Fun Facts: Ever Wonder How Places in Colorado Got Their Names?
Governor Jared Polis tweeted a bit of a pop quiz the other day...
To be fair, he never really followed up with an answer and let's just say I don't have the patience to count. So I Googled it, and still couldn't come up with a correct answer.
BUT... I did discover some other tidbits that are worth sharing about the Centennial State.
Speaking of Spanish names, did you know the state's name itself was taken from the Colorado River, which was originally intended as a derivative of two Spanish words? "Colo" meaning "color" and "rojo" meaning "red." It was named that because the red dirt in the mountains would mix with the water rushing past in the river, giving it a red tint in spots. The Colorado River was discovered by Spanish explorers in the 1600's, hence why it and so many other things have Spanish derivatives.
At any rate, it got me thinking about some other places around the state and where those city and county names may have come from. We all know that Fort Collins was - obviously - a fort back in the day. "Camp Collins" to be specific. But who was "Collins?" And why was the city ultimately named after them?
Read on to find out and more about some other Colorado places too.