Adsactly Education: Colorado Part 1

Colorado


The Centenial State


Capital: Denver


Largest City: Denver


104,094 sq. mi. 269,837 sq. Km


8th Largest State


Admitted to US: 1876 (38th)


Population: 5,600,000 (21st)


Highest Point: 14,440 ft (4401 m)


Lowest Point: 3317 ft (1011 m)


State Bird: Lark Bunting


State Flower: Rocky Mountain Columbine


Motto: Nothing Without Providence


Bordered By: Wyoming, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah.

Colorado

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Colorado takes it’s name from the river, as named Rio Colorado by Spanish explorers. Famous for it’s mountainous character it is also part of the western edge of the great plains and contains a part of the Colorado Plateau.

People have been living in what is now Colorado for over 13,000 years. The eastern plains were part of the migratory path that eventually populated all of the US. Ancient Pueblo people lived in the south west of the state as long ago as 3000 BCE. Roughly 1000 years ago they moved on. Where they went is unknown. Modern day tribes have long inhabited the valleys of the west slope and many natives hunted and stayed in the plains of the east slope.

Colorado was claimed by the Spanish Empire but the US acquired a claim for much of the state in the Louisiana Purchase of 1803. An American force led by Zebulon Pike traveled to Colorado to cement the claim. Pike and his troopers were arrested by the Spanish and transported to the State of Chihuahua where they were eventually released. Spain granted Mexico it’s independence in 1821 and the conclusion of the Mexican-American war in 1848 saw Mexico relinquish it’s claim on Colorado and much more.

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Colorado had a part to play in the US Civil War. Not as a combatant state or even a territory but as a pawn in the Slavery vs. Free debate that raged in the US in the years leading up to the Civil War. Despite several attempts to organize the territory on the Federal Level nothing was accomplished until the South actually seceded and the territory could be organized as a ‘Free Territory'.

Most of Colorado was organized as a territory (part of it was part of the Missouri Territory) in 1861 and admitted to the Union in 1876, the centennial of the US. Colorado granted women the right to vote in 1893 after a vote by the men of the state. They were the second state to grant universal suffrage and the first to do so by a vote.

The state was initially populated by gold and silver miners and the people that follow the claims but the rich farmlands of the east brought a stable population. Particularly after WWII tourism and tech companies attracted many to Colorado.

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Geography

Colorado is right in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, but it is more than that. It has the obvious mountains, but it also has high desert, great plains, and some seriously impressive canyons as well. Colorado’s LOWEST point is 3317 feet (1011 m) above sea level making it the highest state in the Union.

The eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains is home to the bulk of the population and known as the Front Range. The other side of the Continental Divide is known as The West Slope. Southern Colorado has two more smaller mountain ranges. The Colorado River has it’s headwaters there. Eastern Colorado is an extension of the Great Plains of the US, with it’s heavy animal production of cows, pigs and chickens. There are incredible canyons through out most of the state, particularly on the West Slope, in the south and east.

Weather

As you might guess, the mountains and valleys seriously affect the weather in the state. It’s a rare place where temperatures in the south are not necessarily warmer than the north. From the Front Range to the eastern border the weather tends toward warmish days and cool nights. 75% of the precipitation on the plains falls from April to November but is prone to regional drought.

The west slope is wetter and warmer, primarily influenced by the Pacific Ocean. Big snow is possible here as is drenching rains. The ‘Great Valley’ in the west of the state is semi desert but is home to ‘big’ agriculture with irrigation water pulled mainly from the rivers that flow west. The valley is a big producer of fruits and vegetables.

Rocky Mountain NP Photo Courtesy the Author

The southern mountains are often blocked from the Pacific weather by the Rockies so tends to be drier and much more prone to drought. It seems the headwaters of the Colorado are either in drought conditions or flooding in the spring.

Temperature average for Denver in July is 92/61 F (33-16C) while December shows 47/18 F (8/-8C). Alamosa in the south tends to be cooler and Grand Junction in the Great Valley somewhat warmer.

Extreme weather in Colorado tends to be Hailstorms (some of the largest on record are at Denver) extreme snow and violent thunderstorms. The plains are subject to occasional tornadoes.

Special Law

It is illegal to ride a horse while under the influence.

Tags may be ripped off of pillows and mattresses.

I hope you enjoyed this synopsis of Colorado, it will continue in the next installment. I do hope you will return for the conlusion.

The words and ideas are mine but I used Wikipedia Colorado as the source for the information.

All images in this post are properly licensed and used.

Authored by: @bigtom13

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