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Crested Butte is a Home Rule Municipality in Gunnison County, Colorado, United States. A former coal mining town now called "the last great Colorado ski town", Crested Butte is a destination for skiing, mountain biking, and a variety of other outdoor activities. The population was 1,529 at the 2000 census.
The Colorado General Assembly has designated Crested Butte the wildflower capital of Colorado.
History
The East River Valley where Crested Butte is located was once used as a summer residence by Ute Native Americans. However, they were quickly displaced when white explorers first entered the area. The first Caucasians to explore the valley were beaver trappers, followed by surveyors. Captain John Gunnison, after whom Gunnison County is named was one of the early explorers to enter the area.
In the 1860s and 1870s coal and silver mines began to open in the surrounding area and many little mining towns formed. However, when silver mining hit on hard times, many of these towns failed. Crested Butte was in a better position to survive because it served as a supply town to the surrounding area.
The other industry that supported Crested Butte was ranching.
When the coal mines closed, the town began to shrink, and eventually the local high school was closed. Students had to travel to Gunnison to go to high school. The town did not revive until a ski area was built on Crested Butte Mountain in the 1960s. In the late 1970's, W Mitchell was its mayor.
In 1993 the Crested Butte Academy opened in Crested Butte, bringing a private high school into town. However, on 9 July 2008, the Academy was closed permanently due to financial difficulties that had plagued its entire existence.[4] In 1997, the Crested Butte Community School was opened, and Crested Butte finally had a public high school again.
US Energy Corp. owns rights to mine molybdenum on Mount Emmons ("Red Lady") near Crested Butte and as molybdenum prices rise, the town is fighting to prevent a molybdenum mine from being opened.
Activities
Winter
The primary winter activity in Crested Butte is skiing or snowboarding at nearby Crested Butte Mountain Resort in Mount Crested Butte, Colorado. Backcountry skiing in the surrounding mountains is some of the best in Colorado. The mountain, Crested Butte, rises to 12,162 feet (3,700 m) above sea level. The ski area base is at 9,375 feet (2,860 m). 14 lifts serve 1,058 acres (4.2 km²) of terrain. 448 acres (1.8 km²) of the terrain are double black runs. The large amount of extreme skiing terrain at Crested Butte has attracted the US Extreme Skiing Championships and the X Games. The longest run on Mount Crested Butte is 2.6 miles (4.2 km) long.
The town of Crested Butte itself has a Nordic Center which has an ice skating rink as well as many miles of groomed cross country skiing trails.
Mount Crested Butte Resort
Summer
Crested Butte is one of the locations where mountain biking is claimed to have started. The Mountain Bike Hall of Fame is located in Crested Butte. Other popular summer activities in Crested Butte include hiking, backpacking, whitewater rafting, and fishing. Crested Butte hosts a number of summer festivals, including an arts festival, a mountain bike festival, a wildflower festival, a music festival, and a rubber duck race.
Geography
Crested Butte is served by the Gunnison County Airport in nearby Gunnison, Colorado.
Demographics
As of the census[7] of 2000, there were 1,529 people, 692 households, and 253 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,183.1 people per square mile (843.4/km²). There were 930 housing units at an average density of 1,327.9/sq mi (513.0/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.19% White, 0.26% African American, 0.92% Native American, 0.72% Asian, 0.00% Pacific Islander, 0.46% from other races, and 0.46% from two or more races. 2.75% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race.
There were 692 households out of which 19.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 28.9% were married couples living together, 5.1% had a female householder with no husband present, and 63.3% were non-families. 28.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 1.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.21 and the average family size was 2.69.
In the town the population was spread out with 13.5% under the age of 18, 11.5% from 18 to 24, 55.6% from 25 to 44, 17.5% from 45 to 64, and 1.9% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females there were 124.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 131.9 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $41,250, and the median income for a family was $49,118. Males had a median income of $27,386 versus $23,073 for females. The per capita income for the town was $26,789. 11.4% of the population and 2.7% of families were below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 3.5% of those under the age of 18 and 0.0% of those 65 and older were living below the poverty line.
In popular culture
Crested Butte was the setting and main filming location for the Walt Disney ski movie Snowball Express starring Dean Jones and Harry Morgan.
Crested Butte is the birthplace and hometown of Heidi Montag of MTV's The Hills.
James Cameron's movie Avatar has parallels to Crested Butte. Cameron has spent a lot of time at his wife's cabin there.[8]
See also
References
External links
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State of Colorado
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