San Miguel County is a county in Colorado, United States, in the southwestern part of the state, anchored by the box canyon town of Telluride. It had a population of 8,072 at the 2020 census and covers 1,289 square miles (3,340 km2) centred near 38°01′N 108°26′W.<\/p>\n
Telluride is the county seat and its postal code is 81435. The county has 5 incorporated towns, 1 census-designated place, and a handful of unincorporated communities. San Miguel County observes Mountain Time and carries FIPS code 08113.<\/p>\n
San Miguel County’s settlements range from the ski resort of Mountain Village to former mining camps now reduced to a scatter of cabins. Type key: City · seat = incorporated county seat, Town = incorporated town, CDP = census-designated place (unincorporated but Census Bureau-recognized), Unincorp. = unincorporated place with no formal boundary.<\/p>\n
| Place<\/th>\n | Type<\/th>\n | Pop.<\/th>\n | ZIP<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n |
|---|---|---|---|
| Telluride<\/td>\n | City · seat<\/td>\n | 2,607<\/td>\n | 81435<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Mountain Village<\/td>\n | Town<\/td>\n | 1,264<\/td>\n | 81435<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Norwood<\/td>\n | Town<\/td>\n | 535<\/td>\n | 81423<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Ophir<\/td>\n | Town<\/td>\n | 197<\/td>\n | 81426<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Sawpit<\/td>\n | Town<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81435<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Placerville<\/td>\n | CDP<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81430<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Egnar<\/td>\n | Unincorp.<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81325<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Ames<\/td>\n | Unincorp.<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81435<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Basin<\/td>\n | Unincorp.<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81435<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Beards Corner<\/td>\n | Unincorp.<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81423<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Ilium<\/td>\n | Unincorp.<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81435<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Keystone<\/td>\n | Unincorp.<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81435<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Liberty Bell<\/td>\n | Unincorp.<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81435<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Lime<\/td>\n | Unincorp.<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81430<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Noel<\/td>\n | Unincorp.<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81423<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| San Miguel<\/td>\n | Unincorp.<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81435<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Vanadium<\/td>\n | Unincorp.<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81435<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n |
| Vance Junction<\/td>\n | Unincorp.<\/td>\n | —<\/td>\n | 81435<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<\/div>\n Ophir Loop, listed in older sources as a separate place, refers to the switchback rail grade near the town of Ophir rather than a distinct settlement, so it is folded into the Ophir entry above. Basin, Liberty Bell, and Vanadium are inactive mining sites in the mountains above Telluride, reachable only by unpaved roads.<\/p>\n ZIP Codes<\/h2>\nMost of the county’s ghost camps and trailhead clusters share the Telluride ZIP because they sit within its rural delivery route rather than having their own post office.<\/p>\n Geography<\/h2>\nSan Miguel County sits in the San Juan Mountains, split between a high alpine east end around Telluride’s box canyon and a lower, drier plateau to the west toward the Utah line. The San Miguel River, which gave the county its name, runs west out of the mountains past Placerville and Norwood before joining the Dolores River. Elevations range from over 14,000 feet on peaks near Telluride to under 6,000 feet on the western plateau.<\/p>\n The county borders Montrose County to the north, Ouray County to the east, San Juan County to the southeast, Dolores County to the south, and San Juan County, Utah, to the west.<\/p>\n Demographics<\/h2>\nSan Miguel County’s population was 8,072 at the 2020 census, a density of about 6.3 people per square mile. Telluride and Mountain Village together hold roughly half the county’s residents, with the rest spread across Norwood’s ranching country and the smaller mountain and plateau communities. Median household income runs well above the Colorado median of $92,911, driven by Telluride’s resort and second-home economy, while Norwood and the western plateau are markedly less affluent.<\/p>\n Economy & Local Life<\/h2>\nTourism and the Telluride Ski Resort anchor the county’s east end, supported by lodging, hospitality, and construction tied to second homes in Mountain Village. Norwood and the western plateau remain agricultural, with cattle ranching and dryland farming. Telluride hosts a dense festival calendar, including the Telluride Film Festival over Labor Day weekend and the Telluride Bluegrass Festival each June, both of which draw visitors far beyond the county’s year-round population.<\/p>\n History<\/h2>\nSan Miguel County was created on March 2, 1883, from part of Ouray County, and takes its name from the San Miguel River, itself given a Spanish name honoring Saint Michael. Silver and gold mining drove the county’s early growth, with Telluride booming as a mining town in the 1870s-1890s — including a 1889 bank robbery there by Butch Cassidy, his first recorded holdup. Mining declined through the 20th century, and Telluride reinvented itself as a ski resort after a ski area opened in 1972.<\/p>\n Getting There<\/h2>\nColorado Highway 145 runs through Telluride and Norwood as the county’s main road, with Highway 62 connecting east toward Ridgway and Highway 141 running through the western plateau.<\/p>\n
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