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• Nicknamed the "Centennial State," Colorado is located in the Rocky Mountain Region of the United States. Colorado's terrain is notably diverse, including both mountains and plains. The state is a geographical rectangle and is one of only three states to have lines of latitude and longitude designate its boundaries.

• Fast Facts

  1. Capital: Denver Science for a Changing World: Colorado
  2. Governor: Bill Ritter, Jr.Official Site: Bill Ritter
  3. Population: 4,861,515 (2007 estimates)Economic Research Service: Colorado
  4. Founded: August 1, 1876
  5. Time zone: Mountain Standard Time
  6. Major cities: Denver, Boulder, Colorado Springs
  7. Highest point: 14,433 ft Science for a Changing World: Colorado
  8. Lowest point: 3,315 ft Science for a Changing World: Colorado
  9. Nickname: The Centennial State
  10. 8th largest state in the U.S.
  11. State animal: Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep

• History

  The area that is now Colorado was inhabited by Native Americans for over 13 millennia. The United States acquired the land as part of the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. Settlement of the land was disputed for a time, but in 1861, President James Buchanan signed an act of Congress organizing the free Territory of Colorado. Colorado was admitted into the union in 1876 by President Ulysses S. Grant as the 38th state.

  Colorado was the first state to grant universal suffrage to women in 1893, and while its population suffered during the Dust Bowl and Great Depression, an influx of immigrants following the second World War bolstered its fortunes. Today, tourism and technology have become mainstays of the state's economy.

• National Parks

  • Arapaho National Recreation Area
  • Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site
  • Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
  • Canyons of the Ancients National Monument
  • Colorado National Monument
  • Continental Divide National Scenic Trail
  • Curecanti National Recreation Area
  • Dinosaur National Monument
  • Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument
  • Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve
  • Hovenweep National Monument
  • Mesa Verde National Park
  • Old Spanish National Historic Trail
  • Pony Express National Historic Trail
  • Rocky Mountain National Park
  • Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site
  • Santa Fe National Historic Trail
  • Yucca House National Monument

• Related Mahalo Pages

  Glenwood Springs Deals | United States | Denver | Boulder | Denver Vacation | Boulder Vacation | Colorado River | Wayne Allard | Pikes Peak | 2008 Colorado Caucus | Rocky Mountains | Namaste Solar

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