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Boulder, Colorado

29 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1902 and the latest in 1984. It stands in the Boulder census division. It lies in ZIP code area 80302. It stands on Gregory Creek. The Survey maps it on the Boulder quadrangle. 108,250 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 5,430 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Boulder within Boulder County

On record in Boulder

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 12 of 26 shown

Every listing in Boulder County

Population over time

2 figures

Boulder grew from 97,385 to 108,250 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
201097,385
2020108,250+10,865 (+11%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

12 surveys from 29 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

892 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 892 fires within 5 miles of Boulder between 1992 and 2020, burning about 1,237 acres in total. 26 started naturally. 18 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/undetermined714
Equipment and vehicle use47
Smoking38
Natural26
Arson/incendiarism18
Recreation and ceremony18
Debris and open burning11
Fireworks8
Misuse of fire by a minor6
Power generation/transmission/distribution3
Railroad operations and maintenance2
Other causes1

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 2017Missing data/not specified/undetermined5.0 acresBoulder Fire Rescue DepartmentUNKNOWN
9 September 1993Naturalunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-Boulder Districtnot named
8 September 2017Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreBoulder Fire Rescue DepartmentUNKNOWN
8 September 2017Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreBoulder Fire Rescue DepartmentUNKNOWN
8 September 2016Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreBoulder Fire Rescue DepartmentUNKNOWN
8 September 2014Equipment and vehicle useunder an acreBoulder Fire Rescue DepartmentUNKNOWN
7 September 2020Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreBoulder Fire Rescue DepartmentN/A
7 September 1994Naturalunder an acreArapaho and Roosevelt National Forests and Pawnee National GrasslandHAWKINS

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Boulder County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 98 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 98 workings within 5 miles of Boulder: 52 past producers, 29 occurrences, 16 producers, 1 unknown. 16 still produce. What was taken out: Gold, Silver, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Tungsten. 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
Buckskin Joe No 1Gold, Copper, Lead, Silver, ZincPast Producer
Copper King Nickel MineNickelPast Producer
East BostonGold, Copper, Silver, LeadPast Producer
Fox Hills OutcropCoal, UraniumPast Producer
Gold Hill Beryl Claims (unverifiable)BerylliumPast Producer
Lewis LodeBituminous, UraniumPast Producer
Marion MillUranium, VanadiumUnknown
Marshal Or Langford Surface IronIronProducerLimonite, Siderite
OklahomaGold, Lead, Silver, TungstenPast Producer
Poormans ReliefGold, Zinc, Copper, Lead, SilverPast ProducerTelluride, Gold, Pyrite

