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Arapahoe County, Colorado

120 topographic sheets cover 103 settlements here, and 26 properties are on the National Register of Historic Places.

Research this county

From the record

26 National Register listings published here.

Sources: the National Register database, National Park Service

Colorado within the United States
Arapahoe County within Colorado

What the record shows

  • 2,541 topographic sheet readings cover the county's settlements.
  • 26 properties here are on the National Register of Historic Places: 20 buildings, 5 districts and 1 site.
  • 1 of the 26 listings was added during the 1970s.
  • The Geographic Names Information System records 103 populated places in this county; 103 are covered by at least one topographic sheet.

Places on the National Register

26

Every property in this county listed on the National Register of Historic Places, with the year it was listed and the federal nomination document.

Photograph PropertyType ListedReference
Arapaho Hillsdistrict201212000550
Arapahoe Acresdistrict199898001249
David W. Brown Housebuilding198080000875
Comanche Crossing of the Kansas Pacific Railroadsite197070000152
Commandant of Cadets Building, US Air Force Academybuilding200707000340
Curtis Schoolbuilding199292000808
DeLaney Barnbuilding198989000010
Englewood I.O.O.F. Lodge No. 138 Buildingbuilding2021100006716
Englewood Post Officebuilding201111000465
Foster-Buell Estatebuilding199898000294
Geneva Homebuilding199998001635
Gully Homesteadbuilding198686000022
Hopkins Farmdistrict200707000341
Jamaica Primary Schoolbuilding2017100000928
Key Savings and Loan Association Buildingbuilding201616000447
Knight-Wood Housebuilding200404001111
Little Estatebuilding199898000610
Littleton Main Streetdistrict199898000291
Littleton Post Officebuilding2019100003671
Littleton Town Hallbuilding198080000876
Maitland Estatebuilding199898001130
Melvin Schoolbuilding198484000790
Owen Estatebuilding199999001143
Seventeen Mile Housebuilding198383003501
William Smith Housebuilding198585002565
South Dahlia Lanedistrict2025100012015

Wildfire, 1992 to 2020

1,940 fires

Every wildfire the federal occurrence database records inside this county: 1,940 of them, burning about 4,470 acres. 37 started naturally and 70 were recorded as arson. Each settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it.

Reported cause Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined1549
Smoking109
Equipment and vehicle use79
Arson/incendiarism70
Fireworks42
Natural37
Recreation and ceremony20
Debris and open burning16
Misuse of fire by a minor15
Railroad operations and maintenance2
Power generation/transmission/distribution1

The five largest, by the area the report gives. None of them was recorded as arson.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
21 August 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined1,800 acresColorado State Forest Service-State HeadquartersBYERS
28 November 2010Missing data/not specified/undetermined650 acresColorado State Forest Service-State Headquartersnot named
24 June 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined160 acresColorado State Forest Service-State HeadquartersBYERS
17 July 2013Fireworks150 acresBennett Fire Protection DistrictUNKNOWN
11 July 2018Equipment and vehicle use108 acresBennett Fire Protection DistrictUNKNOWN
1 June 2018Equipment and vehicle use102 acresAurora Fire DepartmentUNKNOWN
11 July 2018Equipment and vehicle use100 acresAurora Fire DepartmentUNKNOWN
15 November 2010Missing data/not specified/undetermined100 acresColorado State Forest Service-State Headquartersnot named

Every settlement page carries the fires within five miles of it - see the settlement index below.

Storms, 1962 to 2025

60 of 913 shown

The NOAA Storm Events Database holds 913 reports for this county, causing 2 deaths, 19 injuries and about $1,075,597,680 in recorded property damage. Each settlement page carries the reports that name it.

