Aspen

Aspen, city, seat (1881) of Pitkin county, west-central Colorado, U.S., on the Roaring Fork River at the eastern edge of the White River National Forest (elevation 7,907 feet [2,410 meters]). Founded by prospectors c. 1878, it was named for the local stands of aspen trees. It became a booming silver-mining town of 15,000 by 1887, but Aspen declined rapidly after silver prices collapsed in the early 1890s and became all but a ghost town. It recovered, though, and became one of the most desirable—and expensive—destinations in the United States. Aspen’s revival began in the late 1930s and was in large part due to the enterprise of Walter Paepcke, a Chicago industrialist.

Nearby are some of the high points of the Rocky Mountains, including Capitol, Creek, Snowmass, and Maroon peaks (all exceeding 14,000 feet [4,270 meters]); the average snowfall on these peaks exceeds 300 inches (760 cm) per year. During World War II the city served as a training center for mountain divisions of the U.S. Army, which further spurred the city’s development. The first ski-lift-assisted area was opened in the winter of 1946–47; Aspen’s subsequent development of facilities for skiing and other winter sports make it a popular winter resort. It has also become a vacation center for the American film industry, and a film festival, called Aspen Film, was established there in 1979. In 1949 Paepcke and his wife, Elizabeth, were integral to founding the Aspen Institute, which in turn established the Aspen Music Festival and School; both are summer attractions. Utah’s Ballet West has a summer residency in Aspen, and a local theater, Theatre Aspen, has a summer season. Aspen–Pitkin County Airport serves regional and private jets and other aircraft. Inc. 1881. Pop. (2010) 6,658; (2020) 7,002.