Historic Enterprises
Olde Town Arvada
Grandview & Old Wadsworth www.HistoricArvada.org 303-420-6100.
Irrigation ditches enabled a small farming community to thrive between Ralston and Clear Creeks. In 1870, six years before Colorado gained statehood, an initial plat for the Town of Arvada was filed by Benjamin Wadsworth and Louis Reno. The Colorado Central Railroad passed through Arvada twice daily. The town was officially incorporated in 1904 and Grandview Avenue was a thriving business area. The Chamber of Commerce was founded in 1925 and a flour mill built on Wadsworth in 1926 contributed to prosperity. Arvada’s population was 1500 when World War II ended. As massive housing development changed the area, shopping and strip malls took business away from the historic business district.
City Hall complex opened in 1971 and Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities was dedicated in 1976. After the slumping economy of the 1980s, the Business Improvement District (BID) attempted to revitalized Olde Town in the early 1990s, but Arvada voters defeated a proposed tax to fund redevelopment. Longtime Arvada resident and Olde Town property owner Bill Ashton was extremely disappointed. Publicity that won support for the Tabor Amendment worked against revitalizing Olde Arvada.
Surveys of residents showed that the downtown was important to citizens. After the area was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998, Arvada Urban Renewal Author (AURA) focused on Olde Town in 1999. Dana Crawford, restorer of Larimer Square in Denver, was hired to develop a Renaissance Plan of publicity and planning.
Civic-minded merchants and individuals formed Historic Olde Town Arvada (HOTA) in 2001 to support improvements. Olde Town became a Colorado Main Street Community in 2002. Acceptance required abiding by strict guidelines for significant improvements. HOTA sponsors special events, encourages new merchants to move in, and works with AURA for funding managed by Arvada staffers Kim Grant and Maureen Phair.
The majority of todays 105,000 population support Arvada City Council in finding grants for urban renewal. The revitalization that began in 2003 is nationally recognized for historic preservation that benefits the economy. A new Jefferson County Library is being built and the "Town Square" is being redeveloped. New apartments are rising nearby in preparation for Light Rail which is expected to be completed within 12 years.
Bucksnort Saloon
15921 Elk Creek Rd, Pine. 303-838-0284.
If you want to truly get-away-from-it-all, drive to Pine Junction on U.S. Hwy 285, then south on 126 to Pine, then east to Sphinx Park for lunch or supper at the one-and-only, authentic old west, Buck Snort Saloon. Owner and musician Joe Bye performs most summer nights, especially weekends.
Casa Bonita
6715 West Colfax, Lakewood. 303-232-5115
This is a replica of a mansion opened to soldiers during the civil wars of the 19th Century in Mexico. The friendly atmosphere and good food includes "spontaneous" entertainment including cliff divers, shoot-em ups, strolling mariachis, puppet shows, magicians, etc. Casa Bonita is the result of a major renovation of the JCRS Shopping Center in 1972-74.
Davies’ Chuck Wagon Diner
9495 West Colfax Avenue, Lakewood. 303-237-5252
In 1957, when West Colfax was widened at "the edge of town" to addommodate traffic to the mountains, Davies Chuck Wagon Diner arrived from New Jersey. The prefabricated diner, initially inspired by historic horse-drawn trolley cars, sported 1950s "Art Moderne" with wrap-around windows, pleated chrome siding. The interior formica counters and booths were classic boomerang shapes in pink and grey shaded by pink venetian blinds. Lyman Davies was delighted when businesses sprang up around it in hopes of also attracting tourists.
Despite its fame from being used as a backdrop for Hollywood’s "Starman" and "Life of Archie’s Wife" and many commercials, the 36-foot tall sign was threatened in 1979 when Lakewood adopted a sign code. Fortunately, it was never enforced. Dwayne Clark bought it in 1984 and lost to the Lakewood Board of Adjustment and the Colorado Court of Appeals.
The public was outraged! A Lakewood Sentinel editorial exclaimed, "To my knowledge, that horse has not bucked, neighed, nor soiled the city street." In 1988, citizen supporters convinced Lakewood officials that the diner and sign are outstanding examples of post world War II Americana. City officials designated it as a historical site and it was therefore no longer subject to the sign code. Clark placed it on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997 and still owns it with great pride.
Heart of Evergreen
www.EvergreenChamber.org 303-674-3412
The most valuable sense of place within the unincorporated 120 square miles with the 80439 zip code is Evergreen Lake and historic "Main Street." This lumber-ranching community of 1870-1900 became a glamorous, rugged summer vacation village during the 1920s. The year round population grew from 40 in 1875 to only 483 in 1949.
Denver initiated development of Evergreen with roads to Bergen, Fillius, and DeDisse Park and construction of the lake and dam in 1927. According to historian Barbara Sternberg, "the entire Hiwan saga is arguably the most influential single happening of this community’s brief but colorful life story." During the 1960s, the Hiwan development began a sprawl that attracted a population of 25,000 by 2002.
