Historian Comments

Many of Boulder County’s Latinos enjoyed an active social life, but until around 1950 and to some extent after that, it was largely informal, concentrated within families and in some cases small groups of neighbors or friends. Prior to the middle of the century, social interactions varied a great deal depending upon where people were living. Urban residents had the best opportunities for sociability, while isolated rural families rarely interacted with others. Latinos occasionally went to the movies, where the theaters were segregated, but music and dancing occurred mainly within families. More organized events were sometimes held elsewhere, including events at the local posts of the VFW. (Many Latinos served in the military in WW II, Korea, and Vietnam, and upon their return they were active in the Veterans of Foreign Wars, which accepted them as full members.) Sports were at first largely casual, played among friends and neighbors, but by the 1960s and 1970s, Latino children were participating in teams at school, sometimes winning championships. We found few references in Boulder County to the two main kinds of professional sports that later featured Latinos at the national level, boxing and baseball. But Longmont was on the edge of the “Sugar Beet League” of semi-professional baseball teams that flourished to the northeast of the county from the 1920s through the 1950s. Miguel Medina, who owned a music shop in Longmont, was a translator and informal counselor for the Denver Zephyrs.