They Called it ‘The Rag’ but Las Colonias was the Heart of Grand Junction

For many years, if you lived on the south side of Grand Junction, people said you were from “the other side of the tracks.”

But for those who grew up there, it wasn’t an insult. It was a badge of honor.

This part of town is known as Las Colonias, and its roots run deep.

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Where Las Colonias Began

Las Colonias, which means “The Neighborhoods” in Spanish, sits near the Colorado River between 5th and 9th Streets. The area started to grow in the early 1900s when a sugar beet factory opened in Grand Junction.

Farmers needed help in the beet fields, and they found it in immigrants, many from Mexico, who came looking for a better life. They left behind poverty and revolution in Mexico. When they arrived, they found jobs, but not much else.

Grand Junction's Sugar Beet Factory Pulled Families Together

The sugar company built tiny homes called La Colonia for the workers. These white adobe buildings had just two rooms. There was no running water. Families shared a single hand pump and used outhouses.

Even though life was tough, people pulled together. Families helped each other build homes from adobe bricks. Neighbors shared food, watched movies at the Avalon Theatre, and gathered for music and celebrations on the weekends.

“We were all poor and no one even knew it,” said Josephine Taylor Dickey, who grew up in the neighborhood. “We shared everything.”

Facing Racism and Challenges

While Las Colonias was full of love and culture, residents often faced harsh treatment from the outside world.

Mexican-American soldiers returning home from the war were kicked out of restaurants. Black families had rocks thrown through their windows. Some stores downtown had signs saying “No Mexicans. No Indians. Whites Only.”

The city finally decided to include the neighborhood, but it refused to pave the roads or run sewer lines. Families had to dig trenches themselves.

Residents called the area “La Gara,” meaning “the rag,” a name based on the handkerchiefs worn in the hot beet fields.

Though the Adobe buildings are gone now, and much of the old neighborhood was later used for uranium mill tailings and zoned industrial, the spirit of Las Colonias lives on.

Today, Las Colonias Park has taken over the area, providing entertainment and recreation for all families.

Read More: What Makes Riverside The Best Neighborhood In Grand Junction?

Tell Us Your Story

Did your family grow up in Las Colonias? Do you have memories of life on the south side of Grand Junction? We’d love to hear your story. Send us a message or leave a comment.