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Indulge in the strychnine-laced whiskey and opium-based laudanum of early Colorado. A lack of regulation and easy access to potent tinctures made for fun times in the Wild West, but often led to addiction and health concerns for a large part of Colorado's early population. Step into Denver's opium dens, breweries and recent headline-making legislation that continues to designate Colorado as the "wild West".
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Built by the Brantner Brothers in 1959, Four Mile House is the oldest standing structure in Denver, with a long history of female entrepreneuialism. In it's early days, the house servered as a store, restaurant, tavern and boarding house, for travelers headed west along the Smokey Hill Trail. From Mary Cawker to Mille Booth, meet the pioneering women whose hard work and vision brought the stage stop to life.
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Sometimes referred to as the "People's Constitution," the Colorado Constitution was ratified in 1876, earning Colorado the nickname "The Centennial State" . Since then, the Constitution has never been rewritten, but has been amended over 152 times. This fact has established the Colorado Constitution as one of the most easily amended state constitutions in the country. From it's early days as a tri-lingual document written in English, Spanish and German,...
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As the highest vehicular tunnel in the world with an elevation of 11,155 feet, the Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel is a massive engineering achievement. Armed with 150 security cameras and serving over 30,000 motorists per day, 365 days per year, the Tunnel today runs as a well-oiled machine. However, years of political, geological and logistical challenges almost prevented this "gateway to the high country".
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Hydro Power: In 1891, due to a lack of timber fuel and the challenge of steep mountain passes, all mining operations in Telluride were in danger of being shut down. Cue Lucien L. Nunn. This Colorado pioneer financed Ames Hydroelectric Generating Plant, the first in the world to generate alternating current electric power for industrial application. Thanks to this historic milestone, Telluride's Gold King Mine remained open and hydroelectric plants...
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Nestled between the Sangre de Cristo and San Juan Mountains, the scenic San Luis Valley holds a rich history for South-Central Colorado. Travel to San Luis, "Colorado's First Town," founded in 1851. Step inside the Valley's beautifully preserved 19 century churches. Explore agricultural legacies from La Vega, an expansive communal pasture land, to the People's Ditch, a man-made canal that holds the earliest adjudicated water rights in the state.
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aLiving West Water: What happened to the Ancient Puebloans of Mesa Verde and Goodman Point? After settling in southwest Colorado for over 700 years, they suddenly left their cliff dwellings and spring side kivas, leaving behind a variety of archaeological treasures. Historians and archaeologists discuss the possibility that this drastic move was caused by a devastating drought in the southwest region. Discover the similarities in conditions and what...
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On a warm day in an otherwise blustery and cold January 1906, the first "Western Live Stock Show" opened in Denver under a circus tent. The event welcomed thousands of stockman from all across the American West to show-off their animals, trade stock and encourage a meatpacking center that rivaled those in Kansas City and Chicago. Discover how the Stock Show has grown into a state treasure and symbol of Colorado's deep agricultural roots.
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aDust Bowl: The Dust Bowl was a dark and dreary time for many Coloradans. Between 1862 and 1934, the federal government granted 1.6 million homesteads to Americans under the Homesteading Act of 1862. This Colorado Experience episode follows two families who moved west, hoping to reap the benefits of the farming boom. Their luck changes as they find themselves in the middle of one of the largest environmental disasters to hit the plains.
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In March, 1931, a winter blizzard took the lives of five children who were stranded inside a school bus. In this episode, descendants of the survivors share their family stories of the events that transpired over those fateful 33 hours. Discover the effects this terrible tragedy had on its survivors throughout their lifetimes, and the lessons still valued today throughout southeast Colorado and the nation.