Avondale: Fields of Devotion at El Pueblo History Museum next to a historical photo of a corner store and a baseball stadium shaped seal that says Fields of Devotion on it.

Upcoming Exhibition

Avondale: Fields of Devotion

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From fertile farm fields to boisterous baseball fields and foreign battlefields, the people of south-central Colorado’s small town of Avondale step up to the plate in many ways.

This rural community just east of Pueblo has been settled since the late 1800s by a mix of Hispanos, Italians, and migrant farmworkers. Today, Avondale is still showing its devotion to upholding traditions of faith, fun, and fidelity. 

Fields of Devotion draws on stories shared with El Pueblo History Museum by the town’s residents through History Colorado’s Avondale Museum of Memory project. Through an intriguing array of historic photographs and artifacts, alongside the stories and voices of community members themselves, this exhibition honors the deep love shared by this community.

Even though Avondale’s once fruitful farmland and robust economy has faced many challenges throughout its history — including current struggles to obtain basic resources like water, infrastructure and food — its residents remain a tight knit community taking pride in the bounties of their hard work and their commitment to the values that their ancestors brought to the region.

Tickets

Location

Team photo of men's Avondale baseball team.
An older couple poses for a studio photograph. The woman is leaning over the man's shoulder and smiling.
Exterior of simple historic church along an unpaved road in Avondale.
4 men discuss near the open driver's side door of a semi truck loaded with produce.
Black and white photograph of World War One veterans marching down the street. The men are carrying the US flag, and some are wearing their military uniform. There are shops in the background.
Colorful interior of church in Avondale. Features pews, an altar, and some religious paintings and statues.
A family of seven children and a bay pose on a large toppled tree overhanding a river bottom.
A family of three siblings in Avondale Apache football and cheerleader uniforms smile at camera.
Two police officers and a young girl stand in front of vintage gas pumps.

Anybody with a connection to Pueblo knows Avondale. It has enriched us all of our lives with the crops they produce and the people who have given service to this country. It has connected us through baseball and draws residents and visitors alike for the annual Jamaicas festival at Sacred Heart Catholic Church. In Fields of Devotion these stories come together into one beautiful, collaborative exhibition that resonates with families and community members, and reminds us of the rich and diverse history of this unique town called Avondale.

Dianne Archuleta, Director of El Pueblo History Museum