Golden Pioneer Museum - Golden, Colorado

Golden, Colorado, grew up as a western town neither rough and ready nor properly gentrified. It was a town isolated from its neighbor and chief competitor, Denver, yet it managed to attract the attention of people worldwide. The town served as the transition between the blue collar, hard scrabble mountain enclaves of Central City and Black Hawk and the white-collar financial center of Denver. Golden was, and is, a study in contrastsneither blue collar nor truly white collar; it was neither mountain nor plain; yet it drew a myriad of entrepreneurs, world travelers, and adventurers from all corners of the globe.

Situated between the Great Plains and the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, bisected by the Clear Creek, is a scenic valley bordered to the east by two imposing mesas. This valley has been inhabited, in one form or another, for about 12,000 years. First utilized by the Native Americans as a seasonal hunting ground, and later as the seat for one of Colorados oldest counties, Golden has a long and rich history full of colorful characters, unique events, discoveries and inventions that have shaped the world, and people that have left an indelible impression on American society.

Archaeologists have established sound data that the ancestors of the Ute, Comanche, Kiowa, Apache, and numerous other tribes lived and hunted in the valley as early as 12,000 years ago. These nomadic people left behind only the remains of their campsites. These sites now bear such English names as Magic Mountain and Hall-Woodland Cave. Very few accounts of early Golden speak of the native peoples. One legend holds that the Arapaho would not descend from the mesa tops into the valley; they spoke of a bad thing that happened there and caused the valley to be forbidden to their people. Other accounts mention a trading post, situated somewhere in the valley, that welcomed the Ute, Cheyenne, and Arapaho. There are no known photographs of the First Peoples from this part of the Clear Creek Valley.

Explorer Major Stephen H. Long penned the first written records of the Clear Creek Valley in 1820. A hunting party was sent west from the Platte River camp. The men killed a pronghorn antelope ( Antilocapra americana ) along the banks of the Cannonball Creek. The creek had secured its moniker from French trappers who thought the large stones in the water looked like cannonballs. The name was soon to change when French-Canadian trader Louis Vasquez traversed the valley in 1832 looking to establish a trading post. He called the area Vasquez Forks. That name stuck, though it generally is applied to just the area where the north and south branches of the Clear Creek come together. Later visitors to the valley proclaimed the creek Clearbecause the fish were visible quite readily beneath the waters.

While historians are able to trace the various names applied to the creek, they cannot so readily trace the origins of the name of the town that straddles the creeks banks. Goldens moniker, established in 1859, remains shrouded in mystery. It was not named for the first land-owning settler in the valley, David Wall. It could have been named for an early political candidate, Thomas Golden; however Golden never owned land here, and left very soon after losing the election. Just to the west of the town is a unique stone escarpment bearing remarkable resemblance to a gate. It was named, early on, the Golden Gate. A small town sprang up close by called Golden Gate City; it is possible, though unlikely, that Goldens name was related to this feature.

Throughout the years of the Colorado gold and silver booms, Golden served as the gateway to the mining districts. Railcars filled with all the wealth of the mountains flowed through the heart of the little town. Businesses of all types, including smelters, brickyards, paper mills, flour mills, and, of course, saloons, sprang up to meet the needs of the thousands of fortune-seekers and their families seeking wealth and a new life. One commonly held belief is that Goldens founding father, George West, foresaw the advent of these very industries, and assigned the moniker Golden, while he platted the town, anticipating those myriad golden business opportunities.

However Golden received its appellation, the town has indeed lived up to its name. She is home to the Coors Brewing Company, the Colorado School of Mines, the National Earthquake Center, and became the gateway to the Richest Square Mile on Earth. Inventions that have altered the shape of American life have been created here, including the narrow gauge railroad, porcelain bomb casings, and various mining processes. In addition, she is a sportsmans paradise, offering fishing, kayaking, rock climbing, hiking, and hang gliding. Tourism is one of the towns largest industries.

Modern day Golden faces the same struggles as all small townsbalancing the economic viability of the town with the need to reign in growth, maintaining a vibrant resident population yet meeting the needs of todays tourist, as well as finding new and creative ways to succeed in the new millennium. Golden sits just 12 miles west of the large Denver metropolis; she has fought throughout her history to avoid being overshadowed by her sister frontier town to remain as the town Where the West Lives.