 33.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 50.70% weremarried couples living together, 8.40% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.70% were non-families. 26.30% of all households were made up of individuals, and 5.60% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59 and the average family size was 3.15.
In the county, the population was spread out, with 26.90% under the age of 18, 12.80% from 18 to 24, 33.10% from 25 to 44, 20.60% from 45 to 64, and 6.60% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 115.80 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 116.70 males.
The median income for a household in the county was $37,691, and the median income for a family was $41,652. Males had a median income of $30,977 versus $24,415 for females. Theper capita income for the county was $18,524. About 9.50% of families and 12.90% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 15.60% of those under age 18 and 6.30% of those age 65 or over.
