Colorado Springs City Guide: Hidden Gems, Dark History & Local Secrets

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Longform stories and essays exploring Colorado Springs's history and culture

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Pikes Peak or Bust

Megachurches, missile silos, and the evangelical Vatican hiding under 14,000 feet of granite

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The City Built on Dying Lungs

In the early 1900s, one-third of Colorado Springs' population had tuberculosis. They came to die in the mountain air. The city built an entire economy around their illness. When antibiotics cured TB, Colorado Springs had to reinvent itself entirely.

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The Night of the Axeman

On September 17, 1911, six people were murdered with an axe in Colorado Springs — two families, three children, all killed in their sleep. The murderer was never caught. A century later, historians believe he was a serial killer who struck across the Midwest, riding the rails and leaving bodies behind.

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When Tesla Blacked Out Colorado Springs

In 1899, Nikola Tesla built an 80-foot lightning machine in Colorado Springs. His experiments fried the city's power grid. He claimed to receive signals from Mars. The site is now a parking lot.

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Pikes Peak or Bust

Megachurches, missile silos, and the evangelical Vatican hiding under 14,000 feet of granite

Read

The City Built on Dying Lungs

Read

The Night of the Axeman

Read

When Tesla Blacked Out Colorado Springs

In 1899, Nikola Tesla built an 80-foot lightning machine in Colorado Springs. His experiments fried the city's power grid. He claimed to receive signals from Mars. The site is now a parking lot.

Read

Pikes Peak or Bust

Megachurches, missile silos, and the evangelical Vatican hiding under 14,000 feet of granite

Read

The City Built on Dying Lungs

Read

The Night of the Axeman

Read

When Tesla Blacked Out Colorado Springs

In 1899, Nikola Tesla built an 80-foot lightning machine in Colorado Springs. His experiments fried the city's power grid. He claimed to receive signals from Mars. The site is now a parking lot.

Read

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Curated collections of curiosities, dark history, hidden gems, and more

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Colorado Springs's Dark History

Ax murders, military conspiracies, and the blood in America's playground

Curious Colorado Springs

Articles

Pikes Peak or Bust

The City Built on Dying Lungs

The Night of the Axeman

When Tesla Blacked Out Colorado Springs

Pikes Peak or Bust

The City Built on Dying Lungs

The Night of the Axeman

When Tesla Blacked Out Colorado Springs

Pikes Peak or Bust

The City Built on Dying Lungs

The Night of the Axeman

When Tesla Blacked Out Colorado Springs

Discover

Colorado Springs's Dark History

Curiosities

Hidden Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs's Dark History

Curiosities

Hidden Colorado Springs

Colorado Springs's Dark History

Curiosities

Hidden Colorado Springs

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Best Bars

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Best Bars

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Curious Colorado Springs

Articles

Pikes Peak or Bust

The City Built on Dying Lungs

The Night of the Axeman

When Tesla Blacked Out Colorado Springs