Rifle, Colorado | |
|---|---|
 Railroad Avenue in Rifle looking north. | |
 Location inGarfield County andColorado | |
| Coordinates:39°32′05″N107°46′22″W / 39.53472°N 107.77278°W /39.53472; -107.77278[3] | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Colorado |
| County | Garfield County[2] |
| City | Rifle[1] |
| Founded | 1882[4] |
| Incorporated | August 18, 1905[5] |
| Founded by | Abram Maxfield |
| Named after | Rifle Creek |
| Government | |
| • Type | Home-rule municipality[1] |
| • Mayor | Clint Hostettler |
| Area | |
• Total | 7.15 sq mi (18.53 km2) |
| • Land | 7.03 sq mi (18.22 km2) |
| • Water | 0.12 sq mi (0.31 km2) |
| Elevation | 5,519 ft (1,682 m) |
| Population | |
• Total | 10,437 |
| • Density | 1,379.8/sq mi (532.75/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC-7 (Mountain (MST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-6 (MDT) |
| ZIP code[8] | 81650 |
| Area code | 970 |
| FIPS code | 08-64255 |
| GNIS feature ID | 2410947[3] |
| Website | www |
Rifle is ahome-rule municipality in, and the most populous community of,Garfield County, Colorado, United States. Its population was 10,437 at the2020 census.[7] Rifle is a regional center of thecattle-ranching industry located alongInterstate 70 and theColorado River just east of theRoan Plateau, which dominates the western skyline of the town. The town was founded in 1882[4] by Abram Maxfield, and was incorporated in 1905 alongRifle Creek, near its mouth on the Colorado. The community takes its name from the creek.[9]
The land on which Rifle resides was once in the heart of theUte Nation, a classification of theIndigenous peoples of the Great Basin. The most common tribe in the area were the Tabagauche, who hunted and lived on the land slightly to the east of Rifle in theRoaring Fork Valley. Due to their location, the Tabagauche were somewhat less exposed to White settlers, and to some extent their ways remained less altered than other native peoples. In 1878,Nathan Meeker was appointed as the director of the White River Ute Agency (the town ofMeeker 40 miles north of Rifle was named after him). Meeker had no training or knowledge of Ute culture, and launched into a campaign centered on sedentary agriculture and European-American schooling. As this clashed with the culture of the nomadic Utes, he was met with resistance. It all came to a head when Meeker had the pasture and racetrack for the Ute's horses plowed under. The event that followed is known as theMeeker Massacre in 1879, during which Meeker and his 10 employees were killed. The aftermath of the conflict resulted in nearly all members of the Ute nation being forcibly removed from Colorado into eastern Utah, although the federal government had formerly guaranteed them the land on which they were residing.[10]
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Rifle became more and more settled as the 19th century gave way to the 20th. In 1889, the railroad cut through from the east and ended in Rifle for a while before connecting lines were completed. This opened up the floodgates for new travelers, settlers, and trade. Long drives of cattle over the mountains towards theFront Range andDenver became a thing of the past. Rifle was now a thriving hub for commerce. If it needed to be shipped east to a buyer's market, or shipped west into ranching country, it came through the town.
The first major economy known to Rifle was ranching. The land surrounding the town was arid, and much of it was unsuitable for farming withoutirrigation. Despite the large stretches of land available, tension arose and manifested between those who tended cattle and those who herded sheep. Goodgrazing practices were not in place, and the summer pastures at the top of the Roan Plateau were contested. One rancher lost two-thirds of his flock and went bankrupt when competing cowboys drove the sheep over the cliff.
Rifle is located in the east portion of thePiceance Basin, which is home to different forms offossil fuels, the largest quantity of which isoil shale. The unreliability of this fossil fuel has left the city in the throes of a cycling boom-and-bust economy.
As of 2007[update], an organization called theCampaign to Save Roan Plateau has been engaged in an effort to minimize oil and gas drilling on the top of the Roan Plateau, which locals call theBookcliffs. The Roan Plateau is accessible from the JQS Trail, located 3 miles (5 km) north of Rifle, or from the Piceance Creek road.[11]
Rifle is located in the valley of theColorado River whereRifle Creek joins from the north. Most of the city is on the north side of the river, but some city land lies to the south.Interstate 70 passes through the city along the south side of the river, with access from Exit 90. I-70 leads east 26 miles (42 km) toGlenwood Springs, the Garfield County seat, and southwest 60 miles (97 km) toGrand Junction.U.S. Route 6 runs along the north side of the Colorado River through Rifle, providing a local parallel route to I-70.Colorado State Highway 13 intersects I-70 and US-6, passing through the southern and western parts of Rifle, then leading north 41 miles (66 km) toMeeker.
