Tag: history
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100 years of Cheyenne Mountain Zoo: A colorful past meets an innovative present
Ahead of its much-anticipated debut at Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, construction continued this spring on a state-of-the-art facility for giraffes, the treasured animal in the zoo’s logo and in the hearts of visitors, who soon will be able to interact with the herd in a whole new way. And high on the mountain overlooking the progress…
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Who were all the mayors of Colorado Springs?
During this Colorado 150 anniversary year, Gazette readers have been curious about Colorado Springs’ earliest history and all the people who have served as mayor since the 1800s until today. It evolved over time and as the city grew. Starting in 1872-1875 the leaders were five trustees with one serving as president, all appointed by…
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Community club has long been center of activity
By Steve Plutt Ninety-eight years ago, at the top of Ute Pass and the center of Teller County, Divide area residents, ranchers and businesses formed the Pikes Peak Community Club (PPCC). The purpose of the club was to provide a place to conduct dances and other entertainment as well as recreational activities for its members.…
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In one year, thousands of Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts had memorable Colorado Springs visits
Scrapbooks and boxes of memories hold special older-family-member keepsakes from historic visits to Colorado Springs during two large Boy Scout and Girl Scout anniversaries in 1959 and 1960. Perhaps the next generations, possibly many of them Scouts as well, have seen the pictures and heard the stories and visited the sites just piecing together pages…
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The morning a dynamite train destroyed the town of Fountain in 1888
May is an anniversary month for the town of Fountain and it’s in all their history books for the most explosive of reasons. It’s called “The Blast” and it flattened the little town south of Colorado Springs. It’s just part of an interesting history. Fountain’s roots go back to the Ute Indians who wintered at…
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‘Mrs. Vos’ was a Woodland Park fixture
By Steve Plutt, Special to the Courier It was in 1933 when John and Clara Vos came to Woodland Park and 1935 when the couple owned and operated a filling station here. That station was at the intersection of Park and Midland, about where Joanie’s Deli and the Thai Restaurant are now. Then they built…
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Peaceful St. Jude Shrine, Pauline Chapel part of the story of generations of Penrose family women
Passersby on the road to Cheyenne Mountain Zoo during this 100th anniversary year sometimes wonder the whole story behind a lovely little roadside shrine tucked away at an intersection along the way. Residents, as well, have wanted to know more as they rest there for quiet moments. The shrine is one of two religious memorials…
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‘Obliterate and forget’: A brief history of federal Indian boarding schools in Colorado
By Glenys Echavarri and Holly NortonHistory Colorado Our collective history is punctuated by tragedies, and while these tragedies need to be faced head-on, the following discussion may be upsetting for some readers. For many Americans, the announcement this past June that the graves of 215 children were found in Kamloops, Canada, was the first time…
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Julia A. Holmes: Abolitionist, suffragette and the first Anglo woman to climb Pikes Peak
By Steve Plutt, Special to the Courier In celebration of Colorado’s 150th birthday and the United States’ 250th, local historian Steve Plutt and the Ute Pass Historical Society have written a series of stories to bring the area’s colorful history to life. The life of Julia Holmes was dynamic, full of adventures and daring escapades.…