“History Colorado’s network of museums help young Coloradans prepare for an informed future by learning about our state’s rich past,” remarked Colorado Governor Jared Polis. “Free general admission for kids at History Colorado is another way to save people money and celebrate the history of colorful Colorado.”

“At History Colorado, we know how powerful it can be for young people to understand their community history,” explained Executive Director Dawn DiPrince. “Our statewide museums are fun, interactive, educational and now completely accessible to our youth,” she added.  “We are ecstatic to see even more kids in our museums and connect them with the history of our beloved state.”

Reasons kids should explore a History Colorado museum include:

• At Denver’s History Colorado Center:  kids can participate in a “Lego Scavenger Hunt,” starting Memorial Day, to find 40 historic Colorado lego creations or undertake history-tied arts and crafts by checking out the “Makerspace.” They can also explore over 15 interactive history exhibits.
   
• At Pueblo’s El Pueblo History Museum: kids get to interact with a recreated 1840s adobe trading post and plaza, educational exhibits, and an archaeological excavation site.
   
• At Montrose’s Ute Indian Museum: kids get to learn about the Ute peoples while going inside teepees, learning about Bear Dances, and in July, explore the new “Naturescape” playground which will include simulated habitats from the animal world.
   
• At Fort Garland’s Fort Garland Museum and Cultural Center:  kids can experience the original adobe military fort at the base of Mt. Blanca, plus a large outdoor grassy area with picnic tables and shade for weary summer travelers.
   
• At Trinidad’s Trinidad History Museum:  kids can explore the large museum campus with diverse historic buildings and heritage gardens while learning about the Santa Fe Trail.
   
• At Denver’s Center for Colorado Women’s History:  kids get to explore what life was like in a historical mansion and check out a new exhibit, “More Than Place: Colorado, Women, and Land,” where kids will learn about how women have played an integral and often invisible role in shaping Colorado’s destiny.
   
• At Leadville’s Healy House and Dexter Cabin:  kids get to learn about the legendary Baby Doe Tabor and the storied Matchless Mine.

As part of its commitment to education, History Colorado continues to offer  expert-facilitated and guided-discovery group tours for $5 or less per student and continues to offer Title I pricing at $2.50/student. This program helps schools continue to offer their students enriching field trips to our museums. Our packages for student groups offer reduced to free pricing for chaperones, reserved arrival times, lunch/jacket storage service for the entire group, lunch-eating space and fun hands-on experiential learning that supports academic standards goals. Visit historycolorado.org/field-trips for more info.

History Colorado encourages adults and families to access a multitude of benefits by purchasing a membership to its network of museums and historic sites. Benefits include first access to new exhibits at our seven museums, complimentary tickets to ride the historic Georgetown Loop Railroad, exclusive invitations to members-only events, programs and previews, a subscription to the award-winning The Colorado Magazine, complimentary admission to 300+ museums around the country through the “Time Travelers Program,” and a Smithsonian Affiliate membership for those who select the “Explorer” level option. Additionally, memberships provide a 10% discount for: all History Colorado gift shops and the Rendez Vous Cafe; and, all our Hands-On History Summer Camps, afterschool programs, spring break camps and fifth day programs. More information is at historycolorado.org/membership.

HISTORY COLORADO PRESS ROOM
 

About History Colorado
History Colorado is a division of the Colorado Department of Higher Education and a 501(c)3 non-profit that serves more than 75,000 students and 500,000 people in Colorado each year. It is a 142-year-old institution that operates Colorado’s oldest museum, ten additional museums and historic sites, a free public research center, the Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation, and the History Colorado State Historical Fund (SHF), which is the nation’s largest preservation program of its kind. More than 70% of SHF grants are allocated in rural areas of the state.

History Colorado’s mission is to create a better future for Colorado by inspiring wonder in our past. We serve as the state’s memory, preserving and sharing the places, stories, and material culture of Colorado through educational programs, historic preservation grants, collecting, outreach to Colorado communities, the History Colorado Center and Stephen H. Hart Research Center in Denver, and ten other museums and historic attractions statewide. History Colorado is one of only six Smithsonian Affiliates in Colorado. Visit HistoryColorado.org, or call 303-HISTORY, for more information.

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