5/1/23, 11:38 AM Pagosa Springs, Colorado - Wikipedia

Coordinates: 37°16′5″N 107°1′28″W

Pagosa Springs, Colorado

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Town of Pagosa Springs (Ute language: Pagwöösa, Navajo

language: Tó Sido Háálį́) is a home rule municipality that is the Pagosa Springs, Colorado
county seat, the most populous community, and the only incorporated
Town
municipality in Archuleta County, Colorado, United States.[1][7] The
population was 1,571 at the 2020 census.[5] Approximately 65 percent
of the land in Archuleta County is either San Juan National Forest,
Weminuche (http://www.coloradowilderness.com/wildpages/weminuc
he.html) and South San Juan (http://www.coloradowilderness.com/wil
dpages/sanjuan.html) wilderness areas, or Southern Ute Indian
reservation land.

Pagosa Springs and the surrounding county are both experiencing a

substantial influx of second-home owners; a 2006 property assessment
indicated that 60% of area private properties are owned by non-
residents.

Pagosa Springs is located approximately 35 miles (56 km) north of the

New Mexico border, at 7,126 feet (2,172  m) above sea level on the
Western Slope of the Continental Divide. This combination of high
desert plateau and the Rocky Mountains to the north and east creates
an unusually mild climate, especially in the summer months. Pagosa
sees around 300 days of sun each year, as well as four distinct
seasons.[8] Tower at Pagosa Springs

The town is located in the upper San Juan Basin, surrounded by the 3-
million-acre (4,700 sq mi; 12,000 km2) San Juan National Forest, and
adjacent to the largest wilderness area in the state of Colorado, the
Weminuche Wilderness.

The town is named for a system of sulfur springs, Pagosa hot springs,
located there, which includes the world's deepest geothermal hot
spring.[9] The "Mother" spring feeds primitive and developed hot
springs located on the upper banks of the San Juan River, which flows
through town. The primitive springs are freely accessible to the public,
but are generally not for entering or interacting with because of the
extreme water temperature. Developed springs feed soaking pools that Location of Pagosa Springs in Archuleta
County, Colorado.
are hosted by three privately-owned soaking locations within town.[10]
Coordinates: 37°16′5″N 107°1′28″W
The water from the "Mother" spring is approximately 144 °F (62 °C).
Country  United States
History State  State of
Colorado
County[1] Archuleta County
Local indigenous people used the hot springs for centuries; the area Seat
was considered "sacred ground". In Navajo cosmology, Pagosa Springs Incorporated March 18, 1891[2]
is the place where the People (Diné) emerged from their Fourth World (town)
underground to the Fifth World, this one, as Aileen O'Bryan records in
Government

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The Dîné: Origin Myths of the Navaho Indians.[11]

In 1859, a white  • Type Home rule
settler "discovered" the springs and exploited them. In 1881, a municipality[1]
bathhouse was first built there for paying customers.[12]  • Mayor Shari Pierce
Area[3]
The Ute people called the sulfur-rich mineral springs Pah gosah, which
 • Total 5.06 sq mi
is commonly translated in modern documents as "healing waters"; a
(13.10 km2)
Ute elder once translated the phrase as "water (pah) that has a bad
 • Land 5.03 sq mi
smell (gosah)."[13] (13.04 km2)
 • Water 0.03 sq mi
After the Civil War, the United States government considered building
(0.07 km2)
a convalescent hospital in Pagosa Springs. However, the hospital
project was cancelled, and the lands platted by the U.S. Army were sold Elevation[4] 7,126 ft (2,172 m)
to private parties who capitalized on the thermal mineral springs.
Population (2020)[5]
Along the banks of the San Juan river, simple wooden bathhouses were
 • Total 1,571
constructed.[13]
 • Density 310/sq mi
(120/km2)
In the late 1880s, Dr. Mary Winter Fisher
ventured west from Chicago to found a medical Time zone UTC-7 (Mountain
and healing practice in Pagosa Springs. The (MST))
medical center in the town is named in her  • Summer (DST) UTC-6 (MDT)
honor.[14][15] ZIP Codes[6] 81147, 81157 (PO
Box)
In the 1930s, Cora Woods built a geothermal
Area code 970
swimming pool and several small cabins on the
Northeast corner of land she purchased from Bill FIPS code 08-56860
Dr. Mary Winter
Fisher, 1880s, with Lynn, a local entrepreneur. There were a total of GNIS feature ID 0184338 (https://ge
23 cabins with no electricity, dirt floors, wood onames.usgs.gov/p
her pet bear,
ls/gnispublic/f?p=g
Pickles stoves, and oak iceboxes. In the 1950s, the
nispq:3:::NO::P3_F
Giordano family purchased the property from ID:0184338)
Cora Woods. The Giordanos were European coal
miners who had settled in the Walsenburg, Colorado area. They dug Website visitpagosasprings
.com (https://visitpa
additional geothermal wells, and built an enclosed bathhouse next to
gosasprings.com/)
the thermal water swimming pool.[13]

