Mineral County, Colorado

The two Creedes

In 1892, two rival municipalities named Creede were incorporated in the Creede Mining District. On March 19, 1892, the Town of Creede was incorporated around the Creede post office.^[16] On June 13, 1892, the rival City of Creede was incorporated around the Amethyst post office.^[16] On March 27, 1893, Mineral County was created, and on November 7, 1893, county voters selected the City of Creede as the new county seat. However, the City of Creede continued to use the Amethyst postal address.

In an attempt to avoid further confusion, the United States Post Office Department changed the name of the Creede post office to North Creede, Colorado, on November 28 1908, and changed the name of the Amethyst post office to Creede, Colorado, on February 9, 1909.

As silver mining declined, both municipalities lost population, and in 1916, the City of Creede became a statutory town, but continued to use the appellation City of Creede to distinguish itself from its northern rival.^[16] On April 15, 1919, the North Creede post office closed, and the Town of Creede soon ceased operation. It was not until July 23, 2026, that the Colorado Secretary of State declared the Town of Creede abandoned.^[17]

The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) uses the name "Town of the City of Creede" to identify the county seat and sole surviving municipality of Mineral County.

Adjacent counties

• Saguache County - northeast
• Rio Grande County - east
• Archuleta County - south
• Hinsdale County - west

Major highways

• U.S. Highway 160
• State Highway 149

National protected areas

• Rio Grande National Forest
• San Juan National Forest
• La Garita Wilderness
• Weminuche Wilderness

Trails and byways

• Colorado Trail
• Continental Divide National Scenic Trail
• Lake Fork National Recreation Trail
• Silver Thread Scenic Byway

2020 census

As of the 2020 census, the county had a population of 865. Of the residents, 10.6% were under the age of 18 and 34.2% were 65 years of age or older; the median age was 56.8 years. For every 100 females there were 97.9 males, and for every 100 females age 18 and over there were 97.7 males. 0.0% of residents lived in urban areas and 100.0% lived in rural areas.^[24][25][26]

The racial makeup of the county was 91.2% White, 0.3% Black or African American, 0.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3% Asian, 0.0% Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, 0.0% from some other race, and 7.4% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino residents of any race comprised 5.4% of the population.^[26]

There were 424 households in the county, of which 19.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them and 22.9% had a female householder with no spouse or partner present. About 26.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 12.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.^[25]

There were 1,215 housing units, of which 65.1% were vacant. Among occupied housing units, 80.2% were owner-occupied and 19.8% were renter-occupied. The homeowner vacancy rate was 3.4% and the rental vacancy rate was 6.2%.^[25]

2000 census

At the 2000 census, there were 831 people in 377 households, including 251 families, in the county. The population density was 1 people per square mile (0.39 people/km²). There were 1,119 housing units at an average density of 1 units per square mile (0.39 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 96.87% White, 0.84% Native American, 0.12% from other races, and 2.17% from two or more races. 2.05% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Of the 377 households 22.30% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57.00% were married couples living together, 5.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.40% were non-families. 28.10% of households were one person and 9.80% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.20 and the average family size was 2.70.

The age distribution was 20.50% under the age of 18, 4.70% from 18 to 24, 24.80% from 25 to 44, 32.70% from 45 to 64, and 17.30% 65 or older. The median age was 45 years. For every 100 females there were 104.20 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 99.10 males.

The median household income was $34,844 and the median family income was $40,833. Males had a median income of $28,750 versus $19,375 for females. The per capita income for the county was $24,475. About 9.30% of families and 10.20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 18.70% of those under age 18 and 10.60% of those age 65 or over.

Mineral County has an extremely high proportion of land under federal ownership, with 95%^[30] of the county under the management of the federal government (It houses an office of, and is surrounded by, the Rio Grande National Forest).^{[citation needed]}

2015

As of 2015 the largest self-reported ancestry groups in Mineral County, Colorado are:^[31]

More information Largest ancestries (2015), Percent ...

Largest ancestries (2015)	Percent
English	22.5%
German	19.9%
Irish	13.9%
"American"	7.5%

Close

Town

• Creede

Unincorporated communities

• Spar City
• Wagon Wheel Gap

Ghost towns

• Bachelor City
• Wason, Colorado
• Weaver