Welcome to History Programs at your Location
You have come to the right place!
I partner with you to offer your group historical programs for your adult programming at your location. You and your group will be entertained while discovering the ordinary people from the past who lived extraordinary lives. I’m easy to reach through the Contact or Book Now tab. Let’s work together to meet your programming schedule.
Sincerely, Dave
AVAILABLE PROGRAMS
SISTERS OF COURAGE
THE HARBISONS, AN ORDINARY FAMILY WHO LED AN EXTRAORDINARY LIFE
Amidst national economic crisis and the harshities of the life in the late 1800s, sisters Kittie and Annie Harbison established a successful homestead and dairy farm at what is now the west entrance of Rocky Mountain National Park. From crossing Berthoud Pass to living in the hostile environment of the Rocky Mountains, the sisters persevered through the many challenges of life in the American West. Their story of courage, grit, and determination highlights the contributions of women in history that often go untold. Discover what Colorado life looked like more than a hundred years ago for ordinary women who lived extraordinary lives.
IT’S ABOUT THE PEOPLE:
- Women Homesteaders
- Civil War Veteran
- Rocky Mountain National Park
- National Panic of 1893
- Dairy Ranching
ROCKY’S WEST SIDE STORY
JOURNEYS OF EXPLORATION LEADING UP TO THE FORMATION OF ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK
Imagine the courage of early settlers to follow Ute trails across the Continental Divide in search of a new home in an unsettled, harsh mountain environment. Or living in a cave, while digging a ditch to divert water out of the Grand River. Learn about the intersection of the Arapho and Ute tribes and early settlers in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains. Embark on a tour of the recurring themes of survival and success in the past 11,000 years in the high isolated mountain valley. Listen to stories of human nature encountering Mother Nature and be inspired to preserve the wilderness, wildlife and wonder of Rocky Mountain National Park’s west side.
IT’S ABOUT THE PEOPLE:
- Ute and Arapaho History
- Post-Civil War Migration
- Rocky Mountain National
- Park Water Diversion
- Gold Mining
LOST LODGES OF ROCKY
A BALANCE OF WILDERNESS AND HOSPITALITY
Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) was once home to more than 30 lodges, but today lodging is limited to outside the Park’s boundaries. What happened to the camps and resorts that used to be in there and what stories did they hold?
Lost Lodges of Rocky explores the transitions in lodging for visitors to Rocky Mountain National Park in the thought provoking search for balance between wilderness and hospitality unique to America’s first automobile-based National Park.
IT’S ABOUT THE PEOPLE:
- Meet “Squeaky” Bob Wheeler
- Early Automobile Travelers
- Who was Abner Sprague?
- Where can you sleep in RMNP?
WHO WAS THE SCULPTOR IN BUCKSKIN?
HIS LIFE WAS HIS ART, HIS LIVING WAS THE LOVE OF HIS WIFE, FAMILY, AND HUNTING IN THE WEST
Alexander Phimister Proctor was revered as a premier animal sculptor and artist, capturing depictions of wildlife and subjects of the American West. His iconic works of art can still be found across the United States.
After spending much of his youth hunting and sketching in the Colorado mountain wilderness of the 1870s, Proctor’s talents took him throughout the U.S. and on to Paris and Rome. But Proctor was more than a sculptor and artist. He was a devoted husband, loving father and grandfather, incurable wanderer, and confidant of many prominent figures of his day.
“My love has always been divided. I am eternally obsessed with two deep desires – one, to spend as much time as possible in the wilderness, and the other, to accomplish something worthwhile in art. ” – Proctor
IT’S ABOUT THE PEOPLE:
- 1893 Chicago Exposition
- Hunting with a President
- Moving a large family around the world
- World-renowned sculptor that few knew his name
