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<br />.. <br /> <br />r9 <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />.. <br /> <br />rCl015 <br /> <br />area is very sparsely settled. Trinj,dad, VTith about 20,000 inhabitants <br /> <br /> <br />ir. the metropolitan area, is the largest town. A comp2rison of the popu- <br /> <br /> <br />latior. figures from the United States Census for 1920, 1930, 1940, and <br /> <br /> <br />1950, indicates that for the rural area of that portion of Las'Animas <br /> <br /> <br />GOlmty VTithin the basin there was a 48 percent decrease from 1920 to1950; <br /> <br /> <br />while the population of the city of Trinidad irlcreased from 10,906 in <br /> <br /> <br />1920, to 12,204 in 1950, or an increase of 12 percent. Pertinent data in <br /> <br /> <br />detail on the trend of population for the basin are given in appendix C. <br /> <br /> <br />23. ~eso~c~s and i~dustries. - The principal industries in the <br /> <br /> <br />upper Purgatoire River watershed are coal mining, agriculture, mercantile, <br /> <br /> <br />and manufacturing. The mining of coal is a major industry in the Hater- <br /> <br /> <br />shed, even though the production of coal declined from 4,3115,110 tons in <br /> <br /> <br />1920, to 895,064 tons in 191J9. At the present time practically all of the <br /> <br /> <br />coal mined in Las Animas County is used in the manufacturing of steel. <br /> <br /> <br />\vith the market reduced to this basiC demand, it probably has reached the <br /> <br /> <br />minimum level. Coal mined in the Trinidad 8rea has good coking properties <br /> <br /> <br />and the freight rates to the mills are favorable. Reserves in this area <br /> <br /> <br />are estimated at 22 bil~ion tons. <br /> <br /> <br />24. The only com\\\ercial timber r'asO'Jrces of the ',r8tershed consist <br /> <br /> <br />of the conifer forests in the mountainous section. <br />