When the editors of The Colorado Magazine sat down to pen a welcome to readers in 1923, they gave notice that the State Historical and Natural History Society (it was all one organization back then) was launching “a regular publication of a more ambitious character.” Four decades after its founding, they explained, the society was “actually doing things of real value, of real importance to the state,” and they intended the magazine to deepen that work. As for the publication’s name, they noted that “names more suggestive of the work of the Society were considered as being too long.”

It was a tumultuous time to launch a new publication. Colorado was mired in a recession triggered by the collapse of agricultural and mining prices after World War I. The Ku Klux Klan was on the rise with a racist message of nativism and white supremacy. Prohibition was the law of the land. So the editors got to work. They published articles that looked to Colorado’s past for guidance they might apply to the present, chronicled “History in the Making” (for which we’re deeply grateful today), and kept readers apprised of the organization’s endeavors.

Today, we’re reclaiming that legacy. The magazine you love as Colorado Heritage is reassuming its original name as The Colorado Magazine.

Rest assured that we’ll still be delivering the content you’ve enjoyed: features that delve deep into Colorado history, insightful articles that connect the past to our present, the latest in historic preservation, news of our newest exhibitions around the state, and all the ways you can connect with History Colorado.

So why the change?

While we don’t have a record of the longer names the founding editors considered, we think they got it right with The Colorado Magazine. It’s an elegantly simple assertion that, as the state historical society, History Colorado serves our entire state and all the people who call—and have called—it home. We draw strength and inspiration from those who came before, and we call on their wisdom and example to illuminate our present and light the way to a brighter future. At the same time, while many of us draw strength from our “heritage,” that term is used too often lately to divide, to emphasize our differences.

The Colorado Magazine is a publication for all Coloradans. In these pages, we’ll document, explore, and share the experiences that join us together as Coloradans, bringing you compelling original scholarship, insights, and perspectives on how we got to now.

We welcome you along on the journey.