Colorado

Capital	Denver
Population	4,301,261 Source: U.S. Census Bureau GCT-PH1-R. Population, Housing Units, Area, and Density (geographies ranked by total population): 2000 Data Set: Census 2000 Summary File 1 (SF 1) 100-Percent Data
Governor	Bill Ritter (D, to January 2011)
Entered the Union	August 1, 1876 as the 38th state
Motto	Nil Sine Numine (Nothing Without Providence)
Nickname	The Centennial state
Flower	Rocky Mountain Columbine
Bird	Lark Bunting
Song	"Where the Columbines Grow"
Professional Sports Teams (sports listing policy)	Rockies (Baseball); Denver Nuggets (Men's Basketball); Xplosion (Women's Basketball); Denver Broncos (Football); Avalanche (Hockey); Rapids (Soccer)
Origin of Name	From the Spanish word meaning "ruddy" or "red"
Major Industries	Tourism, Food Products, Printing and Publishing
Historical Sites	Anasazi Heritage Center, Molly Brown House, Buffalo Bill's Grave, Overland Trail Museum, Fort Garland/Pike's Stockade
Points of Interest	Rocky Mountain National Park, Mesa Verde National Park, Dinosaur National Monument
Bordering States	Colorado borders Arizona, Utah, Wyoming, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico.
Flag

Follow these links to read articles about Colorado from Encyclopedias and Almanacs:

• Encarta Concise Encyclopedia
• Columbia Encyclopedia
• Information Please Almanac

• Colorado.gov: The Official Colorado State Website
  http://www.colorado.gov/
  This is the official website for the State of Colorado.
• Colorado State Library: an Office of the Colorado Department of Education
  http://www.cde.state.co.us/index_library.htm
  Here is the homepage for the Colorado State Library Agency.
• Colorado Historical Society
  http://www.coloradohistory.org/chs_library/library.htm
  Here is the homepage for the Colorado State Historical Society.
• Colorado History Museum
  http://www.coloradohistory.org/hist_sites/CHM/Colorado_History_Museum.htm
  Here is the homepage for the Colorado Historical Society Museum.
• Colorado State Archives
  http://www.colorado.gov/dpa/doit/archives/
  Here is the homepage for the Colorado State Archives.
• Colorado State Parks
  http://parks.state.co.us
  Here is the homepage for Colorado State Parks.
• Colorado.com
  http://www.colorado.com/
  Here is the official state travel and tourism website for Colorado.
• Discover Colorado: Kids and Students' Page
  http://www.state.co.us/kids/index.html
  Here's the Colorado state government page developed just for kids!

• 50states.com: Colorado
  http://www.50states.com/colorado.htm
  The site provides a wealth of information about Colorado. It includes everything from the highest point to county profile to climate.
• Things To Do in Colorado
  http://www.thingstodo.com/states/CO/index.htm
  ThingsToDo.com is an online guide to information about Colorado's entertainment, recreation, and travel, and includes the state's interesting facts, famous people, and special events.
• Roadside America: Colorado Attractions
  http://www.roadsideamerica.com/map/co.html
  Roadside America describes itself as an online guide to offbeat attractions. This site offers reviews of "weird sites along the highway" in Colorado.
• FedStats: MapStat: United States: Colorado
  http://www.fedstats.gov/qf/states/08000.html
  Fast access to statistics from more than 100 federal agencies on "economic and population trends, crime, education, health care, aviation safety, energy use, farm production and more" in Colorado.

• Colorado has the highest average elevation of any state. More than 1,000 of its Rocky Mountain peaks reach over10,000 feet high, and 54 tower above14,000 feet!
• Colorado built its economy on the mining industry, but now only 1.2 percent of the state's workforce is employed in oil, gas, coal, and metal mining. The state is now famous for its many ski resorts, where tourists spend 1.8 billion dollars every year.
• The most famous of the Rocky Mountains is Pike's Peak, discovered by U.S. Army Lieutenant Zebulon M. Pike in 1806.
• In 1863, the first telegraph line in Colorado linked Denver with the eastern U.S. A ten-word telegram from Denver to New York City cost $9.10. (And that's a lot of money by today's standards!)

• M. Scott Carpenter, astronaut
• Jack Dempsey, boxer
• Douglas Fairbanks, actor
• Ouray, 1833-1880, Ute chief