COLORADO

Centennial State

Origin of state's name: Taken from the Spanish for the "color red" and was applied to the Colorado river

The flag consists of three alternate stripes of equal width and at right angles to the staff, the two outer stripes to be blue of the same color as in the blue field of the national flag and the middle stripe to be white, the proportion of the flag being a width of two-thirds of its length. At a distance from the staff end of the flag of one fifth of the total length of the flag there is a circular red C, of the same color as the red in the national flag of the United States. The diameter of the letter is two-thirds of the width of the flag. The inner line of the opening of the letter C is three-fourths of the width of its body or bar, and the outer line of the opening is double the length of the inner line thereof. Completely filling the open space inside the letter C is a golden disk, attached to the flag is a cord of gold and silver, intertwined, with tassels, one of gold and one of silver.

Entered Union: August 1, 1876; 38th State
Capital: Denver
Motto: Nil Sine Numine (Nothing without Providence)
Flower: Rocky Mountain Columbine
Bird: Lark bunting
Tree: Colorado blue spruce
Song: Where the Columbines Grow

A LITTLE HISTORY
Early civilization centered around Mesa Verde 2,000 years ago. The U.S. acquired eastern Colorado in the Louisiana Purchase in 1803; Lt. Zebulon M. Pike explored the area in 1806, discovering the peak that bears his name. After the Mixican War, 1846-48, U.S. immigrants settled in the east, former Mexicans in the south.

FACTS AND TRIVIA ABOUT COLORADO
The Colorado River empties into the Gulf of California.

Colorado has the highest average elevation of any state. More than 1,000 of its Rocky Mountain peaks reach over10,000 feet high, and 54 tower above14,000 feet!

Colorado built its economy on the mining industry, but now only 1.2 percent of the state's workforce is employed in oil, gas, coal, and metal mining. The state is now famous for its many ski resorts, where tourists spend 1.8 billion dollars every year.

The most famous of the Rocky Mountains is Pike's Peak, discovered by U.S. Army Lieutenant Zebulon M. Pike in 1806.

In 1863, the first telegraph line in Colorado linked Denver with the eastern U.S. A ten-word telegram from Denver to New York City cost $9.10. (And that's a lot of money by today's standards!)

The First American to report finding gold in Colorado was James Purcell in 1807.

The First non-Indian permanent settlement in Colorado was founded in the San Luis Valley in 1851.

The first decreed irrigation ditch dug was at Culbera.. It is recorded as the "San Luis People's Ditch" with the water decree being dated April 10, 1852, the date the water referee determined the actual digging and use of the ditch began.

The first gold was panned in Colorado in 1858 at the mouth of Dry Creek where it empties into the South Platte River.

The first stagecoach of the Pikes Peak Express arrived in Denver from Ft. Leavenworth, Kansas in 1859.

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The first colony of bees was brought to Colorado in 1862.

1864 - Georgetown - The first important silver vein, the Belmont Lode, was discovered at Georgetown, in Clear Creek County, in 1864.

The first important smelter was constructed in Blackhawk,Colorado, in 1869 which began the era of hard rock mining.

The first rodeo was held in Deer Trail, Colorado in 1869 and possibly the first in the United States.

The first electric generating station built west of the Mississippi River was in Denver in 1881.

1892 - Denver - The first fireproof building built (1892)in Colorado was the Brown Palace Hotel.

Davis H. Waite was the first and only governor in Colorado history to be elected from a third party (Populist).

Colorado was the first state in which all registered voters voted for the rights of women to vote. Colorado was the second state in the nation to allow suffrage rights to women.

On November 6, 1894, the first three women ever elected to a state legislature in the United States were elected to the Colorado General Assembly. They were Clara Cressingham, R-Arapahoe County; Carrie Holly, R-Pueblo County; and Frances Klock, R-Arapahoe County.

Davis Waite, in 1894, was the first governor in U.S. history to call out the State Militia to protect striking workers at Cripple Creek.

Colorado Springs - The first automobile endurance race was held in 1903, going from Denver to Colorado Springs.

The first national park (Mesa Verde) was established in Colorado in 1906. This was also the first national park in the nation which was established to preserve human occupation of a region (Anazazi).

The first juvenile court in the nation was created by Judge Ben B. Linsday in 1909 in Denver.

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