Colorado County Resources

This entry was originally written by Birdie Monk Holsclaw and Marsha Hoffman Rising CG, FUGA, FASG for Red Book: American State, County, and Town Sources.

This article is part of the Colorado Family History Research series.

History of Colorado

Colorado Vital Records

Census Records for Colorado

Background Sources for Colorado

Colorado Maps

Colorado Land Records

Colorado Probate Records

Colorado Court Records

Colorado Tax Records

Colorado Cemetery Records

Colorado Church Records

Colorado Military Records

Colorado Periodicals, Newspapers, and Manuscript Collections

Colorado Archives, Libraries, and Societies

Colorado County Resources

Map of Colorado

County Map of Colorado

The WPA published a number of county inventories for Colorado. These have been reprinted and placed on microfiche by the Colorado Genealogical Society. The unpublished manuscripts for these have been deposited at the Colorado State Archives. A survey was not, however, completed for every county. With the exceptions listed in the chart below, it is presumed that county records exist from the date of county formation, but this has not been verified for all counties. The individual researcher will need to check the specific county of interest. Many of Colorado's early county records have been deposited at the Colorado State Archives. Unless otherwise noted, in the chart below, marriage records are located at the clerk and recorder's office in the county seat along with land records. Other vital records created before state recording began (see Vital Records) are located in the various County Vital Records offices. A list of telephone numbers is available at www.cdphe.state.co.us/hs/vroffices.htm.

Court records are found in county and district courts, with probate records in the district courts (unless moved to the Colorado State Archives).

