Centennial Farms

Centennial Farms

Maura Bennett
Maura Bennett
31 Colorado families that have owned and operated their farms and ranches for 100 years or more will be honored at the 32nd annual Centennial Farms & Ranches ceremony on Friday, August 24 at the Colorado State Fair in Pueblo.

Jonathan Raab at History Colorado tells Colorado Ag Today the Sporeder Ranch was founded in 1915 in Huerfano and Las Animas counties by Louis Sporeleder Sr. has an especially interesting history.

"What was interesting about him was that he was a grower a byer and a seller of sheep, wool, cattle, swine, poultry. Pretty much anything you can think of that a rancher might do but he was also an author. He wrote a book called The Romance of the Spanish Peaks which was published going back as early as 1944."

Raab says the state has realized how important it is to recognize the agricultural heritage of Colorado that goes back to before the founding of the state. The farms and families that run them formed the backbone of Colorado.

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