Colorado, 1870-2000 [Hardcover]

William Henry Jackson (Author), John Fielder (Author), Ed Marston (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1999

The images of early west photographer William Henry Jackson capture a Colorado landscape both pristine and already dramatically affected by the onslaught on western civilization. Standing exactly where Jackson stood, and pointing his own camera in precisely the same direction, John Fielder has rephotographed Jackson's Colorado images to capture the often startling change that has occurred over the last century. The result is both breathtaking and stark, hopeful and disquieting. Jackson's and Fielder's photography is accompanied by thoughtful and provocative essays by respected experts in the environmental field: Roderick Nash, America's foremost wilderness historian and author of Wilderness and the American Mind; Ed Marston, journalist and publisher of High Country News; and Eric Paddock, Curator of Photography at the Colorado Historical Society. John Fielder describes the profound experience of traveling the state and seeing the landscape from Jackson's perspective, and reflects upon changes of the last 130 years.

The contrast between Jackson's and Fielder's photographs not only illuminates Colorado's past but will help us determine the course of land management as we move into the next century. Accompanied by an educational program that includes lectures, a traveling exhibit, newspaper serialization, and television series, this book is aimed at encouraging people to appreciate and reflect on nature, history, and photography as we move into the next century. Colorado: 1870-2000 stands not only as an important document of westward exploration, expansion, and urbanization, but helps define our past and future environmental values.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

John Fielder is a nationally renowned nature photographer, publisher, and preservationist. He is the photographer of 30 exhibit form at and guidebooks, most about his home state of Colorado. An original governor-appointed member of the Board of Great Outdoors Colorado, Fielder's photography has influenced people and legislation earning him awards from many conservation groups, including the Sierra Club's Ansel Adams Award. He teaches photography to adults and children, and speaks to thousands of people each year rallying support for land-use and environmental issues. He lives with his family in Greenwood Village, Colorado.

Ed Marston is the publisher of High Country News, a regional newspaper covering public land and natural resources in the western United States. He holds a B.S. in experimental physics from the State of University of New York at Stony Brook. Prior to publishing High Country News, Ed and his wife Betsy founded the North Fork Country Times (1975) and the Western Colorado Report (1982). Marston has written or edited three books: The Dynamic Environment, Western Water Made Simple, and Reopening the Western Frontier. Marston and his family have lived in Paonia, Colorado since 1974.

Roderick Frazier Nash is a retired Professor of History and Environmental Studies at the University of California at Santa Barbara and lives outside Crested Butte, Colorado. He is a white water river guide, a tugboat captain, and an extreme powder skier. Regarded as a founder of the field of environmental history, he has written books including Wilderness and the American Mind, The Rights of Nature: A History of Environmental Ethics, and American Environmentalism, all of which have enjoyed many reprintings, revised editions, and foreign translations.

Eric Paddock, a fifth-generation Coloradoan, is Curator of photography at the Colorado Historical Society, where he works with a collection of 600,000 photographs of Colorado and the West. He teaches art history at the Colorado College, American history at the University of Colorado at Denver, and photography at schools and workshops throughout Colorado. The author of more than two dozen articles and book reviews on photography and Western history, he also is a widely known landscape photographer whose first monograph, Belonging to the West, was published in 1996 by the Johns Hopkins University Press.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Westcliff Pub Inc (August 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565793471
• ISBN-13: 978-1565793477
• Product Dimensions: 12.3 x 16.4 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #776,294 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

62 of 65 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jackson Fielder 1870 - 2000 is captivating, January 26, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Colorado, 1870-2000 (Hardcover)

Jackson - Fielder 1870 - 2000 is a comparison of photographs of Colorado, showing the changes that have occurred geographically and developmentally over the past century. William Henry Jackson took pictures at the end of the 19th century. John Fielder returned to the exact locations a hundred years later to capture the similarities and differences that have taken place. The book is fascinating and nostalgic not only to Coloradans, but to historians, geologists, environmentalists, as well as anyone who just loves to view the beautiful scenery of the Rocky Mountains and the surrounding foothills. I highly recommend this book for hours of enjoyment.

82 of 88 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Colorado: 1870-2000 vs. Colorado: Yesterday & Today, July 19, 2001

By 

T. Johnson (Highlands Ranch, CO) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Colorado, 1870-2000 (Hardcover)

As people may or may not know, there are now two Colorado "then and now" books out: Colorado: 1870-2000 by John Fielder and Colorado: Yesterday & Today by Grant Collier. I am fascinated by these types of books and therefore bought both books. I have carefully compared the two based on several different aspects and decided that, for the reasons listed below, Colorado: Yesterday & Today is the best overall value.

1) Accuracy of Photo Retakes: While Fielder did a rather competent job of matching the historic photos, Collier did a remarkable job. Unless it was impossible to match them, due to trees blocking the view, etc., most of Collier's photos appear to be taken from nearly the exact location as the historic photos. EDGE: Colorado: Yesterday & Today.

2) Originality: Since both of the books were published within a short time span, it seems possible that one photographer copied the other's idea for the book. Initially, I assumed that Fielder started on his book first. But, after looking into it, I was surprised to find that Collier started working on his book before Fielder even decided to do his book. EDGE: Colorado: Yesterday & Today

3) Reputation: This is Collier's first book, while Fielder has published many other books. EDGE: Colorado: 1870-2000

4) Written Text: Colorado: 1870-2000 has some interesting essays written by leading environmentalists, historians, etc. My one complaint is that the essays do not really provide any information on the photos in the book. Colorado: Yesterday & Today was written entirely by the photographer, Grant Collier. He did a very competent job writing the histories of the towns in the book, and this text provides the reader with additional information on the photographs in the book. EDGE: EVEN

5) Appearance of the book: Colorado: 1870-2000 is a very large book and is perhaps a little bulky. But the large photos in it are quite nice. Colorado: Yesterday & Today is more of a standard size book, and it is easier to sit down and look through this book. But the photos are obviously not quite as large. Also, both books have VERY NICE leather covers. EDGE: EVEN

6) Intangibles: In Colorado: 1870-2000 Fielder reshot the images of pioneer photographer William Henry Jackson. In Colorado: Yesterday & Today Collier reshot the images of his great-great-grandfather, and pioneer photographer, Joseph Collier. This adds a fascinating human-interest aspect to Colorado: Yesterday & Today that is lacking in Colorado: 1870-2000. EDGE: Colorado: Yesterday & Today.

OVERALL VALUE: The SRP of Fielder's book is $95, while the SRP of Collier's book is $39.95. So, given the price and quality of Colorado: Yesterday & Today, I would say that it is certainly the best overall value.

To conclude, if you're only going to buy one Colorado "then and now" book, I'd recommend Colorado: Yesterday & Today. If you're going to buy two, Colorado: 1870-2000 isn't too bad a buy, either.

43 of 46 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Splendid, November 30, 1999

By 

Anthony G. Siegle (San Francisco, California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Colorado, 1870-2000 (Hardcover)

Fielder painstakingly retraced the steps of WH Jackson to vividly depict the 100 plus years between Jackson's eye and Fielder's eye. He gloriously proves that 100 years elapsing is a wink of an eye when it comes to history. Perhaps one has to live in Colorado to realy appreciate the magnificence of the work. It was great fun to look at the comparable photographs and try to find the differences that have occurred in that time. And then you want to go and see the site for yourself. It will serve more than take up room on your coffee table.