Colorado

Name: Rollins Pass
Brand: B. Travis Wright
SKU: 9781467107952
Price: 12.0 USD
Availability: InStock

There is decidedly less pickaxe toting in contemporary Creede than when wild frontiersmen first flooded the gold mines in Colorado. But the pioneering exploits of Colorado history didn’t cease when modern comforts lined the shelves at Denver Dry Goods and luxury hotels opened shop in Durango. Just visit Fort Collins to observe the work of Temple Grandin or watch the laws of physics flex at Lowry Airforce Base. From pristine Rocky Mountain peaks to the deepest incursions of a coal cart, push the limits with our Colorado history books. [View all Colorado books]

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Rollins Pass

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Grand County

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Denver Airports

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Cherry Hills Village

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Denver

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Vanished Denver Landmarks

$21.99 $11.00 Save 50%

Florence

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Fruita

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Northglenn

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Black Cowboys and Early Cattle Drives

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Pueblo

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Wicked Cripple Creek District

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Grand Lake

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

La Plata County

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Denver Food

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Yampa Valley's Lost Egeria Park

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Hidden History of Routt County

$21.99 $11.00 Save 50%

Douglas County

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

4UR Ranch at Wagon Wheel Gap Hot Springs Resort

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Colorado Ice Hockey

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Colorado's Daring Ivy Baldwin

$21.99 $11.00 Save 50%

Boulder County Beer

$21.99 $11.00 Save 50%

LOL Jokes Denver

$9.99 $5.00 Save 50%

Rollins Pass

9781467107952

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Rollins Pass holds 12,000 years of history; Paleoindians utilized the pass 65 centuries before the invention of the wheel.

Later, wagon and rail magnates saw the pass as a "Great Gate" across the Continental Divide. Today, the area is listed as one of Colorado's Most Endangered Places.

B. Travis Wright, MPS, is a 2022 Colorado Preservation Inc. State Honor Award recipient for his advocacy of Rollins Pass. As historians and photographers, B. Travis Wright and Kate Wright, MBA, document the timeless landscapes atop Rollins Pass.

Grand County

9781467108973

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Established in 1874, before Colorado became a state, Grand County is nestled in the north-central Rocky Mountains. Named for the Grand River (renamed the Colorado River), Grand County encompasses 1,868 square miles, which is larger than Rhode Island. For thousands of years, Indigenous, nomadic tribes enjoyed natural hot springs and summer hunting. Spanish explorers, French fur trappers, and mountain men followed. In 1858, the gold rush brought rugged prospectors, creating towns named Coulter, Gaskill, Lulu City, and Teller. Later, homesteaders, loggers, merchants, and the Moffat Railroad built Arrow, Hideaway Park, Winter Park, Fraser, Tabernash, Granby, Grand Lake, Hot Sulphur Springs, Parshall, Kremmling, and Radium. Today, tourists flock to Rocky Mountain National Park, Arapaho National Forest, and award-winning dude ranches and resorts to enjoy some of the world's most beautiful lakes, mountain ranges, and abundant wildlife. Written in an easy-to-read pictorial format with over 200 curated photographs, Grand County is for readers interested in true stories of Western grit and courage.

Denver Airports

9781467102407

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

On the cusp of the Great Depression, Denver mayor Benjamin Stapleton pushed for the development of the first city-operated airport. Denver Municipal Airport opened in 1929 with three hub airlines. While Stapleton would be honored to later have the airport named after him, by the mid-1980s, the name Stapleton had become synonymous with congestion, flight delays, and frequent closures when the snow moved in. To solve the problem, Denver mayor Federico Peña envisioned a massive new airport, but when Denver International Airport (DIA) opened in 1995, its three hub airlines had whittled away to just one, and critics warned of dire consequences. Yet the airport persevered, and today, with its iconic tent roof, six runways, and 53 square miles of land, it stands amongst the most beautiful and busiest airports in the world. This is the story of three airports and how they brought the city from cow town to boomtown.

Cherry Hills Village

9781467108638

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

The history of Cherry Hills Village is about the trailblazers, settlers, visionaries, and others who came to Colorado from disparate places and backgrounds with their dreams in hand and a vision of a life in the Rocky Mountains. This cast of characters created a narrative of westward expansion—a saga of migration, discovery, opportunity, and hope. Here, natives and newcomers raised families, started businesses, created a city, and established multigenerational legacies. For millennia, the area has been continuously inhabited by different cultures, including prehistoric and Indigenous peoples, followed by European immigrants. Early and more recent residents alike knew that there was something special about the place that would become Cherry Hills Village.

