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Golden, Colorado

28 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1899 and the latest in 1983. It stands in the Golden census division. It lies in ZIP code area 80401. It lies near Parfel Park. The Survey maps it on the Golden quadrangle. 20,399 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 5,673 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Golden within Jefferson County

On record in Golden

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 32 shown

Every listing in Jefferson County

Population over time

2 figures

Golden grew from 18,867 to 20,399 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
201018,867
202020,399+1,532 (+8%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

11 surveys from 28 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

468 since 2003

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 468 fires within 5 miles of Golden between 2003 and 2020, burning about 1,919 acres in total. 14 started naturally. 3 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/undetermined377
Smoking24
Equipment and vehicle use23
Natural14
Recreation and ceremony8
Fireworks6
Misuse of fire by a minor4
Railroad operations and maintenance4
Debris and open burning3
Arson/incendiarism3
Power generation/transmission/distribution1
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 2015Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWest Metro Fire RescueUNKNOWN
7 September 2020Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acrePleasant View Fire DepartmentN/A
7 September 2013Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreGolden Fire DepartmentUNKNOWN
6 September 2020Smokingunder an acreWest Metro Fire RescueN/A
6 September 2011Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-State HeadquartersGOLDEN
5 September 2015Missing data/not specified/undetermined1.0 acresWest Metro Fire RescueUNKNOWN
4 September 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreGolden Fire DepartmentUNKNOWN
30 September 2019Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-State Headquartersnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Jefferson County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 144 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 144 workings within 5 miles of Golden: 74 producers, 45 occurrences, 15 past producers, 6 unknowns. 74 still produce. What was taken out: Fire Clay (Refractory), Clay, Sand and Gravel, Construction, Uranium. 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
Alumet Pilot PlantAluminumUnknown
Ascension MineUranium, Copper, LeadProducer1955, 1956, 1972
Aubrey-Ladwig MineUranium, CopperPast Producer1954, 1955, 1956
Buckman PropertyUranium, Copper, Lead, Molybdenum, Zinc, SilverOccurrenceVein
Capitol CentralLead, Gold, Silver, ZincUnknown
Centennial ConeBerylliumProducer
Cressman GulchBeryllium, Mica, FeldsparProducerBeryl, Feldspar, Muscovite
Cressmans Gulch ProspectFeldspar, Beryllium, Niobium (Columbium), Tantalum, MicaPast ProducerBeryl, Microcline, Muscovite
Fred Pierce RanchFeldspar, Gemstone, Mica, QuartzProducerBiotite, Feldspar, Quartz, Tourmaline
G.H. Buckman RanchQuartz, Gemstone, Feldspar, MicaProducerFeldspar, Muscovite, Quartz, Tourmaline

Every working recorded in Jefferson County

Storms near this place

60 of 70 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Golden in 70 storm reports between 1994 and 2025: 53 hail, 7 flash flood, 6 lightning, 4 thunderstorm wind. No death or injury is recorded in these reports. 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
May 2007LightningGolden$200,000no account filed
September 2013Flash FloodGolden-Coal Creek went over its banks and washed out portions of CO72 at Twin Spruce. The highway was completely washed out between Plainview and Twin Spruce. Additional washouts occurred on side streets within Coal Creek Canyon. Many residents were ordered to remain in their homes (Shelter In Place) until rescue teams could reach them.
September 2013Flash FloodGolden-Flash flooding and debris was reportedly washed out a sections of CO72 at the base of Coal Creek Canyon. Road closures included: CO72 , from CO93 to Coal Creek Canyon; CO93, between CO72 and CO128; CO72, between CO93 and Indiana St.; U.S. 36, between Wadsworth Blvd and Flatirons; Interstate 70 west, from Floyd Hill to Hidden Valley due to rock slides. Natural Gas Lines in Coal Creek Canyon were also shut off.
September 2013Flash FloodGolden-Continuous heavy rainfall produced flash flooding. Additional road washouts occurred on side streets within Coal Creek Canyon. CO72 was completely washed out between Plainview and Twin Spruce.
September 2013Flash FloodGolden-Continuous moderate to heavy rainfall produced flash flooding.
September 2013Flash FloodGolden-Continuous heavy rainfall produced widespread flash flooding.
August 2010LightningGolden-A lightning strike sparked a small grass fire near Quaker Street and Golden Road. It was quickly extinguished by emergency responders.
July 2003Flash FloodGolden-Heavy rainfall caused flooding and flash flooding problems in north central Jefferson County. Officials were forced to briefly close State Highway 93, north of Golden, which was flooded by runoff and littered with debris. In Golden, flash floods left several backyards and basements full of standing water. At least one car was submerged in a garage. Radar estimated 1 to 1.5 inches of rain had fallen in the area in approximately 30 minutes.
August 2001LightningGolden-Lightning coupled with strong thunderstorm winds knocked out power to approximately 10,000 Excel Energy customers.
July 2000LightningGolden-Lightning sparked a grassfire that burned approximately 50 acres at the Rocky Flats Environmental Test Facility.
August 2000LightningGolden-Lightning sparked three small grassfires near Golden. The fires however, were quickly contained.
July 1997Flash FloodGolden-Heavy rain caused Lena Gulch to surge 2 feet over its banks. The fire department had to rescue a man when his van stalled in the highwaters.
April 1994HailGolden-Weather spotters reported dime-size hail fell at the intersection of Highways 287 and C470 in Jefferson County. Marble-size hail covered the ground near Golden (12 miles west of Denver), to a depth of one inch.
July 2025Thunderstorm WindGolden-no account filed
August 2021HailGolden-no account filed
August 2021HailGolden-no account filed
August 2020HailGolden-no account filed
August 2020HailGolden-no account filed
July 2019HailGolden-no account filed
May 2017HailGolden-no account filed
May 2017HailGolden-no account filed
May 2017HailGolden-no account filed
July 2016HailGolden-no account filed
May 2015HailGolden-no account filed
June 2015HailGolden-no account filed
July 2014HailGolden-no account filed
July 2014HailGolden-no account filed
August 2014HailGolden-no account filed
March 2014Thunderstorm WindGolden-no account filed
August 2011HailGolden-no account filed
June 2010HailGolden-no account filed
July 2010HailGolden-no account filed
July 2009HailGolden-no account filed
September 2009HailGolden-no account filed
September 2009HailGolden-no account filed
September 2009HailGolden-no account filed
May 2008HailGolden-no account filed
May 2007HailGolden-no account filed
July 2007HailGolden-no account filed
July 2007HailGolden-no account filed
May 2007HailGolden-no account filed
May 2007HailGolden-no account filed
July 2007HailGolden-no account filed
April 2006HailGolden-no account filed
April 2005HailGolden-no account filed
March 2005LightningGolden-no account filed
April 2005HailGolden-no account filed
April 2005HailGolden-no account filed
April 2005HailGolden-no account filed
June 2005Thunderstorm WindGolden-no account filed
June 2004HailGolden-no account filed
June 2004HailGolden-no account filed
June 2004HailGolden-no account filed
June 2004HailGolden-no account filed
June 2004HailGolden-no account filed
June 2003HailGolden-no account filed
August 2002HailGolden-no account filed
August 2002HailGolden-no account filed
August 2002HailGolden-no account filed
August 2002HailGolden-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
Vernon Gardens2.4 miles25
Crestview Villa2.4 miles25
Panorama Heights2.5 miles25
Heritage Dells2.5 miles25
Pleasant View3.0 miles25
Applewood3.1 miles28
Golden Heights3.3 miles25
Paradise Hills3.4 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 GoldenAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q983543The 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 202837. 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.