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Arvada, Colorado

24 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1899 and the latest in 1983. It stands in the Northeast Jefferson census division. It lies in ZIP code area 80004. It stands on Van Bibber Creek. The Survey maps it on the Arvada quadrangle. 124,402 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 5,348 feet above sea level.

Arvada within Jefferson County

On record in Arvada

Buildings and businesses the archive holds for this place. Each opens its own page, with the source record it came from.

On the National Register 6 records

Population over time

2 figures

Arvada grew from 106,433 to 124,402 between 2010 and 2020. These are the recorded population figures Wikidata holds for this place, reached through the Geographic Names Information System number this page is keyed on rather than by name, so they belong to this place and not to another of the same name. Most are census counts, but not all are: an early figure may be a founding or settlement estimate, and an estimate published within five years of a census is left out. The change column is computed, and is left blank where more than 20 years separate a figure from the one before it, because a gap that long is not a change between two counts.

YearPeople Change
2010106,433
2020124,402+17,969 (+17%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

11 surveys from 24 printed sheets

Matched by testing this settlement's coordinate against the published boundary of every sheet in the United States Geological Survey's historical collection. Each opens the scanned sheet at the Survey.

Fires near this place

1,205 since 2003

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 1,205 fires within 5 miles of Arvada between 2003 and 2020, burning about 165 acres in total. 8 started naturally. 19 were recorded as arson. Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a fire counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Reported cause Fires
Missing data/not specified/undetermined1044
Equipment and vehicle use34
Smoking31
Recreation and ceremony20
Arson/incendiarism19
Fireworks17
Misuse of fire by a minor12
Debris and open burning12
Natural8
Power generation/transmission/distribution6
Other causes1
Railroad operations and maintenance1

The most recent of them, most recent first, with the day each was reported and the service that recorded it.

DateCause SizeReported by Name on the report
9 September 2011Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresColorado State Forest Service-State HeadquartersARVADA
9 September 2010Arson/incendiarismunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-State Headquartersnot named
9 September 2010Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-State Headquartersnot named
8 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-State HeadquartersN/A
8 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-State HeadquartersN/A
8 September 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreArvada Fire Protection DistrictUNKNOWN
8 September 2015Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWest Metro Fire RescueUNKNOWN
8 September 2011Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-State HeadquartersDENVER

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Jefferson County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 44 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 44 workings within 5 miles of Arvada: 27 past producers, 10 occurrences, 4 unknowns, 3 producers. 3 still produce. What was taken out: Sand and Gravel, Construction, Gold, Gold, Silver, Fire Clay (Refractory). Distance is straight-line from the map coordinates, so a quarry counted here may appear on a neighbouring settlement's page as well.

Where SiteCommodity StatusRecorded
Rio Grande PitSand and Gravel, Construction, Gold, SilverPast Producer1973
UnknownFire Clay (Refractory)Producer
UnknownGypsum-AnhydriteOccurrenceSedimentary
Cooley Gravel Co. PitsSand and Gravel, Construction, GoldPast Producer1951, 1964
Gordon PitSand and Gravel, Construction, GoldPast ProducerGold, Sand and Gravel
Swadley PlacersGoldPast Producer1858, 1859
Youngfield PitSand and Gravel, Construction, GoldPast Producer1979
Asphalt Paving Co PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Asphalt Paving Co PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer
Brannan Sand and Gravel Co PitSand and Gravel, ConstructionPast Producer

Every working recorded in Jefferson County

Storms near this place

60 of 82 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Arvada in 82 storm reports between 1994 and 2025: 67 hail, 6 thunderstorm wind, 5 lightning, 2 flood. The reports record 1 death and 2 injuries. Each account below is quoted exactly as the forecast office filed it, from the NOAA Storm Events Database, and each date opens the federal record of that event.