In the 1980s, Pagosa Springs received federal funding from the Department of Energy to drill two geothermal
wells to heat buildings in the small downtown area of the town. In the 1990s, the town built a new pipeline and
municipal bridge to deliver mineral springs water to a new resort.[13]

Geography
Pagosa Springs is located 47 miles (75 km) east of Durango. The San Juan River flows through the middle of
town.[16]

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According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 4.88 square miles (12.64 km2), of
which 4.85 square miles (12.57 km2) is land and 0.027 square miles (0.07 km2), or 0.53%, is water.[17] The area
around Pagosa Springs has numerous large waterfalls, including Treasure Falls to the east of town off of Hwy
160 just past the Wolf Creek Pass summit.

Climate
Climate data for Pagosa Springs, CO (2000-2015 normals) [hide]

Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year

Average 37.9 42.6 49.2 59.2 68.3 78.3 83.1 80.7 74.3 63.7 49.7 39.6 60.6
high °F (°C) (3.3) (5.9) (9.6) (15.1) (20.2) (25.7) (28.4) (27.1) (23.5) (17.6) (9.8) (4.2) (15.9)

Average low 1.4 7.0 15.9 23.9 30.2 36.3 45.2 44.6 36.6 26.3 15.4 5.0 24.0
°F (°C) (−17.0) (−13.9) (−8.9) (−4.5) (−1.0) (2.4) (7.3) (7.0) (2.6) (−3.2) (−9.2) (−15.0) (−4.4)

Average
1.97 1.42 1.60 1.36 1.20 0.95 1.88 2.52 1.85 2.29 1.39 1.78 20.22
precipitation
(50) (36) (41) (35) (30) (24) (48) (64) (47) (58) (35) (45) (514)
inches (mm)

Average
26.4 18.9 15.1 5.5 0.9 0 0 0 0.1 3.2 10.0 21.2 101.5
snowfall
(67) (48) (38) (14) (2.3) (0) (0) (0) (0.25) (8.1) (25) (54) (258)
inches (cm)

Demographics
Historical population
Census Pop. %±
1880 223 —
1900 367 —
1910 669 82.3%
1920 1,032 54.3%
1930 804 −22.1%
1940 1,591 97.9%
1950 1,379 −13.3%
1960 1,374 −0.4%
1970 1,360 −1.0%
1980 1,331 −2.1%
1990 1,207 −9.3%
2000 1,591 31.8%
2010 1,727 8.5%
2020 1,571 −9.0%

Education
Archuleta County School District 50-JT operates the community's public schools.[18] Pagosa Springs High
School is the comprehensive high school.

Recreation

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Other recreational activities in the area include downhill and cross country skiing at nearby Wolf Creek ski area
and snowmobiling in the surrounding National Forest. Summertime activities include fishing, hiking, and
rafting. The area is also a popular destination for hunters, who harvest elk, deer, and other game animals.

In popular culture
"Downtown Pagosa Springs" was the final destination for a duo of truckers in the 1975 country song "Wolf
Creek Pass" by C. W. McCall. From Wolf Creek pass to town, U.S. Highway 160 goes through a vertical drop of
3,730 feet (1,140 m), and is described in the song as "hairpin county and switchback city".[19]

Notable residents
Ursala Hudson (Tlingit), Chilkat and Ravenstail weaver

See also
Geography portal

History portal
North America
portal
United States
portal
Colorado portal

Colorado
Bibliography of Colorado
Index of Colorado-related articles
Outline of Colorado
Colorado cities and towns
Colorado municipalities
Colorado counties
Archuleta County, Colorado

