History Colorado to host public forums in Holyoke and Wiggins

***Press Release***

DENVER - History Colorado is visiting a town near you! History Colorado's Preservation Programs staff are hitting the road for two different tours this summer to hear your needs and  offer solutions through historic preservation, which can increase heritage tourism, boost community involvement, and transform your local economy, all while honoring your past.

 What's your perspective on historic preservation, archaeology, museum operations and educational programming in your town? Share your thoughts at a History Colorado Listening Session, designed specifically to determine how History Colorado's Preservation Programs can help your community's heritage programs thrive.

Looking for funding opportunities to preserve your favorite historic or archaeological site? Stop by a Community Roundtable to learn how the History Colorado State Historical Fund can help.

Listening Sessions 
As part of an update to the 2020 State Historic Preservation Plan, History Colorado staff want to hear your challenges, successes and ideas about preservation, archaeology, museum operations and educational programming in your town.

All Listening Sessions begin at 5:30 p.m.

May 6: Alamosa

May 7: Cortez

May 12: Denver

May 19: Telluride

May 20: Grand Junction

July 8: Lamar

July 9: Pueblo

August 12: Hayden

August 13: Aspen

Community Roundtables
Love a historic property? Need a grant to help preserve it? Join Outreach Specialists from the History Colorado State Historical Fund at a Community Roundtable in your area. Staff will outline the grant process and show you what it takes to achieve your dream preservation project.

May 15: San Luis

May 20: Holyoke

May 22: Ridgway

May 27: Steamboat Springs

May 28: Meeker

May 30: Colorado Springs

June 3: Hugo

June 4: Leadville

June 5: Coaldale

June 6: Pagosa Springs

June 10: Wiggins

June 12: Longmont

June 19: Gunnison

June 26: Las Animas

All Listening Sessions and Community Roundtables are free of charge.

Questions? Contact Preservation Programs Outreach Coordinator Claire Lanier at 303/866-2825 or claire.lanier@state.co.us.

About History Colorado History Colorado inspires generations to find wonder and meaning in our past and to engage in building a better Colorado. Find History Colorado at Facebook.com/HistoryColorado and on Twitter @HistoryColorado, #COHistory and #PreserveCO. HistoryColorado is headquartered in the History Colorado Center, 1200 Broadway, Denver, CO 80203. Visit HistoryColorado.org or call (303) HISTORY for more information.

History Colorado holding Public Meeting April 10 in Sterling

Are the historic resources and history in your community important to you? Get your voice and ideas heard as part of an update to the 2020 State Historic Preservation Plan. History Colorado staff are holding a public listening session in Sterling to better understand what you think are the successes and challenges of historic preservation, archaeology, educational programming, and local museum operations. You input is important as part of this statewide plan. The meeting will take place at the Logan County Courthouse in Sterling on Thursday, April 10, at 6pm. For more information and to RSVP call History Colorado at 303-866-2825.

History Cafe at the Overland Trail Museum in Sterling

Please join the museum staff at the Overland Trail Museum in Sterling for muffins, coffee and a tour of the Smithsonian exhibit, Journey Stories. History Café will take place in the High Plains Education Center on Wednesday, April 9 and again on Wednesday, April 16 at 10am both days. An introduction to Journey Stories will be given while guests enjoy a muffin and coffee, followed by discussion and a tour of the exhibit. Guests will also have the opportunity to visit the Logan County Journey Stories exhibit in the Dave Hamil building as well as view the recent renovations and restoration in the old, original museum building. The museum has been closed due to damage sustained in the September 2013 flood and will be re-opened to the public on Saturday, April 5. Regular museum admission will be charged. Please call the museum for more information at 522-3895.

Overland Trail Museum in Sterling hosting Smithsonian Exhibit October 14-November 23

The Overland Trail Museum in Sterling is offering a unique opportunity to area school children when the Smithsonian exhibit, Journey Stories, is exhibited.  The exhibit examines how transportation and migration helped build our nation, how it has changed us and how our mobile world looked to travelers along the way.

The Museum staff will be offering tours with hands-on activities FREE of charge to school children during the exhibit which will run October 14 - November 23, 2013. 

Unfortunately, transportation costs can often make it difficult for school groups to visit our facility.  We would like to offer your group/business an opportunity to help assure that our kids can experience this wonderful exhibit by helping to build a "scholarship" fund for transportation costs.  Transportation costs typically run about $150 - $200. per bus.  As we build this fund, we will be offering free or lower cost transportation to school groups and will credit your group or business as a partner with the Overland Trail Museum.

Thank you for considering a donation to this project.  Please contact Kay Rich or Perry Johnson at the Overland Trail Museum at 970-522-3895 for more information or to make your donation.

NJC Kids College offers two history classes

***Press Release***

Some say history is becoming hip again; others say it never went out of style. Children today get the standard dose of U.S. history in school, but some of the more fun aspects of it are overlooked. During Northeastern Junior College’s summer Kids College programming, instructor Angela Anderson brings two fun history related classes to area children, grades first through third.

“Nifty Fifty” will be an adventure as students get to explore the United States and find out fun and interesting facts about each of the 50 states. Examples include learning the state where the highest roller coaster is located or which state makes the most breakfast cereal. This class will be held Monday, July 8 and Tuesday, July 9^th, from 2 to 3:30 p.m. each day. Cost is $25 per student.

