History
Ute Indians were the first inhabitants into this area that is nestled against the foothills near Boulder. The Indians lived within the walls of the canyon because they provided protection from the harsh Colorado winters. Settlers soon followed in search of gold and agriculture. Eldorado Canyon is famous for its spectacular geologic history dating back billions of years ago. Near the park’s entrance at the visitors center, there are rocks calculated to be over 1.5 billion years old.
At the beginning of the twentieth century, the town of Eldorado Springs was established and was known as a resort for the elite. The town offered visitors warm artesian springs and lush hotels including the Crags Hotel, the Eldorado and the Grand View. Numerous celebrities and Denver residents enjoyed the beautiful getaway until a fire burned all these hotels in 1912.
The town also received considerable attention between 1906–1949 when Ivy Baldwin performed tight rope acts across the canyon 580 feet (180 m) in mid-air. Like Ivy Baldwin, many visitors enjoy the spectacular views of the park from a higher perspective, but these visitors prefer rockclimbing to a tight rope.
Read more about this topic: Eldorado Canyon State Park
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“[Men say:] “Don’t you know that we are your natural protectors?” But what is a woman afraid of on a lonely road after dark? The bears and wolves are all gone; there is nothing to be afraid of now but our natural protectors.”
—Frances A. Griffin, U.S. suffragist. As quoted in History of Woman Suffrage, vol. 4, ch. 19, by Susan B. Anthony and Ida Husted Harper (1902)
“What has history to do with me? Mine is the first and only world! I want to report how I find the world. What others have told me about the world is a very small and incidental part of my experience. I have to judge the world, to measure things.”
—Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889–1951)
“Systematic philosophical and practical anti-intellectualism such as we are witnessing appears to be something truly novel in the history of human culture.”
—Johan Huizinga (1872–1945)