Longmont is a city located in Boulder County, Colorado. The name "Longmont" originates from the view of Long's Peak available from the city.

History

Longmont was founded in 1871 by a group of Chicagoans who had decided to found a new town in Colorado. Originally called the Chicago-Colorado Colony, the men sold memberships in the town and with the proceeds purchased the land necessary for the town. As the first planned community in Boulder County, the city streets were laid out in a square mile and in the 1940's the city began to grow beyond these original limits. Originally an agriculturally based town, in the 1960's the federal government located an air-traffic control center in town and IBM built a large plant near the city and as agriculture waned more high technology has come to the city especially in the hard-drive industry including companies like StorageTech, Seagate and Maxtor.

Geography

Longmont is located at 40°10'18" North, 105°6'33" West (40.171583, -105.109085).

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 56.5 km² (21.8 mi²). 56.4 km² (21.8 mi²) of it is land and 0.05% is water.

Longmont is an exurb of Denver, on U.S. Highway 287. By 2016, it will be the Route 36 Corridor endpoint for the FasTracks commuter rail network.

Demographics

As of the census² of 2000, there are 71,093 people, 26,667 households, and 18,453 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,259.7/km² (3,262.3/mi²). There are 27,394 housing units at an average density of 485.4/km² (1,257.0/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is:

• 84.76% White
• 0.54% African American
• 0.97% Native American
• 1.76% Asian
• 0.06% Pacific Islander
• 9.72% from other races
• 2.20% from two or more races.
• 19.07% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 26,667 households out of which 36.9% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.6% are married couples living together, 10.1% have a female householder with no husband present, and 30.8% are non-families. 23.7% of all households are made up of individuals and 7.3% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.64 and the average family size is 3.15.

In the city the population is spread out with 27.9% under the age of 18, 8.5% from 18 to 24, 33.1% from 25 to 44, 21.3% from 45 to 64, and 9.2% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 34 years. For every 100 females there are 97.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 95.6 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $51,174, and the median income for a family is $58,037. Males have a median income of $40,978 versus $29,582 for females. The per capita income for the city is $23,409. 7.8% of the population and 5.9% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 10.6% of those under the age of 18 and 6.2% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line.

Notable Longmont Residents

• Vance Brand

Sister cities

Longmont is a sister city of these municipalities:

• Chino, Japan
• Guzman, Mexico

External links

• "Official City Home Page"