The first Europeans to venture into Colorado, the Spanish
Explorer La Salle appropriates for France all of the area now known as Colorado east of the Rocky Mountains
Juan Maria Rivera leads Spanish expedition into San Juan and Sangre de Cristo Mountains in search of gold and silver
Spain ceded a vast area, including Colorado, to Napoleon Bonaparte and the French
Colorado sold by Napoleon the United States as the "Louisiana Purchase"
William Green Russell, a Georgia miner, discovers several hundred dollars worth of gold at the mouth of Dry Creek in the present-day Denver suburb of Englewood
Congress votes statehood for Colorado
Denver and Pacific Railroad is constructed to connect Denver with Union Pacific at Cheyenne, Wyoming
