History Colorado
historical society
History Colorado is a historical society that was established in 1879 as the State Historical Society of Colorado, also known as the Colorado Historical Society. History Colorado is a 501(c)(3) organization and an agency of the State of Colorado under the Department of Higher Education.
Overview
History Colorado offers the public access to cultural and heritage resources of Colorado, including museums and special programs for individuals and families, collection stewardship of Colorado's historic treasures, educational resources for schools, students and teachers, services related to preservation, archaeology and history, and the Stephen H. Hart Research Library.
History Colorado's statewide activities support tourism, historic preservation, education, and research related to Colorado's rich western history, offering the public unique opportunities to interact with Colorado history through its network of museums, which offer both exhibitions and special programs for adults and children.
History Colorado also works with schools across Colorado to provide classrooms and teachers with resources and curriculum related to Colorado history, and offers local communities resources that help them to enrich historical-related community-based programs.
History Colorado publishes the quarterly magazine Colorado Heritage (formerly The Colorado Magazine).
The History Colorado Center
In 2012, the agency opened the new state history museum of Colorado, the History Colorado Center. As History Colorado's headquarters, the History Colorado Center is designed to be a tourist destination, a museum, as well as a center for civic programs and discussion. The building houses core and traveling exhibitions, education/public programs, the Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation, the State Historical Fund, the Stephen H. Hart Research Library, and other History Colorado functions. Located at 12th and Broadway in Denver's Golden Triangle Museum District, this is a building that was designed and constructed by an all-Colorado team: Tryba Architects, Trammell Crow Company and Hensel Phelps Construction Company.
The public source identifies “History Colorado” as historical society. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around History, Colorado and historical.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “History Colorado”, the useful work is to connect “historical society” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The record creator and administrative purpose are central evidence, because official documentation reflects both action and institutional priorities. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 2, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5774674. Authority coordinates are 39.736, -104.987. 1 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1879 and 2012.
Later summaries often reconcile disputed chronology or motive more neatly than the contemporary record permits. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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Three-step research path
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This entry incorporates text from “History Colorado” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.