Dino G. Maniatis is a first-generation Colorado native who has worked in real estate and property management for over 20 years. As a soldier and strategic intelligence officer in the US Army, Major Maniatis is assigned to Army Space and Missile Defense Command. He is a longtime resident of Cherry Hills Village, where he lives with his wife, Kristin, a physician, and their daughters Angelina and Kristina. He has served on various city committees and published a short history about the city and an official poem for its 75th anniversary.

Denver

9781467109055

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Denver has evolved continuously since its 1858 founding, experiencing boom-and-bust cycles that have each left a mark on the cityscape. During the area’s 21st-century growth spurt, impressive new buildings have arisen, but it is the charming old Denver remembered by long-term residents that gives the Mile High City its character.

Vanished Denver Landmarks

9781467148405

$21.99 $11.00 Save 50%

From its 1858 birth, the Mile High City has undergone continuous change, with each successive generation putting its stamp on Denver’s architectural character. Along the way, landmarks initially considered first class were later deemed disposable by those who had different visions of what Denver should be. Beloved buildings like the Tabor Grand Opera House, the Windsor Hotel and the Republic Building vanished. Historian Mark A. Barnhouse revisits these lost treasures along with the lesser known and rarely explored, including an apartment building dubbed “Denver’s Bohemia,” the humble abode of one of the early twentieth century’s most successful novelists and the opulent mansion of a man who gave Denver three consecutive baseball championships.

Florence

9781467108348

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

The birth of the state of Colorado led to a migration to the base of the Rocky Mountains along the Arkansas River, where men and women readily accepted their responsibilities and stepped up to make Florence an essential supply center enduring for decades. Just like the trees of the first successful apple orchard planted in Colorado, families took root in the area, and Florence grew. Soon, coal and oil from the surrounding hills and gold, silver, and other precious minerals high in the nearby mountains required the existence of Florence to supply materials and labor for operations. They depended on Florence to process and deliver the products of their effort. From the planting of that first apple tree in 1860 to the continued extraction of coal and oil into the 1970s, the community of Florence has played a key role in the area's accomplishment. Now, over 40 years later, take a look back at how those men and women achieved that accomplishment.

Fruita

9781467160506

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Fruita, Colorado, was founded by William Pabor in 1884 as a family-friendly community based on fruit-growing. The town was designed with a compact central business area filled with shops and a park and surrounded by residences. Although Fruita has changed, many early downtown buildings and houses still remain, and historic images are stored in the Lower Valley Heritage Room.

Northglenn

9781467160520

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

In June 1959, fifteen thousand people arrived at Perl-Mack Enterprises show homes in North Glenn. What Life magazine termed the "most perfectly planned community in America" incorporated in 1969 to become the city of Northglenn. The neighborhoods built around schools, parks, churches, and businesses developed into a city that is continuing to change while embracing its history.

Black Cowboys and Early Cattle Drives

9781467153645

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Dust and Determination

After the Civil War, emancipated slaves who didn’t want to pick cotton or operate an elevator headed west to find work and a new life. Charles Goodnight and Oliver Loving drove two thousand longhorns across southern Texas blazing a trail to Bosque Redondo in New Mexico. In 1866, the new Goodnight-Loving Trail was crowded with cattle headed for a government market. By the 1870s, twenty-five percent of the over thirty-five thousand cowboys in the West were black. They were part of trail crews that drove more than twenty-seven million cattle on the Goodnight-Loving Trail, Western Trail, Chisholm Trail and Shawnee Trail. They were paid equally, and their skill and ability brought them earned respect and prestige. Author Nancy Williams recounts their lasting legacy.

Pueblo

9781467161312

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

A City of Excellence

Located at the confluence of the Arkansas River and Fountain Creek, Pueblo, Colorado, began as a trading post but formally incorporated as a city in 1870. An important location in the Colorado Gold Rush of 1859, by the time that Pueblo became an actual town, steel was the most important metal. Early visionaries quickly developed business, heavy industry, and other enterprises that, in turn, attracted diverse communities making the city what it is today.

Wicked Cripple Creek District

9781467157933

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Malice in a Mining Mecca

Pernicious activity tends to follow prosperity, and the heyday of the Cripple Creek mining district was no exception. Cripple Creek’s first murder spilled out from a saloon in 1892. The 1894 heist at the Victor Hotel took place mere months after opening. Railroad superintendent Richard Newell was gunned down over a construction right of way dispute—a contentious, nationwide issue to this day. By 1893, the area was home to dancehall girls and prostitutes, including the harlot who burned down Cripple Creek in 1896 and the vixen who torched Victor in 1899. From body snatcher “Pretty Jack” McEachern to conman-turned-Roosevelt confidante Ben Daniels, the district played host to a cast of capricious characters. Join author Jan MacKell Collins as she recounts the colorful camps and raucous ruffians that defined the oft-described Wild West.

