The area’s early inhabitants, around 12,000 to 7,500 years ago, were big-game hunters relying on mammoth and bison. As the climate changed about 7,500 to 900 years ago, they shifted to elk, deer, small game, and native nuts and berries. Tribal groups, including the Ute, Cheyenne, Apache, Comanche, Kiowa, and Arapaho, lived in the area beginning around 400 years ago.

In 1859, the gold rush attracted settlers, and families homesteaded in what is now Golden Gate Canyon State Park, growing crops and raising cattle. The 1842 Pre-Emption law allowed homesteaders to acquire 160 acres for $200, provided they improved the land. Access was limited; Gap Road was the only route until the 1960s.

Notable homesteaders include William Kriley, Tom and Gwenllean Belcher, William and Mary Ann Allgood, the Works family and William and Dorothy Harmsen. Their lands became part of the park. Some of the families’ cabins can be seen and enjoyed today, preserving the history of these early settlers.