Routt County, Colorado

Last updated
Routt County
Routt County, Colorado.JPG
Entering Routt County from the west on U.S. Route 40
Map of Colorado highlighting Routt County.svg
Location within the U.S. state of Colorado
Colorado in United States.svg
Colorado's location within the U.S.
Coordinates: 40°29′N106°59′W / 40.48°N 106.99°W / 40.48; -106.99
CountryFlag of the United States.svg United States
StateFlag of Colorado.svg Colorado
FoundedJanuary 29, 1877
Named after John Long Routt
Seat Steamboat Springs
Largest citySteamboat Springs
Area
  Total
2,368 sq mi (6,130 km2)
  Land2,362 sq mi (6,120 km2)
  Water6.1 sq mi (16 km2)  0.3%
Population
 (2020)
  Total
24,829
  Estimate 
(2024)
25,243 Increase2.svg
  Density10/sq mi (4.0/km2)
Time zone UTC−7 (Mountain)
  Summer (DST) UTC−6 (MDT)
Congressional district 2nd
Website www.co.routt.co.us

Routt County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 24,829. [1] The county seat is Steamboat Springs. [2] Routt County is included in the Steamboat Springs, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area, which also includes neighboring Moffat County. [3]

Contents

History

Placer gold was found near Hahns Peak in 1864 as part of the Colorado Gold Rush. [4] :30

Routt County was created out of the western portion of Grand County on January 29, 1877. It was named in honor of John Long Routt, the last territorial and first state governor of Colorado. The western portion of Routt County was split off to form Moffat County on February 27, 1911.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 2,368 square miles (6,130 km2), of which 2,362 square miles (6,120 km2) is land and 6.1 square miles (16 km2) (0.3%) is water. [5]

Adjacent counties

Major highways

National protected areas

State protected areas

Trails and byways

Demographics

Historical population
CensusPop.Note
1880 140
1890 2,3691,592.1%
1900 3,66154.5%
1910 7,561106.5%
1920 8,94818.3%
1930 9,3524.5%
1940 10,52512.5%
1950 8,940−15.1%
1960 5,900−34.0%
1970 6,59211.7%
1980 13,404103.3%
1990 14,0885.1%
2000 19,69039.8%
2010 23,50919.4%
2020 24,8295.6%
2024 (est.)25,243 [6] 1.7%
U.S. Decennial Census [7]
1790-1960 [8] 1900-1990 [9]
1990-2000 [10] 2010-2020 [1]

At the 2020 census there were 24,829 people, 10,619 households, and 5,106 families living in the county. The population density was 10.5 people per square mile (4.1 people/km2). There were 16,511 housing units at an average density of 7 units per square mile (2.7 units/km2). The racial makeup of the county was 87.5% White, 0.6% Black or African American, 0.5% Native American, 0.7% Asian, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 3.2% from other races, and 7.4% from two or more races. 8.9% of the population were Hispanic Latino of any race. [11] Of the 10,619 households 21.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 57% were married couples living together, 17.2% had a female householder with no husband present, and 43% were non-families. 23.7% of households were one person and 6.4% were one person aged 65 or older. The average household size was 2.31 and the average family size was 2.72.

The age distribution was 17.5% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 28.9% from 25 to 44, 29.1% from 45 to 64, and 17.6% 65 or older. The median age was 42.6 years. For every 100 females there were 110.3 males.

The median household income was $104,803 and the median family income was $125,927. Males had a median income of $71,535 versus $60,020 for females. About 6.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.6% of those under age 18 and 8.4% of those age 65 or over.

Education

Routt County is home to three public school districts:

The county is also home to Steamboat Mountain School in Steamboat Springs and North Routt Community Charter School in Clark.

Routt County is also home to the Steamboat Springs campus of Colorado Mountain College. CMC Steamboat is the only college in the United States that offers a degree in Ski & Snowboard Business, which focuses on the retail, manufacturing, and marketing of snowsports. [12]

Politics

Routt County tilted Republican for much of the second half of the 20th century. From 1952 to 1988, Republicans carried the county in all but one election. The one break in this trend came in 1964, when Lyndon Johnson won Routt by a healthy margin of 63–37.