Grand Lake

9781467133401

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

The village of Grand Lake, Colorado, located at 8,367 feet above sea level, is the western gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park amid the Never Summer Wilderness Area. Nestled along the shores of the largest, deepest, and--many suspect--coldest natural lake in Colorado, the village presents a charming portrait of snow-capped peaks, moose hollows, and glacier-fed waters that surround a town with wooded boardwalks and historic hewn-log hotels. Only a few generations ago, the area was the hunting and fishing grounds of both the Ute and the Arapaho Indian tribes, who each called the clear body of water "Spirit Lake" based on their own legends about this mystical place. The village's hardy mountain residents, many of whom are descendants of the area's original permanent settlers, help to shape, but never conquer, the subalpine terrain, with its annual unforgiving winter environments and perfect summer evenings. Times are still simpler in this mountain village but also accurately reflect an octogenarian resident's words: "life might be easier now, but it was simpler in the days of kerosene lamps and wood burning stove, when each man's sleigh bells had their distinctive ring." We present mostly the "then" and some of the "now" of Grand Lake, which are both unusually similar and equally admired by residents and visitors alike.

La Plata County

9781467161091

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Established in 1874 as an agricultural lifeline, La Plata County, Colorado, has played many roles. /

European Americans were drawn to the region by the promise of mineral wealth and the mining industry. Agriculture, smelting, transportation, and commerce grew to offer support. As the county matured, its Old West features were discovered, and it was dubbed “Hollywood of the Rockies” when movies were filmed there from the 1940s to the 1960s with notable stars such as Clark Gable, Jimmy Stewart, Marilyn Monroe, Paul Newman, and Robert Redford. The 20th century brought energy extraction and commercial growth, but as the recreational opportunities in the region started to be discovered, La Plata County became a destination for outdoor pursuits. The county has 14,000-foot peaks, rivers, and hundreds of miles of hiking, biking, and ski trails. Today, tourism and recreation drive the economy much as the mining industry once did. /Within these pages, historical photographs from the archives of the La Plata County Historical Society illustrate the many facets of this Colorado county. Edward Anthony Horvat is a third-generation La Plata County native; his grandparents all came to the county between 1905 and 1911. A retired nurse-paramedic, Horvat volunteers at the historical society’s Animas Museum and writes the weekly And the West Is History feature in the Durango Herald newspaper.

Denver Food

9781467137355

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Allured by the gold rush, waves of German, Japanese, Chinese and Italian immigrants brought their culinary proclivities to the American West. The early sophistication of saloons followed, and Denver's gastronomic landscape experienced a tremendous culinary evolution spanning sixteen decades. Dating back to the late 1800s, My Brother's Bar doesn't have a sign and doesn't need one, serving up history along with delicious hamburgers. Established in 1985, nonprofit Denver Urban Gardens operates more than 155 community gardens across the metropolitan region. Ahead of the curve, Chef Ryan Leinonen set the city on fire with the New Nordic trend more than a decade ago when he opened Trillium Restaurant. With these stories and more, author Simone FM Spinner follows the journey from dreams of gold to fine dining, and Denver has never been more delicious.

Yampa Valley's Lost Egeria Park

9781467143998

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Called the "Last Frontier," the "Land of the Last Pioneers" and the "Place that Time Forgot," Routt County was among the last places settled in the continental United States. Between 1820 and 1845, notable people such as Kit Carson, Jim Baker and Jim Bridger were all known to visit the Yampa Valley. But it wasn't until the removal of the Utes in 1881 that Egeria Park flourished. Stagecoaches, railroads, cattle, grain and sawmills followed. And despite the remote location, it grew into an agricultural and economic hub, the exact boundaries of which are still contested. Alas, Egeria Park dissolved with time. Author Rita Herold uncovers sketches of lost heroes, scoundrels and everyday characters who made history here.

Hidden History of Routt County

9781467143981

$21.99 $11.00 Save 50%

Hidden History Routt County uncover a rugged heritage.

Settling Routt County was never easy or safe. Fugitives used the undeveloped landscape as an “outlaw trail” to evade authorities. The inexorable Harry Tracy managed three jailbreaks before being killed by a posse. Conversely, many of the first families left entrepreneurial legacies. Widowed Alice Bartz sold the family homestead to start the Bartz Hotel in her Steamboat Springs’ bakery and house, serving three meals a day to locals and guests. Others families, like the Nays and the Laughlins, were able to cut hay and raise enough livestock to pass the land down to future generations.

