FLOOD10401

• County: El Paso
• Community: Colorado Springs
• Stream Name: Fountain Creek
• Basin: Arkansas
• Title: Fountain Creek Drainage Basin Planning Study - Volume 1
• Date: 7/1/1994
• Prepared For: Colorado Springs
• Prepared By: Muller Engineering Company, Inc.
• Floodplain - Doc Type: Floodplain Report/Masterplan

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The flood of June 10, 1864, approximately five years after the founding of
Colorado City, marked the beginning of Colorado Springs flood history and may
have been the flood of record since the time of initial pioneer presence in the
area. The following are descripti~ns of known large floods that have occurred
on Fountain Creek in the vicinity of Colorado Springs, from locally published
news accounts:

· June 10, 1864:

A 20- to 3D-foot rise in Fountain Creek "swept away almost all of
Colorado City, killing several people".

· July 3, 1882:

Bridges and railroad tracks were destroyed and one person was killed in
a flood down Ute Pass in Manitou Springs.

· July 25, 1885:

Flood i ng along Shooks Run produced by a waterspout-type storm just
north of Colorado College which washed away bridges, damaged several
homes, and killed one person.

· August 1, 1915:

This flood, often referred to as the "Great Sand Creek Flood", damaged
many roads east of Colorado Springs.

· June 3, 1921:

At Colorado Springs, neither Fountain Creek nor Monument Creek flows
went overbank, but with additional flows from Shooks Run and other
tributaries severe damage was caused below the mouth of Spring Creek.

· August 31, 1929:

After an intense downpour, the Ute Pass Fi sh C1 ub dam bursts near
Crystola and a flood "wipes out the resort area" called College Gulch.

· May 30, 1935:

This flood resulted from excessive rainfall of short duration over an
area less than 100 square miles in the Monument Creek basin. At
Colorado Springs, the west side area along Monument Creek suffered most
severely, followed closely by the city's south end, flooded by Fountain
Creek.

· June 17, 1965:

Several days of rain caused flooding in the Squirrel Creek, Sand Creek
and Fountain Creeks. Seven inches of measured rainfall caused heavy

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