Colorado History

The 2026 Winter Olympics are underway. And this year, nearly a third of the Coloradans on Team USA hail from Steamboat Springs. So, what makes Steamboat such a fertile training ground for Olympic athletes? We reached out to an expert in the town's history for some answers.

Black History is an important part of Colorado’s 150 years as a state. At History Colorado, visitors can see some artifacts that speak to the Black legacy here in an exhibit that shares the state's story in 100 objects.

Colorado composer Nathan Hall mixed music with archaeology as he dreamed up his latest album. The music focuses on hand-carved stone instruments called lithophones. They were carved several thousand years ago and discovered near what’s now Great Sand Dunes National Park.

Ahead of the state’s 150th birthday year, curators at History Colorado had an unusual idea to commemorate the event. They decided to track down the oldest known photograph taken in Colorado. The image they uncovered, taken in 1853, is striking – and it reveals fascinating details about the history of the West.

Howelsen Hill is a small ski area in Steamboat Springs – just a fraction of the size of Colorado’s largest ski resorts. But it’s had an outsized impact on the state’s ski culture, and it's been the training ground for many Olympians since it opened in 1915. As part of our weeklong look at the people and places that shaped Colorado, hear about Howelsen Hill and its founder, Carl Howelsen.

Colorado celebrates its 150th birthday later this year – and throughout 2026, the KUNC newsroom will feature fascinating stories from the state's history. We kick things off this week on In The NoCo with the story of a massive ice palace in Leadville. It drew tourists from around the world in the late 1800s.

The Greeley History Museum is opening a new exhibit next week that tells the story of two French artists as they travel across the West for the first time during the late 1800s.

An unusual twist on the holiday classic The Nutcracker will return to the stage in Denver later this month. It uses Duke Ellington’s jazz version of the famous score to celebrate the history of Denver’s Five Points neighborhood – which was known in the 1930s and ‘40s as “The Harlem of the West.”

Colorado composer Nathan Hall mixed music with archaeology as he dreamed up his new album. The music focuses on hand-carved stone instruments called lithophones. They were carved several thousand years ago and discovered near what’s now Great Sand Dunes National Park. Learn more about new music played on ancient instruments.

History Colorado is getting into the spooky season a bit early by presenting its most unusual artifacts — from poison to clown dolls — for its second-annual Creeporado event.