A Brief History
In Times Prosperous and Troubled: The Diocese of Colorado, 1887–1918
Colorado became a self-sustaining diocese in 1887, with the Western Slope remaining a separate district from 1892 to 1919. This Western Slope district had its own bishop, who lived in Grand Junction or Salt Lake City. Since 1919 the diocesan and state boundaries of Colorado have been the same. The setting apart of Western Colorado was a valuable experiment, but the economic and population bases of the area were too small for an independent district.
The greatest challenges to The Episcopal Church in Colorado have been geography and terrain. This was never so true as in the late 19th century. Colorado bishops today travel over 5,500 miles every year as they visit their parishes and missions. But this is generally done in SUVs, not on horseback.
In the episcopate of Charles Sanford Olmsted (1902–1917), the Bishop faced several crises. Only two weeks after his consecration, the first cathedral was destroyed by arson (the bishop served long enough to lay the cornerstone for the new cathedral in 1909). A few years later a fiscal crisis threw the diocese into financial chaos. After the diocesan chapter clerk confessed to embezzlement, Bishop Olmsted retreated to Connecticut, leaving management to the Standing Committee. During this time the diocese was reorganized to be an organization with a board of trustees.
Bishop Charles Sanford Olmsted and Three Others in Early Automobile Photograph
