Lyons, Colorado
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Lyons is a town in Boulder County, Colorado, United States. The population was 1,585 at the 2000 census. Lyons is located at the confluence of the North St. Vrain Creek and the South St. Vrain Creek, only twenty miles east of Rocky Mountain National Park. The town, bordered by spectacular red sandstone cliffs, has enough amenities to be comfortable but still enjoys a traditional small-town atmosphere. Because it is located at the intersection of two highways ( Hwys. 7 and 36) which can both take a person to the Rocky Mt. Natl. Park, it is called The Double Gateway to the Rockies.
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[edit] Geography
Lyons is located at (40.223935, -105.269013)GR1.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 3.2 km² (1.2 mi²), all land.
[edit] History
While some Ute families lived in the area on occasion, it wasn't until the 1850-1860s that the area was settled permanently by farmers and cattle ranchers. The area was where the North and South St. Vrain rivers met, and being in a nitch where the mountains and flat plains met, offered them a protected space for good crops.
The town of Lyons, Colorado was founded in 1880 by Edward S. Lyon. He purchased 160 acres from H.F. and Isabelle Sawyer, noticed the potential to quarry out the red sandstone, which had easy access due to the outcroppings. He platted the town in 1881. The town was incorporated in 1891. The town's name has an "s" added to the end of it, with no verified reason why.
The town is almost surrounded by large red sandstone mountains. Its sandstone is considered the hardest in the world, and it has a unique red or salmon color. While E. S. Lyon was one of the first people to help set up the quarrying business in the town, it has gone through several owners and new quarry locations over the years, with Murphy and Brodie and Loukonen being the most noteworthy owners. In the late 1800s the quarries got a big boost when a railroad was brought in to haul out the rock.
In 1910-12 the cement industry killed the sandstone industry, and rock production stopped. The only sandstone construction that went on during this period was the entire new University of Colorado campus, done in Tuscan Vernacular style.
In the 1940s, the industry got back on its feet, mainly due to the invention of a stone cutting machine, and the interest in using the stone for decorative purposes. Today it is a thriving industry with several stone yards in town. It is in demand worldwide, and it is considered one of the main reasons for the small town's survival. The citizens have been known to rise up and protest, such as stopping the building of a damn in a dangerous location, the closing of its schools, and currently defeating a local polluting company's systems.
The Town is active in history preservation, with a strong Historical Society. It helped preserve the 1881 school house (now the history museum) and the old train depot (now the library). It has recorded video interviews of its pioneer families. Lyons has a Designated Historic District, with fifteen sandstone structures which are listed in the National Register of Historic Places. These were all constructed of native stone by master craftsmen between the early 1870s and 1917. They include commercial, residential and public buildings:
Griff Evans Homestead (1870) - Now the site of Rocky Grass and Folks Festivals
480 Seward St. (1890) - Chisholm/Truebood Home
413 Seward St. (1890) - Cunningham/Weese Home
409 Seward St. (1890) - Montgomery Home
426 High St. (1884) - Lyons General Store. Now Ralston Bros. Antiques
NW Corner 4th and High Streets (1894) - Old Stone Church
NE Corner 4th & High Streets (1881) - Lyons School. Now Redstone Museum
427 High St. (1890s) - Dynamite storage building
450 Main St. (1881) - McAllister Saloon/Frank Market. Now Cilantro Mary Mexican Kitchen.
415 Main St. (1890) - General Store/Kandy Kitchen. Now South Creek Ltd.
401 Main St.(1917) - Turner Stevens Building. Now Art Bank.
5th & Broadway (1881) - Train Depot. Horse Water Tank (1897)
S. St. Vrain (1870) - Bradford Homestead. Now Olson Property
1/2 Mi. E. on Hwy. 66 (1885) - Sites Milkhouse. Now C. Shepard Gallery.
3 Mi. E on Hwy. 66 (1917) - Montgomery School. Now M. Weston home.
[edit] Culture
Myriad town events take place all summer. The key areas are (1) Art. The two main events are Artique in May, with galleries and artists' shops open to the public. The second, is the Sculpture Trail, which has approximately 60 whimsical pieces throughout the Town from May to October. There are also several pieces of permanent sculpture and a public community mural. (2) Music. From the smaller monthly Community evening concerts, the indoors High Street Concert Series, the weekly blues concerts, on up to the huge Rockygrass Bluegrass Festival and Rocky Mountain Folk Festivals. Plus, square dancing since 1958. (3) Good Old Days Festival. This is the oldest festival, which began in 1970, includes crafts, amusement rides, rodeo, old-time baseball, and more, and takes place in June. (4) Restaurants. The town has popular eateries, from four quality cafes to five gourmet restaurants, and a few in between, including an old-fashioned soda fountain.
Additionally, residents are attracted to abundant recreational opportunities such as mountain biking, hiking, camping, fly fishing, climbing and excellent class II-V whitewater kayaking. Lyons is also bordered by both Hall Ranch Open Space and Heil Valley Ranch Open Space. Hall Ranch provides over 12 miles of multiuse trails and consists of 3,206 acres of backcountry. Heil Valley Ranch consists of 4,923 acres of backcountry. Trails are open to hikers, mountain bikers and equestrians.
Visitors travel from all parts of Colorado to see these unique businesses: (1) Oscar Blues Grill and Brewery. The brewery's signature beer, Dale's Pale Ale, was voted Best American Pale Ale by the New York Times in 2005, and winner in numerous other competitions, including the gold medal at the Stockholm Beer Festival. It was the first home-brewed beer to be handcanned, using aluminum cans. In the 2007 beer industry's The New Brewer, named it the top-producing brewpub in the United States. (2) Lyons Classic Pinball. It has over 40 original pinball mchines, mainly from 1960 to 1990s; and it has been featured on many news shows. (3) Red Hill Motorcycle Werx. A full service shop. (4) Quilting Hands. A full service shop.
The town also has several art and antique shops, as well as food and health specialty services. The three lodging facilities are connected to Lyons' history, and are situated on finely landscaped roomy properties. Lyons is also the home to American authors, John Gierach and Ann Ripley. Also located here is artist Barbara Stone, poet George Moore, and sculptor John King.
[edit] Demographics
As of the censusGR2 of 2000, there were 1,585 people, 672 households, and 436 families residing in the town. The population density was 493.5/km² (1,273.5/mi²). There were 686 housing units at an average density of 213.6/km² (551.2/mi²). The racial makeup of the town was 92.49% White, 0.38% African American, 0.88% Native American, 0.69% Asian, 4.23% from other races, and 1.32% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 8.01% of the population.
There were 672 households out of which 33.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 49.3% were married couples living together, 11.5% had a female householder with no husband present, and 35.1% were non-families. 25.7% of all households were made up of individuals and 5.4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.36 and the average family size was 2.85.
In the town the population was spread out with 24.0% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 36.3% from 25 to 44, 26.8% from 45 to 64, and 6.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 101.4 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 101.8 males.
The median income for a household in the town was $50,764, and the median income for a family was $58,750. Males had a median income of $45,417 versus $29,750 for females. The per capita income for the town was $28,276. About 6.6% of families and 8.3% of the population were below the poverty line, including 12.2% of those under age 18 and 2.3% of those age 65 or over.
[edit] External links
- Town of Lyons
- Maps and aerial photos
- Street map from Google Maps, or Yahoo! Maps, or Windows Live Local
- Satellite image from Google Maps, Windows Live Local, WikiMapia
- Topographic map from TopoZone
- Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA
