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Westcliffe, Colorado

23 topographic sheets cover this place, the earliest surveyed in 1889 and the latest in 1989. It stands in the Westcliffe census division. It lies in ZIP code area 81252. It lies near Chloride Gulch. The Survey maps it on the Westcliffe quadrangle. 435 people lived here at the 2020 count. It stands 7,867 feet above sea level.

Research this city

Westcliffe within Custer County

On record in Westcliffe

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 8 records

Population over time

2 figures

Westcliffe fell from 568 to 435 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
2010568
2020435-133 (-23%)

Topographic sheets covering this place

11 surveys from 23 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

41 since 1992

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal wildfire occurrence database lists 41 fires within 5 miles of Westcliffe between 1992 and 2020, burning about 193 acres in total. 9 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/undetermined23
Natural9
Recreation and ceremony4
Smoking2
Misuse of fire by a minor1
Equipment and vehicle use1
Debris and open burning1

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
8 September 2010Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-State Headquartersnot named
28 September 2010Naturalunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-State Headquartersnot named
19 September 2010Naturalunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-State Headquartersnot named
15 September 2010Naturalunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-State Headquartersnot named
6 August 2007Naturalunder an acrePike and San Isabel National ForestMILLBALL
31 August 2018Natural1.0 acresWet Mountain Fire Protection DistrictUNKNOWN
29 August 2016Missing data/not specified/undeterminedunder an acreWet Mountain Fire Protection DistrictUNKNOWN
15 August 2010Naturalunder an acreColorado State Forest Service-State Headquartersnot named

Settlements close enough to share some of these fires:

Every fire recorded in Custer County

Mines and quarries near this place

10 of 54 shown

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The federal mineral resources record lists 54 workings within 5 miles of Westcliffe: 30 past producers, 10 prospects, 7 producers, 7 occurrences. 7 still produce. What was taken out: Silver, Manganese, Perlite, Sand and Gravel, Construction. 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
Bull Domingo MineLead, Silver, Zinc, Gold, UraniumPast Producer1879, 1880, 1914
Dakota Maid ProspectSilver, Gold, LeadProspectGalena, Pyrite, Tetrahedrite
Defender MineSilver, Lead, Zinc, GoldPast Producer1882
Defender MineLead, Silver, ZincPast Producer
Dolly VardenZinc, Silver, LeadProspectvein
Geyser MineLead, Silver, Gold, Copper, ZincPast Producer1878, 1880, 1911
Herman Passiflora MineSilver, Lead, Gold, Iron, CopperPast Producer1895
Immortal MineSilver, Iron, Lead, CopperPast Producer1882
Jit ProspectZinc, Lead, ManganeseProspectChalcopyrite, Galena
Kate MineSilver, Copper, Lead, IronPast Producer1885

Every working recorded in Custer County

Storms near this place

53 since 1993

Regional context, not property-specific evidence. The National Weather Service names Westcliffe in 53 storm reports between 1993 and 2024: 34 hail, 6 flash flood, 5 funnel cloud, 3 tornado. The reports record 1 death and 1 injury. 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
August 2011LightningWestcliffe1 killed, 1 hurtno account filed
April 2002WildfireWestcliffe$100,000no account filed
May 2002WildfireWestcliffe$100,000no account filed
July 2003Flash FloodWestcliffe$20,000no account filed
August 1993HailWestcliffe$500Severe thunderstorms rolled through portions of Chaffee and Custer Counties. Hail up to walnut-size damaged windows in Johnson Village (21 miles northwest of Salida) and Westcliffe.
May 2024Funnel CloudWestcliffe-Cold air funnel, documented by video moving over Eureka Mountain and Spread Eagle Peak.
July 2021Flash FloodWestcliffe-Hermit road from Highway 69 to 96 was closed due to flooding in several locations.
July 2021Flash FloodWestcliffe-Flooding of intersection near 3rd and Edwards avenue.
July 2021Heavy RainWestcliffe-Heavy rainfall of 1.92 inches.
July 2019Funnel CloudWestcliffe-Spotter reported a funnel cloud near Lake DeWeese.
July 2019Tornado (EF0)Westcliffe-A tornado touched down near William Avenue in |Westcliffe, CO on the evening of July 22, 2019, traveling in|a southeast to northwest direction. A continuous path of damage |was seen for one-third of a mile before lifting as it crossed |Vista Dr. No further visible damage was seen beyond this point |but witnesses said the tornado touched down again before |nearing Wolf Street and then lifted for a final time. |Much of the damage included canopies, carports, RVs, and gazebos.|No primary residence damage was seen outside of a few missing |shingles, peeled up metal roofing, and a few blown in windows by |flying debris. One carport awning was lifted off the ground nearly|100 feet and then carried nearly 100 yards before it was dropped |onto a nearby roof. No injuries were reported.
July 2019Flash FloodWestcliffe-Heavy rain closed roadway.
May 2012Funnel CloudWestcliffe-A significant funnel cloud occurred south of Westcliffe and extended around 1/2 way to the ground.
July 2011Flash FloodWestcliffe-Deep water and debris was noted over Highway 69.
June 2007Tornado (EF0)Westcliffe-A brief tornado occurred over open country of the Wet Mountain Valley. There was no known damage.
June 1997Tornado (F0)Westcliffe-A tornado briefly occurred in an open field southeast of Westcliffe. There was no known damage.
October 2023Thunderstorm WindWestcliffe-no account filed
May 2021HailWestcliffe-no account filed
July 2018HailWestcliffe-no account filed
May 2016HailWestcliffe-no account filed
July 2014HailWestcliffe-no account filed
May 2012HailWestcliffe-no account filed
June 2008HailWestcliffe-no account filed
August 2008HailWestcliffe-no account filed
August 2008HailWestcliffe-no account filed
August 2008HailWestcliffe-no account filed
August 2008HailWestcliffe-no account filed
June 2007HailWestcliffe-no account filed
July 2007HailWestcliffe-no account filed
July 2007HailWestcliffe-no account filed
May 2006HailWestcliffe-no account filed
September 2005HailWestcliffe-no account filed
June 2004HailWestcliffe-no account filed
June 2004HailWestcliffe-no account filed
June 2004HailWestcliffe-no account filed
August 2004HailWestcliffe-no account filed
August 2004HailWestcliffe-no account filed
July 2004HailWestcliffe-no account filed
July 2004HailWestcliffe-no account filed
October 2004HailWestcliffe-no account filed
June 2003HailWestcliffe-no account filed
June 2003HailWestcliffe-no account filed
July 2002HailWestcliffe-no account filed
July 2001HailWestcliffe-no account filed
May 1999Funnel CloudWestcliffe-no account filed
July 1998HailWestcliffe-no account filed
July 1998Flash FloodWestcliffe-no account filed
July 1998HailWestcliffe-no account filed
July 1998HailWestcliffe-no account filed
August 1998HailWestcliffe-no account filed
June 1997Funnel CloudWestcliffe-no account filed
June 1996HailWestcliffe-no account filed
July 1996HailWestcliffe-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
Silver Cliff1.0 miles23
Ula (historical)2.2 miles23
Tanglewood Acres5.8 miles20
Querida7.0 miles26
Rosita7.3 miles24
Cold Spring11.9 miles24
McKenzie Junction14.7 miles24
Fairview20.0 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 WestcliffeAn encyclopaedic summary. Its text is share-alike, so it is linked here rather than copied.
Wikidata item Q521692The 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 192151. 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.