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Denver

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For other cities named Denver, see Denver (disambiguation).
File:Map of Colorado highlighting Denver County.png

Denver is the largest city and capital of the state of Colorado, United States of America. It is the largest city along the Front Range and forms the heart of the Denver Metropolitan Area.

The city is located on the plains just east of the foothills of the Rockies, which form a dramatic skyline to the west. The central downtown district is on the east side of the South Platte River, near its confluence with Cherry Creek, approximately five miles from the foothills.

It is the county seat of, and coextensive with, Denver County. As of the 2000 census, the population of the city was 554,636, and the CMSA population was 2,581,506 (2000 census), making it the 19th-largest metropolitan area in the United States.

Denver is nicknamed the "Mile-High City", because its official elevation, measured on one of the steps on the state capitol, is 5,280 feet (1 mile) above sea level. (The elevation is 1655.4 m (5431 ft.), as surveyed at the Denver International Airport). Also, a row of seats in the upper deck of Coors Field, home of Major League Baseball's Colorado Rockies, is distinctively marked in purple (one of the team's colors) to indicate that the row is one mile above sea level.

The has also been known historically as the Queen City of the Plains because of its important role in the agricultural industry of the plains regions along the footfills of the Front Range.

Several US Navy ships have been named USS Denver in honor of the city.

History

Denver was founded as a city in the Kansas Territory in 1858 and incorporated on November 7, 1861, several months after the formation of the Colorado Territory.

Geography

Denver is located at 39°43'35" North, 104°57'56" West (39.726287, -104.965486) in the Colorado Front Range region. It has the Rocky Mountans to the west and the great plains to the east.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 401.3 km² (154.9 mi²). 397.2 km² (153.4 mi²) of it is land and 4.1 km² (1.6 mi²) of it is water. The total area is 1.03% water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there are 554,636 people, 239,235 households, and 119,378 families residing in the city. The population density is 1,396.5/km² (3,616.8/mi²). There are 251,435 housing units at an average density of 633.1/km² (1,639.6/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 65.30% White, 11.12% African American, 1.31% Native American, 2.81% Asian American, 0.12% Pacific Islander, 15.59% from other races, and 3.75% from two or more races. 31.68% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

There are 239,235 households out of which 23.2% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 34.7% are married couples living together, 10.8% have a female householder with no husband present, and 50.1% are non-families. 39.3% of all households are made up of individuals and 9.4% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.27 and the average family size is 3.14.

In the city the population is spread out with 22.0% under the age of 18, 10.7% from 18 to 24, 36.1% from 25 to 44, 20.0% from 45 to 64, and 11.3% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 33 years. For every 100 females there are 102.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 101.1 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $39,500, and the median income for a family is $48,195. Males have a median income of $34,232 versus $30,768 for females. The per capita income for the city is $24,101. 14.3% of the population and 10.6% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total people living in poverty, 20.3% are under the age of 18 and 9.7% are 65 or older.

Landmarks

Colleges and Universities

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Airports