Kind of event Reports
Hail592
Thunderstorm Wind146
Tornado100
Flash Flood36
Lightning30
Flood8
Heavy Rain1

The most serious of them, by death, then injury, then recorded damage. The accounts are quoted exactly as the forecast office filed them.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
July 2018Flash FloodLittleton1 killed, $500,000Thunderstorms produced very heavy rainfall, 1 to 2 inches in less than 30 minutes. At 4600 South Acoma, the floodwaters quickly inundated a basement apartment and trapped a 32-year-old woman inside. She was rescued, but died several hours later. |Floodwaters stalled several vehicles and forced the closure of several intersections including: East Iliff Ave. and South Chambers Road, Santa Fe Drive and West Oxford Ave., South Buckley Road and East Bates Ave., East 6th Ave. and South Picadilly Road, East Hampden Ave and South Uruvan Way. Flooding created a large sinkhole in Sheridan. A small SUV was fell into the hole. The driver was not injured. She escaped her vehicle before it was swallowed by the sinkhole.
June 2023Flash FloodArapahoe Park1 killed, $50,000Water rescues conducted between North Watkins Road near East 6th Ave south of Watkins. Occupant in one of the vehicles drowned.
August 1996Thunderstorm WindWestminster5 hurtno account filed
June 2009Tornado (EF1)Aurora Cherry Creek2 hurt, $500,000A tornado touched down in southeast Aurora, south of Buckley Airport, and moved south-southeast across open fields, some residential areas, and Southlands Mall. Numerous homes and apartments suffered window damage, minor roof damage and there were a few broken garage doors. The Southlands Mall had some roof and window damage, and wall damage to one of its restaurants. South of the mall, Lowe's received some roof damage, and lightweight sheds and other structures were destroyed. One resident, in the Sorrel Ranch subdivision, north of the mall, was swept off his porch while attempting to get close-up pictures of the tornado. He was found unconcious and bleeding in his front yard, with a dislocated shoulder, an injured neck, and multiple other injuries. In addition, the tornado flipped a trailer home. A man inside the trailer suffered minor injuries.
June 2011Lightning(Bkf)Buckley Air Force Base2 hurtTwo airmen from the Colorado National Guard recieved minor injuries when they were struck by lightning. They were struck while on duty at a flight line at Buckely Air Force Base.
July 2001Thunderstorm WindAurora Cherry Creek2 hurtTwo people received minor injuries when a wet microburst blew over several tents at the Cherry Creek Arts Festival.
August 2002Tornado (F1)(Apa)Englwood Arapah1 hurt, $6,000,000The second tornado, associated with the storm, touched down in a subdivision that was under construction at Gartrell and Arapahoe Road. Four large condominiums under construction were destroyed. The most heavily damaged portions of the structures had not been sheet rocked. Adjacent sections, where the walls were in place, were not destroyed. A man suffered four broken ribs and several cuts and bruises when the trailer he sought shelter in, was flipped three times and torn apart by the tornado.
July 2018Tornado (EF1)Peoria1 hurt, $200,000A tornado touched down briefly and tore the roof off a manufactured home. It partially destroyed an outbuilding, flipped over a UPS delivery truck and damaged farm equipment. The driver was hospitalized with minor injuries.
May 2015LightningAurora Cherry Creek1 hurtJuvenile male struck by lightning in field near Town Center Mall.
June 2014Tornado (EF1)(Bkf)Buckley Air Force Base1 hurtA tornado touched down near the Blackstone Country Club in Aurora, and flipped an empty construction trailer. Several golf carts were also damaged, a tree was dowend and a couple broken garage door panes of a home nearby was damaged. A caddy suffered a broken wrist when he was struck by one of the golf carts.
August 2010LightningLittleton1 hurtA 14-year-old teenager was struck by lightning while washing her family's car. The bolt struck the street nearby; it then traveled up a stream of water flowing from the vehicle and hit the teenager. She received minor injuries.
July 1998LightningDeer Trail1 hurtA woman was injured when lightning struck a nearby telephone pole. She sustained burns to her head and right shoulder.
September 2009Lightning(Apa)Englwood Arapah1 hurtno account filed
April 2001LightningAurora Cherry Creek1 hurtno account filed
June 2018HailEnglewood$276,400,000The property estimate value was the total storm damage summary for the event.
September 2014HailCentennial Airport$213,300,000no account filed
June 2012HailByers$161,100,000no account filed
