South Fork, Colorado
| Town of South Fork, Colorado | |
|---|---|
| Town | |
South Fork as seen from the summit of Agua Ramon Mountain
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 Location in Rio Grande County and the state of Colorado |
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| Coordinates: 37°40′9″N 106°38′34″W / 37.66917°N 106.64278°WCoordinates: 37°40′9″N 106°38′34″W / 37.66917°N 106.64278°W | |
| Country |
 United States
|
| State |
 Colorado
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| County | Rio Grande County |
| Incorporated | May 19, 1992 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Statutory Town |
| Area | |
| • Total | 2.4 sq mi (6.1 km2) |
| • Land | 2.4 sq mi (6.1 km2) |
| • Water | 0 sq mi (0 km2) |
| Elevation | 8,209 ft (2,502 m) |
| Population (2000) | |
| • Total | 604 |
| • Density | 251.7/sq mi (99/km2) |
| Time zone | Mountain (MST) (UTC-7) |
| • Summer (DST) | MDT (UTC-6) |
| ZIP code | 81154 |
| Area code(s) | 719 |
| FIPS code | 08-72395 |
| GNIS feature ID | 0203420 |
| Website | Town of South Fork |
South Fork is a statutory town in Rio Grande County, Colorado, United States. It lies at the confluence of the South Fork and Rio Grande rivers. The population was 604 at the 2000 census.
South Fork is located at 37°40′09″N 106°38′34″W / 37.669065°N 106.642829°W.
According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 2.4 square miles (6.2 km2), all land.
South Fork was once the site of timber milling operations.
South Fork was founded in 1882, by which date its location was already marked by the presence of a coaching post dating from the construction of the railroad connection of the Rio Grande Western Railroad line to Creede which had been built to support the Creede silver mine. It was only in 1992 that South Fork achieved independent statutory town status, making it the youngest statutory town in the state. Originally the principal economic activities involved forestry and mining, but in recent decades these have been overtaken in the employment statistics by tourism.
On June 21, 2013, a wildfire burning 6 miles (9.7 km) from the town prompted mandatory evacuations for all South Fork residents. Firefighters initially said the fire would likely consume the town. In subsequent days it was reported that the town probably would not burn, although the fire came as close as 1.5 miles (2.4 km) from the town.
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