Colorado—The Bright Romance of American History

This work traces the sweep of Colorado's early history, opening with Spanish and other European explorations and following nineteenth-century surveys and expeditions led by figures such as Coronado, Pike, Long, Carson, and Fremont. It portrays trappers, scouts, buffalo hunters, and prairie settlers, examines encounters and conflicts between indigenous peoples and newcomers, and describes how gold discoveries and migration reshaped settlement and economy. Interspersed are character studies of pioneers and visionaries, accounts of military and scientific ventures, and reflections on cultural and environmental change during the region's transition from its Spanish colonial legacy to an American frontier society.