BlockBefore

Rosita, Colorado

24 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1889 and the latest in 1994. It stands in the Westcliffe census division. It lies in ZIP code area 81252. It lies near Wakefield Hill. The Survey maps it on the Rosita quadrangle. It stands 8,809 feet above sea level.

Rosita within Custer County

Topographic sheets covering this place

12 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

23 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 23 fires within 5 miles of Rosita between 1992 and 2020, burning about 553 acres in total. 6 started naturally. None was 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/undetermined9
Natural6
Recreation and ceremony3
Debris and open burning3
Equipment and vehicle use1
Power generation/transmission/distribution1

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
4 August 2011Naturalunder an acreRoyal Gorge Field OfficeROSITA HILLS
25 August 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWet Mountain Fire Protection DistrictUNKNOWN
8 July 2020Natural1.0 acresCuster CountyBASSICK
6 July 2018Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWet Mountain Fire Protection DistrictUNKNOWN
4 July 2016Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWet Mountain Fire Protection DistrictUNKNOWN
22 July 2016Natural3.0 acresWet Mountain Fire Protection DistrictUNKNOWN
13 July 2017Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWet Mountain Fire Protection DistrictUNKNOWN
27 June 2013Natural1.0 acresWet Mountain Fire Protection DistrictUNKNOWN

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Custer County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 112 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 112 workings within 5 miles of Rosita: 62 past producers, 36 prospects, 7 producers, 7 occurrences. 7 still produce. What was taken out: Silver, Thorium, Iron, Perlite. 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
Barite LodeThorium, Silver, Lead, CopperProspect1951
Barite Lode 2Thorium, Lead, Copper, Silver, UraniumProspect1951
Bassick MineSilver, Gold, Lead, Zinc, Copper, TelluriumPast Producer1877, 1878, 1958
Big Stake Nickel DepositGold, Nickel, Silver, CobaltProspect1932
Democrat Hill depositPotassium, Silver, Aluminum, Gold, Lead, ZincPast Producer1890
Elizabeth ProspectSilver, Gold, Copper, IronProspect1882, 1900
G.W. and Antrim ClaimsThorium, Lead, Niobium (Columbium), Gold, Silver, UraniumPast Producer1954
Invincible ShaftSilver, Copper, Lead, IronPast Producer1895
Iron Mountain MineSilver, Iron, REE, Molybdenum, CopperPast Producer1879, 1880, 1889
Maverick MineZinc, Lead, Silver, Copper, IronPast Producer1870, 1874

Every working recorded in Custer County

Storms near this place

41 since 1999

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Rosita in 41 storm reports between 1999 and 2025: 31 hail, 7 heavy rain, 1 lightning, 1 flash flood. The reports record 1 death. 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 2008LightningRosita1 killedno account filed
October 2025Thunderstorm WindRosita-Mesonet station AW342 Highlands Ranch observed a 61 mph wind gust with a decaying thunderstorm.
July 2025HailRosita-Hail measured to 1.25 inches occurred in Custer County.
August 2022Heavy RainRosita-Observer reported 0.95 inches of rain in an hour.
July 2022Heavy RainRosita-Heavy rainfall of 1.00 inches.
July 2022Heavy RainRosita-Heavy rainfall of 1.00 inches, fell in one hour.
August 2021Heavy RainRosita-Heavy rainfall of 1.19 inches.
August 2021Heavy RainRosita-Heavy rainfall of 3.58 inches.
July 2021Heavy RainRosita-Heavy rainfall of 1.06 inches.
July 2017Flash FloodRosita-A significant flash flood occurred on the Junkins burn scar when a small, but intense storm moved down the South Hardscrabble watershed. Rainfall estimates of 1.5 to 2 inches caused major erosion in the canyon and piled tree and rock debris on County Road 386. The wave of water and debris moved into Greenwood and Wetmore. Remarkably, only a few outbuildings and barns were affected by water and mud as the dangerous flood waters moved through that area. County Roads remained mainly intact.
June 2021Heavy RainRosita-no account filed
August 2018HailRosita-no account filed
August 2018HailRosita-no account filed
June 2016HailRosita-no account filed
August 2016HailRosita-no account filed
June 2015HailRosita-no account filed
July 2014HailRosita-no account filed
May 2012HailRosita-no account filed
May 2012HailRosita-no account filed
June 2008HailRosita-no account filed
July 2008HailRosita-no account filed
August 2008HailRosita-no account filed
August 2008HailRosita-no account filed
August 2008HailRosita-no account filed
June 2007HailRosita-no account filed
August 2007HailRosita-no account filed
August 2007HailRosita-no account filed
August 2007HailRosita-no account filed
July 2007HailRosita-no account filed
July 2007HailRosita-no account filed
July 2007HailRosita-no account filed
May 2006HailRosita-no account filed
July 2006HailRosita-no account filed
August 2006HailRosita-no account filed
May 2005HailRosita-no account filed
July 2004HailRosita-no account filed
July 2004HailRosita-no account filed
October 2004HailRosita-no account filed
October 2004HailRosita-no account filed
July 2002HailRosita-no account filed
June 1999HailRosita-no account filed

Every storm recorded in Custer 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
Querida2.0 miles26
Cold Spring6.1 miles24
Silver Cliff6.4 miles23
Westcliffe7.3 miles23
McKenzie Junction9.0 miles24
Ula (historical)9.5 miles23
Tanglewood Acres12.0 miles20
Fairview12.7 miles23

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 RositaAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q7368974The 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 192319. 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.