Professional Cleaning Services Serving Colorado

Colorado
State
Flag Seal
Nicknames:  The Centennial State
Motto(s):  Nil sine numine (English: Nothing without providence)
Anthem: Where the Columbines Grow and Rocky Mountain High
Map of the United States with Colorado highlighted
Country	United States
Before statehood	Territory of Colorado
Admitted to the Union	August 1, 1876; 148 years ago (1876-08-01) (38th)
Capital (and largest city)	Denver
Largest county or equivalent	El Paso
Largest metro and urban areas	Denver
Government
• Governor	Jared Polis (D)
• Lieutenant governor	Dianne Primavera (D)
Legislature	General Assembly
• Upper house	Senate
• Lower house	House of Representatives
Judiciary	Supreme Court (list)
U.S. senators	Michael Bennet (D) John Hickenlooper (D)
U.S. House delegation	5 Democrats 3 Republicans (list)
Area
• Total	104,185 sq mi (269,837 km)
• Land	103,718 sq mi (268,875 km)
• Water	376 sq mi (962 km)  0.36%
• Rank	8th
Dimensions
• Length	280 mi (451 km)
• Width	380 mi (612 km)
Elevation	6,800 ft (2,070 m)
Highest elevation (Mount Elbert)	14,440 ft (4,401.2 m)
Lowest elevation (Arikaree River)	3,317 ft (1,011 m)
Population  (estimate as of July 1, 2023)
• Total	5,877,610
• Rank	21st
• Density	56.25/sq mi (21.72/km)
• Rank	37th
• Median household income	$75,200
• Income rank	9th
Demonym	Coloradan
Language
• Official language	English
Time zone	UTC−07:00 (MST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−06:00 (MDT)
USPS abbreviation	CO
ISO 3166 code	US-CO
Latitude	37°N to 41°N
Longitude	102.0467°W to 109.0467°W
Website	colorado.gov
Symbols of Colorado
Slogan	Colorful Colorado
Amphibian	Western tiger salamander Ambystoma mavortium
Bird	Lark bunting Calamospiza melanocoryus
Cactus	Claret cup cactus Echinocereus triglochidiatus
Fish	Greenback cutthroat trout Oncorhynchus clarki somias
Flower	Rocky Mountain columbine Aquilegia coerulea
Grass	Blue grama grass Bouteloua gracilis
Insect	Colorado Hairstreak Hypaurotis crysalus
Mammal	Rocky Mountain bighorn sheep Ovis canadensis
Pet	Colorado shelter pets Canis lupus familiaris and Felis catus
Reptile	Western painted turtle Chrysemys picta bellii
Tree	Colorado blue spruce Picea pungens
Folk dance	Square dance Chorea quadra
Fossil	Stegosaurus Stegosaurus armatus
Gemstone	Aquamarine
Mineral	Rhodochrosite
Rock	Yule Marble
Ship	USS Colorado (SSN-788)
Soil	Seitz soil
Sport	Pack burro racing (summer) Skiing and snowboarding (winter)
Tartan	Colorado state tartan

Colorado ( KOL-ə-RAD-oh, -⁠RAH-doh, other variants; Spanish: [koloˈɾaðo]) is a state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas to the east, and Oklahoma to the southeast. Colorado is noted for its landscape of mountains, forests, high plains, mesas, canyons, plateaus, rivers, and desert lands. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains. Colorado is the eighth most extensive and 21st most populous U.S. state. The United States Census Bureau estimated the population of Colorado at 5,877,610 as of July 1, 2023, a 1.80% increase since the 2020 United States census.

The region has been inhabited by Native Americans and their ancestors for at least 13,500 years and possibly much longer. The eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains was a major migration route for early peoples who spread throughout the Americas. In 1848, much of the Nuevo México region was annexed to the United States with the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The Pike’s Peak Gold Rush of 1858–1862 created an influx of settlers. On February 28, 1861, U.S. President James Buchanan signed an act creating the Territory of Colorado, and on August 1, 1876, President Ulysses S. Grant signed Proclamation 230, admitting Colorado to the Union as the 38th state. The Spanish adjective “colorado” means “colored red” or “ruddy”. Colorado is nicknamed the “Centennial State” because it became a state 100 years (and four weeks) after the signing of the United States Declaration of Independence.

Denver is the capital, the most populous city, and the center of the Front Range Urban Corridor. Colorado Springs is the second most populous city of the state. Residents of the state are known as Coloradans, although the antiquated “Coloradoan” is occasionally used. Major parts of the economy include government and defense, mining, agriculture, tourism, and increasingly other kinds of manufacturing. With increasing temperatures and decreasing water availability, Colorado’s agriculture forestry, and tourism economies are expected to be heavily affected by climate change.