WSP08184

• File Number: 8200.765
• Description: White River General
• State: CO
• Basin: Yampa/White
• Water Division: 6
• Date: 11/1/1966
• Author: USFS
• Title: Water and Related Land Resources - White River Basin in Colorado
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

A wind storm in 1939 blew down large amounts of green timber and set
the stage for a large scale infestation of Eng1emann spruce bark
beetle. By 1949, most of the readily accessible merchantable Englemann
spruce timber on the western slope of Colorado had been destroyed.

Public recreation, especially hunting and fishing, has long been an
important activity in the White River Basin. Bighorn sheep, mule deer,
and buffalo were numerous. Elk were not reported to be abundant until
after the breakup of the Red Desert herd in Wyoming in the +ate l890's.
Big game animals have a natural migration route through the Basin which
has persisted since before white settlement. Deer migrate from Piceance
Creek and Douglas Creek watersheds to high national forest lands of the
White River Plateau in the spring, where they graze all summer and return
to lower elevations in winter. Elk winter in the area near Meeker and
graze into the alpine area in the summer.

Fishing has been good within the Basin since early times. Private and
public lodges were built and a business of outfitting and guiding
hunting and fishing parties developed. John C. Osgood constructed a
private lodge at Trappers Lake in 1886 and operated it until 1892.
Senator Horatio Henderson Eddy and a group of Colorado Springs resi-
dents established Marvine Lodge near the confluence of Marvine Creek
and White River, and operated it as a private resort from l890 to l896.
Guests were brought in by stage, with as many as 150 being accommodated
at one time. Extensive subsequent developments have capitalized on
the scenic and outdoor recreation resources of the Basin.

Population

About 5,560 people were living in the Basin in 1960 (table 1). More
than 90 percent live in Rio Blanco County, with the remainder in Moffat
County. Records do not indicate any permanent resident population in
the Garfield County part of the Basin. Rio Blanco County population
has increased since the county was organized in 1889, except from 1920
to 1940 when there was a small loss in population. There was a sig-
nificant increase in population after 1940, mostly as a result of the
development of oil and gas resources.

Table 1.--Popu1ation by counties, White River Basin in Colorado, 1930-60

Counties 1930 1940 1950 1960
Number Number Number Number
Moffat lJ 190 200 450 450
Rio Blanco lJ 2,880 2,870 4,670 5,110
Garfield lJ 0 0 0 0
Total 3,070 3,070 5,120 5,560
lJ Estimated for portion of county within the Basin.
Source: U. S. Census of Population
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