Jackson County, Colorado

Jackson County Education, Geography, and History

Jackson County is the fourth-least densely populated of the 64 counties of the state of Colorado. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 1,394, making it the fourth-least populated county in Colorado. The county seat and only incorporated municipality in the county is Walden. Jackson County was created on May 5, 1909 from Larimer County. The county is named in honor of Andrew Jackson (1767 - 1845), the seventh President of the United States.

Etymology - Origin of Jackson County Name

Jackson County is named in honor of Andrew Jackson, the seventh President of the United States.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Jackson County History

Jackson County was formed out of Larimer county on May 5, 1909. Before 1909, no one paid much attention to North Park because it was the hunting grounds of the Ute and Arapaho Indians. They fiercely defended these lands and the white settlers were often afraid to venture in. When valuable minerals were discovered in North Park, Grand County claimed it as part of their county because they wanted the revenue it would provide. The residents didn't care much because the county seat for Grand County was closer than the one in Larimer County, and all official business needed to be done at the county seat. But Larimer also claimed this county and it was contested all the way to the Colorado Supreme Court. In 1886 the court decided in favor of Larimer. This did not make the North Park residents very happy and they pushed for their own county until Jackson was formed.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 1,621 square miles (4,198 km²), of which, 1,613 square miles (4,178 km²) of it is land and 8 square miles (20 km²) of it (0.48%) is water

Most of Jackson County is a high relatively broad basin known as North Park which covers 1613 square miles. This basin opens north into Wyoming and is rimmed on the west by the Park Range, on the south by the Rabbit Ears Range, and on the east by the Medicine Bow Mountains. Elevations ranges from 7,800 to 12,953 feet above sea level and is home to the head waters of the North Platte River.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• Northeast: Albany County, Wyo.
• East: Larimer County
• Southeast: Grand County
• Southwest: Routt County
• Northwest: Carbon County, Wyo.

Education

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