June 2009HailAurora Cherry Creek$161,000,000no account filed
June 2012HailSouth Glenn$160,000,000no account filed
October 1998Hail(Bkf)Buckley Fld Nas$87,800,000no account filed
September 2013FloodSkyline$3,300,000Heavy rain, ranging from 4 to 12 inches through the entire storm event, caused widespread flooding along the entire drainage systems of East Tollgate and Coal Creeks. The areas around Parker Road and Piney Creek were flooded as several holding ponds did overflow their banks. Some of the worst flooded in Centenniel occurred along Arapahoe Road near Cottonwood. According to FEMA, 2,138 households were impacted by flooding.||Road closures included: East Fitzsimons Pkwy. and North Peoria, East 26th Ave and Fulton St., East 17th Ave and Dayton St., East Colfax and Peoria St., East 12th Ave. between Xanthia St. and Xenia St, East 12th Ave. and Yosemite St., East 11th Ave. and Willow St., East 11th Ave. and Xanthia St., East 11th Ave. and Xenia St., Del Mar Pkwy. and North Havana St., East 1st Ave and Moline St., East Alameda Ave. and South Havana St., South Peoria St. just North of East Ford Ave., South bound 225 and East Alameda Ave., East Alameda Ave. and East Alameda Dr., East Florida Ave. and South Galena St.
June 1986Tornado (F2)not stated$2,500,000no account filed
July 2001HailLittleton$606,000The city of Littleton suffered $612,000 in damage to vehicles, roofs, buildings, landscaping and computers. Almost every vehicle owned by visitors and employees in the Littleton Center parking lot sustained damage.
September 1993Thunderstorm WindDenver$500,000A severe thunderstorm rolled through the southeast portion of the Denver area. Dime-size hail was reported in many areas. Straight-line winds from the thunderstorm, measured by a weather spotter at 70 mph (61 knots), tore a roof off six apartments of an apartment complex in Aurora (10 miles southeast of Denver). Heavy rain, which accompanied the winds, caused major damage to the apartments as well as the contents. Many trees, fences and power poles were knocked down by the strong winds. Heavy rain flooded many roadways in Denver and Aurora.
August 2000LightningAurora Cherry Creek$250,000Lightning ripped most of the roof off a home in southeast Aurora. The bolt sparked a fire which destroyed the residence.
June 1989Tornado (F1)not stated$250,000no account filed
August 2010LightningGreenwood Vlg$100,000Lightning sparked a fire in a restaurant shortly after midnight. It caused extensive damage.
May 2001LightningAurora Cherry Creek$100,000Lightning sparked a fire at an apartment complex, forcing the evacuation of 24 units. Most of the fire damage was confined to the attic.
May 1998Tornado (F0)(Bkf)Buckley Fld Nas$100,000A tornado struck a wooden hangar at Aurora Airpark. The hangar collapsed damaging a car and a single engine plane parked inside. A neighbouring steel hangar sustained only minor damage. The tornado moved northeast, hopped Interstate 70, and touched down again in an open field. The path length and duration of the tornado were estimated.
August 2008LightningAurora Cherry Creek$75,000Lightning struck a home. The ensuing fire caused extensive roof damage.
July 1997Lightning(Bkf)Buckley Fld Nas$75,000Lightning struck a home in unincorporated Arapahoe County. The fire started in the electrical panel boxes causing extensive damage to the home.
July 2011LightningWalnut Hills$70,000Lightning triggered a fire which caused major structural damage to a home.
May 2023FloodParker$50,000The heavy rainfall has caused road damage in Cherry Creek State Park, along East Lake View Road. This resulted in the closure of the east and west boat ramps at Cherry Creek Reservoir.
June 2023Flash FloodAurora Cherry Creek$50,000Heavy rain caused extensive street flooding.
September 2019LightningCentennial Airport$50,000Lightning caused extensive damage to a home.
August 2015Flash FloodCentennial Airport$50,000Heavy rain quickly flooded several intersections. Vehicles stalled in the flooded intersections. Two motorists had to be rescued from the flooded roadways; on at University Blvd and County Line Road and the other, at Univerity Blvd and Dry Creek Rd. At Centennial Airport, a hangar partially collapsed when 2.20 inches fell in one hour. At the Denver Broncos training facility in Dove Valley, the storm left the practice fields and parking lot flooded, and the viewing area near the field house damaged by strong winds. The fields, the team said, received 3.5 inches of rain in an hour during the storm. As a result, the practice facility was closed to the public the following day due to storm damage.
August 2013Flash FloodSkyline$50,000Heavy rain caused localized flash flooding in Aurora. An undergound parking garage at an apartment complex was inundated with 3 to 4 feet of water. Flash flooding forced a road closure at East Mississippi Ave. and Alton St. Also, several people had to be rescued when three vehicles stalled in flood waters at Alameda Ave. and Havana St.
June 2012Flash FloodByers$50,000Flash flooding forced the closure of Quincy Road; South Gun Club Road, between East Exposition Avenue and East Alameda Avenue; South Picadilly Road, between State Highway 30 and East 6th Avenue; and County Road 50, between Delbert Road and County Road 17.
July 2011LightningGreenwood Vlg$50,000Lightning struck a school.
June 2011Lightning(Apa)Englwood Arapah$50,000Lightning struck a home a sparked a fire. The fire caused extensive damage to the interior and exterior of the home.
May 1994Thunderstorm WindCentennial Airport$50,000Thunderstorm wind gusts to 65 mph (56 knots) damaged 16 small airplanes and a hangar at Centennial Airport (13 miles southeast of Denver).
August 2000LightningCentral Portion$47,000Lightning struck three homes in Arapahoe County.
July 1999LightningCherry Hills Vlg$30,000Lightning triggered a fire at a residence in Cherry Hills. A small portion of the roof and ceiling were damaged before the fire could be extinguished.
July 1997Flash Flood(Bkf)Buckley Fld Nas$30,000Heavy rain caused flooding and flash flooding problems in central portions of Adams and Arapahoe Counties. Two home were extensively damaged when water flooded their basements and adjacent pasture area in Strasburg. Highwaters, 4 to 5 feet deep, had pooled in the lower lying areas of town. In addition, Quincy Road had to be blocked off between County Roads 129 and 137 in Arapahoe County. Up to 4 feet of water reportedly covered the roadway.
June 2014Lightning(Apa)Englwood Arapah$25,000Lightning struck a tree in a residential area which caused damage to the two surrounding homes. Parts of the tree went through the roof and basement of one of the homes as well as the driver-side window of the residents truck.
July 1984Tornado (F1)not stated$25,000no account filed
June 1967Tornado (F1)not stated$25,000no account filed
August 1999Thunderstorm WindDeer Trail$20,000Intense thunderstorm winds snapped 9 telephone poles, leaving about 40 residents without power for approximately 3 hours. Each pole had been snapped about 5 feet from its base. Most of the damage occurred along County Road 197 approaching State Highway 36.
August 2008LightningAurora Cherry Creek$20,000no account filed
May 2015Flash FloodPeoria$15,000Floodwaters damaged Arapahoe County Road 42 at the Kingsburrow Bridge. Water overtopped the road at several locations.
June 2015Flood(Bkf)Buckley Air Force Base$15,000In Aurora, water was reportedly flowing over the roads at East 6th Ave. and South Pacadilly Road. Additional flooding was reported on South Gun Club Road between East Alameda Ave. and East Exposition Avenue, forcing the closure of the road.
June 2015Flash FloodSmoky Hill$15,000Major flooding occurred in the westbound lane of Arapahoe Road near the Colorado E470 bridge.
August 2009HailPeoria$15,000Some farm equipment and fiberglass structures were damaged by hail.
August 2022Flash FloodGreenwood Vlg$10,000Heavy rain produced flash flooding. Several intersections were flooded covered in 6 to 12 inches of water, and resulted in several road closures.
July 2010Flash FloodByers$10,000Heavy rain caused flash flooding near Interstate 70 at Byers. Two feet of water was observed moving across the exit ramp. One car was washed into a tree but no one was injured.
June 2009Tornado (EF0)(Bkf)Buckley Air Force Base$10,000A small tornado touched down and crossed Interstate 70, flipping a semi-trailer.
August 2008Flash FloodSkyline$10,000Extensive flooding was reported; with several motorists stranded in standing water.
July 1998Tornado (F1)Byers$10,000A tornado touched down and partially lifted a wood and metal barn off its foundation. As a result one third of the structure was destroyed. A large garage door to the main house was also buckled. A neighbour who lived just north of the farmstead measured a peak wind gust to 71 mph (62 kts).
July 2011Flash FloodSkyline$10,000no account filed
August 2013Flash Flood(Bkf)Buckley Air Force Base$5,000Road closures were set up in both directions on both Picadilly Road and Gun Club Road, just north of Buckley AFB. A man had to be rescued when his car was trapped in flood waters at the intersection of 6th Ave. and Picadilly Road. Flash Flooding was also observed at the junction of E-470 and I-70 with water running over the road.

