Written and composed by A.J. Fynn, “Where the Columbines Grow” was adopted on May 8, 1915 as the offical state song of Colorado by an act of the General Assembly. While traveling by horse and wagon to visit Indian tribes in the San Luis Valley in 1896, Fynn received inspiration to pen the song after he came across a Colorado mountain meadow blanketed with columbine flowers. He dedicated the song to the Colorado pioneers.
In 2007, an attempt was made to replace “Columbines” with John Denver’s 1973 hit song “Rocky Mountain High.” Some residents complained that Denver’s song glorified drug use and was not suitable as a state song. Nevertheless, that same year the Colorado legislature named “Rocky Mountain High” as Colorado’s second official state song, along side of “Where the Columbines Grow.” We’ll publish “Rocky Mountain High” in a future issue of Colorado Central.
Click here for a version of “Where the Columbines Grow” from the Colorado state’s archives.
Where the Columbines Grow is a beautiful song, with relatively timeless lyrics given that it was written a century ago. I’m still depressed about Rocky Mountain High being given any kind of recognition, but there you have it.