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La Junta, Colorado

La Junta, Colorado
Municipality
Woodruff Block, built 1892.  1985 photo, Historic American Buildings Survey.
Woodruff Block, built 1892. 1985 photo, Historic American Buildings Survey.
Official seal of La Junta, Colorado
Seal
Location in Otero County and the State of Colorado
Location in Otero County and the State of Colorado
Coordinates: 37°58′53″N 103°32′51″W / 37.98139°N 103.54750°W / 37.98139; -103.54750Coordinates: 37°58′53″N 103°32′51″W / 37.98139°N 103.54750°W / 37.98139; -103.54750
Country  United States
State  State of Colorado
County Otero County Seat
Incorporated April 23, 1881
Government
 • Type Home Rule Municipality
 • Mayor Lynn Horner
 • City Manager Rick Klein
 • City Council Jim Goodwin, Betty Velasquez, Frank McKenzie, Jeffri Pruyn, Ed Vela, Roger Roath
 • City Attorney Phil Malouff
 • Police Chief G. Todd Quick
Area
 • Total 2.9 sq mi (7.4 km2)
 • Land 2.9 sq mi (7.4 km2)
 • Water 0 sq mi (0 km2)
Elevation 4,078 ft (1,243 m)
Population (2010)
 • Total 7,077
 • Density 2,609.7/sq mi (1,022.7/km2)
Time zone Mountain (MST) (UTC-7)
 • Summer (DST) MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP code 81050
Area code(s) 719
FIPS code 08-42110
GNIS feature ID 0204829
Website City of La Junta, Colorado

La Junta is the Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Otero County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 7,077 at the 2010 United States Census. La Junta is located on the Arkansas River in southeastern Colorado east of Pueblo.

La Junta (Spanish for "the junction") was named for the fact it rested at the intersection of the Santa Fe Trail and a pioneer road to Pueblo. The town developed near Bent's Post, a fur trading post of the 19th century.

During World War II, La Junta had an Army Air Force Training Base outside town. An Air Force detachment of the Strategic Air Command remained there until modern flight simulators developed in the 1980s rendered live flight unnecessary for pilot training maneuvers. At least one military aircraft crashed close by during such training maneuvers.

The airport, located 5 miles (8.0 km) north of La Junta, has 77 acres (31 ha) of tarmac and two runways which are still in use. One runway (east-west) is 6,851 feet (2,088 m) long and the other is 5,800 feet (1,800 m). [1].

The Caboose (pictured here) is the drive-through for the State Bank, which was established in 1893. The bank has been remodeled with antiques, including a teller line from the late 1890s.

The Terrence Malick film Badlands (1973), starring Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek, and Richard Fleischer's Mr. Majestyk (1974), starring Charles Bronson, were both filmed in and around La Junta.


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