Mines and quarries

104 recorded

The Survey's mineral resources record lists 104 workings inside this county. 14 still produce and 90 are closed or unrecorded. Each settlement page carries the workings within five miles of it.

Commodity Workings
Sand and Gravel, Construction94
Gold6
Manganese4

The least common of them first, because a county's hundredth gravel pit says nothing its first ten did not.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Buckley Field Manganese DepositsManganeseOccurrencePsilomelane
Buckley Field Mn DepositManganeseProspect1952
Buckley Field Mn Deposit #1ManganeseUnknown
Denver Basin Mn DepositsManganeseUnknown
Big Dry Creek PlacersGoldOccurrence1858
Big Dry Creek PlacersGoldUnknown
Cherry Creek MineGoldPast Producer
Cherry Creek PlacersGoldUnknown
Little Dry Creek PlacersGoldOccurrencePlacer
Little Dry Creek PlacersGoldUnknown
Central Construction PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Cherry Creek Sand PlantSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Clarke PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Englewood PlantSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
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Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
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Gravel PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Gravel PitsSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Gravel PitsSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
Gravel PitsSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
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Gravel PitsSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
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Gravel PitsSand and Gravel, ConstructionUnknown
Littleton PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
Littleton PlantSand and Gravel, ConstructionProducer
UnknownSand and Gravel, ConstructionOccurrenceGravel
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UnknownSand and Gravel, ConstructionOccurrenceGravel

Every populated place in the county

103

Named settlements recorded in the Geographic Names Information System, each with the topographic sheets covering it. Villages, hamlets and abandoned places alike. Each is shown with the nearest named watercourse or landform and the survey quadrangle it falls on.

Provenance

  • Topographic sheets. USGS Historical Topographic Map Collection, county index, measured from the bulk metadata.
  • Fire insurance maps. Library of Congress Sanborn collection, faceted to this county.
  • Photographs. Each place queried individually against the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs search.
  • Wildfire. Short, Karen C. 2022. Spatial wildfire occurrence data for the United States, 1992-2020 [FPA_FOD_20221014]. 6th Edition. Fort Collins, CO: Forest Service Research Data Archive. https://doi.org/10.2737/RDS-2013-0009.6 Collected with United States Government funding and usable without additional permissions or fees.
  • Mines and quarries. USGS Mineral Resources Data System (MRDS) https://mrdata.usgs.gov/mrds/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.
  • Storms. NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, Storm Events Database https://www.ncei.noaa.gov/stormevents/ A work of the United States government, no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105. Narratives are quoted verbatim from the National Weather Service report and are not edited or summarised.