The Lake is Evergreen’s most charming landmark. The section of Hwy 74 known as "Main Street" is filled with restaurants and delightful small shops. Today’s Little Bear building was a drug store, dance hall, and restaurant before becoming a saloon in 1972. A replica of the Evergreen Hotel, built in 1998, has become a Visitor Center for the Evergreen Chamber of Commerce.
Heart of Golden
911 Tenth Street (City Hall), www.ci.Golden.co.us 303-384-8000
Golden Visitor Center, 10th & Washington. www.GoldenCoChamber.org 303-279-3113
The first Territorial Capitol of Colorado (1862-67) is NOT a "suburb" of Denver. The amazing combination of skills and enthusiasm of Golden pioneers continues a living legacy for today’s leaders. Incorporated as a city in 1870 (before statehood), there were 120 businesses listed by 1882, including 53 fashion and food shops and 14 beer & liquor saloons. It was a thriving industrial economy until the mid 1950s when the a shift toward tourism began.
Voters adopted a city council - city manager form of government in 1947, a Home Rule charter in 1967, and a one percent annual growth limit in 1996. Citizens set a precedent in 1972 by voting to have the city preserve Astor House Hotel as a museum. Historic preservation and urban renewal were priorities during the 1980s and 90s for the health of the community and to attract tourism. Outstanding leadership in parks and recreation and public works created what one resident describes as "Golden is a precious jewel. I LOVE living here." Goldenites are known to stand up against any special interest threatening to pollute it.
The city boundaries of Golden are within nine square miles, but the "Golden" 80401 and 80403 Zip Codes serve 200 square miles of unincorporated JeffCo. The relatively small town of 17,000 population cares deeply about Democracy. There is a genuine "town forum" quality to City Council meetings with considerable citizen participation. Visitors enjoy shopping at Golden’s preserved authentic downtown.
Morrison Historic District
Canadian stone mason George Morrison acquired 320 acres south of the Red Rocks and founded a mill for grinding gypsum in 1865. He filed a plat to attract the rairoad for transport of his raw stone and lime to bustling development in Denver and the West Slope. He built his family home Cliff House in 1874 and it stands today as a Bed and Breakfast. The town was incorporated when Colorado became a state in 1876.
Townspeople have traditionally considered their town as "blue collar" and had no interest in the dinosaur bones discovered by Arthur Lakes overlooking Morrison, nor were they impressed by John Brisbane Walker’s Morrison Casino resort hotel in 1887. Peak population of Morrison was 750 in 1880. Morrison was the south entrance to Denver Mountain Parks along Bear Creek in 1914.
Two women who were devoted to historic preservation, Lorene Horton and Mary Helen Crain, volunteered research to list 70 Morrison sites on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. This established a priority that continues to be honored today.
Morrison voters, about 140 of the 375 population within the incorporated three square miles, adopted a Home Rule Charter in 2000. Mail to the 80465 "Morrison" Zip Code is delivered to 7200 addresses over 70 square miles of unincporporated JeffCo.
The magical attraction of this tiny, picturesque hamlet alongside Bear Creek continues to bring tourists to 11 restaurants and taverns, 7 antiques and gift shops, and 6 other businesses along Bear Creek Avenue and Stone Street in 2005.
Tiny Town Colorado
"Oldest Kid-Sized Village and Railroad in the USA"
Moving company owner George Turner built some one-sixth-sized buildings with historic flavor to delight his young daughter in 1915. Tiny Town opened to the public in 1920 and became one of Colorado’s primary attractions. In 1927, Turner sold it to the Quintance family, which still owns and leases the property. After leasers changed the course of the creek to form two small lakes, many floods caused severe damage, especially in 1929 and 1932. A fire in 1935 destroyed a miniature Indian Pueblo. Tiny Town was shut down in 1937 until a "World Famous" railway was in operation in 1939..
Harold Cannon leased it from 1943 to 1946. Red Smith ran it from 1946 until 1948 when U.S. Highway 285 routed traffic away from Tiny Town. Shorty & Bernice Clark leased it until a flood hit in 1965. The Altig family financed major restoration in 1967 and a giant flood destroyed the town in 1969. Lyle Fulkerson began to rebuild the town in 1972. He restored the original creekbed to prevent future flooding. The tracks and tressles were restored and a roundhouse and depot were built.
The non-profit Tiny Town Foundation was formed in 1988 to preserve the town for the future. Over 100 volunteers repaired the old buildings and created new ones. Over 100 colorful buildings now fill the town and delight kids of all ages. It is now managed for the Quintance family by Jack Bradley. Tiny Town is open every day during the summer and on weekends during September and October. www.tinytownrailroad.com 303-697-6829.
White Fence Farm
6263 W. Jewell Ave., Lakewood. www.WhiteFenceFarm.com 303-935-5945
The renovated and expanded, historic farmhouse opened as a restaurant in 1973. It is surrounded by restored outbuildings of the Wilson Family Farm. There are critters to feed and pet, gifts for home, a Carriage Museum, gazebo, aviary, treehouse & playground, and more for families to enjoy.