Highway to be named after former governor

DENVER – State legislators passed a unanimous resolution on Friday to name a portion of Highway 285 the Ralph Carr Memorial Highway, in honor of Colorado's 29th governor.

It is a stretch of Highway 285 from C-470 in Jefferson County to the New Mexico state line.

A plaque will be erected near the summit of Kenosha Pass to recognize Carr's contribution to Colorado.

Carr is perhaps best known for protecting Japanese American citizens during World War II when many were being sent to internment camps. He went against popular anti-Japanese sentiment and urged Coloradans to welcome the displaced Japanese Americans.

"Now we have an opportunity, however modest, to set the record straight - to add an asterisk next to Governor Carr's name. We do so not as a symbolic gesture but as a serious tribute to a man who took an unpopular stand to uphold the traditions of this great country. And we do it as a tribute to the people he defended - American citizens who were unjustly treated by their government. As much as this resolution is about Governor Carr, it is for them," Rep. Rob Witwer (R-Evergreen) said Friday in the State Capitol.

Carr also has a street named after him in Arvada.

He is buried in Fairmount Cemetery in Denver.