Current Colorado State Flag
Colorado Territory was created in 1861. The borders of the Colorado Territory were the same as the current borders of the state of Colorado. Because gold had been found in the Pikes Peak region, the federal government wanted to establish firm boundaries. The Civil War then delayed statehood. The territory was dissolved when Colorado became the thirty-eighth state on August 1, 1876.
Missouri State Flag
Missouri became the twenty-fourth state of the United States in 1821. Its name comes from the Iliniwek word missouri, meaning owner of big canoes. The state’s nickname is the “Show-Me State,” and Jefferson City is the capital. It ranks nineteenth in area and sixteenth in population. St. Louis, a large Missouri city, was once the Gateway to the West. The Gateway Arch, a reminder of that role, was built in 1964 and stands 630 feet high. The Pony Express ran from Missouri to California. Children could visit an Internet site at: Missouri. They could find out why Missouri is called the “Show-Me State.”