By Coloradoan staff

Fort Collins has had many notable events in its 150-year history, but, in honor of its sesquicentennial, here are a few that helped shape the city into the community it is today:

1. Fort Collins is established

Aug. 20, 1864: Col. William O. Collins approved of the area and passed Special Order Number One, which officially designated the area a military reservation. While Abraham Lincoln did not officially approve of the designation until Nov. 14, that August day when the colonel visited "his" camp and approved of its relocation to higher ground is the day remembered as the city's birthday. The city of Fort Collins actually became incorporated in 1873.

2. Colorado Agricultural College becomes Colorado State University

Colorado Agricultural College welcomed its first five students Sept. 1, 1879. The land-grant and research university changed its named to Colorado State College of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts in 1935 to reflect its diverse academic programs.

In 1957, Colorado A&M became Colorado State University. A&M had less than 5,000 students, but enrollment jumped upon the university designation. Today, more than 30,000 undergraduate and graduate students attend CSU.

3. Fort Collins ends its run as a "dry city" and opens the door to a burgeoning brewing industry

In 1969, Fort Collins officially ended its designation as a "dry city," allowing the sale of liquor within city limits, which had been prohibited since 1896. Campus West Liquors opened that same year. Prior to Fort Collins allowing liquor sales, residents drove just outside city limits to "Smitty's" bar, a 3.2-beer establishment.

In 1988, Anheuser-Busch opened a brewery in Fort Collins, employing about 380 full-time and 120 part-time workers. The brewery has expanded three times since it opened.

In 1989, CooperSmith's Pub and Brewing opened in Old Town and Odell Brewing Co. started in a converted 1913 grain elevator outside of town — two events that helped launch Fort Collins' love of microbreweries and set Fort Collins on course to be "the Napa of Beer."

4. CSU students protest Vietnam war

May 8, 1970: Amid a two-day student strike protesting the Vietnam war, about 2,000 anti-war demonstrators marched on City Hall. That evening, a peace concert was held in the old College Avenue gymnasium. Later that night, CSU's oldest building and its cornerstone structure — Old Main — mysteriously burned to the ground. Fire marshals would later rule it arson. The building, which was built in 1878 and opened in 1879, had been used for a variety of purposes for nearly 100 years. No one was ever arrested for the fire.

5. Fort Collins embraces bicycles and trails

1970: Betty Sears, Bill Sears and Ruth Orr started a petition drive in Fort Collins urging the city to create bicycle paths on the street to decrease traffic and reduce bicycle-car collisions. The first stretch of bike path was completed in fall 1970. Today, the city of Fort Collins is home to 35.62 miles of parks trails and 100 miles of natural areas trails.

November 1992: Fort Collins residents approve a quarter-cent sales tax to increase open space and land conservation. That tax allowed for the purchase of the Cathy Fromme Prairie and the Coyote Ridge Natural Area, among other areas. Since then, voters have continually approved sales tax initiatives to support open lands conservation and purchases. Today, the city of Fort Collins boasts 39 natural areas encompassing 35,000 acres.

6. From railroads to trolleys

December 1907: The Denver Interurban Railway Company is given the right to construct and operate a system of electric railways along specific streets and avenues in Fort Collins. This became the trolley system, which is now operated by the Fort Collins Municipal Railway.

1943: Colorado and Southern Depot railroad workers find a pregnant mixed-breed dog they name Annie. The dog cheered workers during the dark days of World War II and became a well-known face for Fort Collins and the role of railroads in Fort Collins' commerce. At her death in 1948, C&S workers placed a gravestone in her honor. A statue of Annie rests at the Fort Collins downtown public library at 201 Peterson St., where the annual Annie Walk, a 5K starts every year.

7. Creation of modern-day Old Town Square

1873: Franklin Avery surveyed and platted the town of Fort Collins, based primarily on what is now known as Old Town. Avery later founded the First National Bank in Fort Collins and helped develop water projects to retain agriculture in Northern Colorado. His decision to plat the town with wide streets to allow for buggies and wagons to easily turn around eventually led to the unattributed adage: "Fort Collins, city of broad streets and narrow minds." Avery and his wife, Sara, built the Avery House on Mountain Avenue and Meldrum Street, which is now held by the Poudre Landmarks Foundation.

8. CSU professor Tom Sutherland freed after nearly 61/2years of captivity in Beirut

Sutherland, the former dean of agriculture at the American University of Beirut in Lebanon, was kidnapped by Islamic Jihad members near his Beirut home June 9, 1985. Sutherland later said he believed his kidnappers mistook him for the president of the university.

Fort Collins embraced the plight of Sutherland, a professor of agriculture at Colorado State University. His wife, Jean, along with their daughters, Kit, Joan and Ann, ensured that Sutherland's captivity remained at the forefront of Americans' thoughts and U.S. foreign policy in an effort to obtain his release. The Coloradoan began to publish on its front page every day a a small blurb with a yellow ribbon count of the days that Sutherland had been held captive.

After a horrific and tortured ordeal for 2,353 days, Sutherland was released Nov. 18, 1991, arriving in Fort Collins days later. Residents lined the streets of Fort Collins on the route from Harmony Road to CSU and waved yellow ribbons in his honor. A reception was held in CSU's Moby Arena that drew thousands. Today, the Sutherland family has donated millions of dollars from a settlement with Iran to the arts and community programs in Fort Collins.

9. Hispanics' historic role in Fort Collins' history recognized

2006: The Romero House, the only original adobe home on its original site left in the city, was renamed the Museo de las Tres Colonias. The museum, 425 10th St., honors Hispanics' heritage in the neighborhoods of Andersonville, Alta Vista and Buckingham. Only four decades prior to the museum opening, several downtown stores displayed signs discouraging Hispanic patronage and employment.

10. Disasters strike Fort Collins

July 28, 1997: The Spring Creek Flood dumped 10 to 14 inches of rain on the central and west parts of Fort Collins. Five people were killed in a mobile home park located near South College and Prospect Road when rushing waters burst through a railroad berm. The city recorded $5 million in damages. Colorado State University suffered extensive damages worth $140 million. Morgan Library and the Lory Student Center were hit hardest. The flood was unique in that many areas of the city did not receive any significant rainfall during the isolated downpour.

June 9, 2012: The High Park Fire in the mountains west of Fort Collins erupts, caused by a lightning strike. One person was killed, more than 87,285 acres were burned and 259 homes destroyed in what is among the worst wildfires in Colorado history.

Sept. 9, 2013: A slow-moving cold front dropped torrential rains over a 200-mile area in Northern Colorado, including Fort Collins. Ten people died in the flooding statewide, including two from Larimer County. The Federal Emergency Management Agency distributed $37.2 million in public assistance — more than $20 million in Small Business Administration business and home loans and $6.8 million in its individual and households program to aid in flood recovery.