Since the late 1980s, Routt County has trended Democratic. It swung from a 34-point win for Ronald Reagan in 1984 to only a five-point win for George H. W. Bush in 1988. In 1992, Bill Clinton became the first Democrat to win the county since 1964 and only the second since 1948, carrying it with modest pluralities in both of his bids. George W. Bush won the county in 2000 by only 264 votes. However, John Kerry won it by a 10-point majority in 2004, and since then Routt has become powerfully Democratic, with Democrats winning by margins rivaling those in the counties closer to Denver. In 2016, Hillary Clinton won the county 54–37. Routt County continued its Democratic trend in 2020, with Joe Biden winning the county 63–35. This is the largest margin of victory for a Democratic presidential candidate in the county since the 1916 election.

United States presidential election results for Routt County, Colorado [13]
Year Republican Democratic Third party(ies)
No.%No.%No.%
1880 3967.24%1932.76%00.00%
1884 10659.22%7340.78%00.00%
1888 36662.24%21937.24%30.51%
1892 32549.17%00.00%33650.83%
1896 1229.89%1,10589.62%60.49%
1900 57540.41%82858.19%201.41%
1904 1,38460.54%85637.45%462.01%
1908 1,09842.71%1,40354.57%702.72%
1912 73826.11%1,40849.82%68024.06%
1916 84928.76%1,97266.80%1314.44%
1920 1,85457.51%1,22437.97%1464.53%
1924 1,82253.51%1,11632.78%46713.72%
1928 2,30457.36%1,64540.95%681.69%
1932 1,56835.56%2,64359.95%1984.49%
1936 1,54133.68%2,81761.57%2174.74%
1940 2,21244.07%2,77555.29%320.64%
1944 1,86948.79%1,94050.64%220.57%
1948 1,49240.87%2,08857.19%711.94%
1952 2,14357.31%1,57542.12%210.56%
1956 1,81157.55%1,33042.26%60.19%
1960 1,65153.83%1,41446.10%20.07%
1964 1,09536.94%1,85362.52%160.54%
1968 1,60253.83%1,07636.16%29810.01%
1972 2,62959.33%1,61336.40%1894.27%
1976 2,82254.13%2,13040.86%2615.01%
1980 3,57453.33%1,94429.01%1,18417.67%
1984 4,23966.15%2,05132.01%1181.84%
1988 3,26451.65%2,92246.24%1332.10%
1992 2,35828.89%3,18839.06%2,61532.04%
1996 3,01938.52%3,66046.70%1,15814.78%
2000 4,47246.40%4,20843.66%9589.94%
2004 5,19944.20%6,39254.34%1711.45%
2008 4,72535.80%8,27062.66%2041.55%
2012 5,46941.07%7,54756.67%3012.26%
2016 5,23037.39%7,60054.34%1,1568.27%
2020 5,92535.11%10,58262.70%3692.19%
2024 5,67634.75%10,20862.49%4512.76%

Communities

City

Towns

Census-designated place

Other places

See also

References

  1. 1 2 "State & County QuickFacts". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved September 5, 2021.
  2. "Find a County". National Association of Counties. Retrieved June 7, 2011.
  3. "Metropolitan and Micropolitan Statistical Areas Population Totals: 2020-2024". United States Census Bureau, Population Division. March 13, 2025. Retrieved March 14, 2025.
  4. Voynick, S.M., 1992, Colorado Gold, Missoula: Mountain Press Publishing Company, ISBN   0878424555
  5. "US Gazetteer files: 2010, 2000, and 1990". United States Census Bureau. February 12, 2011. Retrieved April 23, 2011.
  6. "County Population Totals and Components of Change: 2020-2024". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 3, 2025.
  7. "U.S. Decennial Census". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
  8. "Historical Census Browser". University of Virginia Library. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
  9. "Population of Counties by Decennial Census: 1900 to 1990". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
  10. "Census 2000 PHC-T-4. Ranking Tables for Counties: 1990 and 2000" (PDF). United States Census Bureau. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 27, 2010. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
  11. "U.S. Census website". United States Census Bureau . Retrieved May 14, 2011.
  12. "Ski & Snowboard Sports Business Degree".
  13. Leip, David. "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". uselectionatlas.org. Retrieved May 26, 2017.