Native author Rita Herold preserves oral histories and nearly forgotten episodes of the county’s past.

Douglas County

9781467109208

$23.99 $12.00 Save 50%

Douglas County, established in 1861, is one of Colorado's original counties. Mining, agriculture, sawmills, and railroads contributed to the growth of this territory, which includes two state parks and dozens of landmarked properties. Over 46 percent of the county's land is public or protected. While retail is now the largest industry in the area, this book will highlight some of the working ranches, original structures, and open spaces that remain thanks to cultural and historical stewardship.

4UR Ranch at Wagon Wheel Gap Hot Springs Resort

9781467144506

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Native Americans used the healing waters of the Wagon Wheel Gap hot springs for thousands of years prior to American settlement. An area rich in geologic features enticed pre-treaty explorers. But it was the 1873 Brunot Treaty that brought mining interests and a silver boom to the San Juans. Modernization to a first-class resort followed. More than three thousand acres and six miles of world-class fishing attracted illustrious guests such as Walt Disney, John Wayne and Dwight Eisenhower. Follow the history of this century-old ranch, including its various owners, from its infancy through to the establishment of the surrounding exclusive community. The 4UR Ranch has been in the Leavell family for more than forty years. Now with the fourth generation contributing, the Leavells hope to be welcoming guests for many years to come and continue their stewardship of this extraordinary valley.

Colorado Ice Hockey

9781467160223

$24.99 $12.50 Save 50%

Colorado has a long, rich ice hockey history. The earliest references date back to January 28, 1893, from an article in the Rocky Mountain Sun. There have been many colorful teams, like the Colorado Rocky team, the Denver Spurs, and the Colorado Flames. On February 22, 1980, ice hockey suddenly vaulted onto the forefront of the American sports scene, due in large part of what is simply known as “the Miracle on Ice.” The US men’s ice hockey team had pulled off an incredible upset over the Soviet Union men’s ice hockey team and then went on to win the gold medal over Finland. It gave the country a reason to celebrate and made the sport of ice hockey red hot! That “miracle” started in 1979 at the Broadmoor World Arena in Colorado Springs with the selection of players at the 1979 National Sports Festival. Leadville, Steamboat Springs, Aspen, Colorado College, Denver University, Salida, Pueblo, and Fort Collins have all contributed to the “fastest game on ice.”

Colorado's Daring Ivy Baldwin

9781467146333

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At the beginning of the twentieth century, aerialist Ivy Baldwin had achieved celebrity status as a premier tightrope walker, aeronaut and aviation pioneer. He executed astonishing and perilous performances across America and internationally, including Mexico and the Far East. First by flying balloons, he went on to pilot dirigibles and, finally, aircraft. In his later years in Colorado, he became famous for crossing canyons on a tightrope. Historian Jack Stokes Ballard deftly captures Baldwin’s colorful and hazardous life from childhood runaway to aviation record holder.

Boulder County Beer

9781467144759

$21.99 $11.00 Save 50%

In 1979, two University of Colorado professors decided to open Boulder Brewing Company--the forty-third brewery in the nation and the first in the state since Prohibition. Over the next four decades, young entrepreneurs from across the country flocked to the picturesque region to follow their bliss and brew beer. The county's brewing heritage is brimming with stories of how a band of ragtag ruffians helped launch a nationwide revolution. The likes of Oskar Blues, Avery Brewing Company and Left Hand Brewing Company laid the fertile ground for torchbearers such as Upslope, Bootstrap Brewing and many others. Packed with firsthand accounts from adventurous brewers, Michael J. Casey recounts the tale of those who turned Boulder County into ground zero for craft beer in the Centennial State.

LOL Jokes Denver

9781467198165

$9.99 $5.00 Save 50%

Bursting with laugh-out-loud jokes and fun facts, LOL Jokes: Denver combines the best of humor and history for young readers!

Inspired by all the wonderful sights, sounds, and . . . smells of the Mile-High City, this local joke book delivers kid-friendly punchlines that will have readers laughing ’til they cry! Alongside hilarious jokes and puns are fascinating facts, goofy tidbits of local history, and engaging graphics that will keep readers chuckling and sharing with friends. LOL Jokes: Denver is sure to deliver hours of knee-slapping entertainment.

Denny: What has a head and a tail but no body?

Penny: A nickel!

Fun Factoid: The Denver Mint produces 8 billion coins a year, all of which have a D for Denver on them!