Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Walsenburg earns a D−, better than 5% of U.S. towns, mostly because of incomes and schools. The median household income is $51K, and 25% of residents live below the poverty line. Its public schools trail 83% of Colorado towns on state tests and graduation. It also has a long history, with 5 places on the National Register. 25% of residents live below the poverty line in Walsenburg, against 8.4% in Colorado’s towns and 9.6% across U.S. towns. On health, just 5 of Colorado’s 218 towns do worse. Its National Register listings include Huerfano County Courthouse and Jail and Huerfano County High School.
Where Walsenburg beats most towns.
Huerfano County Courthouse and Jail
Its founding year, 1859, comes before those of 89% of the Colorado towns we grade with a known year.
Census counts: 377 in 1880, a peak of 5,855 in 1940, 3,049 in 2020. The archive holds 30 old photos and papers going back to 1890 and 3 maps from 1891 on.
4 places on the National Register of Historic Places.
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Colorado), ordered by how far Walsenburg is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Who provides power, water and the rest in Walsenburg, and how to reach them.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
Ordered by what stands out in Walsenburg.
Walsenburg trades lower home prices for longer drives to work and gets more snow than nearly all U.S. towns, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of Colorado (mostly inland flooding).
Homes are within reach (about $187K for the typical one, B+ for cost of living), but half of working residents commute more than 35 miles. The typical value, about $187K, is 13% below its August 2022 peak.
The typical Walsenburg home is worth about $187,000, down 4.7% in a year, 65% below the Colorado typical home. 60% of Walsenburg households own their home.
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Its public schools are run by the Huerfano School District Re-1. Its two schools are below.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Peakview SchoolLargest public elementary schoolGrades PK–6 | Grades PK–6 | 181 | D |
| Walsenburg Jr. Sr. High SchoolLargest public high schoolGrades 7–12 | Grades 7–12 | 179 | C |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within CO on state tests and graduation
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 88% of Colorado towns; that rating is what its D for hazard risk is built on.
Walsenburg’s FEMA risk score is 82 of 100. One flood insurance claim has been paid in Walsenburg since 2005.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
The average commute for its 1,060 working residents takes 15.8 minutes, against 25.2 across Colorado.
About one in 4 of Walsenburg’s working residents works in town. The average trip to work in Walsenburg is 16 minutes. Only 6 of the 159 Colorado towns we compare have a lower median household income than Walsenburg.
| Walsenburg | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 26% | 7.5% | 8% |
| Average trip to work | 16 minutes | 25 minutes | 25 minutes |
| Median household income | $51,000 | $95,000 | $80,000 |
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
Against the 6,294 U.S. towns with household incomes like Walsenburg’s, it is healthier than 59%, so its C isn’t only a matter of income.
16% of adults have diabetes in Walsenburg. Among 159 Colorado towns, just 3 have a higher share of adults who have high blood pressure than Walsenburg. 31% of adults have obesity in Walsenburg.
| Walsenburg | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes (CDC PLACES) | 16% | 8.4% | 12% |
| Frequent physical distress (CDC PLACES) | 18% | 12% | 14% |
| No health insurance, 18–64 (CDC PLACES) | 21% | 10% | 8.1% |
| Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES) | 28% | 15% | 19% |
| What stands out | Walsenburg | CO |
|---|---|---|
| Fewer binge drinkers | 14.2% | 19% |
| More adults treating high blood pressure | 75.9% | 69.5% |
| More adults with diabetes | 15.9% | 8.6% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
The Walsenburg 1 Nw weather station records that 92 inches of snow fall in a normal winter, more than in 96% of U.S. towns.
Walsenburg has chilly, snowy winters and warm summers, with very little rain. July afternoons reach 88° and January nights drop to 19°.
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
| Walsenburg | Colorado towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conserved land | 1% | 7% | 4.3% |
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.7 miles per square mile | 1.3 | 0.4 |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. City Park | — | 2 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
None within 15 miles of Walsenburg; the nearest are
About 2 of every 100 Walsenburg residents are enrolled in college, against 6 across Colorado.
4 places in Walsenburg on the National Register of Historic Places.
4 notable people were born in Walsenburg.
City in Colorado, United States
Walsenburg is the statutory city that is the county seat of and the most populous municipality in Huerfano County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 3,049 at the 2020 census, down from 3,068 in 2010.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Walsenburg grades D− overall, better than 5% of U.S. towns. It grades C for health and C− for schools. Jobs & income is its weak spot, with a D−.
Not for the area. That is 3.6 years of the area's median household income ($52,526 across the county). Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades B+.
4 notable people were born here, including Matthew G. Martínez and Xavier Atencio.
