Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Post-WWII
From its earliest days the West was the country's most urbanized region; when Colorado
became a state in 1876, more than a third of its residents lived in Denver. In part, urbaniza-
tion was a function of the tourist economy, as Americans, who had flocked to the national
parks during the economic boom after WWII, began to appreciate the Rockies as a place to
live rather than just to visit. The federal government played a role by providing employ-
ment, thanks in large part to investment in Cold War military installations such as NORAD
(North American Aerospace Defense Command), a facility near Colorado Springs. People
relocated to remote towns such as Telluride as communications decentralized some sectors
of the economy.
Increasingly, well-educated locals and visitors in the late 1960s and early '70s expressed
environmental concerns. Military facilities, such as the Rocky Mountain National Arsenal
near Colorado Springs and the Rocky Flats nuclear weapons facility near Denver, came un-
der attack by activists concerned with environmental contamination, and were declared pri-
ority cleanup sites under the federal Environmental Protection Agency's Superfund pro-
gram.
Tourism is now an economic mainstay in the Rockies. The industry blossomed in the
post-WWII economic boom, when veterans of the 10th Mountain Division arrived home
from war and dreamed up a whole new industry: they built the state's first ski lift out of
spare parts and went on to help open ski resorts in Loveland, Arapahoe Basin and eventu-
ally Vail and Aspen. While the region's natural attractions have drawn visitors since the
1870s, up until WWII it was mostly only wealthy travelers who saw the backcountry. But
post-war prosperity and the improvement of roads brought larger numbers of middle-class
tourists.
TIMELINE
AD 100
The region's dominant indigenous cultures emerge. The Hohokam settle in the desert, the Mogollon
dwell in the mountains and valleys, and Ancestral Puebloans build cliff dwellings around the Four
Corners.
1300s
