Calendar
Practical Navigation
Join expert Aaron “Hutch” Hutchings as he teaches practical navigation skills, whether you are just taking a day hike or camping overnight. This class will teach you how to navigate on-trail or off-trail the next time you take a hike. Learn about your compass, make sure your phone is useful for wayfinding, and navigate when all you have is a trail map. Don’t worry about packing a calculator – this class will teach the simple, but realistic, navigational skills needed to find your way back to your car that you could have sworn was just around the next trail bend.
Aaron “Hutch” Hutchings is a Colorado native, veteran, and father of four. He was raised in the Rocky Mountains by a real mountain man and hunting guide he called Grandpa. His love for adventure was first sparked by his grandfather’s teaching and stories. This spark was blown into flame in the Boy Scouts and fanned to a full-on bonfire in the Marine Corps. Read more on Hutch’s website.
Tickets
GHM&P is transitioning to a new ticketing program. In the meantime, please contact us directly to register.
Outdoor Gear
No escape to nature is complete without a trip to an outdoor recreational store or a browse through online offerings. Nowhere is this more true than in Colorado. Holubar, Gerry, and Frostline are among the outdoor companies that helped establish Colorado as a hub of innovation for the outdoor industry after World War II. Rachel S. Gross argues that the success of these outdoor gear pioneers was predicated not just on creating functional equipment but also on selling an authentic, anticommercial outdoor identity. In other words, shopping for the woods was also about being—or becoming—the right kind of person. Demonstrating that outdoor culture is commercial culture, Gross examines Americans’ journey toward outdoor expertise by tracing the development of the nascent outdoor goods industry, the influence of World War II on its growth, and the boom years of outdoor businesses.
Rachel S. Gross is a historian of the outdoor industry. She is an Assistant Professor of History at the University of Colorado Denver where she teaches U.S. environmental, business, and public history. She is the author of Shopping All the Way to the Woods: How the Outdoor Industry Sold Nature to America (Yale University Press, 2024).
Tickets
GHM&P is transitioning to a new ticketing program. In the meantime, please contact us directly to register.
Underneath the Starry Flag
In 1898, the 1st Colorado Volunteer Infantry enlisted to fight the Spanish in Cuba, but instead raised the first American flag over Manila. With the war over, they hoped to return home, but the U.S. government had other plans. This talk describes the First Colorado’s role in the first year of the war in the Philippines. It also looks at their daily life and some challenges they faced. This was America’s first overseas war.
About the Presenter
Geoff Hunt earned his Ph.D. in Western American social history from the University of Colorado Boulder in 1996. His dissertation research led to Colorado’s Volunteer Infantry in the Philippine Wars, 1898-1899, published in 2006. After 22 years as Professor of History at the Community College of Aurora, he retired in 2019, and became a free-range historian.
Tickets
GHM&P is transitioning to a new ticketing program. In the meantime, please contact us directly to register.
A Campsite That’s Cozy
Join expert Aaron “Hutch” Hutchings in building a cozy home away from home while camping. This class will prepare you to stay warm and comfortable while sleeping outdoors or chatting around the campfire. Both historic and modern camp building skills will be taught. While everyone else shivers, you’ll be sleeping your cares away in your perfectly designed campsite.
Aaron “Hutch” Hutchings is a Colorado native, veteran, and father of four. He was raised in the Rocky Mountains by a real mountain man and hunting guide he called Grandpa. His love for adventure was first sparked by his grandfather’s teaching and stories. This spark was blown into flame in the Boy Scouts and fanned to a full-on bonfire in the Marine Corps. Read more on Hutch’s website.
Tickets
GHM&P is transitioning to a new ticketing program. In the meantime, please contact us directly to register.
Dr. Rose Kidd Beere
Rose Kidd Beere was a doctor in Colorado in the nineteenth century. Born in Indiana and raised in western military posts, she attended Northwestern University Women’s Medical College. In 1892, she moved to Durango, Colorado, to practice medicine. In 1895 Governor Alva Adams asked her to take over the new State Home for Dependent and Neglected Children in Denver. Then in 1898 the United States went to war with Spain on the island of Cuba as well as in the Philippine Islands. The First Colorado Infantry went to the Philippines. She went, not as a doctor, but as a nurse. After a year, she returned to Denver where she was the health officer for the Denver Public Schools, setting up the first dental clinic for poor children. Then she was the doctor at the Poor Farm followed by running Denver General Hospital. Finally, in 1917 she opened a hospital to take care of soldiers coming home from the First World War.
About the Presenter
Rebecca A. Hunt received her Ph.D. in Western American social history from the University of Colorado Boulder in 1997. Her dissertation looked at ethnic groups in the Denver neighborhoods of Highland and Globeville. From 1992-94 Rebecca was co-chair of the statewide commemoration of the successful 1893 campaign to grant voting rights to Colorado’s women. Rebecca is on the historians’ council for History Colorado’s Center for Colorado Women’s History. In 2020 Rebecca retired from CU Denver and she is now a full-time writer. She writes a monthly column on the history of Denver’s NW side for the Denver North Star. Rebecca’s current book project is Urban Pioneers: Ethnic Identity and Community on Denver’s Northside.
Tickets
GHM&P is transitioning to a new ticketing program. In the meantime, please contact us directly to register.
The Boer War and America
Moore will speak on a little discussed aspect of world history – America and the Boer War. Around 1900 the British had wars going throughout their Empire. The major action was in southern Africa, the Boer War. Of course, the Boers, farmers of northern European descent, fought for their way of life and homeland. To support the action, the Royal Army sought horses wherever possible. The British government bought some 250,000 horses and mules in the US. They were consolidated, entrained, and sent to New Orleans. Ships carrying 1,000 horses sailed to Africa almost daily. There was active opposition to the war in the US and elsewhere.
