The City and County of Denver (pronounced /ˈdɛnvɚ/) is the capital and the most populous city of the state of Colorado, in the United States. Denver is a consolidated city-county located in the South Platte River Valley on the High Plains just east of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. The Denver downtown district is located immediately east of the confluence of Cherry Creek with the South Platte River, approximately 15 miles (24 km) east of the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. Denver is nicknamed the Mile-High City because its official elevation is exactly one mile, or 5,280 feet (1,609 m) above sea level. The 105th meridian west of Greenwich passes through Union Station, making it the reference point for the Mountain Time Zone. The city of Denver's area is much smaller than that of Colorado's second most populous city, Colorado Springs.
The United States Census Bureau estimated that the population of Denver was 598,707 in 2008, making it the 24th most populous U.S. city. The 10-county Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area had an estimated 2008 population of 2,506,626 and ranked as the 21st most populous U.S. metropolitan statistical area and the 12-county Denver-Aurora-Boulder Combined Statistical Area had an estimated 2008 population of 3,049,562 and ranked as the 16th most populous U.S. metropolitan area. It is also the second-largest city in the Mountain West after Phoenix. Denver is the largest city in the Front Range Urban Corridor, with a Combined statistical area stretching across eighteen counties in two states. The population of the Front Range Urban Corridor CSA is estimated at 4,251,663. The city has the tenth-largest central business district in the United States.
History
Main article: History of DenverDenver City was founded in November 1858 as a mining town during the Pikes Peak Gold Rush in western Kansas Territory. That summer, a group of gold prospectors from Lawrence, Kansas, arrived and established Montana City on the banks of the South Platte River. This was the first settlement in what was later to become the city of Denver. The site faded quickly, however, and was abandoned in favor of Auraria (named after the gold-mining town of Auraria, Georgia) and St. Charles City by the summer of 1859. The Montana City site is now Grant-Frontier Park and includes mining equipment and a log cabin replica.
On November 22, 1858, General William Larimer, a land speculator from eastern Kansas, placed cottonwood logs to stake a claim on the hill overlooking the confluence of the South Platte River and Cherry Creek, across the creek from the existing mining settlement of Auraria. Larimer named the town site Denver City to curry favor with Kansas Territorial Governor James W. Denver. Larimer hoped that the town's name would help make it the county seat of Arapaho County, but unknown to him Governor Denver had already resigned from office. The location was accessible to existing trails and was across the South Platte River from the site of seasonal encampments of the Cheyenne and Arapaho. The site of these first towns is now the site of Confluence Park in downtown Denver. Larimer, along with associates in the St. Charles City Land Company, sold parcels in the town to merchants and miners, with the intention of creating a major city that would cater to new emigrants. Denver City was a frontier town, with an economy based on servicing local miners with gambling, saloons, livestock and goods trading. In the early years, land parcels were often traded for grubstakes or gambled away by miners in Auraria.
Colorado Territory was created on February 28, 1861, Arapahoe County was formed on November 1, 1861, and Denver City was incorporated on November 7, 1861. Denver City served as the Arapahoe County Seat from 1861 until consolidation in 1902. In 1865, Denver City became the Territorial Capital. With its new-found importance, Denver City shortened its name to just Denver. On August 1, 1876, Denver became the State Capital when Colorado was admitted to the Union.
Between 1880-1895 the city experienced a huge rise in city corruption, as crime bosses, such as Soapy Smith, worked side-by-side with elected officials and the police to control the elections, gambling, and the bunko gangs. In 1887, the precursor to the international charity United Way was formed in Denver by local religious leaders who raised funds and coordinated various charities to help Denver's poor. By 1890, Denver had grown to be the second largest city west of Omaha, but by 1900 it had dropped to third place behind San Francisco and Los Angeles.
In 1901 the Colorado General Assembly voted to split Arapahoe County into three parts: a new consolidated City and County of Denver, a new Adams County, and the remainder of the Arapahoe County to be renamed South Arapahoe County. A ruling by the Colorado Supreme Court, subsequent legislation, and a referendum delayed the creation of the City and County of Denver until November 15, 1902.
Denver has hosted the Democratic National Convention twice, during the years of 1908, and again in 2008, taking the opportunity to promote the city's status on the national, political, and socioeconomic stage.
Early in the 20th century, Denver, like many other cities, was home to a pioneering brass age automobile company; Colburn was copied from the contemporary Renault.
Denver was selected in 1970 to host the 1976 Winter Olympics to coincide with Colorado's centennial celebration, but in November 1972 Colorado voters struck down ballot initiatives allocating public funds to pay for the high costs of the games, subsequently the games were moved to Innsbruck, Austria. The notoriety of becoming the only city ever to decline to host an Olympiad after being selected has made subsequent bids difficult. The movement against hosting the games was based largely on environmental issues and was led by then State Representative Richard Lamm, who was subsequently elected to three terms (1974-86) as Colorado governor.
Denver has also been known historically as the Queen City of the Plains because of its important role in the agricultural industry of the plains regions along the foothills of the Colorado Front Range. Several US Navy ships have been named USS Denver in honor of the city.
Geography
Main article: Geography of DenverDenver is located in the center of the Front Range Urban Corridor, between the Rocky Mountains to the west and the High Plains to the east. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 154.9 square miles (401.3 km²), of which 1.6 square miles (4.1 km²), or 1.03%, is water. The City and County of Denver is surrounded by only three other counties: Adams County to the north and east, Arapahoe County to the south and east, and Jefferson County to the west.
Climate
Denver has a semi-arid climate (Köppen climate classification BSk ) with four distinct seasons. While Denver is located on the Great Plains, the weather of the city and surrounding area is heavily influenced by the proximity of the Rocky Mountains to the west. The climate is considered a high-desert climate. While generally mild compared to the mountains to the west and the plains further east, it can be very unpredictable. Before the city's settlement, the Denver landscape was made up of primarily prairie and desert lands. Because Denver and most of its suburbs sit in a "bowl", the city is often protected from harsh cold and strong winds. Measurable amounts of snow have fallen in the Denver area as late as June and as early as September.
The average temperature in Denver is 50.1 °F (10.1 °C), and the average yearly precipitation is 15.81 inches (402 mm). The season's first snowfall generally occurs around October 19, and the last snowfall is about April 27, averaging 61.4 inches (156 cm) of seasonal accumulation. The National Weather Service records an annual average of sunshine during 69 percent of all possible daylight hours.
Denver's winters can vary from mild to cold, and although large amounts of snow can fall on the mountains just west of the city, the effects of orographic lift dry out the air passing over the Front Range, shielding the city from precipitation for much of the season. Additionally, warm chinook winds occasionally occur as air passing over the mountains heats as it descends, quickly melting snow accumulations and making Denver's winters milder than areas without this effect. The coldest temperature ever recorded in Denver was recorded on January 9, 1875 at -39 °F (-39.5 °C), and the last time Denver recorded a temperature below -20 °F (-29 °C) was during February 2007, when the low temperature was -22 °F (-30 °C).
Spring brings with it significant changes as Denver can be affected by air masses on all sides. Arctic air from the north can often combine with Pacific storm fronts bringing snow to the city. In fact, March is Denver's snowiest month, averaging 11.7 inches (29.7 cm) of snow. Additionally, warm air from the Gulf of Mexico can bring the first thunderstorms of the season, and continental warm air can bring summer-like warm and dr
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