New Castle

A herd of cattle pay no attention to the falling snow on the mountains above them as they graze in a field east of New Castle Sunday morning. Post Independent/Kelley Cox Click to Enlarge

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New Castle, originally named Chapman, was incorporated into Garfield County in 1888. The Welsh and English coal miners who dominated the area in the late 1800s renamed the area for their familiar Newcastle-on-Tyne, a coal mining town in England.

The city thrived on the miners and the merchants who made their livings catering to miners’ needs and desires. As the town grew, there were restaurants, grocery and drug stores, opera houses and hotels.

There were 22 saloons, and west of the creek there was even an area of ill repute discreetly referred to as the “Peach Orchard,” according to “Garfield County: The First Hundred Years,” by Andrew Gulliford.

Early residents bought buckets of water carted from the creek in barrels. By 1893 there was a reservoir filled by East Elk Creek, but it was so shallow it froze during the winter. The city then made an effort to install pipes and laid locally made tile three feet deep. Water lines went up the streets and fire hydrants were installed.

Today New Castle is on the move. It was listed in the 2000 census as Colorado’s seventh-fastest-growing city and in 2007 it had an estimated population of 3,800. The town has also seen the addition of several new commercial developments, including an 18-hole golf course that opened for play in 2004.

The town continues to grow at an unprecedented rate. In 2006, approximately 142 building permits were issued, breaking previous records, and in 2007 about 245 were issued.

New Castle Info
Town of New Castle
450 W. Main St.
(970) 984-2311 (phone)
(970) 984-2716 (fax)

Town Council
Mayor Frank Breslin
Mayor Pro Tem Duane Guettler
Pam Bunn
Bob Gordon
Greg Russi
Bruce Leland
Art Riddile

Town Administrator
Position vacant
tn.adm@newcastlecolorado.org

Town Clerk
Lisa Cain
lisa@newcastlecolorado.org

Project Coordinator
Jim Stevens
jim@newcastlecolorado.org

Finance Director/Treasurer
Lyle Layton
lyle@newcastlecolorado.org

Community Development Director
Position vacant
Admin. Assistant, Court Clerk
Mindy Gulliksen
mindy@newcastlecolorado.org

Recreation
Bryan Vashus, Director
984-3352
Bryan@newcastlecolorado.org

Building Official
David Hunsicker
984-0812

Burning Mountains Fire Protection District
non-emergency
876-5738

Police Department
non-emergency
984-2302
after hours: 984-9151
Chris Sadler, police chief
984-2302