La Junta, Colorado
Encyclopedia
The City of La Junta is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat
and the most populous city of Otero County
, Colorado
, United States
. The city population was 7,568 at the U.S. Census 2000. La Junta is located on the Arkansas River
in southeastern Colorado east of Pueblo
.
, La Junta had an Army Air Force Training Base outside town. The airport, located 5 miles (8 km) north of La Junta, has 77 acres (31.2 ha) of tarmac and two runways which are still in use. One runway (east-west) is 6851 feet (2,088.2 m) long and the other is 5800 feet (1,767.8 m). http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/la-junta.htm.
In 1979, the first episodes of the CBS western
miniseries
The Chisholms
, starring Robert Preston
, was filmed near La Junta.
The Caboose (pictured below) is the drive through for the State Bank http://www.redibank.com which was established in 1893. The bank is unique as it has been remodeled with antiques, including a teller line from the late 1890s.
, the city has a total area of 2.8 square miles (7.3 km²), all of it land. La Junta is directly opposite Île Amsterdam
, La Junta's
antipode
. The area is high plains terrain, dry with short grass prairie and sagebrush.
was 2,652.0 people per square mile (1,025.3/km²). There were 3,277 housing units at an average density of 1,148.3 per square mile (443.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 74.22% White, 1.22% African American, 1.77% Native American, 0.86% Asian, 0.13% Pacific Islander, 18.33% from other races
, and 3.48% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 43.60% of the population.
There were 2,977 households out of which 33.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.0% were married couples
living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.0% were non-families. 30.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.06.
In the city the population was spread out with 27.1% under the age of 18, 10.4% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 16.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 89.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $29,002, and the median income for a family was $36,398. Males had a median income of $26,325 versus $21,324 for females. The per capita income
for the city was $14,928. About 16.8% of families and 21.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.4% of those under age 18 and 10.0% of those age 65 or over.
U.S. Route 50
travels through La Junta, approaching from Pueblo
to the northwest and continuing eastward towards Lamar
and into Kansas
. U.S. Route 350
begins at La Junta and travels southwest before reaching Trinidad
. Colorado State Highway 10 also begins at La Junta and travels west-southwest before reaching Walsenburg
.
County seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
and the most populous city of Otero County
Otero County, Colorado
Otero County is one of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. The county was named for Miguel Antonio Otero, one of the founders of the town of La Junta and a member of a prominent Hispanic family. The county population was 20,311 at U.S. Census 2000...
, Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The city population was 7,568 at the U.S. Census 2000. La Junta is located on the Arkansas River
Arkansas River
The Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. The Arkansas generally flows to the east and southeast as it traverses the U.S. states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas. The river's initial basin starts in the Western United States in Colorado, specifically the Arkansas...
in southeastern Colorado east of Pueblo
Pueblo, Colorado
Pueblo is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The population was 106,595 in 2010 census, making it the 246th most populous city in the United States....
.
History
During World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, La Junta had an Army Air Force Training Base outside town. The airport, located 5 miles (8 km) north of La Junta, has 77 acres (31.2 ha) of tarmac and two runways which are still in use. One runway (east-west) is 6851 feet (2,088.2 m) long and the other is 5800 feet (1,767.8 m). http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/facility/la-junta.htm.
In 1979, the first episodes of the CBS western
Western (genre)
The Western is a genre of various visual arts, such as film, television, radio, literature, painting and others. Westerns are devoted to telling stories set primarily in the latter half of the 19th century in the American Old West, hence the name. Some Westerns are set as early as the Battle of...
miniseries
Miniseries
A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...
The Chisholms
The Chisholms
The Chisholms is a CBS western miniseries starring Robert Preston, which aired thirteen episodes from March 29, 1979, to April 19, 1979, and from January 19, 1980, to March 15, 1980. The 1979 episodes showed the family moving from Virginia to Wyoming...
, starring Robert Preston
Robert Preston (actor)
-Early life:Preston was born Robert Preston Meservey in Newton, Massachusetts, the son of Ruth L. and Frank Wesley Meservey, a garment worker and billing clerk for American Express. After attending Abraham Lincoln High School in Los Angeles, California, he studied acting at the Pasadena Community...
, was filmed near La Junta.
The Caboose (pictured below) is the drive through for the State Bank http://www.redibank.com which was established in 1893. The bank is unique as it has been remodeled with antiques, including a teller line from the late 1890s.
Attractions
- Bent's Old Fort National Historic SiteBent's Old Fort National Historic SiteBent's Old Fort is an 1833 fort located in Otero County in southeastern Colorado, USA. William and Charles Bent, along with Ceran St. Vrain, built the fort to trade with Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho Plains Indians and trappers for buffalo robes...
