Cañon City, Colorado

Cañon City /ˈkænjən ˈsɪti/ is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Fremont County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 16,400 at the 2010 United States Census. Cañon City straddles the easterly flowing Arkansas River and is a popular tourist destination for sightseeing, whitewater rafting, and rock climbing. The city is noted for being the location of nine state and four federal prisons and penitentiaries, and a welcoming sign says, "Corrections Capital of the World."

In 1994, the United States Board on Geographic Names approved adding the tilde to the official name of Cañon City, a change from Canon City as the official name in its decisions of 1906 and 1975. It is one of the few U.S. cities to have an eñe in its name, others being La Cañada Flintridge, California; Española, New Mexico; Peñasco, New Mexico and Cañones, New Mexico.

History

Cañon City was laid out on January 17, 1858 during the Pikes Peak Gold Rush, but then the land was left idle. A new company "jumped the claim" to the town's site in late 1859, and it put up the first building in February 1860. This town was originally intended as a commercial center for mining in South Park and the upper Arkansas River.

Canon City (film)

Canon City is a 1948 American film noir written and directed by Crane Wilbur. The drama features Scott Brady, Jeff Corey, and Whit Bissell.

Trivia

Future Star Trek Doctor McCoy DeForest Kelley can be seen as one of dozen prisoners escaping during the jail break.Witt Bissell and Jeff Corey were featured as guest star on Star Trek.

Plot

This account of a violent prison break is a semi-documentary opens with a newsreel type tour of the prison. Led by Carl Schwartzmiller (Jeff Corey), 12 convicts plan their escape but prisoner Jim Sherbondy (Scott Brady) is reluctant to go along with the group.

Cast

Background

The film is based on a prison break that occurred at the Colorado State Penitentiary at Cañon City, Colorado on 30 December 1947. Within a week all were killed or captured.