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Boulder oil field, 1915. Photo credit: C. L. McClure and the Denver Public Library.

History of the CGS

Since 1910, the Colorado Geological Survey has brought the best of Colorado geoscience to you, our public constituency

The most current incarnation of the CGS came into existence in the mid-1960s.

  • 1967 – The legislature re-creates the Colorado Geological Survey within the newly formed Department of Natural Resources.
  • 1969 – The Colorado Geological Survey becomes operational.
  • 1987 – The Colorado Avalanche Information Center (CAIC) becomes part of the Colorado Geological Survey.
  • 1992 – The Colorado Geological Survey is placed under the newly formed Division of Minerals and Geology, a regulatory agency.
  • 2005 – The legislature re-establishes the Colorado Geological Survey as a separate Division in the Department of Natural Resources.
  • 2013 – CGS is transferred to the Colorado School of Mines.

We are now located in the Moly Building on the west side of the campus of the Colorado School of Mines, with around fifteen geoscience and support staff.