Every working recorded in Boulder County

Storms near this place

60 of 98 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Boulder in 98 storm reports between 1993 and 2023: 64 hail, 15 thunderstorm wind, 13 lightning, 2 flash flood. The reports record 6 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 2000LightningBoulder3 hurtThree children were injured, one critically, when lightning hit a nearby tree atop Panorama Point on Flagstaff Mountain. Lightning hit the tree, entered the ground, then struck the children.
June 2009Thunderstorm WindBoulder1 hurt, $20,000Thunderstorm winds knocked a tree on to two vehicles in Boulder. One of the two drivers was injured when the tree smashed the windshield of her car.
August 2009LightningBoulder1 hurtA woman riding her bike in training for an Ironman Triathalon was struck by lightning. She was in the 78th mile of a 100-mile training ride when she was hit. Initially, she lost her vision and couldn't move her arms. After a short stay in the hospital, she made a full recovery.
August 2002LightningBoulder1 hurtA hiker was struck by lightning near the Royal Arch Trail, near the fourth Flatiron. She was briefly knocked unconcious. The hiker and her companion had sought shelter under a rock when the storm hit.
July 1997Flash FloodBoulder$100,000Heavy rain and hail triggered a flash flood which sent a wall of water through the window of the financial aid office at the University of Colorado campus. In addition, ceiling tiles, carpets and dressing rooms were damaged at the Coors Event Center when a pipe draining rainwater broke during the downpour. In all, 10 buildings at CU received water damage causing an estimate $100,000 in damage.
June 2009LightningBoulder$25,000Lightning struck an oil tank. The lid was partially torn off and flames shot out of the tank. The railing around the tank was also damaged.
June 2002LightningBoulder$25,000Lightning struck a garage and caused a small fire. Two vehicles parked in the garage were damaged.
April 2000LightningBoulder$20,000Lightning sparked a house fire in Boulder. The fire damaged a portion of the roof and a bedroom on the third floor.
May 2007LightningBoulder$10,000no account filed
June 2009LightningBoulder$5,000Lightning struck a veterinary hospital, damaging an exterior electrical box.
May 2007LightningBoulder$5,000no account filed
July 1994Thunderstorm WindBoulder$500Thunderstorm winds knocked down power lines in Boulder, causing power outages.
September 2013FloodBoulder-Flooding was occurring along Boulder Creek in Boulder where it crested. Flooding also occurred along South Boulder Creek near Eldorado Springs with flooding impacting nearby homes.
September 2013Flash FloodBoulder-Heavy rainfall and flash flooding washed out the east bound lane of James Canyon. Overland Road was also washed out, along the west bound lane of the Peak to Peak Highway near Jamestown.
June 2006HailBoulder-Large hail broke a car windshield.
June 2006HailBoulder-Large hail broke a car windshield.
April 2003LightningBoulder-Lightning damaged electrical equipment at a Long Term Ecological Research (LTER) Station located atop Niwot Ridge, at an elevation of 11,600 ft.
May 1999LightningBoulder-Lightning ignited a small fire in a three-story structure in Sunshine Canyon. The fire was quickly extinguished and caused only minor damage.
June 1997Tornado (F1)Boulder-A tornado touched down near Baseline Reservoir. The tornado struck a home, tearing off part of the roof. A storage building nearby was nearly levelled and 5 trees were uprooted. The twister then moved onto Baseline Reservoir forming a huge waterspout. Several recreational vehicles and a boat dock were also damaged.
June 2023HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2023HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2023HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2021HailBoulder-no account filed
July 2019HailBoulder-no account filed
July 2019HailBoulder-no account filed
July 2019HailBoulder-no account filed
July 2019HailBoulder-no account filed
July 2019HailBoulder-no account filed
July 2019HailBoulder-no account filed
July 2019HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2018HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2018HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2018HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2018HailBoulder-no account filed
May 2018HailBoulder-no account filed
May 2018HailBoulder-no account filed
August 2018Thunderstorm WindBoulder-no account filed
June 2016HailBoulder-no account filed
May 2014Heavy RainBoulder-no account filed
June 2013HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2013HailBoulder-no account filed
September 2013Thunderstorm WindBoulder-no account filed
April 2010HailBoulder-no account filed
August 2010Thunderstorm WindBoulder-no account filed
August 2010Thunderstorm WindBoulder-no account filed
April 2007HailBoulder-no account filed
May 2007HailBoulder-no account filed
July 2007HailBoulder-no account filed
August 2007HailBoulder-no account filed
May 2006HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2006HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2006HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2006HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2006HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2006HailBoulder-no account filed
June 2006HailBoulder-no account filed
July 2005Thunderstorm WindBoulder-no account filed
August 2004HailBoulder-no account filed
August 2004Thunderstorm WindBoulder-no account filed
August 2004HailBoulder-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Boulder 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
Ara1.3 miles29
Seven Hills2.3 miles29
Orodell2.9 miles29
Valmont3.2 miles26
Boulder Junction3.3 miles26
Pine Brook Hill3.4 miles29
El Vado4.1 miles29
Silver Spruce4.2 miles29

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 BoulderAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q192517The 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 178680. 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.