History
Reverend Jeptha Van Valkenburg (founder of Erie) born in Schoharie County, New York in 1823.
Reverend Richard J. Van Valkenburg of Erie, Weld County, is known far and wide and is deservedly esteemed in religious, fraternal, and civic circles. Van Valkenburg made his way to Colorado from Erie, Pennsylvania. Not only was he the founder of the Erie Methodist Church, but he helped organize the establishment of the Town, which was named for his place of birth, Erie, PA. He served Erie as Mayor, postmaster, police judge, president of the school board, and justice of the peace
The Town of Erie was officially established on November 16, 1874.
The first coal mining patent, bearing President U.S. Grant's signature is granted to John B. McCool. Briggs Mine is also established, the first commercial coal mine in the Erie area. Coal miners strike in Erie; 12 miners jailed.
Mining was the most significant industry in nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Colorado. What spurred the advance of coal mining was the revitalization of metal mining in the late 1860s, coupled with the first railroad construction in Colorado. The impact of the railroads came first in the Northern Coalfield. In 1871, the Boulder Valley Railroad, building off the Denver Pacific line, laid track to the new town of Erie, some 20 miles north of Denver, and stimulated renewed development of the Northern Coalfield. Production of the Boulder Valley Mine surged as it became Colorado's largest producer for a time, and overall the statewide coal industry grew strongly, based primarily on the renewed output from the field. Erie became the most important coal town in Colorado.
Pictured: The Garfield Mine #2, south of Erie closed in 1905 from the Lois Regnier Waneka collection.
In 2000, Erie's street paving is completed and a Coal Miner Memorial was dedicated in front of Town Hall in memory of the Coal Miners of Erie and the Northern Coal fields.
In 2001, Loraine Davis Children's Library opens and serves the children of Erie until 2008 when the Erie Community Library opens.
In 2005, Erie High School opens and is located on the northeast corner of Erie Parkway and County Line Road 5.
In July 2007, the Wise Homestead Museum opened to the public. The Erie Historical Society was founded in 1984 to preserve Erie's history. The Wise Homestead dates back to 1869, when Oliver Wise, his wife Adaline, and their three children came across the plains from Wisconsin to settle in Colorado.
In January 2008, the Erie Community Library, a full-service library for all ages, opened. The collection consisted of nearly 60,000 items (books, cassettes, CDs, and DVDs).
In 2008, the Erie Community Center, a 63,000 square foot facility, brought aquatic offerings such as a lap pool, leisure pool, pool slide, splash tank, lazy river and spray area. The fitness center is two levels with a gymnasium, running track, racquetball courts, a child care facility, outdoor playground, indoor playground and multi-purpose community rooms.
In 2008, Black Rock Elementary School opens in the Vista Ridge subdivision on Erie's southern side.
In 2009, Erie's population is approximately 18,000.