Nifty Fifty will be followed by a class entitled “The Commander-in-Chief” on Wednesday, July 10^th and Thursday, July 11^th  from 2 to 3:30 p.m.  Anderson will share with the learners great trivia such as which president got stuck in the back tub and which one owned a pet alligator. “Many of our former presidents did some kooky and crazy things,” notes Anderson. Cost of this class is also $25.

To be in either of these classes, the student must be entering first, second or third grade this fall. Anderson assures parents that these classes will be interactive and fun and the students will come home full of new, historical information. Registration for these classes closes on July 3^rd. Call 521-6900 to enroll.

Sterling Public Library To Present "Custer and the Great Buffalo Hunt" April 23

***Sterling Public Library Press Release***

Sterling Public Library is hosting Jeff Barnes on April 23^rd at 7:00 p.m.  Mr. Barnes will present “Custer and the Great Buffalo Hunt.  He will use historical maps, images and photographs to tell the story of the buffalo hunts. 

Mr. Barnes is the author of the newly published “The Great Plains Guide to Custer.”  In the book he talks about 85 forts, battles and other sites associated with the legend.  Mr. Barnes covers many of the well known sites as well as other lesser known sites.  As a result of his searches, his book is a comprehensive guide to Custer’s activity on the Great Plains and what you’ll find at those locations today.

Barnes traveled through many states collecting information for his book.  His book has received advanced praise from noted authors of American West history saying it is “very comprehensive and authoritative.”

Mr. Barnes writes and lives in Omaha, NE.  He is a Nebraska native and journalism graduate of the University of Nebraska – Lincoln.  He has written other books of which his first was “Forts of the Northern Plains”.

Be sure to join as at the library for a fascinating and I’m sure educational program by Jeff Barnes.

Colorado Centennial Farms seeks nominations for 2011 Awards May 16 deadline!

***Press Release***


Celebrating 25 years of honoring farms and ranches owned by the same family for 100 years!

DENVER — Families who have owned and operated their farm or ranch for 100 years or more are encourage to submit a nomination to receive a Colorado Centennial Farms award. Selected nominees will be honored at the 25th Annual Centennial Farms celebration at the Colorado State Fair in Pueblo, Colo., in August 2011. Farmers and ranchers nominating their property for this award must submit an application providing information about the history of their farm and its buildings by end of day on Monday, May 16, 2011.

Nominees must meet the following requirements to be honored as a Colorado Centennial Farms:

• Farming or ranching properties must have remained in the same family continuously for at least 100 years
• Each property must still be a working farm or ranch
• Farms or ranches must have a minimum of 160 acres
• However, properties with fewer than 160 acres can qualify if they gross at least $1,000 in annual sales

History Colorado and the Colorado Department of Agriculture created the Colorado Centennial Farms Program in 1986 to recognize the important role that agriculture has played in the state’s history and economic development.

According to Steve Turner, Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer, the awards are intended to honor families who have maintained the integrity of their historic properties for over a century despite the economic challenges of modern farming. “Historic agricultural sites around the nation are disappearing at an alarming rate,” said Turner, who also directs the State Historical Fund, the historic preservation grants program of History Colorado. “But these families have withstood the pressures of growth, changes in farming methods, drought and economic conditions to keep their way of life. These historic farms contribute immeasurably to the sense of place and pride Coloradans feel about their state.”

How to nominate: Download a Colorado Centennial Farms application at http://www.historycolorado.org/archaeologists/centennial-farms, or call Lyle Miller at 303-866-2779.

Due Date: May 16, 2011

Centennial Farms Awards:
The 2011 Colorado Centennial Farms awards will be presented at the Colorado State Fair in Pueblo in August. At the ceremony, award recipients will receive a certificate signed by the Governor and a sign to display on their property. In addition, the National Trust for Historic Preservation will recognize families who have maintained the historic buildings on their property that are 50 years old or older.

To date, more than 350 Colorado farms and ranches representing 61 counties across the state have received the Centennial Farms award. The majority of these farms were established between 1880 and 1895.

Following are a few Colorado Centennial Farms facts:
• The Colorado Centennial Farms program has designated 354 farms and ranches
• Colorado Centennial Farms have been designated in 61 of our state’s 64 counties
• Weld County has 45 designated Centennial Farms – the most in Colorado
• Established in 1851, the Ortega Farm in San Luis is Colorado’s oldest Centennial Farm
• Gallegos Ranch in Costilla County holds the state’s oldest water rights with decrees dated 1855 and 1856

Questions: Lyle Miller, 303-866-2779 or email lyle.miller@chs.state.co.us
Press inquiries, Shannon Haltiwanger at 303-866-2049 or email shannon.haltiwanger@chs.state.co.us

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History Colorado, the Colorado Historical Society, engages people in our State’s heritage through collecting, preserving, and discovering the past and providing perspectives for the future. Established in 1879, History Colorado is headquartered in Denver. This educational institution contains statewide historical museums and sites, educational programs, volunteer and membership opportunities, the Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation, the Stephen H. Hart Research Library, and administers the State Historical Fund—a preservation-based grants program funded by limited stakes gaming tax revenues. Visit www.historycolorado.org or call (303) 866-3682. Become a History Colorado fan on Facebook at www.facebook.com/HistoryColorado.