9781422286173

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Rocky Mountain: Colorado, Utah, Wyoming

Two miners in their camp on King Solomon Mountain in Colorado, circa 1875. A series of gold discoveries during the 19th century drew thousands of peo- ple to the Colorado Territory.

had only established the most basic foot paths, but their efforts led to the eventual creation of roads and railway routes that would lead to settlement and economic development. During 1858 and 1859, many peo- ple came to Colorado when gold and silver were discovered near what is now the city of Denver. As the popula- tion grew, the U.S. government decid- ed to organize Colorado as a U.S. ter- ritory. In February 1861, U.S. President James Buchanan signed a congressional act that created the Territory of Colorado.

tively low price. The transaction only cost about $15 million, which equalled about four cents per acre. The U.S. gained the remainder of Colorado in the 1840s, after Texas became a state. After the Mexican-American War, the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo granted all rights to the region to the U.S. When the United States gained possession of this territory, the U.S. government commissioned expedi- tions to Colorado, with a focus on developing the routes that had been established by the early trappers and fur traders. These “mountain men”

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