Opened in 1922, Lincoln Hills – an outdoor resort tucked into a valley along South Boulder Creek – provided a place where African Americans could escape the segregation and white supremacy of the early 20th century. The largest such resort west of the Mississippi River at the time of its creation, Lincoln Hills was frequented by prominent African American rights activists and writers, as well as Jazz musicians, and is an important part of our nation’s history.

“Lincoln Hills stands as a powerful symbol of Black resilience and joy,” said Acoma Gaither, assistant curator of Black history at History Colorado. “Founded in a time when access to outdoor spaces was limited by racial discrimination, Lincoln Hills provided a sanctuary where African Americans could gather, heal, and build community. To this day it continues to carry importance to Black Coloradans, tells an important American story, and serves as inspiration for conversations around outdoor inclusion.”

The continued importance of Lincoln Hills, and the enduring community connection to it, was explored by a recent History Colorado Museum of Memory Project which gathered oral histories, photographs, and objects that influenced the re-envisioning of Lincoln Hills: Mountain Sanctuary.

“Lincoln Hills represents an oasis, an opportunity to recreate among one's own and a place of courage, ingenuity, and resiliency,” said the Honorable Judge Gary Jackson. “Despite being built at the height of KKK’s power in Colorado, one year after the Tulsa Massacre in neighboring Oklahoma, and in the midst of the Great Depression, the Lincoln Hills community was welcomed to Gilpin County, where it thrived, and exists today. My family’s cabin – built by my great-grandfather William Pitts in 1926 – has been the entryway cabin into Lincoln Hills for nearly a century and continues to serve as a mini-museum of Lincoln Hills and our family's industriousness and lifetime achievements.”

An important addition to Lincoln Hills: Mountain Sanctuary is expansion of the story of Obrey “Wink” Wendell Hamlet – who was an early investor into the resort – as well as the enduring legacy of Wink’s Panorama Lodge, a lodge that hosted visitors from across the nations that was recently designated a National Historic Landmark.

“Generationally, Lincoln Hills has been a place to enjoy and celebrate living,” said Terri Gentry, History Colorado’s engagement manager for Black Communities. “My great-grandparents, and grandparents enjoyed visiting with friends for many years and in the 1960s my grandparents bought the Shangri-La Cabin which continues to be a wonderful space for our family generations later. We appreciate Lincoln Hills being celebrated and honored for the vision of our community members in the 1920s to create a resort area for our families to experience life with joy, peace, love, and fun.”

Lincoln Hills: Mountain Sanctuary reopens to the public on June 13 at the History Colorado Center in Denver. The History Colorado Center is located at 1200 N Broadway and is open daily from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Admission for kids 18 and under is free every day.

In honor of this reopening, History Colorado will host a community celebration prior to the public opening of Lincoln Hills: Mountain Sanctuary. Members of the media interested in attending should RSVP via email to Jeannie McFarland Johnson (Jeannie.McFarlandJohnson@state.co.us)

About History Colorado
History Colorado is a division of the Colorado Department of Higher Education and a 501(c)3 non-profit that has served more than 75,000 students and 500,000 people in Colorado each year. It is a 146-year-old institution that operates eleven museums and historic sites, a free public research center, the Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation which provides technical assistance, educational opportunities, and other access to archaeology and historic preservation, and the History Colorado State Historical Fund (SHF), which is one of the nation’s largest state funded preservation programs of its kind. More than 70% of SHF grants are allocated in rural areas of the state. Additionally, the offices of the State Archaeologist and the State Historic Preservation Officer are part of History Colorado. 

History Colorado’s mission is to create a better future for Colorado by inspiring wonder in our past. We serve as the state’s memory, preserving and sharing the places, stories, and material culture of Colorado through educational programs, historic preservation grants, collecting, outreach to Colorado communities, the History Colorado Center and Stephen H. Hart Research Center in Denver, and 10 other museums and historic attractions statewide. History Colorado is one of only six Smithsonian Affiliates in Colorado. Visit HistoryColorado.org, or call 303-HISTORY, for more information. #HistoryColorado