History Colorado is a historical society that was established in 1879 as the State Historical Society of Colorado, also known as the Colorado Historical Society. History Colorado is a 501(c)(3) organization and an agency of the State of Colorado under the Department of Higher Education.
Overview
History Colorado offers the public access to cultural and heritage resources of Colorado, including museums and special programs for individuals and families, collection stewardship of Colorado's historic treasures, educational resources for schools, students and teachers, services related to preservation, archaeology and history, and the Stephen H. Hart Research Library.
History Colorado's statewide activities support tourism, historic preservation, education, and research related to Colorado's rich western history, offering the public unique opportunities to interact with Colorado history through its network of museums, which offer both exhibitions and special programs for adults and children.
History Colorado also works with schools across Colorado to provide classrooms and teachers with resources and curriculum related to Colorado history, and offers local communities resources that help them to enrich historical-related community-based programs.
History Colorado publishes the quarterly magazine ''Colorado Heritage'' (formerly ''The Colorado Magazine'').
The History Colorado Center
In 2012, the agency opened the new state history museum of Colorado, the History Colorado Center. As History Colorado's headquarters, the History Colorado Center is designed to be a tourist destination, a museum, as well as a center for civic programs and discussion. The building houses core and traveling exhibitions, education/public programs, the Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation, the State Historical Fund, the Stephen H. Hart Research Library, and other History Colorado functions. Located at 12th and Broadway in Denver's Golden Triangle Museum District, this is a building that was designed and constructed by an all-Colorado team: Tryba Architects, Trammell Crow Company and Hensel Phelps Construction Company. History Colorado is a Smithsonian Affiliate. At the building's April 2012 opening ceremony, Smithsonian Affiliations Director Harold Closter described the History Colorado Center as "the first great history museum of the twenty-first century."
Preservation programs
History Colorado has cared for the historic treasures of the state for more than 130 years and has directed over a quarter of a billion dollars in grants for statewide preservation and education to all regions of the state. Through the State Historical Fund historic preservation grants program, History Colorado has awarded millions in competitive grants to all 64 counties across Colorado. As the State Historic Preservation Office, the Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation handles the processing and documenting of statewide archaeological and historic preservation-related projects. Through its various offices, programs, and services, History Colorado exerts a significant economic, cultural and civic impact and continues as a vital entity to the progress and development of Colorado.
The Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation (OAHP) oversees a number of program areas:
* The ''
Colorado State Register of Historic Properties The Colorado State Register of Historic Properties, administered by the History Colorado Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation, is a listing of significant historic resources. History Colorado maintains a list of the Colorado State Regis ...
''
[Colorado State Register of Historic Properties.]
Colorado Historical Society Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation. Retrieved 10-8-2011.
* The ''State Historical Fund''. The fund was created in 1990 through a state constitutional amendment allowing limited gaming in the towns of
Black Hawk,
Central City
In urban planning, a core city, principal city metropolitan core, or central city, is the largest or most important city or cities of a metropolitan area. A core city is surrounded by smaller satellite cities, towns, and suburbs. A central city ...
, and
Cripple Creek. A proportion of the tax revenues from gaming is used for historic preservation in Colorado. Applications for projects for potential funding are assessed through a competitive process.
History
The State Historical Society of Colorado was founded in 1879 and currently owns and maintains thirteen
historic sites and museums at ten locations around the state.
[About CHS](_blank)
Colorado Historical Society, USA. It is both a nonprofit agency and a part of the state department of higher education.
The Colorado Historical Society is an affiliate within the
Smithsonian Affiliations
Smithsonian Affiliations is a division of the Smithsonian Institution that establishes long-term partnerships with non-Smithsonian museums and educational and cultural organizations in order to share collections, exhibitions and educational str ...
program
and is accredited by the
American Alliance of Museums
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, p ...
. The central offices of History Colorado are based in
Denver
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
.
Historic sites and museums
History Colorado administers the following historic sites and museums:
Historic sites
History Colorado, USA.
* History Colorado Center, Denver
* Byers-Evans House Museum, Denver
* El Pueblo History Museum
El Pueblo History Museum is a local history museum in Pueblo, Colorado, United States. The museum presents the history of Pueblo, together with the cultural and ethnic groups of the region. The historical site includes an 1840s-style adobe trading ...
, Pueblo
In the Southwestern United States, Pueblo (capitalized) refers to the Native tribes of Puebloans having fixed-location communities with permanent buildings which also are called pueblos (lowercased). The Spanish explorers of northern New Spain ...
* Fort Garland Museum and Pike's Stockade, Fort Garland
Fort Garland (1858–1883), Colorado, United States, was designed to house two companies of soldiers to protect settlers in the San Luis Valley, then in the Territory of New Mexico. It was named for General John Garland, commander of the Military ...
* Fort Vasquez Museum, Platteville
* Georgetown Loop Historic Mining & Railroad Park
The Georgetown Loop Railroad is a narrow gauge United States heritage railroad located in the Rocky Mountains in Clear Creek County, adjacent to Interstate 70 in Colorado.
This tourist train runs between the communities of Georgetown and S ...
, Georgetown
* Grant-Humphreys Mansion, Denver
* Healy House Museum and Dexter Cabin, Leadville
The City of Leadville is a statutory city that is the county seat, the most populous community, and the only incorporated municipality in Lake County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 2,602 at the 2010 census and an estimated ...
* Trinidad History Museum
Trinidad History Museum is a local history museum in Trinidad, Colorado, United States. It is administered by History Colorado
History Colorado is a historical society that was established in 1879 as the State Historical Society of Colorado, also ...
, Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands of Trinidad and Tobago. The island lies off the northeastern coast of Venezuela and sits on the continental shelf of South America. It is often referred to as the southernmos ...
* Ute Indian Museum, Montrose
Centennial Farms and Ranches
History Colorado provides designations of centennial farms and centennial ranches that have been in one family for more than 100 years. For example, Salt Works Ranch in Park County.
See also
* '' Colorado 1870-2000''
* History of Colorado
The region that is today the U.S. State of Colorado has been inhabited by Native Americans and their Paleoamerican ancestors for at least 13,500 years and possibly more than 37,000 years. The eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains was a major ...
* Pony Express Bible
References
External links
History Colorado website
History Colorado Center website
Office of Archaeology & Historic Preservation and State Historical Fund website
{{Authority control
State historical societies of the United States
Organizations established in 1879
Non-profit organizations based in Colorado
Organizations based in Denver
History of Colorado
Historical societies in Colorado
Smithsonian Institution affiliates
Institutions accredited by the American Alliance of Museums
1879 establishments in Colorado