Rio Grande County, Colorado

Rio Grande County Education, Geography, and History

Rio Grande County is one of the 64 counties of the state of Colorado. Based on the 2010 census, the population was 11,982. The county seat is Del Norte. Rio Grande County was created on February 10, 1874 from Costilla County and Conejos County. The county is named for the Rio Grande (Spanish language for "Big River"), which flows through the county.

Etymology - Origin of Rio Grande County Name

Rio Grande County is named for the Rio Grande, which runs through the county.

Demographics:

County QuickFacts: CensusBureau Quick Facts

Rio Grande County History

Rio Grande was created in 1874 from parts of Conejos and Costilla Counties.

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 912 square miles (2,362 km²), of which, 912 square miles (2,361 km²) of it is land and 1 square miles (1 km²) of it (0.06%) is water.

Rio Grande county is located in southwest Colorado. The Continental Divide National Scenic Trail, Old Spanish National Historic Trail, and Silver Thread Scenic Byway are located in Rio Grande County.

Neighboring Counties

Bordering counties are as follows:

• North: Saguache County
• East: Alamosa County
• Southeast: Conejos County
• Southwest: Archuleta County
• West: Mineral County

Education

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