PRESS CONTACTS
Angelika Albaladejo, History Colorado Communications and Public Relations Manager
720-840-1914 | hc_media@state.co.us

Cody Wertz, Co-Founder, Freestone Strategies and spokesperson for Ken Salazar
303-518-2112 | cody@freestone-strategies.com 

Borderlands: A Salazar and History Colorado Initiative is inspired and supported by Salazar, whose family began farming and ranching in the San Luis Valley before Colorado was a state, and who carried the lessons of the borderlands with him through a career as Colorado attorney general, United States senator, U.S. secretary of the Interior, and U.S. ambassador to Mexico.

The Borderlands initiative encourages greater connection to the human stories and landscapes that define this southwestern region of the United States. Through this partnership with Salazar, History Colorado plans to create opportunities each year for people across the state to encounter, engage with, and focus on the history and themes of the Borderlands until at least 2050 through exhibitions, programs, and experiences. 

“The Borderlands are not just a line on a map — they are living places shaped by land, water, culture, and people whose stories have too often been overlooked or erased,” said Ken Salazar, former secretary of the Interior and ambassador to Mexico. “Through this partnership with History Colorado, and by contributing my personal papers and memorabilia and helping launch a long-term endowment, my wife Hope and I are investing in a public effort to ensure the full history of the Southern Borderlands from Colorado’s and New Mexico’s borders to the borderlands between Mexico and the United States and the United States and Canada are preserved and shared for generations to come.” 

Salazar and History Colorado are honored to have launched this initiative on February 2, 2026 – the 178th anniversary of the signing of the Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo, which ended the U.S.-Mexico War and ceded vast territories to the United States, forever changing the map of North America. 

To bolster the Borderlands initiative, Ken Salazar and Hope Salazar made a major donation of documents and artifacts to the History Colorado archives. The Ken Salazar Collection will include more than 350 boxes of papers, memorabilia, artwork, and other materials of historical value, documenting Salazar’s life and career as one of Colorado's most accomplished public servants. This foundational collection provides historians with insights into many consequential moments from the past quarter-century.

History Colorado’s Borderlands initiative first began in 2017 as Borderlands of Southern Colorado – launched by Dawn DiPrince, who was then Director of the El Pueblo History Museum and Chief Community Museum Officer for History Colorado's statewide network of community museums and historic sites. DiPrince is now History Colorado’s president and CEO, as well as the State Historic Preservation Officer.

“Secretary Salazar's southern Colorado roots resonate throughout his life's work and the powerful impact he has made nationally and internationally. We are honored to have his and Hope's support and participation as we continue to expand and deepen our important Borderlands initiative,” DiPrince said. “History Colorado's Borderlands work has inspired and connected communities for nearly a decade and we look forward to all of its future possibilities.”

History Colorado's Borderlands of Southern Colorado exhibitions are currently on display at the El Pueblo History Museum, Fort Garland Museum and Cultural Center, Trinidad History Museum and the History Colorado Center. Over the years, the Borderlands initiative has also included speaking series, a teaching syllabus, bookshop offerings, and many other events and experiences.

Through partnership with Salazar, History Colorado aims to expand the Borderlands initiative beyond southern Colorado to include New Mexico and Mexico, highlighting the cultural connections and international exchange across this region which Salazar’s life and career embody. Salazar and his wife Hope have made a generous contribution to support this expansion. 

Later this year, History Colorado and its community museums across the state plan to roll out new programming and exhibitions as part of the growing Borderlands initiative. The award-winning Fort Garland Museum in the San Luis Valley is collaborating with the Harwood Museum of Art in Taos, New Mexico to open an exhibition this summer called Unearthing Futures. This cross-border exhibition explores the culture of the southwestern United States through abode structures. The Fort Garland Museum is also hosting a speaker series throughout the year, beginning on February 24 with a film screening and discussion with Paul Espinosa about his film Searching for Padre Martinez. 

About History Colorado
History Colorado is a 146-year-old institution that offers access to our state’s history through enriching experiences at eleven museums and historic sites. As an agency of the State of Colorado and a non-profit organization, History Colorado is committed to serving all Coloradans through generational work that centers communities, deepens knowledge and catalyzes the transformative power of history.

History Colorado is also home to a free public research center, people-centered preservation work done by the State Historical Fund and the State Historic Preservation Office, the Office of the State Archaeologist, the State Historians Council, and many other community-driven public history projects such as the Museum of Memory. History Colorado stewards more than 15 million objects, photographs, and archival resources that make up the State’s collection, and serve tens of thousands of learners of all ages each year. History Colorado is one of only six Smithsonian Affiliates in Colorado. Visit HistoryColorado.org, or call 303-HISTORY, for more information. #HistoryColorado