Map	County	County Address	Date Formed	Parent County(ies)	Birth	Marriage	Death	Land	Probate	Court
G3	Adams	450 S 4th Ave, Brighton 80601	1901	Arapahoe	1902-06	1902	1902-08	1902	1902	1902
	Part of Denver County; annexed, 1909
E7	Alamosa	P.O. Box 178, Alamosa 81101	1913	Costilla/Conejos		1913	1913*	1913	1913	1913
	*At Lorton and Miracle Mortuaries in Alamosa
G3	Arapahoe	5334 S Prince St, Littletonn 80166	1861	original	1872-1902*	1860-1903*	1887-1902*	1861	1902**	1902**
	*At Colorado Department of Health, Vital Records Section
	**Most records for Denver prior to 1902 have been deposited in the Colorado State Archives. Early land records, surveys, post offices, and territorial government papers are extant for Arapahoe County, and some are located in both the Colorado and Kansas historical societies. however, typical county records such as probate or county court minutes do not exist for the early territorial period of the county before state formation.
C7	Archuleta	P.O. Box 1507 Pagosa Springs 81147	1885	Conejos	1892-1907	1886	1900-07	1886	1886	1886
K7	Baca	741 Main St, Springfield 81073	1889	Las Animas		1889		1889	1889	1889
J6	Bent	P.O. Box 350 las Animas 81054	1870	Indian Reserves Lands/Las Animas/Greenwood		1888		1874?	1874?	1874?
	*Greenwood dissolved in 1874 to Bent and Elbert counties.
F2	Boulder	P.O. Box 471, Boulder 80301	1861	original	1880-1909*	1864	1800-1903*	1864	1864	1864
	Boulder was called Jackson County when it was part of the Jefferson Territory
	*City Hall in Boulder. Estate files from 1862 are housed in the Colorado State Archives
E2	Broomfield	1 DesCombes Dr, Broomfield 80020	2001	Adam/Boulder/Jefferson/Weld	2001	2001	2001	2001	2001	2001
	Carbonate	1861 (renamed Lake, 1879)
E4	Chaffee	P.O. Box 669 Salida 81201	1861 ( as Lake; renamed, 1879)	original	1884-1907	1866	1884-1907	1879?	1879?	1879?
K4	Cheyenne	P.O. Box 567, Cheyenne Wells 80810-0567	1861	Bent/Elbert	1889	1866	1893-1904	1889?	1889?	1889?
E3	Clear Creek	405 Argentine St, Georgetown 80444	1861	original	1905-07*	1864*	1902-07*	1859	1861	1861
	*County Archives in Georgetown
E7	Conejos	P.O. Box Conejos 81129	1861( as Guadalupe; renamed 1869)	original	1877-1907	1871	1877-1907	1871	1875	1877
	Some loss of records occurred by fire
F7	Costilla	P.O. Box 100 San Luis 81152	1861	original		1863	1902-07*	1861	1876	1876
	*Alamosa County, Lorton, and Miracle Mortuary.
H5	Crowley	110 E. Sixth St, Ordway 81063	1911	Brent/Otero		1911		1911	1911	1911
F6	Custer	P.O. 150, Westcliffe 81252	1877	Fremont	1905-07	1877*1877	1902-07	1877		1877
	*Some earlier in Fremont County miscellaneous file
B4	Delta	501 Palmer St Ste 227, Delta 81416	1883	Gunnison	1895-1909	1883	1885-1909	1883	1883	1883
F3	Douglas	1437 Bannock St, Denver 80202	1901	Araphoe	1872-1907	1860	1887-1907	1902	1865-1959*	1902
	In 1911, Denver City and Denver County merged. Births and Deaths, 1964- present, are at Vital Statistics Room, Denver General Hospital.
	*Many early Denver records have been deposited at the Colorado State Archives
B6	Dolores	P.O. Box 608 Dove Creek 81324	1881	Summit	1894-1901	1879	1894-1907	1881	1881	1881
F3	Douglas	100 Third St, Castle Rock 80104	1861	original	1894-1908	1864	1894-	1863	1861?	1861?
	Original county seat at Franktown
	Small part of Cheyenne and Arapahoe Reservations added in 1870.
	Courthouse burned in 1978 but minimal loss of records.
D3	Eagle	P.O. Box 850, Eagle 81631	1883	Summit	1894-1901	1879	1894-1901	1883	1883	1883
G3	Elbert	P.O. Box 597, Kiowa 80117	1874	Douglas	1894-1907	1874*	1876-96	1874	1874	1874
G4	El Paso	27 E. Vermijo Ave, Colorado Springs 80903	1861	original	1890-1906*	1861	1893-1907*	1861	1861*	1861*
E5	Fremont	615 Macon Ave Ste 102 Canon City 81212	1861	original	1884-1907	1865	1884-1907	1862	1874	1868
B3	Garfield	108 8th St, Glenwood Springs 81601	1883	Summit	1893-1909	1884	1883-89*	1883	1883	1883
	*Rio Blanco County marriages 1883-89.
E22	Gilpin	P.O. Box 366 Central City 80427	1861	original		1865		1861?	1861?	1861?
E2	Grand	P.O. Box 264 Hot Sulphur Springs 80451	1874	Summit	1895-1908	1881	1894-1907	1874?	1874?	1874?
	Greenwood	1870 ( abolished 1874; parts annexed to Elbert and Bent)
	Guadalup	1861 (renamed Conejos, 1869)	original
C4	Gunnison	200 E Virginia Ave, Gunnison 81230	1877	Lake	1895-1908	1877	1894-97	1877?	1877?	1877?
C6	Hinsdale	P.O. Box 227 Lake City 81235	1874	Conejos	1899-1907	1876	1899-1907	1874	1876	1876
