Grand Junction is aptly named for its location at the conjunction of the Gunnison and Colorado Rivers.

In 1881, George Crawford, a full time land promoter, fulfilled his dream of building a town at the meeting point of these two rivers. The township was originally called Ute, after the Ute Indians who first populated the area; then West Denver, and finally Grand Junction.With the abundance of water made available through irrigation, the valley soon blossomed into an agricultural Mecca. Peaches, apricots, pears and apples flourished, as did a variety of vegetables. People came from miles away to purchase Grand Valley peaches, a custom that continues today. A year later its inception, the railroad came to Grand Junction. soon the young city had become the major shipping and transportation center for Western Colorado.

Mesa County was lightly inhabited by 1890. Large groups of immigrants from Kansas, Arkansas, and especially Iowa, had found new homes in the new county. This section of Colorado was well advertised and the advancing of Rio Grande and Colorado Midland Railroads helped spread the word.

The Grand Valley

The Grand Valley sits between the Grand Mesa, the Colorado National Monument, and the Bookcliff mountain range. Home of the communities of Grand Junction, Fruita, Palisade, and Clifton, this fertile valley serves as the hub of Colorado's Western Slope. You name it.....and Grand Junction has it and a multitude of other activities guaranteed to make your life exciting.