Stan Moore is an author, speaker and historian. He has been described several ways. The repeatable ones include: husband, father and grandfather; author and speaker; retired small business owner; CU graduate; third generation Coloradan; hiker, backpacker and mountaineer; Vietnam veteran; hobbyist blacksmith. He and his wife make home near Denver with a cat who lets them stay there. He is the author of six books, one history and five historical novels set around 1900s Colorado.
Tickets
GHM&P is transitioning to a new ticketing program. In the meantime, please contact us directly to register.
South Table Mountain Hike
South Table Mountain holds much significance in its history, paleontology, and geology. Join Mary Eiberger and Kermit Shields as they take you on a hike up the mountain, sharing their expertise along the way. The hike is easy to moderate, but participants will need to be able to stand and hike for the entirety of the program. Meet-up information will be provided to all attendees after signing up. We request dogs are not in attendance, with the exception of service animals.
Mary Elizabeth Eiberger is Carl Eiberger’s daughter, and she is from Golden, Colorado. Mary inherited 17 boxes of legal work and documents about her father’s work and coalition-based efforts to prevent South Table Mountain from becoming a 75-year quarry. Mary has taught science, math, and outdoor education in high school as well as dancing. She now loves to tutor not only math and science but English and history. Mary is the quintessential Colorado girl, spending much of her time in the mountains and rivers of the state. Her husband, Tito Salas, runs Fiske Planetarium in Boulder, and they love to take trips with their two dogs, Lucky and Shadow, to the mountains, especially in the summer, to hike and mountain bike.
Kermit Shields spent his career as a petroleum geologist with a major oil company and had various foreign and domestic assignments. He has been an active volunteer at Dinosaur Ridge since 2005 where he gives tours for both students and adults. He also does some volunteering with JeffCo Open Space and is on the City of Golden Parks and Recreation advisory board.
Tickets
GHM&P is transitioning to a new ticketing program. In the meantime, please contact us directly to register.
Capote Coat Making Class
Join expert Aaron “Hutch” Hutchings in making your very own capote coat (a long wrap-style wool coat) using a wool blanket. Attendees will need to bring their own wool blanket for a true finished product, but fleece will be provided to any attendees unable to bring a blanket. This class will take you step-by-step through each step of the coat. You will leave class with a coat and the skill to make more for the whole family.
Aaron “Hutch” Hutchings is a Colorado native, veteran, and father of four. He was raised in the Rocky Mountains by a real mountain man and hunting guide he called Grandpa. His love for adventure was first sparked by his grandfather’s teaching and stories. This spark was blown into flame in the Boy Scouts and fanned to a full-on bonfire in the Marine Corps. Read more about Hutch in his instructor bio or on his website. You can also find him on Instagram.
Tickets
GHM&P is transitioning to a new ticketing program. In the meantime, please contact us directly to register.
The History of the Electoral College
What is the electoral college, how does it work, and why was it put in place? This program will dive into the electoral college, why Colorado has the number of votes it does, and other interesting facts about the history of voting.
This program will be presented by Kathleen Eaton and Bianca Barriskill, staff at the Golden History Museum. Read their bios here.
Tickets
GHM&P is transitioning to a new ticketing program. In the meantime, please contact us directly to register.
Autumn Fest 2024
Autumn Fest is a free celebration of Golden featuring hands-on activities for the whole family, including crafts, big trucks, and even farm animals. Join us to welcome the fall season at Golden History Museum (923 10th St.), proudly sponsored by:
O’Sullivan Personal Injury Law Firm
Golden Downtown Development Authority
Free and Low-Cost Family Activities
- make-your-own thaumatrope station and lawn games (hoop toss, ladder ball, and cornhole)
- 4-H petting zoo
- craft stations
- big trucks (Streets, Fire, and Police Departments)
- costumed Civil War interpretation
- karate demonstration
2024 Partners
- Colorado Volunteer Infantry Group
- 4-H
- Jeffco Open Space
- Boulder Apple Tree Project
- Mines Museum of Earth Science
- Golden Library
- Foothills Art Center
- Golden Street, Police, and Fire Departments
- Golden Public Art Commission
Sponsors
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Autumn Fest Gallery
Location and Pricing
Golden History Museum and Golden History Park
Free
Registration
Unlike most GHM&P programs, there is no registration for Autumn Fest.
Membership
Membership pays for itself with just a few programs for your family. Join us.
More Golden history
Check out the Golden History Museum & Park blog for the latest behind the scenes videos and stories, personal memoirs, and history tidbits about Golden.
Golden’s Candlelight Walk 2024
Experience the beauty of the holiday season with a candlelit walk down Washington Avenue in historic Golden, Colorado. Sing carols with neighbors and friends and marvel as the street is illuminated by thousands of glowing candles and the warmth of the festive, small-town holiday atmosphere. Many of the shops along Washington Avenue are open and there are hot cider, cocoa, and outdoor cafes to enjoy along the way. At the conclusion of the walk, the “switch” for Golden’s 45,000-holiday lights along Clear Creek and throughout downtown will be flipped, marking the official start to Golden’s holiday season.
Golden History Museum will be open with extended evening hours and ample opportunity to shop for holiday gifts, including History Park honey. Additionally, a blacksmithing demonstration will be held at Golden History Park. Don’t forget to pick up a roasted chestnut provided by Kiwanis Club of Golden! Admission is always free.