, an important trading post along the Santa Fe TrailSanta Fe TrailThe Santa Fe Trail was a 19th-century transportation route through central North America that connected Missouri with Santa Fe, New Mexico. Pioneered in 1822 by William Becknell, it served as a vital commercial and military highway until the introduction of the railroad to Santa Fe in 1880...
, is northeast of La Junta. - Koshare Indian MuseumKoshare Indian MuseumThe Koshare Indian Museum is a registered site of the Colorado Historical Society in La Junta, Colorado. The building, located on the Otero Junior College campus, is a tri-level museum with an attached kiva that is built with the largest self-supporting log roof in the world...
, housed at Otero Junior CollegeOtero Junior CollegeOtero Junior College is a community college located in La Junta, Colorado, USA.Founded in 1941, Otero Junior College is located on an attractive 40-acre campus on the southern edge of La Junta, Colorado....
, holds a collection of Native AmericanNative Americans in the United StatesNative Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
artifacts. The Koshare Indian museum hosts a unique Boy ScoutBoy ScoutA Scout is a boy or a girl, usually 11 to 18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement. Because of the large age and development span, many Scouting associations have split this age group into a junior and a senior section...
/Explorer program which trains the ScoutsScouting in ColoradoScouting in Colorado has a long history, from the 1910s to the present day, serving thousands of youth in programs that suit the rugged, mountainous environment in which they live.-Early history :Scouting got a brisk start in Colorado...
in both Indian dance and costumes. The Scouts give dance performances during the summer and also host many other Scout troopScout troopThe Scout troop is a unit of Scouts, Boy Scouts, Girl Guides and Girl Scouts that usually meet weekly. Girl Guides often use Unit or Company instead. The troop is the fundamental unit, which a Scout joins and via which he or she participates in Scouting activities, such as camping, backpacking, and...
s passing through the area. - Purgatoire River track sitePurgatoire River track siteThe Purgatoire River track site, also called the Picketwire Canyonlands tracksite, is one of the largest dinosaur tracksites in North America. It is located on public land of the Comanche National Grassland, along the Purgatoire River south of La Junta in Otero County, Colorado...
, one of the largest dinosaur track sites in North America, is south of La Junta. - Picketwire Center for Performing Arts, home of the local theater company.
Geography
La Junta is located at 37°58′53"N 103°32′51"W (37.981333, -103.547540). According to the United States Census BureauUnited States Census Bureau
The United States Census Bureau is the government agency that is responsible for the United States Census. It also gathers other national demographic and economic data...
, the city has a total area of 2.8 square miles (7.3 km²), all of it land. La Junta is directly opposite Île Amsterdam
Île Amsterdam
New Amsterdam, Amsterdam Island, or Île Amsterdam is a French island in the Indian Ocean located at . It is part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands.- History :...
, La Junta's
antipode
Antipodes
In geography, the antipodes of any place on Earth is the point on the Earth's surface which is diametrically opposite to it. Two points that are antipodal to one another are connected by a straight line running through the centre of the Earth....
. The area is high plains terrain, dry with short grass prairie and sagebrush.
Demographics
There were 7,568 people, 2,977 households, and 1,964 families residing in the city. The population densityPopulation density
Population density is a measurement of population per unit area or unit volume. It is frequently applied to living organisms, and particularly to humans...
was 2,652.0 people per square mile (1,025.3/km²). There were 3,277 housing units at an average density of 1,148.3 per square mile (443.9/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 74.22% White, 1.22% African American, 1.77% Native American, 0.86% Asian, 0.13% Pacific Islander, 18.33% from other races
Race (United States Census)
Race and ethnicity in the United States Census, as defined by the Federal Office of Management and Budget and the United States Census Bureau, are self-identification data items in which residents choose the race or races with which they most closely identify, and indicate whether or not they are...
, and 3.48% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 43.60% of the population.
There were 2,977 households out of which 33.7% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 47.0% were married couples
Marriage
Marriage is a social union or legal contract between people that creates kinship. It is an institution in which interpersonal relationships, usually intimate and sexual, are acknowledged in a variety of ways, depending on the culture or subculture in which it is found...
living together, 14.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 34.0% were non-families. 30.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 15.0% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.44 and the average family size was 3.06.
In the city the population was spread out with 27.1% under the age of 18, 10.4% from 18 to 24, 24.6% from 25 to 44, 21.4% from 45 to 64, and 16.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 89.2 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 84.1 males.
