Boulder County Latino History
Boulder County Latino History
Teaching Our Stories
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  • Social Life, Entertainment, and Sports, 1900-1980

Social Life, Entertainment, and Sports, 1900-1980

This resource describes the kinds of social life and entertainment that Latinos enjoyed and talks about their participation in sports–at school and as adults.

Full Text PDF: Chapter 4: Social life, Entertainment, and Sports

“Segregation, 1936,” by John Martinez

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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1978 audio interview with Virginia Maestas

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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2013 interview with Dolores Silva

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Children at a birthday party

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Four friends in Lafayette, 1930s (Sally Salazar Martinez, Pearl Lopez, Alvia Abeyta, Maggie Manzanares)

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Group of boys in Longmont, beside car

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Interview with Miguel Medina, owner of Casa Medina

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Latino baseball team organized by St. John’s church in Longmont

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Madrigal Family of Boulder, Excerpt #1, from biographies, 2012

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Ortega, John, Family (Part 1)

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Patrick Arroyo and the “Boulder Belle,” 1946

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Reina and Felix Gallegos dancing

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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The Arroyo family at Chautauqua Park, 1947

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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The Arroyo family at Chautauqua Park, 1947

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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Three friends in Boulder, 1940 (Arthur Archuleta, Victor Martinez, and Frank Archuleta)

February 10, 2016 / Mary Ellen Graziani /

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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.

Teaching Boulder County Latino History is an extension of the Boulder County Latino History Project. This site provides resources for those interested in teaching Boulder County Latino History. The teaching resources are grounded in the books written by CU Boulder’s Distinguished Professor Marjorie McIntosh.

There are three central components to this site. The Lesson Database provides lessons for K-12 teachers. Each lesson uses primary sources and is grounded in the books by Prof. McIntosh. Beyond the curated lessons teachers are encouraged to explore the Primary Source Sets and access the full text of Prof. McIntosh’s books. The book outlines link lesson plans and primary sources to each chapter. Teachers and students are welcome to download all or parts of the books to support their learning.

Our Work

Lesson Topics

Businesses Celebrations/ ceremonies Children Civil rights activity Culture/ identity issues Deportation Education/ schools Employment, manufacturing/ unskilled Employment, professional/ skilled Families Farm work/ agriculture/ ranching Food/ cooking Government/ government programs/ laws Health/ medicine/ healing Houses/ living places Immigration Interviews done in 2013 Labor unions/ strikes Languages (Spanish and English) Mexico/ Mexicans Migrant workers Mining Music/ dancing/ art/ recreation Neighborhoods New Mexico/ New Mexicans Organizations/ clubs Police/ Sheriffs/ I.C.E. officials Political or community participation Quantitative information Racism/ discrimination/ segregation Religion/ churches Soldiers/ wars/ veterans Sports/ outdoor activities Transportation/ cars University of Colorado/ college students Women Work done by women and children

© 2023 Boulder County Latino History

CU School of Education

CU Office for Outreach and Engagement/ University of Colorado Boulder

The Colorado Health Foundation
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