Boulder, Colorado

Boulder, Colorado, is a small city located in Boulder Valley, where the Great Plains meet the Rocky Mountains. Located just 25 miles northwest of Denver, the site of the city was home to many nomadic Native American tribes before European settlers arrived during the gold rush of 1858. Consistently ranked as one of the healthiest places to live in America, Boulder is known for its beautiful scenery, outdoor recreation, and upscale living, a far cry from its humble beginnings as a mining supply town.

Landscape

Boulder is located in a basin nestled in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, at an elevation of 5,430 feet above sea level. The city is small, comprising 25.4 square miles (65.7 square kilometers). Baseline Road runs through the center of the city, marking the 40th parallel.

Boulder Creek is one of the city's water sources and also its namesake. Another water source is the Arapahoe glacier. West of Boulder are the Flatirons, which are huge, almost-vertical slabs of sedimentary rock that seem to lean against the foothills. Towering over the city is Flagstaff Mountain.

The mountains around it protect Boulder from severe winter storms and help moderate precipitation due to the principal of orographic lift, in which moisture from the clouds falls primarily on one side of a mountain range. In fact, Boulder has an average of 300 sunny days per year. These factors contribute to Boulder's high-desert climate, consisting of dry, mild summers and comfortable winters. Although the average snowfall in Boulder is a high 83.1 inches, the snow melts very quickly. Annual average precipitation is 21.2 inches.

Summer daytime temperatures in Boulder average between 80° Fahrenheit and 90° Fahrenheit, while summertime lows are in the 50-60° Fahrenheit range. In the winter, temperatures average around 50° Fahrenheit during the day and 20° Fahrenheit at night. The area has seen the effects of climate change including more high-heat days, reduced snowpack that melts earlier, and more extreme weather events.

People

In 2022, a US Census Bureau estimate placed the population of the city of Boulder at 105,485. The population of the surrounding metropolitan statistical area (or Boulder County) was estimated to be around 329,543. The percentage of the residents of the city by race is 83.2 percent white, 5.9 percent Asian, and 1 percent Black or African American, with the remainder being Native American, Native Hawaiian, Hispanic or Latino, and Native Alaskan.

While Boulder does not have large populations of minority groups, it does celebrate the various heritages of many of its citizens. In June, the city hosts a Jewish Festival at the Pearl Street mall, with Jewish food, dancing, costumes, and games. The Boulder Asian Festival is also held at the Pearl Street mall in August. This festival features live music and dancing, food and crafts from several different parts of Asia, and martial arts displays.

Boulder's mining and ranching heritage can be seen in the annual Boulder County Fair, which is held the first weekend of August. The fair features rodeo competitions, pig racing, scarecrow making competitions, and other events that have an "Old-West" feel.

The city is also a haven for artists and musicians. Each summer, Boulder hosts the Colorado Music Festival, which lasts for six weeks and is held at the historic Chautauqua Auditorium. The Pearl Street Mall area in downtown Boulder is famous for its artist scene, with street performers, painters, and musicians performing and selling their wares when the weather allows. The city also hosts the annual Boulder International Film Festival.

Economy

Boulder began as a mining service community that sprang up as a result of the influx of gold prospectors during the mid and late 1850s. The first recorded non-native settlers arrived in 1858. In less than a year, those same settlers established the Boulder City Town Company, which was organized primarily to sell homesteading lots.

Residents of the area sought to make Boulder City the primary supplier for miners in Boulder Country. They wanted to create economic stability as soon as possible. In order to achieve this, the citizens quickly bonded together to encourage railroad development, build schools, and develop a town government.

The intense efforts of Boulder City's earliest citizens paid off. The city has thrived economically through most of its history and has done so even when the rest of the country has suffered economic downturns. Boulder is home to the University of Colorado, which is one of the city's biggest employers and also provides local business with a skilled work force. The city is known as a hotspot for intellectuals and liberals, earning it the nickname "The People's Republic of Boulder".

Boulder also has a reputation for being a healthy, smart choice of residence. The city attracts people from all walks of life, from retirees to students to couples raising a family. The city has also attracted its share of major companies who have chosen to establish cooperate headquarters or research centers in the area, including Sun Microsystems, IBM, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES).

High livability rankings in magazines such as Forbes and US News and World Report have also contributed to Boulder's steady economic growth and high popularity. Forbes ranked Boulder as the most educated city in its November 2008 issue, and US News and World Report featured Boulder in a 2008 article titled "America's Best Healthy Places to Retire." Trip Advisor has ranked Boulder as one of the top twenty-five destinations in the United States to visit, and one of the top 100 in the world. Boulder has also been consistently ranked highly as a top small city for artists and bicyclists, boasting hundreds of miles of bike paths and several annual events honoring artists and performers. The steady stream of positive publicity from these and other publications has fueled interest in Boulder as a top place to visit, live, and do business.

