Recent History
Honor the Past, Celebrate the Present, Inspire the Future
From September 4, 2014, through September 4, 2015, Rocky Mountain National Park along with local and national communities celebrated the park’s 100th Anniversary.
Speakers, special activities, and community events were coordinated to commemorate the Centennial.
Whether you’re a regular visitor, a national park traveler, or a virtual explorer, Rocky Mountain National Park hopes that the 100th Anniversary will inspire you to experience and connect with the park that has inspired 100 years of protection and that will continue to enchant and delight visitors and stewards for another 100 years!
1915 – 2015 Centennial
From the September 4, 2014 Opening Ceremony, through September 4, 2015 Re-dedication Ceremony visitors came to Rocky Mountain National Park tore-connect with the natural beauty that our nation has preserved for 100 years for everyone to enjoy!
Rocky Mountain National Park and Rocky Mountain Nature Association announced the winning logo for the park’s 100th Anniversary celebration in 2015. The designer is Carol Welker, a graphic artist based out of Dallas, Texas.
As a child, Welker spent summers in the Cedar Park area near Drake, Colorado. She has many fond memories of exploring Rocky Mountain National Park with her siblings – hiking, backpacking, and summiting Longs Peak. “As a result,” says Welker, “the iconography unique to the park was ingrained in my mind and my soul.”
“The logo design was certainly inspired by my past,” says Welker. She incorporated the most memorable images from her childhood into her design, including aspen leaves, columbine, pine cones, and bighorn sheep. “I wanted to give an overall majestic feel to the logo and make a bold statement about the respect the park deserves as well as the many reasons its preservation calls for celebration.”
Over the course of the year, a calendar of events was offered by the park, local organizations, and surrounding communities to celebrate Rocky Mountain National Park’s natural and cultural history and the relationships that have developed over the last 100 years.