A view of the Milky Way arcing over the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Photo by Rob Hazzard, courtesy of National Park Service

A young singer-songwriter went on a camping trip with his friends into the Colorado Rockies to watch the Perseid meteor shower in the summer of 1970. The beauty and wonder he saw on that trip inspired him, and over the following six months, John Denver worked to capture that experience in his music. The result was “Rocky Mountain High,” an enduring classic and one of Colorado’s two state songs.

While growing cities have encroached on the forests and the streams, Coloradans have worked hard to preserve the natural beauty that makes our state special. In addition to the clear-blue mountain lakes, Colorado is home to eighteen certified International Dark Sky Places, ideal for stargazing—an increasingly rare privilege in our light-polluted times. Many of these are also some of the most beautiful natural sites in the country, like the Black Canyon of the Gunnison and the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve.

As Coloradans, we’re incredibly lucky to have such ready access to these beautiful sights. That Perseid meteor shower John Denver watched returns every summer. This year it will peak in the late night of August 12 and early morning of the 13th. If you have the chance, head out into the mountains (or if you’re lucky enough, just your backyard) that night to catch a sight of it rainin’ fire in the sky. You won’t regret it.

—Devin Flores, Managing Editor of the Colorado Encyclopedia

With the President’s recent Executive Order “Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,” Americans are asked to report national park and monument signs that do not openly champion American accomplishments, citing a need for more “balanced” US history. On the surface level this is, unsurprisingly, quite subjective—but digging deeper this could also mean the complete dismissal of countless, probably challenging, American histories. (Muir Woods National Monument in California already had to remove interpretive signage displaying inclusive history.) Former State Historian Dr. Claire Oberon Garcia offers observations and perspective on the historical ramifications of the Executive Order, in a new op-ed for The Colorado Magazine.

Tomorrow begins the 80th anniversary of the atomic bombs dropped on the people of Hiroshima on August 6, followed by Nagasaki on August 9. If you’re wondering what you can do to honor this somber occasion, we might suggest learning more about the incarceration of people of Japanese heritage here in the US during World War II. Experiences of some held at the Granada Relocation Center in southeastern Colorado, also known as Camp Amache, are documented in the Lost Highways episode “Bonsai Behind Barbed Wire” and oral histories like that of Henry Okubo, who spent time incarcerated there. See what those living conditions were like and learn about Ralph Carr, the lone governor to speak out against these concentration camps, by visiting Confined Citizens: The Amache-Granada Relocation Center, 1942–1945, an exhibition in the Colorado Stories gallery at History Colorado Center. Thoughtful reading suggestions and other special commemorations offer opportunities to reflect on these events, including at the three national park sites associated with the Manhattan Project.

Photographer Ed Tangen captures workers picking vegetables on Brighton Ranch, August 10, 1927. Fred M. Mazzulla Collection. History Colorado, PH.PROP.4994

Colorado is ripe with glorious summer produce! We’re proud of our state’s agricultural roots, and of the many farms and ranches that keep this tradition alive. Later this month, join us when History Colorado presents the Centennial Farms & Ranches 2025 honorees at the Colorado State Fair. In the meantime, you can do a lot to directly support Colorado’s agricultural businesses. Local dairy companies still deliver right to your door—Longmont Dairy Farm is celebrating 60 years, and Royal Crest Dairy has been around for nearly a century! Shop your fruits and veggies by visiting local farmers markets and fruit stands further afield, join a CSA (and get on the waiting list for next year), take a daytrip to a U-Pick location, and buy locally grown produce. Keep it Colorado fresh! 

In 2024, Senate Bill 24-053 established the Racial Equity Study Commission. In coordination with the Commission, History Colorado is conducting evidence-based historical research into the practices, systems, and policies of the State of Colorado that have negatively affected Black Coloradans. Our research team is deeply committed to ensuring that ALL of Colorado is appropriately and thoroughly represented in this report. To do this work with integrity and accuracy, we need your help to preserve the history of Colorado’s Black populations, and we’re calling on the public to share any historical information you may have. Please reach out to us to collaborate, share historical materials, or schedule an oral history. We look forward to working with you in uncovering and preserving the rich and important history of Black Coloradans across the state.

Even water rights established by treaties and agreements don’t always equal destiny in the arid West. Colorado’s two Ute Tribes on reservations in the southern part of the state have been caught up in extensive legal fights for almost 60 years because the Animas-La Plata Project encountered hurdle after hurdle, even drawing then-US Rep. Ben Nighthorse Campbell into the fray. But this summer the project was finally realized, at least in part, and for the first time the legally apportioned water flowed to Tribes and those entities designated to use it. Read more about this decades-long fight for water rights, as well as the work that still needs to be done to complete the project, in new reporting from the Colorado Sun. 

Black American West Museum, Broomfield Out Loud, and Montezuma Heritage Museum, winners of this year’s Miles and Bancroft Awards.

