The Colorado City We Thought We Knew the Name of…But Didn’t
Three towns in Colorado have legalized gambling: Cripple Creek, Blackhawk and Central City...or is that right? It is "The City of Central", not "Central City". Have we been saying it wrong all along?
I became suspect after watching 9news one night and they mentioned a Colorado city that you have probably been calling by the wrong name.
The reason for it being called the City of Central was because there were many, many mining camps in this area. Central City was the one that was in the center of all of them, and that’s why it got this name.
According to Central City's Home Rule Charter:
In the summer of 1859, gold was found in the Colorado mountains.
It was obvious from the start that mining districts needed to be organized so that miners would have a place to register the claims they were locating and working. Gregory district was the first organized, on May 16, 1859, followed by Eureka district and Spring Gulch district shortly thereafter.
Spring Gulch district became the City of Central district in 1861. In 1862, the location of the post office was moved from Gregory Point to the junction of Spring Gulch and Nevada Gulch, and as newspapers, banks and other businesses continued to concentrate in the commercial center of City of Central, the need for a municipal entity was felt.
Through organizing efforts in 1863, the area from Gregory Point on the east, to the mouth of Prosser Gulch on the west, all of Spring Gulch to the south, with the ridge of Bates Hill and Casto Hill as the north boundary, were combined and enclosed by survey to become the City of Central.
As a result of the passage in the Territorial legislature of HB 29, signed by Governor Evans on March 11, 1864, the City of Central was organized and granted a City Charter.
So, officially, it is the City of Central, but even on their own website, they call it Central City and promote it and advertise it as such. So, maybe we are not wrong after all.
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