SPOTLIGHT ON ORDWAY
Elevation: 4,311 feet
Established: 1891; incorporated 1900
Population: 1,248; the county population is about 5,800, which includes about 2,000 who are in two correctional facilities.
Percentage 65 years and older: 18.5 (national rate: 12.4)
Percentage Hispanic population: 31.3 (national rate: 12.5)
Percentage of veterans (those over 18 who have served in the military but are not currently serving): 14.5 (national rate: 12.7)
County: Ordway is the county seat of Crowley County, which has only three other incorporated towns – Sugar City, Olney Springs and Crowley. The county was incorporated on Aug. 5, 1911. Ordway has the largest population of the four towns, which were originally railroad stops and are a few miles from each other.
Name: The town was named for George N. Ordway, a settler who raised money for an irrigation canal in the area.
Brief history: The area began as a ranching and agricultural community, growing melons, sugar beets and tomatoes. In the late 1880s, a canal to irrigate the crops was built through the area by the Colorado Canal Co. Ordway was chosen as the site for canal officials and workers to live.
Today, the canal company is the Twin Lakes Reservoir and Canal Co., which sells much of its water to Colorado Springs and Aurora, with a smaller amount sold to Pueblo West.
Sugar City, 5 miles from Ordway, was named for the sugar-beet factory there. Agriculture for the whole area became a big business after the railroad built a route making it easier for farmers to transport their crops.
In recent years, two medium-security correctional facilities have been built in the county. Crowley County Correctional Facility is a private prison that opened in 1999 and is operated by Corrections Corp. of America, employing about 265. Arkansas Valley Correctional Facility opened in 1988 and employs more than 300.
The town’s largest employers are service industries, schools and the two correctional facilities. Some residents commute to Pueblo or La Junta for work or are retirees.
Sources: Darla Wyend, Crowley County Heritage Society; Mike Apker, Crowley County Administration; “Colorado Place Names” by William Bright; U.S. Census Bureau 2000; USGS
REGION NOTES
JEFFERSON COUNTY
Military recruiters’ access clarified
Letters have been sent home to families of all Jefferson County high school juniors, informing them of the school district’s policy on federally required military recruiting laws.
School districts that receive federal funds must comply with a request by military recruiters for secondary students’ names, addresses and phone numbers unless a parent asks that the information not be released.
An opt-out form attached to the letter must be filled out and returned to the student’s school by Dec. 9.
A provision in the federal No Child Left Behind Act, signed in 2002, states that military recruiters also must be given the same access to secondary school students as schools provide to post-secondary institutions or prospective employers, such as on-campus visits to inform students about tuition assistance, and other educational and vocational training opportunities.
DENVER POST STAFF REPORTS
