History of Colorado

The human history of Colorado extends back more than 13,000 years. The region that is today the state of Colorado was first inhabited by Native Americans. The Lindenmeier Site in Larimer County, Colorado, is a Folsom culture archaeological site with artifacts dating from approximately 8710 BCE.

When explorers, early trappers and hunters and gold miners visited and settled in Colorado, the state was populated by Native American nations. Westward expansion brought European settlers to the area and Colorado's recorded history began with treaties and wars with Mexico and Native American nations to gain territorial lands to support the transcontinental migration. In the early days of the Colorado gold rush, Colorado was a Territory of Kansas and Territory of Jefferson. On August 1, 1876, Colorado was admitted as a state, maintaining its territorial borders.

The first Europeans to visit the region were Spanish conquistadors. Juan de Oñate who lived until 1626, founded what would become the Spanish province of Santa Fé de Nuevo México among the pueblos of the Rio Grande on July 11, 1598. In 1706 Juan de Ulibarri claimed the territory of Colorado. In 1787 Juan Bautista de Anza established the settlement of San Carlos near present-day Pueblo, Colorado, but it quickly failed. This was the only Spanish attempt to create a settlement north of the Arkansas River. Colorado became part of the Spanish province of Santa Fe de Nuevo México as part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. The Spaniards traded with Native Americans who lived there and established the Comercio Comanchero (Comanche Trade) among the Spanish settlements and the Native Americans.

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