History Colorado is pleased to announce the winners of the 2025 Miles and Bancroft Awards, presented annually to some of the most exemplary and impactful historical projects across the state. This year’s awards recognize a variety of noteworthy accomplishments: The Black American West Museum & Heritage Center is honored for collections care projects, enabling greater access to the long-neglected and overlooked histories of Black Coloradans; Broomfield Out Loud was recognized for their two-year oral history roundup; and the Montezuma Heritage Museum received an award for Ute Mountain Utes: We Are Still Here, an exhibition created in close collaboration with the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe. Find more details right here about these fantastic projects, as well as the two dynamic women whose passion for Colorado history inspired the creation of these honors. Congratulations to all!

One of only two wooden flumes in the country still helping to provide hydroelectric power today, the Cascade Flume carrying water to Electra Lake near Durango has collapsed and is currently out of service. While Xcel Energy says that power is still available thanks to the water stored in Electra Lake, the flume is badly in need of repair and discussions of how to go about this are underway. The Cascade Flume, sometimes called the Tacoma Flume, was first constructed in 1903, initially carrying water to local mines. The use of wooden flumes has dramatically decreased over the last several decades, as more reliable materials replace the wooden structures of yore—but we think it’s pretty special that one of the last ones happens to be here in the Centennial State, so here’s hoping that this piece of Colorado history can be repaired and back in service soon!

So the Rockies have had a stinky season. But baseball fans, don't get too disheartened. Make plans to attend the Old Ball Game vintage-style, with History Colorado Affiliate members. Summit Historical Society in Dillon is first on deck with their 6th Annual Vintage Baseball Game on August 10, and the Louisville Historical Museum is planning their vintage matchup for September 20. So grab those peanuts and Cracker Jacks (and hat and sunscreen), queue up the “Game Changers” episode of the Lost Highways podcast for the road, and make a day of it!

12 Tablecloths Closing Ceremony
Fri. Aug 8, 5:30 PM

Join the Trinidad History Museum for the closing ceremony of 12 Tablecloths, held at the Historic Santa Fe Trail Museum. The evening will feature an artist talk and live weaving demonstration by award-winning artist Chloé Duplessis, as well as a special toast and dedication as the Cathay Williams Memorial Marker is moved to its new location.

Learn more.

Reel to Real: The Changeling
Tue. Aug 12, 6:30 PM

History Colorado and Denver Film have joined forces to present Reel to Real, a four-week series that brings to life Colorado’s history, culture, and communities through film. This screening of the 1980s gem includes a discussion with Damion Pechota, National and State Register Historian with History Colorado, on the movie's connections with the state.

Learn more.

Chicano Murals of Denver by Bus

Fri. Aug 22, 10 AM

Murals—outdoor and accessible to all—have long acted as statements of self shown in color and form. Join us and the Chicana/o/x Murals of Colorado Project for a tour of Chicano art in Denver. We will be joined by internationally acclaimed muralist, painter, and sculptor Emanuel Martínez, who will speak about some of his own work.

Learn more.

Women's Equality Day Featuring Neyla Pekarek

Tue. Aug 26, 11:30 AM

Join the Center for Colorado Women's History as we celebrate Women's Equality Day! Come for a free tour of the first floor of the museum and enjoy pie in our garden. Don’t miss live music from special guest Neyla Pekarek, cellist and vocalist in The Lumineers for 8 years. In 2022, the DCPA commissioned her to develop the musical, Rattlesnake Kate.

Learn more.

Crafty needleworkers of all ages already knew, but National Geographic just published an article espousing the many cognitive, social, emotional, and physical benefits of “granny hobbies.” And since we’re still very much in summer mode, we’re thinking about the beauty of our national parks and sites, immortalized in fiber. There are some great books out there that offer national park inspiration in knit, crochet, and quilting. But it’s hard to beat the patterns shared by staff at various national parks who, alongside caretaking and navigating sticky notes (see Muir Woods above), have been busy adding to their initial collection of free patterns (saguaro cactus, anyone?), proving that there’s even more to love about our National Park Service, celebrating its 109th birthday on August 25!

Your support is more important than ever. In this current environment, humanities institutions like museums and libraries can no longer rely on federal funding. At History Colorado, we pride ourselves in our ability to creatively rise to any challenge—but we do it together—with our Colorado communities. You can help us to meet this moment with our collective commitment to our mission.

With your help, History Colorado can fulfill our vision to ensure that every Coloradan feels rooted, draws strength from those who have come before us, and knows they belong in this place. 

Thank you for your generosity. We are Colorado! ¡Somos Colorado! 

Sweeping vistas, majestic mountains, and graceful plains, captured with unmatched artistry. Experience Colorado through John Fielder’s lens. Celebrate his iconic photography and deep love for the state with a compendium of the first three History Colorado exhibitions featuring John Fielder’s work, together in one friendly volume. Hot off the press and on sale now at History Colorado Center’s gift shop and online!