Hinsdale County, Colorado

Hinsdale County
Hinsdale County
County
	The 1877 Hinsdale County Court House in Lake City, Colorado.
	Location within the U.S. state of Colorado
	Colorado's location within the U.S.
	Coordinates: 37°49′N 107°17′W / 37.82°N 107.28°W
Country	United States
State	Colorado
Founded	February 10, 1874
Named for	George A. Hinsdale
Seat	Lake City
Largest town	Lake City
Area
• Total	1,123 sq mi (2,910 km2)
• Land	1,117 sq mi (2,890 km2)
• Water	5.9 sq mi (15 km2) 0.5%
Population (2020)
• Total	788
• Density	0.7/sq mi (0.3/km2)
Time zone	UTC−7 (Mountain)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−6 (MDT)
Congressional district	3rd
Website	hinsdalecounty.colorado.gov

Hinsdale County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 788,^[1] making it the second-least populous county in Colorado. With a population density of only 0.71 inhabitants per square mile (0.27/km²), it is also the least-densely populated county in Colorado. The county seat and only incorporated municipality in the county is Lake City.^[2] The county is named for George A. Hinsdale,^[3] a prominent pioneer and former Lieut. Governor of Colorado Territory.

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,123 square miles (2,910 km²), of which 1,117 square miles (2,890 km²) is land and 5.9 square miles (15 km²) (0.5%) is water.^[4]

Hinsdale County is one of the most remote counties in Colorado and the United States. The county is covered by mountains, including multiple fourteeners, and contains one of the largest roadless areas in the country.^[5]^[6] The continental divide crosses the county twice. Most of the county is divided among several different national forests and the Weminuche Wilderness area.

Adjacent counties

Gunnison – north
Saguache – northeast
Mineral – east
Archuleta – southeast
La Plata – southwest
San Juan – west
Ouray – northwest

Major highways

State Highway 149

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.	Note	%±
1880	1,487		—
1890	862		−42.0%
1900	1,609		86.7%
1910	646		−59.9%
1920	538		−16.7%
1930	449		−16.5%
1940	349		−22.3%
1950	263		−24.6%
1960	208		−20.9%
1970	202		−2.9%
1980	408		102.0%
1990	467		14.5%
2000	790		69.2%
2010	843		6.7%
2020	788		−6.5%
2023 (est.)	765	^[7]	−2.9%
U.S. Decennial Census^[8] 1790-1960^[9] 1900-1990^[10] 1990-2000^[11] 2010-2020^[1]

As of the census of 2000, there were 790 people, 359 households, and 246 families living in the county. The population density was 0.7 people per square mile (0.27 people/km²). There were 1,304 housing units at an average density of 1.2 units per square mile (0.46 units/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.34% White, 1.52% Native American, 0.25% Asian, 0.38% from other races, and 0.51% from two or more races. 1.52% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There were 359 households, out of which 23.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 61.0% were married couples living together, 4.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.20% were non-families. 24.8% of all households were made up of individuals, and 3.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.2 and the average family size was 2.6.

In the county, the population was spread out, with 19.5% under the age of 18, 4.7% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 34.7% from 45 to 64, and 11.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 44 years. For every 100 females there were 105.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 109.9 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $37,279, and the median income for a family was $42,159. Males had a median income of $26,210 versus $23,750 for females. The per capita income for the county was $22,360. About 4.5% of families and 7.2% of the population were below the poverty line, including none of those under age 18 and 2.2% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Republican presidential nominees have carried Hinsdale County since Franklin Delano Roosevelt defeated Alf Landon by eight votes in 1936. Along with Elbert County and Washington County it was one of three Colorado counties to vote for Barry Goldwater over Lyndon Johnson in 1964. In 2020, Joe Biden received the highest vote share for a Democrat since Johnson, and became the third Democrat since 1940 to breach 40% of the vote.

The last Democrat to carry Hinsdale County in a statewide election was John Hickenlooper in the 2010 gubernatorial contest,^[12] and the only other case since at least 1980 have been Democratic senator Ben “Nighthorse” Campbell, who was later to shift to the Republican Party, in 1992, alongside popular Governor Roy Romer, who carried all but three counties statewide, in 1990.^[13]

Hinsdale County is situated in Colorado House of Representatives, House District 58. The Current Representative is Marc Catlin, who has represented the county since 2022.^[14]

United States presidential election results for Hinsdale County, Colorado^[15]
Year	Republican		Democratic		Third party
Year	No.	%	No.	%	No.	%
2020	353	55.85%	255	40.35%	24	3.80%
2016	339	57.56%	197	33.45%	53	9.00%
2012	353	58.83%	229	38.17%	18	3.00%
2008	344	57.43%	240	40.07%	15	2.50%
2004	355	58.97%	236	39.20%	11	1.83%
2000	316	55.83%	188	33.22%	62	10.95%
1996	289	52.83%	185	33.82%	73	13.35%
1992	188	39.50%	151	31.72%	137	28.78%
1988	295	72.48%	111	27.27%	1	0.25%
1984	310	74.88%	98	23.67%	6	1.45%
1980	232	69.05%	76	22.62%	28	8.33%
1976	189	66.55%	83	29.23%	12	4.23%
1972	172	77.48%	44	19.82%	6	2.70%
1968	127	66.15%	43	22.40%	22	11.46%
1964	107	53.23%	94	46.77%	0	0.00%
1960	138	62.73%	82	37.27%	0	0.00%
1956	155	76.73%	47	23.27%	0	0.00%
1952	154	74.04%	54	25.96%	0	0.00%
1948	133	63.94%	75	36.06%	0	0.00%
1944	124	67.03%	61	32.97%	0	0.00%
1940	150	58.82%	103	40.39%	2	0.78%
1936	129	47.78%	137	50.74%	4	1.48%
1932	94	38.21%	138	56.10%	14	5.69%
1928	128	53.78%	106	44.54%	4	1.68%
1924	138	50.00%	79	28.62%	59	21.38%
1920	149	59.13%	67	26.59%	36	14.29%
1916	94	31.13%	178	58.94%	30	9.93%
1912	136	38.64%	157	44.60%	59	16.76%
1908	156	38.71%	215	53.35%	32	7.94%
1904	243	47.55%	239	46.77%	29	5.68%
1900	230	27.68%	595	71.60%	6	0.72%
1896	19	2.63%	697	96.40%	7	0.97%
1892	412	25.81%	0	0.00%	1,184	74.19%
1888	158	57.66%	116	42.34%	0	0.00%
1884	245	57.11%	180	41.96%	4	0.93%
1880	421	53.84%	361	46.16%	0	0.00%