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DENVER CITY & COUNTY (A-C) |
A ALAMO PLACITA PARK Alamo Placita and Hungarian Freedom Parks illustrate the early plan to develop parks facing each other on opposite sides of Speer Boulevard and Cherry Creek. The formal Italian gardens of the Alamo Placita Park section were designed to be viewed from the hillside of Hungarian Freedom Park (formerly Arlington Park) which, in turn, was to be viewed from Alamo Placita Park as a meadowed hillside backed by an evergreen forest. Saco R. DeBoer designed both parks: Hungarian Freedom in 1925 and Alamo Placita in 1927. The property is associated with the Denver Park and Parkway System Thematic Resource. ALL SAINTS EPISCOPAL CHURCH / CHAPEL OF OUR MERCIFUL SAVIOR James Murdoch, an important Denver architect during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, designed the 1890 church building. Its Victorian German style reflects the large number of German immigrants populating the neighborhood. A soaring steeple on a corner bell tower distinguishes this refurbished red-brick Gothic Revival chapel. Rhyolite trims the entrance beneath a rose window. Inside, the original carved wood statues, pulpit, baptismal font, and pews survive under hammered ceiling beams set in a herringbone pattern. 
To restore the church and repair its historic pipe organ, the Episcopal Diocese of Colorado used more than $200,000 in SHF grants and its own matching funds. SHF funds also helped put up vented protective glass over the historic stained-glass windows. Redoing the gutters, downspouts, masonry, and installing new roof shingles as well as door repair and replacement, inspired the church and the community also to transform the weedy vacant lot next door into a pocket park. ALTAMAHA APARTMENTS The 1902 Altamaha Apartments represent Denver’s early twentieth-century adoption of a new form of residential housing–the luxury apartment building. The Altamaha Apartments embody the distinctive characteristics of the Italian Renaissance Revival style as applied to an apartment building. ANNUNCIATION CHURCH Designed by Frederick Paroth, in a blending of the Gothic and Romanesque Revival styles, the red brick exterior is accented with white cut stone. The 25-foot-high Carrara marble altar and 34 stained glass windows by Munich artists Franz Mayer and F.X. Zettler enhance the beauty of this 1904 church.
The Capuchins (the Franciscan Order of Friars Minor) worked with parish volunteers and SHF to resurrect this church along with its K-8 school, convent, and rectory. The SHF’s nearly $233,000 grant allowed workers to restore the exterior brick, improve water drainage, remove hazardous asbestos, redo the electrical system, and replace the roof, rusted pipes, rotted window frames, and front doors. ARCANUM APARTMENTS Designed by prominent Denver architect Glen W. Huntington, the 1907 two-story red brick building, a simplified version of the Classical Revival style with Colonial Revival influences, includes a raised basement. Primarily associated with the design of single-family residences, Huntington integrated this 30-unit apartment building into its Capitol Hill residential neighborhood without overpowering adjacent houses. ARNO APARTMENTS Completed in 1910, during Denver’s early 20th century apartment house construction boom, this Colonial Revival style building was designed by Leo Andrew Des Jardins. AURARIA 9TH STREET HISTORIC DISTRICT This surviving block of Victorian era residences typifies a modest Denver residential neighborhood spanning the years from 1873 to 1905. Located adjacent to the central business district, on an urban campus shared by the University of Colorado at Denver, Metropolitan State College of Denver, and Community College of Denver, the residences within the district are among Denver’s oldest. During the 1970s, a grassroots preservation effort saved the block from demolition and led to the rehabilitation of the buildings for use as campus offices. AUSTIN BUILDING This 1904 building is associated with the commercial development of the East Colfax corridor. It is an excellent example of the practice of incorporating high class residential apartments over storefront retail space in order to take maximum advantage of a building’s location along street car lines. AVOCA LODGE / ”MOLLY” BROWN SUMMER HOME Built in 1897, this red brick Foursquare is a rare surviving example of a late 19th century country home in an area now absorbed by southwest Denver suburban development. As the summer residence of James J. and Margaret Brown, it was the site of numerous society parties. BBAILEY HOUSE The 1889 three-story residence was designed by William Lang, a prominent Denver