"Fruita" redirects here. For the city in Utah, see Fruita, Utah. For the Coca-Cola brand, see List of Coca-Cola brands

City of Fruita, Colorado
Nickname: Home of Mike the Headless Chicken
Location in Mesa County and the state of Colorado
Coordinates: 39°9′24″N 108°43′28″W / 39.15667, -108.72444
Country	United States
State	Colorado
County[1]	Mesa County
Established	1884
Incorporated	April 18, 1894[2]
Government
- Type	Home Rule Municipality[1]
- Mayor	E. James Adams[3]
Area
- Total	6 sq mi (15.6 km²)
- Land	5.9 sq mi (15.4 km²)
- Water	0.1 sq mi (0.2 km²)
Elevation [4]	4,514 ft (1,376 m)
Population (2000)
- Total	6,478
- Density	1,079.7/sq mi (415.3/km²)
Time zone	MST (UTC-7)
- Summer (DST)	MDT (UTC-6)
ZIP code[5]	81521
Area code(s)	970
FIPS code	08-28745
GNIS feature ID	0204660
Website: City of Fruita

The City of Fruita is a Home Rule Municipality located in Mesa County, Colorado, United States. It is part of the Grand Junction Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 6,478 at the 2000 census. It is well known for nearby mountain bike and hiking trails.

Geography

Fruita is located at 39°9′24″N, 108°43′28″W (39.156594, -108.724554)^[6].

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 6.0 square miles (15.6 km²), of which, 5.9 square miles (15.4 km²) of it is land and 0.1 square miles (0.2 km²) of it (1.50%) is water.

Demographics

As of the census^[7] of 2005, there were 9,416 people, 3532 households in 2004 , and 1,734 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,091.0 people per square mile (421.1/km²). There were 2,610 housing units at an average density of 439.6/sq mi (169.7/km²). The racial makeup of the city was 90.65% White, 0.37% African American, 1.16% Native American, 0.29% Asian, 0.03% Pacific Islander, 5.45% from other races, and 2.05% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 11.93% of the population.

There were 2,447 households out of which 36.6% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.6% were married couples living together, 12.4% had a female householder with no husband present, and 29.1% were non-families. 24.3% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.5% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.55 and the average family size was 3.04.

In the city the population was spread out with 27.9% under the age of 18, 7.7% from 18 to 24, 27.5% from 25 to 44, 20.9% from 45 to 64, and 16.1% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females there were 89.7 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.4 males.

The median income for a household in the city was $32,929, and the median income for a family was $38,487. Males had a median income of $31,372 versus $20,752 for females. The per capita income for the city was $16,024. About 8.3% of families and 12.9% of the population were below the poverty line, including 19.2% of those under age 18 and 16.8% of those age 65 or over.

History

View of Fruita from the Colorado National Monument

Fruita was established in 1884 by William Pabor.

Tourism

The Colorado National Monument is almost 20,500 acres (83 km²) of semi-arid wilderness, rising more than 2,000 feet (610 m) above the City of Fruita in the valley below. Native wildlife, such as eagles, bighorn sheep, and mule deer can be seen in the area.

Dinosaur Journey Museum has information on local archeology, paleontology, and geology.

Fat Tire Festival

For the bike enthusiast, races, live music and lots of fun. Every year in Spring.

Mike The Headless Chicken Festival

Fruita is known for Mike the Headless Chicken, a rooster who lived for 18 months after his head was cut off. Lloyd Olsen, the remover of Mike's head, would give him food and water with an eye dropper. He grew to be almost 8 lb (3.6 kg). Mike went on to tour the country as a side show. A festival in his honor is held each May in Fruita.

Fruita Fall Festival

This festival started in 1910 as a harvest festival and has evolved to a major event. There is live music, carnival rides, a parade, vendors selling everything from homemade jams and candles to clothing and jewelery, a wide variety of foods. The Fruita Fall Festival is typically held the last full weekend of September.

See also

• Colorado National Monument
• Old Spanish National Historic Trail
• Colorado municipalities

References

External links

• City of Fruita website
  • CDOT map of the City of Fruita
• Fruita Chamber of Commerce
• Fruita Times Newspaper

• Fruita, Colorado is at coordinates 39°09′24″N 108°43′28″W / 39.156594, -108.724554 (Fruita, Colorado)Coordinates: 39°09′24″N 108°43′28″W / 39.156594, -108.724554 (Fruita, Colorado)

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