Colorful Colorado: Its Dramatic History

by Caroline Bancroft

The whole magnificent sweep of Colorado history is told in a sprightly condensation.

96 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1959

About the author

A third-generation Coloradan, Caroline Bancroft was born into Colorado’s “upper-crust” society. Describing Denver’s history as “alive and kicking,” she was also describing herself. Known for her high-handedness and eccentricities, Bancroft spent time in the Ziegfield Follies and was once a cruise ship teacher before she wrote for the then-scandalous Denver Post. Her determination and interest in Colorado history led her to research and publish nine booklets on the topic. Armed with a master’s degree in history from the University of Denver, she focused primarily on Central City, Leadville, and the Tabor family. In her later years, Bancroft traveled to escape health problems. She was struck with cancer four times and tuberculosis three times and suffered blindness for one full year.

Bancroft is most famous for her original work on Colorado history, on which the opera The Ballad of Baby Doe and the musical The Unsinkable Molly Brown were based. Her works include Silver Queen: The Fabulous Story of Baby Doe Tabor (1950); Famous Aspen: Its Fabulous Past—Its Lively Present (1954); The Brown Place in Denver (1955); The Unsinkable Mrs. Brown: S.S. Titantic Heroine (1956); Gulch of Gold: A History of Central City (1958); Colorful Colorado (1959); Tabor’s Matchless Mines and Lusty Leadville (1960); Unique Ghost Towns and Mountain Spots (1961); Colorado’s Lost Gold Mine (with Mary B. Wills, 1965); The Unsinkable Molly Brown Cookbook (1966); Two Burros of Fairplay: Morsels of History for Young and Old (1968); and Trail Ridge Country: Estes Park and Grand Lake (1969). She also wrote a play for the television biographical series of the American Telephone and Telegraph Company, produced by the American Broadcasting Company network in 1956–1957. She wrote articles for the New York Evening Post, New York Herald Tribune, New York Times, Town and Country, Woman’s Home Companion, Western Folklore Quarterly, Colorado Westerner’s Brand Book , and other magazines and newspapers.

From Colorado Women's Hall of Fame:
http://www.cogreatwomen.org/bancroft.htm

Reviews

[Sheila Read · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have lived in Colorado is just like the book says it has some really beautiful countryside all over Colorado.