Landmarks

The University of Colorado is one of the oldest institutions in Boulder and covers over 600 acres of the University Hill neighborhood. The first stop for tourists and new students is usually the Old Main building, which contains the Heritage Center. The Heritage Center is a museum that documents, preserves, and displays artifacts relating to the history of the university.

Flagstaff Mountain towers over the city and attracts throngs of people during every season of the year for hiking, biking, and other recreational activities. The mountain, located to the west of the city, has numerous trails and features gorgeous views of the city and valley from the summit.

The Boulder Reservoir is a popular spot during hot summer weather. The park, which covers over 700 acres, features sandy beaches, playgrounds, snack shacks, restrooms and picnic areas, and boating ramps. Located just east of the city, residents and visitors can swim, fish, sail, or water-ski in its waters.

Pearl Street is known as the heart of downtown Boulder. Covering four city blocks and open only to pedestrians, the area is known for its locally-owned shops, public art, and many gardens. Pearl Street is also a popular place for street performers and artists to show off their talents, especially during the summer months.

If there is one symbol of Boulder, it is probably the Flatiron Mountains that loom to the west of the city. Composed of conglomerate sandstone, they rise almost vertically into the air, providing the perfect environment for hikers and rock climbers. There are five numbered Flatirons moving north to south, and these are the ones primarily used in photographs representing the city.

History

In the early 1800s, the Boulder valley was home to many nomadic tribes of Native Americans. One such tribe, the Southern Arapaho tribe, considered the site their home, although they only spent winters in what would eventually become the city of Boulder.

By the mid 1800s, gold prospectors and miners began to immigrate to the valley, and by 1859, the Boulder City Town Company had been established. The city grew slowly, providing supplies, services and housing to miners and homesteaders. In 1861, the US government created the Territory of Colorado, and Boulder City became part of Colorado. That same year, a treaty was signed with the leaders of several Native American tribes, including the Arapaho. The treaty forbid the Indians from owning any land in Colorado, save that of a reserve in the Southeast portion of the territory.

The white settlers of Boulder City were organized and determined to bring prosperity to their town. During the next decade, schools and hospitals were built, a post office was established, a city government was organized, and the University of Colorado was established. In 1873, railway service came to Boulder, greatly increasing the number of people and supplies traveling to and from the city. In 1876, Colorado became a state.

In 1880, the population of Boulder was over 3,000, which allowed the town to be designated a city of the second class. A town hall was built, flagstone sidewalks were installed, and city pride ran high. Boulder began to have a reputation of being a prosperous community with a thriving economy. The city's popularity led to the railroad company's recommending of the city as the site for a Chautauqua (adult education assemblies popular in the US in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries). In 1897, the Chautauqua auditorium was built. Today, the auditorium remains a landmark in Boulder.

The economy began to slow in the early 1900s, partially as a result of a miners' strike that lasted for five years, an anti-saloon ordinance, and the damage done by a large fire. The city government decided to build a world-class hotel to draw tourists to Boulder. The plan worked, and tourism became Boulder's biggest source of income for the next forty years, only declining when World War II began.

Still, even the war brought people to the city. The Navy established a Japanese language school at Colorado University during the war, which drew a great number of men and women from around the country. After the war, many of the students returned because they had liked the area so much. By 1950, the population of Boulder was well over 20,000.

The city continued to grow, but city leaders knew that uncontrolled growth would not be a good thing for the valley. In fact, Chief Niwot, a tribal leader of the Arapaho, is said to have warned against this in his famous curse, uttered in 1858, "People seeing the beauty of this valley will want to stay, and their staying will be the undoing of the beauty."

Boulder leaders began to recruit "clean and green" industries and improve transportation, creating an extensive bus system and installing seventy-four bike and pedestrian underpasses. In 1970, the Boulder Valley Comprehensive plan was adopted to protect open spaces, curb urban sprawl, and limit building heights. Taxes were used to purchase land surrounding the city, which is now developed into greenbelts and city parks. Today, Boulder is considered one of the best examples of a city devoted to green living.

Trivia

• Although the city is known for its outdoor activities, Boulder contains more bookstores than any other city of its size in the country.
• Pioneer women named the Flatiron Mountains based on the fact that they look like the flat, metal tools they used to iron clothing.

"Boulder City, Colorado." US Census Bureau, 2022 www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/bouldercitycolorado/PST045223. Accessed 22 Feb. 2024.

"City of Boulder." Boulder Government Website, 2024, bouldercolorado.gov/. Accessed 22 Feb. 2024.

"Climate Impacts." Boulder County, bouldercounty.gov/climate/impacts/. Accessed 22 Feb. 2024.

Lambrecht, Mona. Boulder, 1859-1919. Arcadia, 2008.