Location

Greeley's relative location is almost 50 miles northeast of Denver.
Greeley is located about 30 miles east of the foothills of The Rocky Mountains.

Greeley's absolute location is 40.4233° N, 104.7086° W.
Its longitude is 104.37 degrees west. (This is the location on the globe running east to west). Its latitude is 40.25 degrees north. (This is the location on the globe running north to south)

Greeley is the county seat of Weld County.
Weld County is larger than many states; including Rhode Island, Delaware, and Washington DC combined. It covers 4,004 square miles.

The land is mostly flat with some rolling prairies and low hills in the west.
The location was chosen to be beneficial (helpful) for farming. Being close to the Cache la Poudre and South Platte rivers was necessary for irrigation and farming. The easy access (close) to the railroad also helped to get settlers into town and provided trade access (goods could come to town and be sent from town on the trains).

The town is close to two rivers.
Greeley is located near the confluence (where two rivers meet) of the South Platte river and the Cache La Poudre river. Being close to the two rivers made it a good location for irrigation.

Greeley is located in the Great Plains region of Colorado.
When Stephen Long saw this area in 1820, he called it the "Great American Desert". He did not think that anything worth growing would live here. But irrigation has made this area one of the largest agricultural areas in the United States. Nearby Greeley are the Pawnee Buttes and the National Grasslands. The area where Greeley stands today used to look like the Grasslands. The land is flat and has lots of grasses and other plants that do not need a lot of water. There are only few trees.

Greeley was close to the train tracks.
Being close to the tracks, made it easy for farmers to get their goods to market. It also made it easier to get beef to market and to get sugar beets for the factory. Many of the buisnesses along the train tracks are still for agricultural products.

The Poudre Learning Center teaches about the Poudre River.
It is a place where people can learn about the importance and history of the Poudre River. You can also learn about the biology (what lives there) and geology (the impact of the river on the land and how the river was formed) of the river. The building is a replica (copy) of the historic Hazelton School.