History Colorado

The 1976 Bicentennial was full of patriotic fanfare and a renewed zeal for American history. But for many, the celebrations were tainted by questions of whose history was being ignored in those celebrations, and by what some saw as rampant commercialization and low-effort attempts to capitalize on Americans’ patriotic feelings.

Here in Colorado, this was happening against the backdrop of an aborted Olympics, forced to find another venue by opposition rooted in suspicions that the people of the state would foot the bill for a public-coffer-draining event that would harm the fragile ecosystems and degrade quality of life. Frequent contributor Jim England brings us more behind the opportunities for opposition in 1976, all new from The Colorado Magazine. Read more: https://h-co.org/other-centennial-year

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Image 1: John Denver (left) and Dick Lamm (right) during Lamm’s campaign for governor in 1974. History Colorado, 86.407.12.3
Image 2: Corky Gonzales speaking outside a City and County of Denver building, photographed in 1980 by Dave Buresh for The Denver Post. History Colorado, PH.PROP.652
Image 3: Left, a Colorado Centennial patch from 1976. Right, a 1976 Denver Olympics patch, made to celebrate games that were never held. History Colorado, 88.339.74.B and History Colorado, 2012.36.1

Are you ready to launch your career in public history or education? 🏛️ History Colorado is currently recruiting 15 AmeriCorps Members to serve at 10 of our museum and community sites across the state!

As an Education Engagement AmeriCorps Member, you will gain incredible hands-on experience facilitating youth field trips, leading Hands-On History camps, and connecting communities with the diverse stories of Colorado.

The Perks of Service:
✅ Living Stipend
✅ Segal Education Award (to use toward tuition or student loans!)
✅ Professional development & networking
✅ Free membership to all 7 History Colorado museums
(Full-time members are also eligible for health insurance at no cost).

We have full-time, half-time, and quarter-time opportunities available. Applications are due August 3rd! Find the perfect site for you and apply here: historycolorado.org/americorps

The Central City Opera House Association is beginning exterior work on the Williams’ Stables building this year, supported by a recently awarded State Historical Fund grant. Opened in 1876 as a livery for guests of the Central City Opera House and Teller House Hotel, the stables were cleared on Opera House performance nights to host square dance exhibitions in the 1940s and 1950s. The Central City Opera House Association purchased the building in 1953, converting it into a rehearsal and performance space. Today it serves as storage, but the organization plans to bring performance and the arts back into the building by rehabilitating and renovating it into a year-round black box theater—with SHF grant money helping to address the roof, structural framing, and window replacement. Be sure to check out the Central City Opera Summer Festival line up, celebrating Colorado’s 150th with the 70th anniversary of The Ballad of Baby Doe, returning to the very venue in which it premiered.

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Image: Williams’ Stables building celebrates 150 years with an eye toward the future. Courtesy of Central City Opera House.

Snooping for birthday presents as a kid, I found a box of trophies. Atop each sat a gold plastic car, the bottom engraved with my dad's name. Turns out he drag-raced in the 1970s. He happily shared breathless tales of broken laws and tricks to win.

I recorded some of his best stories in 2017 (https://soundcloud.com/historycolorado/oral-history-of-steven-morton-drag-racing-stories). We planned to capture one each week. Then, we took a couple weeks off. Weeks turned into months, and we never recorded anymore of his legendary storytelling. Years later, History Colorado sought oral histories from niche subcultures. I pitched my dad’s recordings to our curator. She loved them, suggesting we include his old photographs to complement the audio—a fitting honor for a man who loved history as much as a roaring engine.

Dad died in 2020, taking with him tales of repossessing cars, sermons from the pulpit, arm wrestling tournaments, tow-truck driving through blinding blizzards, and so many others. I assumed we had more time. It’s a trap many know all too well. Still, I’m grateful we saved the memories we did. I encourage you to do the same. Our loved ones share so many stories, ones we sometimes dismiss as they grow too familiar. Once they’re no longer with us we wish we could hear those stories one more time. That's what they become: the stories they told.

If you want to preserve your own family's history, History Colorado offers resources to help you get started. Don't wait. Begin capturing those stories today. Learn more: https://www.historycolorado.org/oral-histories

—Jeremy Morton, Exhibition Developer and Historian

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Images: Steve Morton: dad, drag race winner, car enthusiast (especially his beloved Oldsmobile 442). From the Steve Morton Collection. History Colorado, 2023.152.4