architect during the late 19th century. An eclectic mix of Richardsonian and Queen Anne detailing, the walls of rusticated gray stone exhibit a high quality of masonry work. BAKER HISTORIC DISTRICT / SOUTH SIDE HISTORIC DISTRICT The Baker Historic District is a well-preserved middle class neighborhood developed from the 1870s to the 1920s. The greatest period of development was the late 1880s and the early 1890s as exemplified by the great variety of Queen Anne houses within the district. Its architectural interest is enhanced by the nineteen houses designed by Denver architect William Lang, well known for his fanciful and imaginative residential designs, and his partner, Marshall Pugh. CAROLINE BANCROFT HOUSE This 1892 residence was the home of Caroline Bancroft, a distinguished author whose literary career broadened the audience for Colorado history. Prolific Denver architect William Lang designed the two-story residence in the Queen Anne style. BARTH HOTEL / UNION WAREHOUSE The 1882 building was designed by noted architect F.C. Eberley. First used as a warehouse, the four story brick and sandstone building was converted to a hotel in the 1880s. In 1930 a new owner, M. Allen Barth, gave his name to the hotel and beautified the first floor with an attractive lobby. BATS GROCERY STORE Bats Grocery Store, a one-story, rectangular building of soft brick and wood frame construction, is an early 20th century Commercial Style structure built in 1903 by H.C. Donneker & Co. Typical of neighborhood groceries, the store played a vital role in the commercial development of the Town of Swansea. Andrew and Hannah Bats were the original owners and ran the store until 1935. From 1942 until 1951 the store was run by Edward and Grace Whalen and was named the Whalen’s Super Market. BAUR CONFECTIONERY COMPANY BUILDING 
The 1881 Baur Building housed the most popular and longest-lived confectionery, catering, and restaurant firm in Denver. Established in 1871 by German immigrant Otto P. Baur, the company quickly emerged as an innovative and successful purveyor of candies, cakes, and other confectionery items. Baur’s confectionery expertise, his dedication to excellence, and his continuous striving to develop new flavors and delicacies resulted in steady expansion of the firm and shipment of its candies across the country and overseas. After apprenticing at the store in the 1890s, John Joseph Jacobs, Baur’s nephew, returned to take over the business after Baur’s death in 1904. He led the company into its greatest era by developing new confections and greatly expanding the scope of operations, eventually adding a restaurant in 1918 famous for its Deviled Crab entrée and chocolate Mija dessert. Jacobs was known for his philanthropic endeavors, such as ice cream giveaways for children during the Great Depression, cakes delivered to elderly citizens on special birthdays, and sweets provided to local hospitals and orphanages. BELCARO / PHIPPS HOUSE The Denver architectural firm of Fisher and Fisher designed the Georgian style house for Lawrence C. Phipps in 1932. Phipps amassed a fortune as an executive of Carnegie Steel before moving to Denver in 1901 where he became a leader in public affairs. Serving two terms as a U.S. Senator, Phipps also built the Agnes Memorial Sanatarium for the treatment of tuberculosis, actively promoted Fitzsimons Army Hospital, built the auditorium wing of the Denver Museum of Natural History, and played a major role in the Moffat Tunnel project. The estate includes eleven acres with various outbuildings including a greenhouse, the Tennis House, and garden areas. BERKELEY LAKE PARK Berkeley Lake Park provides an attractively forested and lawned setting. It is a fine example of the early design and use of parks for public recreation programs (including swimming, horseshoes, tennis, etc.), for family picnics, for informal field games, and for public facilities (including a major senior and recreation center and a branch of the Denver Public Library). The park was originally developed between 1906 and 1910, but it was redesigned by Saco R. DeBoer in the 1920s. The property is associated with the Denver Park and Parkway System Thematic Resource. BERKELEY SCHOOL The Berkeley School is associated with the educational history of the Berkeley community from 1894 through 1976. The site provides a singular opportunity to view the architectural evolution of the school from the construction of the original building, through the erection of a larger building in 1906 and a 1923 addition. BETHANY SWEDISH EVANGELICAL LUTHERAN CHURCH (Denver Gospel Church) 
