| Hartsel, Colorado | |
| Settlement Type: | Census Designated Place |
| Pushpin Map: | Colorado |
| Pushpin Label: | Hartsel |
| Pushpin Label Position: | bottom |
| Pushpin Map Caption: | Location of the Hartsel CDP in the |
| Subdivision Type: | Country |
| Subdivision Name: |  United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | State |
| Subdivision Type2: | County |
| Subdivision Name2: | Park County |
| Government Type: | unincorporated town |
| Established Title: | Founded |
| Established Date: | 1880 |
| Unit Pref: | US |
| Area Footnotes: | [1] |
| Area Total Km2: | 0.498 |
| Area Land Km2: | 0.486 |
| Area Water Km2: | 0.012 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Footnotes: | [2] |
| Population Total: | 38 |
| Timezone: | MST |
| Utc Offset: | -7 |
| Timezone Dst: | MDT |
| Utc Offset Dst: | -6 |
| Coordinates: | 39.0219°N -105.7978°W |
| Elevation Ft: | 8904 |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP Code[3] |
| Postal Code: | 80449 |
| Area Code: | 719 |
| Blank Name: | GNIS feature ID |
| Blank Info: | 2805924 |
Hartsel is a census-designated place (CDP) in and governed by Park County, Colorado United States. The population was 38 at the 2020 census. The Hartsel post office has the ZIP Code 80449.[3] The CDP is a part of the Denver–Aurora–Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area.
Founded in 1880, Hartsel is close to the geographic center of the state, and is often referred to as "The Heart of Colorado". The namesake of the community is Samuel Hartsel,[4] a local farmer and cattle rancher who came to Park County in 1860 and left in 1908. He developed the Hartsel hot springs and built a sawmill, blacksmith shop, and a trading post to lay the groundwork for the town.[5]
The Hartsel CDP has an area of 0.498km2, including 0.012km2 of water.[1]
The United States Census Bureau defined the for the
According to the Köppen climate classification system, Hartsel has a Cold Semi-arid climate (BSk). According to the United States Department of Agriculture, the Plant Hardiness zone is 3b with an average annual extreme minimum temperature of .[6]
Summers are warm with chilly nights in the 30s and 40s (°F) and some thunderstorm activity during the months of July and August. Winters are cold and dry with lows below zero.[7] [8] A climate writeup consisting of interpolated data is below.
According to the A. W. Kuchler U.S. Potential natural vegetation Types, Hartsel would have a Wheatgrass / Needlegrass (66) vegetation type and a North Mixed grass prairie (7) vegetation form.[9]