Hugo

History

In about 1859 the town was developed as a cattle ranching community to supply miners with provisions. The town was also used as a local stage coach stop. There are two stories as to how the town obtained its name. One version says the town was named by the Kansas Pacific Railroad builders after pioneer stage agent (Overland company), Hugo Richards. Richards later moved to Prescott, Arizona where he became town banker and businessman. Another story says the town was named for Richard Hugo who was a local settler. The town was founded in 1870, and incorporated in 1909. In July 2016, the water supply for the town of Hugo was purportedly contaminated by THC, the main psychoactive component in cannabis. Subsequent testing found no THC in the water supply, and authorities believe the initial tests were false positives.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all of which is land. Hugo's elevation is 5,039 ft. According to the Köppen Climate Classification system, Hugo has a cold semi-arid climate, abbreviated "BSk" on climate maps.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• House Sparrow

  Passer domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  676
• Eurasian Collared-Dove

  Streptopelia decaocto (Frivaldszky, 1838) · Aves
  668
• Great-tailed Grackle

  Quiscalus mexicanus (Gmelin, 1788) · Aves
  622
• Western Meadowlark

  Sturnella neglecta Audubon, 1844 · Aves
  512
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  441
• Horned Lark

  Eremophila alpestris (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  417
• European Starling

  Sturnus vulgaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  398
• Red-winged Blackbird

  Agelaius phoeniceus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  349

Largest nearby schools

• Genoa-Hugo School
  Other · HUGO · 224 students · 13.2:1 ratio