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“Back when information was hard to copy people valued the copies and took care of them. Now, copies are so common as to be considered worthless, and very little attention is given to preserving them over the long term. “(Brandt, 2003)—-Danny Hillis (NOTE: I left this broken link in my original article to emphasize the…
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BY Raina Lucero, Editor and Chief Kiowa County Independent Tyler Gibson, Baca County Court Judge and owner of Baca Home Care Agency, has been named to the 2026 class of 40 Under 40 by the Southern Colorado Business Forum & Digest. The recognition is part of the publication’s relaunched 40 Under 40 Awards Breakfast, which…
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History and Stories
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The 1939 Plesiosaur Discovery in Baca County In March 1939, one of Colorado’s most remarkable fossil discoveries emerged from the eroded banks of a remote creek in Baca County, about 13.5 miles north of Pritchett. A recent flood had carved away a 20-foot shale cliff on the Earl Kern’s farm which was occupied by Vernon…
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Walking the Santa Fe Trail One Word at a Time During the The Bent’s Fort Years (1833–1849): Letters, Stories & Incidents from the Edge of the Frontier
NOTE: A couple years ago, I released Letters, Stories and Incidents on the Santa Fe Trail : The Bent’s Fort Years. Recently, someone asked me if the book was any good. My answer? Oh yes. It has the best discussion of the “innumerable” buffalo herds of the American West you’ll find anywhere outside the writings…
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In 2025, nearly a century after my grandparents first opened their hardware store on South Main Street in Springfield, Colorado, the building’s aging wooden facade was removed by local resident and current owner Jessica Caricato. What she uncovered wasn’t just brick and mortar—it was memory. For the first time, I was face to face with…
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When I give talks about technology and innovation, I often draw on an unconventional example. One of my favorites is broomcorn—that old-fashioned crop which was a cash crop staple for many years where I grew up and was once essential for making hand-tied ‘straw’ brooms. At first glance, it seems like a footnote in agricultural…












