On This Day in 1959: Historic Snowstorm Buries Colorado Springs, Colo.

When someone says snow in Colorado in September, you usually assume it must be in the highest peaks of the Rocky Mountains. A historic snowstorm happened on this day in the lower elevations, and it turns out snow in September is more common than you would think. Here are some significant Colorado September snowstorms.

On This Day: September 28-30, 1959

• A low pressure system moving across the Southwest and southern Rockies, which transferred moisture from the Pacific into the Rockies. Meanwhile, an unseasonably strong Arctic cold front dropped south from Canada. The moisture and cold air collided over Colorado, which cause a historic snowstorm along the Front Range.
• Snowfall totals of 27.0-34.1 inches of heavy, wet snow fell in Colorado Springs
• Pueblo, Colo., reported 14 inches of snow
• Denver saw 12.9 inches of snow
• Damage to property and trees: more than $1 million (1959)

Earliest Snow in History: September 2-3, 1961

• Denver’s earliest snowfall in recorded history occurred on September 3, 1961, which happened before Labor Day that year.
• Snowfall amount of 4.2 inches was recorded that day
• Colorado Springs, Colo., reported a Trace of snow on September 2, 1961, which is the earliest snowfall of at least a Trace in their history. It continued to snow into September 3, 1961, with the earliest measurable snowfall of 4.2 inches occurring.

Record Heat to Accumulating Snow? September 8-9, 2020

• Colorado experienced the some of the latest readings ever of 100-degree heat followed by one of the earliest accumulating snow in history.
• On September 5, 2020, Denver set its all-time record high for September, reaching 101 degrees. This was also the latest date a 100-degree reading has ever been experienced in Denver.
• High temperatures reach 97 and 93 degrees on September 6th and 7th, respectively.
• A series of cold fronts then moved across Colorado, which dropped temperatures from the 90s on the 7th to the 40s overnight. Temperatures remained in the 40s for most of September 8th while there was a mix of rain and snow. Snow developed later that evening and continued into the morning of September 9th.
• An inch of snow fell in Denver, while 2 to 4 inches of the fluffy white stuff piled up in Colorado Springs and Pueblo. Some spots between Colorado Springs and Denver even recorded close to 6 inches of fresh powder!

Other notable September snowstorms:

• September 1895: 11.4 inches in Denver
• September 1908: 6.5 inches in Denver
• September 1935: 8.0 inches in Colorado Springs
• September 1936: 16.5 inches in Denver
• September 1961: 5.5 inches in Denver
• September 1971: 17.2 inches in Denver, 9.7 inches in Colorado Springs
• September 1993: 5.4 inches in Denver
• September 1995: 7.4 inches in Denver

As September comes to a close, the lower elevations of Colorado will not have recorded any snow. The average date for a Trace of snow to occur is October 15th in Denver and October 20th in Colorado Springs. The average date for at least an inch is October 17th in Denver and November 10th in Colorado Springs.

Credit: NWS, 9News, The Denver Post
---------------------------------------------
Story Image: ​The ghost town of Independence, Colorado. (Jeffrey Beall via Wikimedia Commons)