The 1910 red brick building is a well-preserved example of an early 20th century Gothic Revival style church which continues to blend well with its surrounding urban residential neighborhood. The vertical characteristics of the style are exhibited in its steeply pitched roof and numerous pointed arches. Known as the Denver Gospel Church since 1957, the exterior features a prominent corner bell tower. The adjacent 1913 brick parsonage, a well-preserved example of a Craftsman style bungalow, enhances the architectural significance of the property. BETHEL CHURCH OF GOD IN CHRIST Constructed in 1920, the brick one-story building is an example of the simple architecture typical of Pentecostal church design. It was built by African Americans in the midst of an Anglo and Hispanic population. Located near the heart of the city, the church continues to serve a diverse community. BLISS HOUSE The Bliss House is one of a series of six designed by prominent Denver architects William Lang and Marshall Pugh for real estate developer Ralph Voorhees. Dr. Geral Bliss and his wife occupied the house from 1891 until 1945. The architects employed an exuberant expression of the Queen Anne style for the residence with its brick lower level; upper level floors covered in fish scale shingles; and the combination of bays, unusual windows, and a dramatic multi-planed roof. The property is associated with the West Colfax Subdivision Historic Structures Thematic Resource. BLUEBIRD THEATER The Bluebird Theater opened in 1915 as the Thompson, one of the early Denver theaters designed specifically for the exhibition of movies. Harry Huffman, premier movie theater owner and promoter, acquired the Bluebird to begin the city’s first and largest locally owned chain of movie theaters. Designed by prominent Denver architect Harry W.J. Edbrooke, the theater represents the first of what quickly became a discernable type of entertainment venue, the neighborhood movie theater. BONFILS MEMORIAL THEATER (Tattered Cover)  The primary mover in the development, funding, and creative direction of the
theater was Helen Bonfils. She commissioned its construction in memory of her
parents, Belle and Frederick G. Bonfils. Designed in 1949 by Denver architect
John K. Monroe, the theater opened in 1953 as the new home of the Denver Civic
Theater. The theater was founded in 1929 in cooperation with Denver University.
More than any other single individual, Helen Bonfils raised civic theater in
Denver to the high standards represented by the Bonfils Memorial Theater. Her
successful efforts to bring first class Broadway plays to the stage of this top
quality theater gave the city a class of performing arts typical of larger cities
and professional companies. The continued growth of civic theater and the
establishment of the professional Denver Center for the Performing Arts spring
directly from the Bonfils Memorial Theater and the dedication of Helen Bonfils.
The building was rehabilitated in 2006 to become the Tattered Cover bookstore. BOSTON BUILDING The Boston Building, an eight-story building of Greenlee red sandstone, combining the Renaissance Revival and Richardsonian Romanesque styles, was designed by the Boston firm of Andrews, Jaques and Rantoul. It was noted as being the first "strictly modern office building" in Denver upon its completion in 1890. The property is associated with the Historic Resources of Downtown Denver Multiple Property Submission. BOUVIER-LATHROP HOUSE The two-and-one-half-story brick house, with its northwest corner tower, was designed by Robert G. Balcomb and Eugene R. Rice and built on speculation by the firm of Flower and Patterson. The mixture of Queen Anne, Richardsonian Romanesque, and Neo-classical stylistic elements makes the house one of the most interesting on Capitol Hill. Michel Charles Bouvier of New York owned the house from 1891 until 1921 and rented it out to a series of tenants, including Wilbur C. Lothrop, who established the public school system in Colorado. BOWMAN HOUSE / YAMECILA (Savio House) Yamecila, an eclectic design with Colonial Revival features, was originally designed in 1910 by and for Denver architect William Norman Bowman. The three-acre property consists of the house with an attached one-story chapel and dormitory and a small detached two-story house. The house is the only large residential building in the Barnum subdivision of Denver. In 1924, the property was purchased by the Sisters of St. Francis for a tuberculosis sanitarium (1924-41) and the chapel, dormitory and small house were added. The present facility, Savio House, is a home and educational facility for delinquent children. BRINKER COLLEGIATE INSTITUTE / NAVARRE The four-story, brick Victorian structure, was built in 1880 and served as the permanent edifice of the Brinker Collegiate Institute