The median income for a household in the city was $29,002, and the median income for a family was $36,398. Males had a median income of $26,325 versus $21,324 for females. The per capita income
Per capita income
Per capita income or income per person is a measure of mean income within an economic aggregate, such as a country or city. It is calculated by taking a measure of all sources of income in the aggregate and dividing it by the total population...
for the city was $14,928. About 16.8% of families and 21.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 31.4% of those under age 18 and 10.0% of those age 65 or over.
Transportation
La Junta once had a major (ex-Santa Fe) railroad yard for assembling freight trains for the climb over Raton Pass, but those days are over. Successor BNSF runs freight trains between Denver and Kansas/Texas via La Junta. The sole remaining major train crossing Raton Pass today is the daily AMTRAK "Southwest Chief", in both directions, between Los Angeles and Chicago.U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...
travels through La Junta, approaching from Pueblo
Pueblo, Colorado
Pueblo is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The population was 106,595 in 2010 census, making it the 246th most populous city in the United States....
to the northwest and continuing eastward towards Lamar
Lamar, Colorado
The City of Lamar is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Prowers County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 8,869 at the U.S...
and into Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
. U.S. Route 350
U.S. Route 350
U.S. Highway 350 is a long northeast-southwest United States highway located entirely within the state of Colorado.-Route description:US 350 starts at a junction with northeast of Trinidad, Colorado. The highway runs northeast, past the Perry Stokes Airport and crossing the Purgatoire River...
begins at La Junta and travels southwest before reaching Trinidad
Trinidad, Colorado
The historic City of Trinidad is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Las Animas County, Colorado, United States...
. Colorado State Highway 10 also begins at La Junta and travels west-southwest before reaching Walsenburg
Walsenburg, Colorado
The City of Walsenburg or Los Leones is a Statutory City that is the county seat and the most populous city of Huerfano County, Colorado, United States...
.
Noted residents
- J. F. BurshearsJ. F. BurshearsJames Francis "Buck" Burshears was the founder of the Koshare Indian Dancers and the troop's Scoutmaster for over half a century. His poem "The Scoutmaster's Prayer" has been an inspiration to thousands of Scouters throughout the world.The Koshare Indians were formed as a senior project while...
, the founder of the Koshare Indian DancersKoshare Indian DancersKoshare Indian Dancers are members of Boy Scout Troop 232 in the Rocky Mountain Council of the Boy Scouts of America, located in La Junta, Colorado. They have been dedicated to maintaining Native American culture through dance since 1933... - Lane FrostLane FrostLane Clyde Frost was a professional bull rider and Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association member, who died in the arena at the 1989 Cheyenne Frontier Days Rodeo as a result of injuries sustained riding the bull "Takin' Care of Business".-Early life:Lane was born on October 12, 1963. At that time,...
, rodeo star born in La Junta in 1963 - Ken KeseyKen KeseyKenneth Elton "Ken" Kesey was an American author, best known for his novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest , and as a counter-cultural figure who considered himself a link between the Beat Generation of the 1950s and the hippies of the 1960s. "I was too young to be a beatnik, and too old to be a...
, a writerWriterA writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, was born in La Junta - Wendell FertigWendell FertigWendell Fertig was an American civil engineer, in the American-administered Commonwealth of the Philippines, who organized and commanded an American-Filipino guerrilla force on the Japanese-occupied, southern Philippine island of Mindanao during World War II.Fertig held a U.S...
, World War II hero who led the guerrilla resistance against the Japanese on the Philippine island of Mindanao. - Felix Tippy MartinezTippy MartinezFelix Anthony Martinez , is a retired professional baseball pitcher. Martinez, who threw left-handed, pitched fourteen seasons in Major League Baseball between 1974 and 1988, primarily as a relief pitcher...
, major league pitcher born in La Junta. Set a major league record by picking off three base runners off in one inning. - Colorado political leader Dan SlaterDan SlaterDan Slater was the first vice chair of the Colorado Democratic Party. An attorney in Cañon City, Colorado, Slater ran unsuccessfully for the Colorado State Senate in 2002 before joining the top leadership of the Colorado Democratic Party in 2003...
was born in La Junta.
Politics
- Mayor: Don Rizzuto
- City Council: Eugene Mestas, Billie Johnson, Jackie Abrams, Bob Friedenberger, Michael Moreno, Bill Schmidt.
- City Manager: Rick Klein
- City Attorney: Phil Malouff
- Police Chief: G. Todd Quick
- Fire Chief: Aaron Eveatt