According to theUnited States Census Bureau, the city of Rifle has a total area of 5.7 square miles (14.7 km2), of which 0.1 square miles (0.2 km2), or 1.18%, is covered by water.[12]
| Climate data for Rifle, 1991-2020 normals | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 62 (17) | 69 (21) | 81 (27) | 92 (33) | 99 (37) | 102 (39) | 104 (40) | 102 (39) | 99 (37) | 88 (31) | 79 (26) | 65 (18) | 104 (40) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 36.8 (2.7) | 43.5 (6.4) | 55.4 (13.0) | 62.9 (17.2) | 74.3 (23.5) | 86.4 (30.2) | 92.1 (33.4) | 88.9 (31.6) | 80.0 (26.7) | 65.5 (18.6) | 49.7 (9.8) | 37.3 (2.9) | 64.4 (18.0) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 13.4 (−10.3) | 19.8 (−6.8) | 27.0 (−2.8) | 32.6 (0.3) | 40.2 (4.6) | 47.9 (8.8) | 55.3 (12.9) | 53.6 (12.0) | 45.0 (7.2) | 33.6 (0.9) | 23.3 (−4.8) | 14.0 (−10.0) | 33.8 (1.0) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −38 (−39) | −34 (−37) | −16 (−27) | 4 (−16) | 17 (−8) | 22 (−6) | 33 (1) | 31 (−1) | 21 (−6) | 7 (−14) | −16 (−27) | −27 (−33) | −38 (−39) |
| Averageprecipitation inches (mm) | 0.70 (18) | 0.60 (15) | 0.76 (19) | 1.01 (26) | 1.14 (29) | 0.68 (17) | 0.96 (24) | 1.07 (27) | 1.34 (34) | 1.27 (32) | 0.63 (16) | 0.57 (14) | 10.73 (271) |
| Source 1: weather.com[13] | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: xmACIS2[14] | |||||||||||||
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1900 | 273 | — | |
| 1910 | 698 | 155.7% | |
| 1920 | 865 | 23.9% | |
| 1930 | 1,287 | 48.8% | |
| 1940 | 1,373 | 6.7% | |
| 1950 | 1,525 | 11.1% | |
| 1960 | 2,135 | 40.0% | |
| 1970 | 2,150 | 0.7% | |
| 1980 | 3,215 | 49.5% | |
| 1990 | 4,636 | 44.2% | |
| 2000 | 6,784 | 46.3% | |
| 2010 | 9,172 | 35.2% | |
| 2020 | 10,437 | 13.8% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census[15] | |||
As of thecensus[16] of 2010, 9,172 people, 3,221 households, and 2,230 families resided in the city. The population density was 1,581.1 inhabitants per square mile (610.5/km2). The 2,586 housing units had an average density of 602.7 per square mile (232.7/km2). Theracial makeup of the city was 81.0% White, 0.5% African American, 1.3% Native American, 0.6% Asian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 13.4% from other races, and 3.1% from two or more races. Hispanics or Latinos of any race were 30.4% of the population.
Of the 3,221 households, 40.0% had children under 18 living with them, 30.8% were married couples living together, 10.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.8% were not families. About 23.5% of all households were made up of individuals, and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 or older. The average household size was 2.81 and the average family size was 3.35.
In the city, the age distribution was 30.6% under 18, 9.2% from 18 to 24, 34.4% from 25 to 44, 17.1% from 45 to 64, and 8.5% who were 65 or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 106.1 males. For every 100 females 18 and over, there were 105.7 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $42,734, and for a family was $48,714. Males had a median income of $36,517 versus $25,527 for females. Theper capita income for the city was $17,376. About 3.4% of families and 6.4% of the population were below thepoverty line, including 7.8% of those under age 18 and 9.8% of those age 65 or over.
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Rifle Mountain Park, located 16 miles (26 km) north of Rifle, is maintained by the City of Rifle. It is popular withrock climbers.[17] Other outside attractions near the city includeRifle Falls State Park,[18] Rifle Falls Fish Hatchery,[19]Rifle Gap State Park,[20]Harvey Gap State Park,[21] and access toBLM land, including Hubbard Mesa Open Area,[22] Rifle Arch,[23] and the Roan Plateau.[24]
Six miles north of the center of the city is Rifle Creek Golf Course.[25]
in 2014, the New Ute theater was opened in downtown Rifle.[26]
Rifle is home to the Garfield County Fair Grounds. One week out of the year, the city bustles with activities surrounding family and professionalrodeos, Xtreme bull riding, live music, and ademolition derby.[27]
Rifle is within theGarfield Re-2 School District.[28] The city is served by three elementary schools, a middle school, and a high school:
Rifle’s higher-education needs are served byColorado Mountain College, which operates a campus just east of the city. In 2022, CMC Rifle had an enrollment of 1,346 students.[29]
The city is served by theRifle Garfield County Airport. The state-run bus serviceBustang connects Rifle to Grand Junction and Denver.[30] The city is also served by the Union Pacific/Rio Grande line between Denver and Ogden.
On August 10, 1972,Christo and Jeanne-Claude completed theValley Curtain project at Rifle Gap, 6 miles (10 km) north of town. The completed curtain hung for only 28 hours before it was ripped by a gust of wind.[31]
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
Municipalities and communities ofGarfield County, Colorado,United States | ||
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| Cities |  | |
| Towns | ||
| CDPs | ||
| Unincorporated communities | ||
| Ghost town | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| Geographic | |
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