Colorado and President Johnson (Andrew, that is)

Colorado statehood nearly came much earlier than August 1, 1876

By John Peel

November 3, 1864: Territorial Gov. John Evans announces to Colorado that its vote for statehood has been defeated.

January 28, 1867: U.S. President Andrew Johnson, instead of signing a bill from Congress granting Colorado a new star on the nation’s flag, vetoes it.

Nothing against August 1. It’s a fine mid-summer day. August 1, 2026, will mark Colorado’s 150th birthday. But November 3 or January 28 could have been the day we celebrate as Colorado’s genesis. It hardly matters to us today that statehood was delayed until 1876, but it’s intriguing to look back and understand why.

The setting in 1864 was the Civil War. Republicans were anxious to have more states that leaned their way and would vote for President Lincoln in the upcoming election. So, the situation was ripe for a few Western territories. That same year, Nevada chose statehood and became the 36th state on October 31. Colorado nearly followed immediately as the 37th.

In July 1864, Colorado representatives gathered for a “Constitutional Convention” in Denver, although technically, Golden City (now just Golden) was in the midst of a five-year reign as territorial capital. Their proposed constitution agreed to outlaw slavery, approve “toleration of religious sentiment,” and forever disclaim all right and title to the unappropriated public lands lying within said Territory.”

Statehood was then put to a public vote on September 13.

Mining company magnates and business boosters, led by Gov. Evans and the loud voice of Rocky Mountain News publisher William Byers, screamed for statehood. On September 12, the News declared seemingly irresponsibly: “Vote yourself, and see that your friends vote. If you know one who fails to come to the polls, ‘go for him.’”

Others, including the hard-working miners, feared statehood would take away their rights, increase taxes, and give more power to perceived crooks in the growing metropolis of Denver.

The Daily Mining Journal, based in Blackhawk, implored on September 12: “Anti-State men, stand by your friends and stand by each other. Let no tool of the swindler Evans, the political, military parson of gigantic physique … creep onto your ticket.”

After counting the questionable vote among the 17 original counties, with irregularities on both sides, Gov. Evans and the canvassing committee announced on November 3 that “a majority of the legal votes were against it.”

After the Civil War, Coloradans tried again, and Congress passed a bill allowing statehood. But it was derailed by President Johnson, whose annoyance seeped through in a long-winded veto signed January 28, 1867. He’d already returned a similar bill to admit Colorado the year before.

“I have been unable to perceive any reason for changing the opinions which have already been communicated to Congress,” Johnson wrote. “I find, on the contrary, there are many objections to the proposed legislation of which I was not at that time aware.”

Among Johnson’s beef with the bill was the state’s population. At fewer than 30,000 in 1867, it was “entirely too small either to assume the responsibility or to enjoy the privileges of a State.”

Andrew Johnson

At nearly the same time, and for the same population issue, Johnson vetoed Nebraska’s bid for statehood. However, Congress overrode that veto, and Nebraska became a state on March 1, 1867 – earning the honor as the only state admitted over a presidential veto.

It would take several more railroads, an additional influx of miners and ranchers, another act of Congress, and another statewide vote – as well as two broken treaties with the Utes – before President U.S. Grant signed the bill making Colorado the 38th state on August 1, 1876.

Sources:

Rocky Mountain News and The Daily Mining Journal accessed via coloradohistoricnewspapers.org, a service of the Colorado State Library.

Carl Abbott, Stephen J. Leonard, and Thomas J. Noel, “Colorado: A History of the Centennial State, Fifth Edition,” 2013, Boulder: University Press of Colorado.

John Peel is sole proprietor of John Peel’s Life Preserver, which documents clients’ personal and familiy history. He also writes part-time for the Durango Herald and other publications. He can be reached at jpeels34@gmail.com.