F6	Huerfano	401 Main St, Walsenburg 81089	1861	original		1875	1902-06*	1861?	1861?	1861?
D1	Jackson	P.O. Box 337, Walden 80480	1909	Grand		1909		1909?	1909?	1909?
F3	Jefferson	100 Jefferson County Pkwy, Golden 80409	1861	original	1893-1906	1874-76; 1881	1893-1906	1861?	1861?	1861?
	A small part was annexed to Park, 1903
J5	Kiowa	P.O Box 100 Eads 81036	1889	Cheyenne/Brent		1889		1889?	1889?	1889?
K3	Kit Carson	P.O Box 160 Burlington 80807	1889	Elbert	1893-1907*	1889	1892-1907*	1889?	1889?	1889?
	*Courthouse basement; other deaths (1876-1907) at clerk and recorder's office.
	Lake (old)	1861 (renamed Chaffee, 1879)	original
E4	Lake (present)	P.O. Box 964 Leadville 80461	1861 ( as Carbonate; renamed Chaffee, 1879)	original	1891-1906*	1869	1881-1903*	1861?	1861?	1861?
	*City Clerk, Leadville
B7	La Plata	1060 E, Second Ave, Durango 81301	1874	Conejos/Lake	1895-1918*	1880*	1895-1918	1874?	1874?	1874?
	*Vital Statistics registrar, City Hall, Durango; also clerk and recorder's office 1900-12; early marriages in San Juan County clerk and recorder's office.
F1	Larimer	P.O. Box 1190 Fort Collins 80522	1861	original	1902-08	1862	1902-08	1862	1862	1862
G7	Las Animas	200 E. First St, Trinidad 81082	1866	Huerfano	1893-96*	1868	1893-1904	1866?	1866?	1866?
	*Also, city of Trinidad 1893-1907.
J1	Logan	315 Main St, Stering 80751	1887	Weld		1887		1866	1887	1887
B4	Mesa	P.O. Box 20, 00-5010, Grand Junction 81502-5006	1883	Gunnison	1893-1909*	1883	1893-1901*	1883?	1883?	1883?
	*Courthouse storage.
D6	Mineral	P.O. Box 70 Creede 81130	1892	Hinsdale/Rio Grande/Saguache	1896-1909	1891	1896-1907	1893?	1893?	1893?
B1	Moffat	221 W. Victory Way Craig 81625	1911	Rouff		1911		1911?	1911?	1911?
A7	Montezuma	109 W Main St Cortez 81321	1889	La Plata		1889		1889?	1889?	1889?
B5	Montrose	P.O. Box 1289 Montrose 81402	1883	Gunnison	1900-07*	1883	1883-1907*	1883?	1883?	1883?
H2	Morgan	P.O. Box 596 Fort Morgan 80701	1889	Weld	1894-1908*	1889	1894-1908*	1873	1889	1889
H6	Otero	P.O. Box 511 La Junta 81050	1889	Brent	1889*	1889	1887-1907	1889?	1889?	1889?
	*Vital statistics registrar, La Junta.
C5	Ouray	P.O. Box C Ouray 81427	1877( as uncompahgre; Renamed, 1883)	Hinsdale/San Juan	1880-1907*	1881	1894*	1877?	1877?	1873
	*Vital statistics registrar, Ouray; also clerk and recorder's office deaths, 1880-1907
E4	Park	P.O. Box 1373 Fairplay 80440	1861	original	1892-1908	1876	1899-1907	1861?	1861?	1861?
	A small part of Jefferson was annexed in 1903
K1	Phillips	221 S Interocean Ave Holyoke 80734	1889	Logan	1903-05	1889	1902-05	1889?	1889?	1889?
D4	Pitkin	530 E. Main St 3rd Fl Aspen 81611	1881	Gunnison	1890-1907	1881	1890-1907	1881?	1881?	1881?
K6	Prowers	301 S Main St Ste 215 Lamar 81052	1889	Bent	1891-1907	1889	1891-1907	1889	1889	1889
G6	Pueblo	215 W 10th St Pueblo 81003	1861	original	1887-1901	1860	1887-1907	1861	1861	1861
	Pueblo City-County Health Department, 1511 Central Mail, Pueblo, Co 81003, has early vital records not found at Colorado Department of Health.
B2	Rio Blanco	P.O. Box 1 Meeker 81641	1889	Summit	1889-1907	1883	1892-1903*	1889	1889	1889
	*Also 1905-07
D6	Rio Grande	925 6th St Del Norte 81132	1874	Conejos/Costilla	1898-1907	1874	1902-07	1874?	1874?	1874?
D1	Roult	P.O. Box 773598	1877	Grand	1903-08	1877	1903-08	1877?	1877?	1877?
D6	Saguache	P.O. Box 655 Saguache 81149	1866	Costilla/Lake	1894-1908	1869	1872-1907	1866?	1866?	1866?
C6	San Jaun	P.O. Box 466 Silverton 81433	1876	La Plata	1901-07*	1871	1902-07*	1876	1876?	1876?
B6	San Miguel	P.O. Box 1170 Telluride 81435	1861	Ouray	1900-07*	1883	1907-20*	1883?	1883?	1883?
K1	Sedgwick	P.O. Box 50 Julesburg 80737	1889	Logan	1897-1906	1889	1897-1906	1889?	1889?	1889?
E3	Summit	P.O. Box 68 Breckenridge 80424	1861	original	1892-96	1862	1892-1905	1861?	1861?	1861?
F4	Teller	P.O. Box 959 Cripple Creek 80813	1899	El Paso/ Fremont	1904	1899	1902-08*	1899?	1899?	1899?
	*Incomplete. County death records are separate and extant from those kept by the city of Cripple Creek, which were lost by fire
	Uncompahgre	1887 (renamed Ouray, 1883)
J2	Washington	150 Ash Ave Akron 80720	1887	Weld/Arapahoe	1894-1911*	1887	1894-1907*	1872	1887	1887
	*Vita statistics registrar
G1	Weld	P.O. Box 758 Greenly 80632	1861	original	1872-1909	1864	1872-1908	1865	1861?	1861?
K2	Yuma	310 Ash St Ste A Wray 80758	1889	Arapahoe/Weld/Adams	1893-1907	1889	1893-1907	1889?	1889?	1889?