WhenEvent Place namedHarm What the report says
July 2016LightningArvada1 killed, 1 hurtTwo men at the Indian Tree Golf Course were struck by lightning when they sought shelter from a rapidly developing thunderstorm under a tree. One man suffered minor injuries, while the other died from this injuries.
July 2014LightningArvada1 hurtA man was injured by a nearby lightning strike while he recorded a video of a thunderstorm with his cell phone. He was standing in his garage, when a nearby lightning bolt knocked him out. He suffered overall body aches and had a ringing sensation in one of his ears.
August 2009HailArvada$1,000Large hail caused minor damage to a vehicle.
June 2024HailArvada-The report was from mping.
June 2024HailArvada-The report was from mping.
June 2024HailArvada-The report was from mping.
July 2014Thunderstorm WindArvada-A wet microburst snapped tree limbs up to six inches in diameter.
August 2006Flash FloodArvada-Heavy rain caused flash flooding along Leyden Creek in unincorporated Jefferson County, northwest of Arvada. An automated rain gauge in upper Leyden Creek, 6 miles northwest of Arvada, measured 2.68 inches of rain in less than two hours. Two to three feet of water covered the roadway at 82nd and Quaker.
July 2004LightningArvada-Lightning caused power outages in parts of Arvada. Approximately 9,800 customers were without power for 90 minutes.
August 2003LightningArvada-Lightning struck a residence and sparked a fire in Arvada. Damage to the roof and ceiling were extensive.
August 1997LightningArvada-Lightning sparked a small fire to a home causing minor damage.
August 1997FloodArvada-Several intersections were flooded as heavy rain producing thunderstorms struck the area. Several cars were damaged by the highwaters and a number of businesses were also flooded.
April 1994HailArvada-Spotters reported pea-size hail covering the ground to a depth of three inches in Arvada (nine miles west northwest of Denver).
May 2025HailArvada-no account filed
June 2024HailArvada-no account filed
May 2023HailArvada-no account filed
August 2021HailArvada-no account filed
August 2021HailArvada-no account filed
August 2018HailArvada-no account filed
May 2017HailArvada-no account filed
May 2016HailArvada-no account filed
May 2016HailArvada-no account filed
May 2016HailArvada-no account filed
May 2016HailArvada-no account filed
June 2015HailArvada-no account filed
June 2015HailArvada-no account filed
June 2015HailArvada-no account filed
June 2015HailArvada-no account filed
June 2015HailArvada-no account filed
May 2014HailArvada-no account filed
August 2014HailArvada-no account filed
July 2014HailArvada-no account filed
July 2014HailArvada-no account filed
July 2014HailArvada-no account filed
July 2014HailArvada-no account filed
June 2010HailArvada-no account filed
June 2009HailArvada-no account filed
June 2009HailArvada-no account filed
June 2009HailArvada-no account filed
June 2009Thunderstorm WindArvada-no account filed
July 2009Thunderstorm WindArvada-no account filed
July 2009Thunderstorm WindArvada-no account filed
July 2009HailArvada-no account filed
July 2009HailArvada-no account filed
July 2009HailArvada-no account filed
July 2009HailArvada-no account filed
June 2008HailArvada-no account filed
June 2008HailArvada-no account filed
June 2008HailArvada-no account filed
June 2006HailArvada-no account filed
June 2006HailArvada-no account filed
June 2006HailArvada-no account filed
June 2006HailArvada-no account filed
June 2006HailArvada-no account filed
April 2005HailArvada-no account filed
April 2005HailArvada-no account filed
April 2005HailArvada-no account filed
April 2005HailArvada-no account filed
April 2005HailArvada-no account filed
May 2005HailArvada-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Jefferson County

Nearest settlements

The eight closest, with where each one stands in the county. Distances are straight-line, computed from the Geographic Names Information System coordinates.

Map PlaceDistance Sheets
Alta Vista0.4 miles24
Park Slope0.7 miles24
Scenic Heights0.7 miles24
Koldeway0.9 miles24
Columbine Acres1.0 miles24
Lyndale Park1.2 miles24
Green Valley1.5 miles24
Huntington Heights1.5 miles24

Elsewhere

Matched on this settlement's Geographic Names Information System number rather than its name, so it cannot be a different place of the same name in another state.

Wikipedia article on ArvadaAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q590849The structured record the population and elevation above come from. Public domain (CC0).

Provenance

This settlement is recorded in the Geographic Names Information System as feature 204709. The sheet list is computed by point-in-boundary test against the United States Geological Survey's historical topographic inventory. Both are works of the United States government and carry no copyright under 17 U.S.C. 105.

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.