On Saturday, Aug. 3, 2024, the History Colorado Center in Denver is hosting a birthday party for Colorado featuring more than 15 attractions that combine to create a free celebration worthy of the Centennial State and the Mile High City.
In addition to this event in the heart of downtown Denver, History Colorado’s museums across the state are joining in on the celebration of Colorful Colorado.
This means that whether visitors go to the History Colorado Center, the Center for Colorado Women’s History in Denver, El Pueblo History Museum, Healy House Museum & Dexter Cabin in Leadville, Fort Garland Museum and Cultural Center, Trinidad History Museum, or the Ute Indian Museum in Montrose, they can explore our shared history and celebrate the 148th birthday of the Centennial State for free.
Locations, visitor hours, and entertainment offerings for History Colorado museums statewide canbe found here.
Denver7 is a proud partner of History Colorado’s Colorado Day celebration.
Guests can expect to experience a number of free attractions at the History Colorado Center as part of this celebration, including:
- Living history and cultural demonstrations including a performance by the Colorado Inter-Tribal Dancers and the Colorado Youth Mariachi Program, as well as a traditional Chinese Lion Dance from Shaolin Hung Mei Kung Fu
- Face painting and sidewalk chalk stations
- Gold panning with the Georgetown Loop Railroad
- A Colorado Proud produce booth and green chilé roaster serving up the finest Pueblo green chiles
- A Max Fund pet adoption event
- Artifact tables displaying objects from History Colorado’s collection and staff demonstrating the historic tool making process known as flintknapping
- Information and activity booths from partnering organization like Pop Culture Classroom and Tesoro Cultural Center
- Much more!
Free access to the History Colorado Center during this event also allows guests to explore more than 15 exhibitions spanning five floors including:
- Danielle SeeWalker: But We Have Something to Say, where guests can appreciate the artwork of Danielle SeeWalker (Standing Rock Sioux Tribe) in conversation with historic objects, and explore issues important to Native American peoples while reconsidering their preconceptions of Indigenous art,
- Winter Warriors: The 10th Mountain Division in World War II, a lavishly visual exhibition that explores the history of the U.S. Army's first winter warfare division from its training at Camp Hale in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains through their crucial breakthrough against the Nazi German Army in the mountains of Italy,
- The Sand Creek Massacre: The Betrayal that Changed Cheyenne and Arapaho People Forever, a core offering at History Colorado that highlights the living culture of the Cheyenne and Arapaho, two separate Tribes with distinct histories, that were bound together forever after the tragedy at Sand Creek,
- Colorado Stories, which features a suite of exhibitions with media- and artifact-rich galleries exploring the many ways Coloradans have created community from the mountains to the plains,
- Denver A-Z, which highlights the heart, the art, the whimsy and the energy of Denver's people, places, and moments in a lighthearted and immersive exhibit,
- And Living West , a highly interactive exhibit that explores how Colorado's environment has shaped human history, while at the same time, people's choices have shaped the land.
The Colorado Day Celebration at the History Colorado Center is a free event, but RSVP is appreciated.
The History Colorado Center is open from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and is located at 1200 North Broadway in the heart of Denver’s Golden Triangle Creative District.
In addition to the amazing festivities at the History Colorado Center, partner museum Center for Colorado Women's History will be hosting additional free Colorado Day festivities just around the corner at 1310 Bannock Street from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Colorado Day at the Center for Colorado Women's History is also a free event, but RSVP is appreciated.
In addition to free general admission the Center for Colorado Women’s History will be offering the following free attractions:
- Crafts, face painting, and a vintage photography station,
- Live music from local artist Eclectic Rendition and Janeen Bogue and Friends,
- Information and activity tables from partnering organizations such as Asian Girls Ignite,
- Women’s Wilderness, and The Word: A Storytelling Sanctuary,
- Games and vendor booths on the beautiful front lawn,
- Access to the museum’s newest installation: 12 Tablecloths by Chloé Duplessis, and
- Much more!
Parking meters are available near both museums along Broadway, Bannock, and Lincoln Street, with covered parking is available at the Art Garage (1268 Lincoln St.) and the Cultural Center Complex Garage (65 W. 12th Ave.). Additionally, several RTD transit routes serve the History Colorado Center and the Center for Colorado Women’s History.
Information about accessibility at the History Colorado Center is available here.
About History Colorado
History Colorado is a division of the Colorado Department of Higher Education and a 501(c)3 nonprofit that has served more than 75,000 students and 500,000 people in Colorado each year. It is a 145-year-old institution that operates eleven museums and historic sites, a free public research center, the Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation which provides technical assistance, educational opportunities, and other access to archaeology and historic preservation, and the History Colorado State Historical Fund, which is one of the nation’s largest state funded preservation programs of its kind. More than 70 percent of SHF grants are allocated in rural areas of the state. Additionally, the offices of the State Archaeologist and the State Historic Preservation Officer are part of History Colorado.
History Colorado’s mission is to create a better future for Colorado by inspiring wonder in our past. We serve as the state’s memory, preserving and sharing the places, stories, and material culture of Colorado through educational programs, historic preservation grants, collecting, outreach to Colorado communities, the History Colorado Center and Stephen H. Hart Research Center in Denver, and 10 other museums and historic attractions statewide. History Colorado is one of only six Smithsonian Affiliates in Colorado. Visit HistoryColorado.org, or call 303-HISTORY, for more information.
This article was paid for through an in-kind partnership.