Teller County is named after one of Colorado's first U.S. Senators, Henry Teller, and was formed on March 23, 1899.  Land to form the County was given by El Paso and Fremont Counties.   Teller County encompasses an area of 559 square miles.

    Gold was discovered in Cripple Creek, which is the Teller County seat, in 1890 by cowboy and part time prospector, Bob Womack.  This discovery forever changed the area which was to become Teller County.   By 1900 more than 50,000 people called "the district" home.  "The district" refers to the entire gold mining area (approximately 3 square miles) and includes Victor, Cripple Creek, Goldfield, and many towns which have disappeared. The value of the gold mined in Teller County is greater than all other gold mining operations ever conducted in the United States combined.

    Today Teller County and it's cities are home to over 20,000 people.  It faces the very real challenges brought about by rapid growth and the demand to preserve the natural habitat which drew folks to the area in the first place.

    We hope our web pages will assist you with answers to some of your questions and provide you with additional information that you didn't know you needed.  Included here are pictures from many of our beautiful areas.  Spend some time browsing and let us know which areas of the Web Page you visited!

   Teller County was formed from the western portion of El Paso and the northern portion of Fremont counties and officially became a County on March 23rd, 1899.  Before 1890 most of what is now Teller County was uninhabited, was an area that people traveled through to get somewhere else.  This area was known mostly for the old Ute Pass Trail which was an important route because it offered passage through the front range of the Rockies for Indians, buffalo, explorers, prospectors, and cowboys and their cattle.
    The first permanent settlement in Teller County occurred around 1870 and was at the summit of the Ute Trail in what is now Divide.  After having many names, like Rhyolite, Belleview and Theodore, Divide stuck because the Arkansas and South Platte watershed divide in this area.
    As the tracks of the Colorado Midland Railroad neared Divide in 1887 boarding houses, saloons and restaurants sprang up to meet the demand of railroad workers.
    Woodland Park, originally called Manitou Park, was laid out along the Midland Railroad tracks and was quickly discovered by tuberculosis patients looking for a place to recover.  The town became a popular spot for pleasure seekers and train passengers when the new Harvey House was opened in 1890.  At that time there were 120 residents in Woodland Park.
    During that same year, 1890, Teller County was changed forever by a cowboy and part-time prospect named Bob Womack.  Bob owned a cattle ranch, bisected by a small stream known as Cripple Creek,  on the remote south slope of Pikes Peak.   It was here he discovered a rich vein of gold ore which changed the character of the entire Pikes Peak Region, and some say, the United States.  At this time there were less than two dozen people living in the four-mile wide by six-mile long area that was known as the Cripple Creek Mining District.  By 1900 more than 50,000 people lived in "the District."
Within a few short years there were 12 towns in the area ranging from the larger population centers of Cripple Creek and Victor to several other towns which grew up around mining centers.  These were named Goldfield, Elkton, Altman, Independence, Anaconda, Gillette, Cameron, Beaver Park, Arequa and Lawrence.  Goldfield and Gillette are the only two which remain.
The gold mining operations required a great deal of outside support and several areas came to the rescue.  Woodland Park had 5 saw mills producing millions of feet of lumber per year, much of which was timber for the  mines.  200,000 railroad ties were shipped out annually. 
Divide was also an important lumber and supply town, but also became known for its high-quality, disease-free potatoes and for its fine crops of lettuce.  Each fall, produce was crated and shipped to Cripple Creek and other locations around the United States.  Ice to keep lettuce fresh while being transported was cut from ponds in and around the area.
   No other town in the Pikes Peak region benefited from Cripple Creek mining like Colorado Springs.   Stratton, Burns, Tutt and Penrose all made their fortunes in Cripple Creek and then made their homes in Colorado Springs.  The Myron Stratton Home (named for Winfield Scott Stratton's father), the Broadmoor Hotel, built by Spencer Penrose, and many of the mansions in Colorado Springs' north end were all built with Cripple Creek gold. 
    Five reduction mills were constructed in Colorado City during the turn of the century and began processing the bulk of Cripple Creek ore.  Colorado City offered water, coal and convenient rail access. 
    Tension escalated between Cripple Creek and Colorado Springs in the 1890's.  Mine owners, miners and residents in "the District: grew tired of watching tax revenue from their mines go to Colorado Springs, which was (and is) the seat of government for El Paso County.  They wanted a Courthouse closer to mining operations because of the number of county transactions that needed to be carried out.   And so, after much arguing on both sides, the Colorado Legislature created Teller County, named for Senator Henry M. Teller, one of Colorado's first senators.

Population

1990 Census Population (as of April 1, 1989):       12,468

2000 Census Population (as of April 1, 1999):       20,555  (an increase of 64.9%)             

2000 State of Colorado Estimated population (July, 2000): 21,145

2003 State of Colorado Estimated Population:               22,242

2004 State of Colorado Projected Population:                22,465

Population Growth Projections

C     The State Demographer = s data shows that most of Teller County's projected growth will come from in-migration (people moving here from somewhere else).  For example:

(Source:  Department of Local Affairs, Office of the State Demographer, March 3, 2004)

FAQ:   A What is the population of Divide?

A:         Unknown. This is also true for  Florissant.    The Census Bureau only provides separate information for municipalities (Woodland Park, Cripple Creek, Victor), not for unincorporated areas like Divide and Florissant. Since people define Divide and Florissant in different ways, we first need to know the exact boundaries of someone's concept of Divide or Florissant.  Then we can look up the Census Block and Tract data and come up with an estimate. Using Census and Assessor's data, we came up with the following for someone who wanted to know about Divide within a 5-mile radius from the Highway 24/Highway 67 intersection (numbers may vary by as much as +/- 200-400):
Total Population:            6,114                                       
Occupied Housing Units: 2,273
Total Housing Units:       2,818                                       
Vacant Housing Units:    545

FAQ:   Where is growth taking place in Teller County?