Morrison

History

This small foothills settlement is named after George Morrison (April 16, 1822 – June 11, 1895), a builder and businessman who left a mark not only on the town that now bears his name, but on the history of the area. A stonemason who immigrated from Canada to the Mt. Vernon area in 1859, he helped found the town of Mt. Vernon and built the Mt. Vernon House, seat of the territorial government under Robert Steele, and an important stop for travelers on the Mt. Vernon Toll Road from Denver to the goldfields of the Rocky Mountains. He became a U.S. citizen on May 22, 1862. George Morrison later moved south to Bear Creek, where he founded the Morrison Stone, Lime, and Town Co., and in 1874 platted the town that became known as Morrison, or briefly as Mt. Morrison. With Gov. John Evans, he was instrumental in bringing the Denver, South Park and Pacific Railroad to Morrison in 1874. As a quarryman, Morrison developed the building stone and other industrial stone (lime, gypsum) of the Morrison/Mt. Vernon area, bringing fame to the region for its high-quality dimension stone. Two of the three stone buildings he built in Morrison, as well as the Mt. Vernon House further north, are still standing; all three surviving buildings are recognized historic sites (National Register of Historic Places, 1976). Before its demolition in 1982, the original Evergreen Hotel, built by George Morrison in 1874, served as the first home of Sacred Heart College (now Regis University), and later as the Mt. Morrison Casino, where John Brisben Walker entertained many of the dignitaries he brought to the foothills as part of his promotional enterprises. The Morrison Schoolhouse he built served the town's educational needs from its construction in 1875 until 1955, and stands today as a private…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of , all of it land. Morrison is approximately southwest of Denver and is located on State Highway 470 and Morrison Road. The Morrison postal ZIP code (80465) extends west up Turkey Creek Canyon and south of the town. It thus applies to an area covering approximately 5,000 addresses. Because the Morrison Post Office serves this large area beyond the town boundaries proper, many events and people connected with "Morrison" are actually in unincorporated portions of Jefferson County.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• House Finch

  Haemorhous mexicanus (P.L.Statius Müller, 1776) · Aves
  81,538
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  74,146
• Northern Flicker

  Colaptes auratus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  72,317
• Mallard

  Anas platyrhynchos Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  61,178
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  61,091
• American Crow

  Corvus brachyrhynchos C.L.Brehm, 1822 · Aves
  56,450
• Black-billed Magpie

  Pica hudsonia (Sabine, 1823) · Aves
  56,130
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  53,565

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