References
1. "Active Colorado Municipalities" (https://web.archive.org/web/20091212060308/http://www.dola.state.co.us/
dlg/local_governments/municipalities.html). State of Colorado, Department of Local Affairs. Archived from
the original (http://www.dola.state.co.us/dlg/local_governments/municipalities.html) on 2009-12-12.
Retrieved 2007-09-01.
2. "Colorado Municipal Incorporations" (http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/muninc.html). State of
Colorado, Department of Personnel & Administration, Colorado State Archives. 2004-12-01. Retrieved
2007-09-02.
3. "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files" (https://www2.census.gov/geo/docs/maps-data/data/gazetteer/2019_Gazetteer/
2019_gaz_place_08.txt). United States Census Bureau. Retrieved July 1, 2020.
4. "US Board on Geographic Names" (https://geonames.usgs.gov). United States Geological Survey. 2007-10-
25. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
5. United States Census Bureau. "Pagosa Springs Town, Colorado" (https://data.census.gov/profile/Pagosa_S
prings_town,_Colorado?g=160XX00US0856860). Retrieved April 5, 2023.

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5/1/23, 11:38 AM Pagosa Springs, Colorado - Wikipedia

6. "ZIP Code Lookup" (https://web.archive.org/web/20070903025217/http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/citytown.jsp).

United States Postal Service. Archived from the original (http://zip4.usps.com/zip4/citytown.jsp)
(JavaScript/HTML) on September 3, 2007. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
7. "Find a County" (http://www.naco.org/Counties/Pages/FindACounty.aspx). National Association of Counties.
Retrieved 2011-06-07.
8. "Pagosa Weather | Pagosa Daily Post News Events & Video for Pagosa Springs Colorado" (http://pagosada
ilypost.com/pagosa-weather/).
9. "Colorado claims deepest geothermal hot spring record | Guinness World Records" (https://www.guinnessw
orldrecords.com/news/2011/9/colorado-claims-deepest-geothermal-hot-spring-record). 14 September 2011.
10. "Pagosa Springs Harnesses Geothermal Energy for More Than Hot Springs" (https://visitpagosasprings.co
m/discover-geothermal). Visit Pagosa Springs. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
11. O'Bryan, Aileen (1956). The Dîné: Origin Myths of the Navaho Indians (https://repository.si.edu/handle/1008
8/15457?show=full). Smithsonian Bureau of American Ethnology; Bulletin 163. pp. 12, n. 44. Retrieved
29 January 2022.
12. Retzler, Kathryn (2005). "Pagosa Springs - Healing Waters". San Juan Silver Stage; San Juan Publishing
Group.
13. "EDITORIAL: Taking the Heat, Part Two | Pagosa Daily Post News Events & Video for Pagosa Springs
Colorado" (http://pagosadailypost.com/2015/07/14/editorial-taking-the-heat-part-two/).
14. Vance, Norm; Terry, Kate (18 May 2020). "Dr. Mary Fisher: Pagosa's Historic Heroine". Pagosa Springs
Journal.
15. "About the Pagosa Springs Medical Center" (https://pagosaspringsmedicalcenter.org/dr-mary-medical-found
ation/about-the-foundation/). Pagosa Springs Medical Center. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
16. "San Juan River at Pagosa Springs, Colorado" (https://waterdata.usgs.gov/nwis/uv?09342500). National
Water Information System. USGS. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
17. "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Demographic Profile Data (G001): Pagosa Springs town, Colorado" (https://ar
chive.today/20200212182507/http://factfinder.census.gov/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/G001/1600000US
0856860). U.S. Census Bureau, American Factfinder. Archived from the original (http://factfinder.census.go
v/bkmk/table/1.0/en/DEC/10_DP/G001/1600000US0856860) on February 12, 2020. Retrieved May 6, 2013.
18. "2020 CENSUS - SCHOOL DISTRICT REFERENCE MAP: Archuleta County, CO" (https://www2.census.go
v/geo/maps/DC2020/PL20/st08_co/schooldistrict_maps/c08007_archuleta/DC20SD_C08007.pdf) (PDF).
U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 2022-07-12.
19. "C.W. McCall – Wolf Creek Pass Lyrics | Genius Lyrics" (https://genius.com/Cw-mccall-wolf-creek-pass-lyric
s).

External links
Visit Pagosa Springs (https://www.visitpagosasprings.com/), The official website for Pagosa Springs visitor
information
Town of Pagosa Springs (http://www.pagosasprings.co.gov), The official website for The Town of Pagosa
Springs
Pagosa.com (http://www.pagosa.com/), commercial site
Pagosa Springs Community Development Corporation (http://www.pagosaspringscdc.org)

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