Littleton, Colorado facts for kids

Main Street in Downtown Littleton

Main Street in Downtown Littleton

Littleton, Colorado
Home Rule Municipality
Littleton Town Hall, built 1920. Jacques Benedict, architect
Location in Arapahoe County and the state of Colorado
Country	United States
State	Colorado
Counties	Arapahoe County Seat Jefferson County Douglas County
Incorporated	March 13, 1890
Named for	Richard Little
Area
• Total	13.87 sq mi (35.9 km2)
• Land	12.98 sq mi (33.6 km2)
• Water	0.89 sq mi (2.3 km2)
Elevation	5,351 ft (1,631 m)
Population (2010)
• Total	41,737
• Density	3,215.5/sq mi (1,242.2/km2)
Time zone	MST (UTC-7)
• Summer (DST)	MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP codes	80120-80130, 80160-80163 (PO Boxes), 80165, 80166
Area code(s)	Both 303 and 720
FIPS code	08-45255
GNIS feature ID	0169446
Highways	US 85, SH 75, SH 88, SH 470
Website	littletongov.org

Littleton is the Home Rule Municipality in Arapahoe, Douglas, and Jefferson counties that is the county seat of Arapahoe County, Colorado, United States. The city is a part of the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area. The city population was 41,737 at the 2010 United States Census, ranking as the 20th most populous municipality in the State of Colorado.

History

See also: Littleton Main Street and Littleton Town Hall

The city of Littleton's history dates back to the 1859 Pike's Peak Gold Rush, which brought not only gold seekers, but merchants and farmers to the community. Richard Sullivan Little was an engineer from New Hampshire that made his way out west to work on irrigation systems. Little soon decided to settle in the area at present day Littleton and brought his wife Angeline out from the East in 1862. The Littles, along with many neighbors, built the Rough and Ready Flour Mill in 1867, which provided a solid economic base in the community. By 1890, the community had grown to 245 people and the residents voted to incorporate the Town of Littleton.

Littleton became widely known in 1999 when the Columbine High School massacre occurred at Columbine High School. News media reported that the incident happened in the city, because the school’s ZIP code is primarily associated with Littleton. The school is actually located in adjacent Columbine, an unincorporated community, which is not a place name accepted by the U.S. Postal Service; by default, locations in ZIP code 80123 use “Littleton” in their mailing addresses. Columbine High School is in the Jefferson County school system and is not one of the Littleton Public Schools.

Geography

Littleton is located at 39°35′59″N 105°0′39″W (39.599691, −105.010929) at an elevation of 5,351 feet (1,631 m). Located in central Colorado at the junction of U.S. Route 85 and Colorado State Highway 470, the city is 9 miles (14 km) south of downtown Denver and 55 miles (89 km) north of Colorado Springs.

Littleton lies on the South Platte River in the Colorado Piedmont region of the Great Plains a few miles east of the Front Range of the Southern Rocky Mountains. Most of the city lies on the east side of the river. Several small tributaries of the river flow northwest through the city; from north to south, these include Big Dry Creek, Slaughterhouse Gulch, Lee Gulch, and Dad Clark Gulch. In addition, there are several small lakes and reservoirs located along the river in the southwestern part of the city. Immediately west of the river are Cooley Lake, Bufflehead Lake, South Platte Reservoir, Eaglewatch Lake, Redtail Lake, and Blackrock Lake. East of the river lie Wolhurst Lake and McLellen Reservoir which is fed and drained by Dad Clark Gulch. Chatfield Reservoir lies immediately southwest of the city.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 13.87 square miles (35.9 km²) of which 12.98 square miles (33.6 km²) is land and 0.89 square miles (2.3 km²) (6.4%) is water.

As a suburb of Denver, Littleton is part of the Denver-Aurora metropolitan area and the Front Range Urban Corridor. It shares a border with Denver and Englewood on the north, Greenwood Village on the northeast, Centennial on the east, Highlands Ranch on the south, Columbine and Columbine Valley on the west, and Bow Mar on the northwest.

