Castle Rock

History

White settlers were drawn to the area by rumors of gold and by land opened through the Homestead Act of 1862. The discovery of rhyolite stone, though, not gold, ultimately led to the settlement of Castle Rock. Castle Rock was founded in 1874 when the eastern Douglas County border was redrawn to its present location. Castle Rock was chosen as the county seat because of its central location. One of the first homesteaders in the area near today's Castle Rock was Jeremiah Gould. He owned about to the south of "the (Castle) Rock". At that time, the settlement consisted of just a few buildings for prospectors, workers, and cowboys. In 1874, Gould donated to the new town, which was also now home to the Douglas County government. Six streets named Elbert, Jerry, Wilcox, Perry, Castle, and Front were laid out to build the actual town of Castle Rock. The courthouse square was defined and about 77 lots, each , were auctioned off for a total profit of US$3,400. A new train depot brought the Denver and Rio Grande Railway to the area. During the late 1800s and early 1900s, Castle Rock had a very active rhyolite-quarrying industry. Many immigrants arrived in the area to work in the quarries. In 1936, the town received a donation of land that included its namesake geographical feature. Men employed by the Works Progress Administration constructed a star atop the butte shortly after Castle Rock received that donation. The star was lit every year from 1936 to 1941. After World War II began, the star was left unlit as a symbol of sacrifice in support of the war effort. On August 14, 1945, shortly after V-J Day, the star was modified into a V-for-victory symbol. On December 7, 1945, the star was lit for the holiday season. It has been lit every year since around the same time. The…

Geography

Castle Rock is located in central Colorado at the junction of Interstate 25 and State Highway 86, south of downtown Denver and north of Colorado Springs. The town lies a few miles east of the Rampart Range of the Rocky Mountains on the western edge of the Great Plains. Castle Rock, the butte for which the town is named, is just north of the town center. Other prominent landforms visible from Castle Rock include Dawson Butte, Devils Head, Mount Blue Sky, and Pikes Peak. East Plum Creek, a stream within the South Platte River watershed, flows generally north through Castle Rock. Hangman's Gulch, which runs northwest then west around the north side of the town center, drains into East Plum Creek, as do multiple unnamed gulches in the southern and western areas of town. McMurdo Gulch and Mitchell Gulch run north then northeast through eastern Castle Rock and drain into Cherry Creek east of town. Castle Rock is in the Colorado Foothills life zone. The hillsides are covered with meadows of grass, small plants, scattered juniper trees, and open ponderosa pine woodlands. Other trees common in the area include Gambel oak (scrub oak or oak brush) and pinyon pine. Local wildlife includes the American badger, American black bear, bobcat, coyote, Colorado chipmunk, crow, garter snakes, gray fox, mountain cottontail rabbit, mountain lion, mule deer, pocket gopher, porcupine, skunk, and tadpoles. Birds found in the area include the golden eagle, peregrine falcon, sharp-shinned hawk, black-billed magpie, red-tailed hawk, pinyon jay, and western tanager. The town had a total area of , all land in 2023. Castle Rock borders three communities, all to its north; from west to east, they are Castle Pines Village, the city of Castle Pines, and The Pinery. Other nearby communities…

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• House Finch

  Haemorhous mexicanus (P.L.Statius Müller, 1776) · Aves
  15,411
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  11,734
• Spotted Towhee

  Pipilo maculatus Swainson, 1827 · Aves
  11,286
• Northern Flicker

  Colaptes auratus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  10,104
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  9,759
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  9,389
• Woodhouse's Scrub-Jay

  Aphelocoma woodhouseii (S.F.Baird, 1858) · Aves
  8,719
• Black-billed Magpie

  Pica hudsonia (Sabine, 1823) · Aves
  8,322

Most recent

• M 3 — 2025-10-17
  11 km NNE of Black Forest, Colorado
• M 2.7 — 2025-06-13
  7 km SE of Erie, Colorado
• M 2.5 — 2020-10-24
  2 km ESE of Georgetown, Colorado
• M 2.9 — 2008-02-26
  29 km WNW of Westcreek, Colorado