Charles Hansen
In 1902, Charles Hansen, a young newspaperman, came to Greeley, Colorado ready to make his mark. A town of 3,000 people and four newspapers, Hansen was hired on at the Greeley Tribune as a part-time reporter/editor.
Hansen left Greeley for a few months for some special writing jobs on the Western Slope, where he met Ed Taylor, an attorney who had become involved in a project that would bring water from the Western Slope to the eastern plains.
Hansen returned to Greeley and purchased the weekly Weld County Republican, which he consolidated with two other small weekly papers and started a daily newspaper called the Greeley Republican. For 10 years, the Greeley Republican and Tribune battled, until 1913 when the papers merged. During the next 40 years, Hansen served as the publisher of the Greeley Daily Tribune and Greeley Republican, where he upgraded the presses and other equipment, and moved the offices to a modern building at 714 8th Street.
During his tenure, Hansen served as president of the Greeley Tribune Republican Publishing Co., the Greeley Chamber of Commerce, and the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy Districts. Meanwhile, Hansen, who loved music, worked to establish the Greeley Philharmonic Orchestra and helped bring concerts to Greeley, including the New York, Los Angeles and Minneapolis symphony orchestras, and John Philip Sousa’s marching band.
In addition to his success in the newspaper business, Hansen’s name was also placed in local history because he brought water to the plains of Colorado. As early as 1915, Hansen helped make preparations for a 30-mile tunnel that would run under the mountains from the western side of the Rockies to the eastern side.
Hansen made several trips to Washington, D.C. to secure the legislation that would be needed for this project. It became the Colorado-Big Thompson Water Diversion Project. When the project was finished, it helped Greeley, Weld County and all of northern Colorado become agricultural examples for the world. In 1956, a portion of the canal that carries water across the mouth of the Big Thompson River near the Narrows Canyon was renamed Charles Hansen, in honor of his efforts to promote the project.
Hansen left Greeley for a few months for some special writing jobs on the Western Slope, where he met Ed Taylor, an attorney who had become involved in a project that would bring water from the Western Slope to the eastern plains.
Hansen returned to Greeley and purchased the weekly Weld County Republican, which he consolidated with two other small weekly papers and started a daily newspaper called the Greeley Republican. For 10 years, the Greeley Republican and Tribune battled, until 1913 when the papers merged. During the next 40 years, Hansen served as the publisher of the Greeley Daily Tribune and Greeley Republican, where he upgraded the presses and other equipment, and moved the offices to a modern building at 714 8th Street.
During his tenure, Hansen served as president of the Greeley Tribune Republican Publishing Co., the Greeley Chamber of Commerce, and the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy Districts. Meanwhile, Hansen, who loved music, worked to establish the Greeley Philharmonic Orchestra and helped bring concerts to Greeley, including the New York, Los Angeles and Minneapolis symphony orchestras, and John Philip Sousa’s marching band.
In addition to his success in the newspaper business, Hansen’s name was also placed in local history because he brought water to the plains of Colorado. As early as 1915, Hansen helped make preparations for a 30-mile tunnel that would run under the mountains from the western side of the Rockies to the eastern side.
Hansen made several trips to Washington, D.C. to secure the legislation that would be needed for this project. It became the Colorado-Big Thompson Water Diversion Project. When the project was finished, it helped Greeley, Weld County and all of northern Colorado become agricultural examples for the world. In 1956, a portion of the canal that carries water across the mouth of the Big Thompson River near the Narrows Canyon was renamed Charles Hansen, in honor of his efforts to promote the project.