Climate

Climate data for Littleton, Colorado (Elevation 5,310ft)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °F (°C)	78 (25.6)	76 (24.4)	86 (30)	88 (31.1)	90 (32.2)	98 (36.7)	99 (37.2)	98 (36.7)	94 (34.4)	88 (31.1)	82 (27.8)	76 (24.4)	99 (37.2)
Average high °F (°C)	43.8 (6.56)	47.2 (8.44)	53.9 (12.17)	62.6 (17)	69.4 (20.78)	80.3 (26.83)	85.4 (29.67)	82.7 (28.17)	75.4 (24.11)	64.1 (17.83)	51.0 (10.56)	43.0 (6.11)	63.2 (17.33)
Average low °F (°C)	15.3 (-9.28)	19.1 (-7.17)	27.7 (-2.39)	35.1 (1.72)	43.4 (6.33)	52.6 (11.44)	57.6 (14.22)	55.8 (13.22)	46.6 (8.11)	33.7 (0.94)	22.8 (-5.11)	15.0 (-9.44)	35.4 (1.89)
Record low °F (°C)	−20 (-28.9)	−23 (-30.6)	−5 (-20.6)	6 (-14.4)	21 (-6.1)	36 (2.2)	44 (6.7)	42 (5.6)	17 (-8.3)	2 (-16.7)	−2 (-18.9)	−29 (-33.9)	−29 (-33.9)
Precipitation inches (mm)	0.36 (9.1)	0.47 (11.9)	1.44 (36.6)	1.50 (38.1)	2.75 (69.9)	1.88 (47.8)	1.89 (48)	1.99 (50.5)	1.09 (27.7)	1.23 (31.2)	1.14 (29)	0.64 (16.3)	16.39 (416.3)
Snowfall inches (cm)	8.9 (22.6)	7.8 (19.8)	11.9 (30.2)	7.8 (19.8)	0.6 (1.5)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0 (0)	0.9 (2.3)	3.0 (7.6)	12.2 (31)	12.7 (32.3)	65.7 (166.9)
Source: The Western Regional Climate Center

Demographics

Historical population
Census	Pop.		%±
1880	100		—
1900	738		—
1910	1,373		86.0%
1920	1,636		19.2%
1930	2,019		23.4%
1940	2,244		11.1%
1950	3,378		50.5%
1960	13,670		304.7%
1970	26,466		93.6%
1980	28,631		8.2%
1990	33,685		17.7%
2000	40,340		19.8%
2010	41,737		3.5%
Est. 2015	46,368		11.1%
U.S. Decennial Census

As of the 2010 census, there were 41,737 people, 18,312 households, and 10,724 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,215.5 people per square mile (1,242.2/km²). There were 19,176 housing units at an average density of 1,497.2 per square mile (570.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 89.0% White, 2.2% Asian, 1.4% African American, 0.8% American Indian, 0.1% Pacific Islander, 3.9% from other races, and 2.6% from two or more races. Hispanics and Latinos of any race were 12.4% of the population.

There were 18,312 households out of which 27.1% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 44.8% were married couples living together, 4.3% had a male householder with no wife present, 9.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 41.4% were non-families. 34.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.25, and the average family size was 2.93.

The distribution of the population by age was 21.6% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 25.6% from 25 to 44, 29.3% from 45 to 64, and 15.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 41.3 years. The gender makeup of the city was 48.3% male and 51.7% female.

The median income for a household in the city was $54,512, and the median income for a family was $74,744. Males had a median income of $52,674 versus $40,297 for females. The city's per capita income was $33,889. About 7.4% of families and 11.0% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13.8% of those under age 18 and 9.0% of those age 65 or over.

Culture

Events

Western Welcome Week
Since the late 1920s, Littleton has celebrated Western Welcome Week - an annual community celebration in the greater Littleton area. Western Welcome Week started in the late 1920s, and has been held every year since. Western Welcome Week includes over 40 events benefiting dozens of local civic and charitable organizations. Western Welcome Week

Candlelight Walk
The Candlelight Walk is a Littleton tradition, featuring an evening of holiday festivities, culminating in the illumination of the trees on Main Street.

Points of interest

• Hudson Gardens
• Town Hall Arts Center, providing professional theater to the surrounding metro area.
• The Gravesite of Alferd Packer

Sister cities

• Bega, New South Wales, Australia