History buffs can dig deep into Spanish Peaks Country’s rich history at any one of our history museums and historic sites. The following are some of the region’s most popular places to learn about Southern Colorado’s heritage.
Activity #1 – Heurfano Heritage Center
The Huerfano Heritage Center is home to the Huerfano County Historical Society, an organization that collects archival photos, newspapers, and Huerfano County records from the 1890s to the present and manages the Walsenburg Mining Museum and the Francisco Fort Museum.
Activity #2 – Walsenburg Mining Museum
Walsenburg was called the “City Built on Coal” during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and nowhere else in Spanish Peaks Country will give you as much opportunity to learn why than the Walsenburg Mining Museum.
Follow the battles between the coal miners and mine operators, examine artifacts associated with the mining industry, and walk among dioramas depicting mining life.
LUNCH: I would update the Alpine Rose Cafe to Tina’s Cafe in Walsenburg.
Activity #3 – Francisco Fort Museum
The Francisco Fort Museum is the last surviving original adobe fort in the state. It houses artifacts representing multiple eras of Huerfano County’s history, including American, Spanish settler, and pioneer artifacts. More specifically, visitors to the museum will view weapons, wagons, saddles, clothing, a one-room schoolhouse, and a saloon from Old La Veta’s Main Street containing the bullet-scarred bar owned by Bob Ford after he shot Jesse James.