History and culture - Mountains
Felipe Baca is remembered as a founder of Trinidad
The county seat traces its start to Hispanic pioneer Felipe Baca, who is credited with settling the Purgatoire valley around 1860 and drawing other families there, and the town became the seat when Las Animas County was created in 1866.
Published June 10, 2026 - Last verified June 15, 2026
The story of Trinidad starts with people, not just a place. One name that comes up again and again is Felipe Baca, a Hispanic farmer and rancher who is remembered as a founder of the town.
By the accounts kept in Trinidad, Baca came to the fertile valley along the Purgatoire River around 1860 and brought his family to settle there. Other families followed, and a community grew up where the Santa Fe Trail crossed the river. That mix of Hispanic settlers and trail traffic gave early Trinidad its character, and you can still feel it in the town’s names, churches, and architecture. The Baca family’s adobe home still stands today as the Baca House, part of History Colorado’s Trinidad History Museum.
Trinidad became the seat of Las Animas County when the county was created in 1866, and it has held that role ever since.
For someone new here, knowing the town’s roots makes its Hispanic heritage and its place names feel less like trivia and more like a living record. To dig into the founding story, start with History Colorado’s Trinidad History Museum, and with the Colorado State Archives for official county records.