Colorado [ b ] is a state in the Western United States. 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-largest U. The region has been inhabited by Native Americans and their ancestors for at least 13, 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. The Pike's Peak Gold Rush of β created an influx of settlers. On February 28, , U. Grant signed Proclamation , admitting Colorado to the Union as the 38th state.
Colorado is nicknamed the " Centennial State " because it became a state 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. With increasing temperatures and decreasing water availability, Colorado's agriculture forestry and tourism economies are expected to be heavily affected by climate change. The region that is today the State of Colorado has been inhabited by Native Americans and their Paleoamerican ancestors for at least 13, years and possibly more than 37, years.
The Ancient Pueblo peoples lived in the valleys and mesas of the Colorado Plateau in far southwestern Colorado. The Apache and the Comanche also inhabited the Eastern and Southeastern parts of the state. The U. This U. In , Zebulon Pike led a U. Army reconnaissance expedition into the disputed region. Colonel Pike and his troops were arrested by Spanish cavalrymen in the San Luis Valley the following February, taken to Chihuahua , and expelled from Mexico the following July. The treaty took effect on February 22, Having settled its border with Spain, the U.