until 1889. From 1889 until 1904, the property was remodeled and opened first as the Richelieu Hotel and then the Navarre. In 1893, owner Owen LeFevre had an underground rail system built to the Brown Palace Hotel across the street which accommodated unseen passage as well as coal delivery. Beginning in 1914, the Navarre served as a private club or restaurant. The property is associated with the Historic Resources of Downtown Denver Multiple Property Submission. J.S. BROWN MERCANTILE (Wynkoop Brewing Company) The five-story brick building was designed by Gove and Walsh in 1899 for John Sidney Brown’s wholesale grocery business. The building is a fine example of 19th century commercial architecture. The interior also retains most of its original decoration. ”MOLLY” BROWN HOUSE (Molly Brown House Museum) The Brown House, a two-and-one-half-story stone structure, was originally started in 1887 by George W. Clayton or Isaac N. Large. It was purchased by James J. and Margaret (Maggie) Tobin Brown in 1890 and completed circa 1892. Its importance is tied to the "rags to riches" elements in early Colorado history and one of Colorado’s most colorful women. Though widely publicized as the "Unsinkable" Mrs. Brown for her heroic demeanor as a survivor of the Titanic sinking in 1912, the popular 1960s Broadway musical first gave Maggie her now famous nickname, the "Unsinkable Molly Brown." BROWN PALACE HOTEL The Brown Palace Hotel, America’s second fireproof building, was begun in 1889 and completed in 1892. Denver architect Frank E. Edbrooke designed the building for Henry C. Brown and co-owners W. H. Bush and N. M. Tabor. Brown paid three-quarters of the total $2 million construction and furnishing costs. The hotel has long played a role as the social and cultural landmark of Denver. It has regularly hosted U.S. presidents, foreign dignitaries, and business leaders, as well as the traveling general public. The property is associated with the Historic Resources of Downtown Denver Multiple Property Submission. BRYANT WEBSTER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL The 1931 Bryant-Webster School is an excellent example of Art Deco design. The building is the work of two prominent Denver architects, brothers G. Meredith and J. Roger Musick. BUCHTEL BOULEVARD Named for and dedicated to Henry A. Buchtel, governor of Colorado and chancellor of the University of Denver, Buchtel Boulevard opened for traffic in 1926. The boulevard figured in the pre-World War II development of the University Park Neighborhood, providing a natural area with trees, prairie grasses and wildflowers. BUCHTEL BUNGALOW F. T. Adams designed and built the Craftsman style bungalow in 1906-1907 for Henry Augustus Buchtel. It served as the Governor’s mansion from 1907-1909 while Buchtel served as governor of Colorado. The one-and-one-half-story structure of smooth white faced brick, with heavy wooden knee braces and wood trim, is typical of early California Bungalow/Craftsman style architecture then gaining popularity across the nation. BUCKHORN EXCHANGE 
The Buckhorn Exchange is one of the oldest and best-known of Denver’s historic restaurants and bars. Built in late 1885 or early 1886, John M. Berkey first owned the facility. The Neef Brothers Brewery and Investment Company took title to the property in 1889. The brewery operated the building as a saloon, the Rio Grande Exchange, beginning in November 1892 under the management of Henry H. Zeitz. The saloon assumed the Buckhorn Exchange name in the early 1900s, and in 1932 Zeitz bought the building. The back bar, built in Essen, Germany, and the hundreds of mounted animals bagged by Zeitz and his son, dominate the interior. BUERGER BROTHERS BUILDING AND ANNEX The 1929 building, designed by Denver architect Montana Fallis, is one of the finest examples of Art Deco architecture in Colorado. The Buerger Brother Supply Company, founded in Pueblo in 1885, built the office and warehouse to headquarter what became the preeminent barbershop and beauty salon supplier in the Rocky Mountain and western plains region of the United States. The property is associated with the Historic Resources of Downtown Denver Multiple Property Submission. BURLINGTON HOTEL The 1891 Burlington Hotel represents a type of residence hotel in Denver combining furnished rooms and commercial enterprises during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The hotel, a product of the renowned Denver architectural firm of Frank E. Edbrooke & Company, is representative of Edbrooke’s design of solid, functional brick buildings responding to the needs of working class families and small businesses and stands in contrast to his luxurious hotels, substantial office blocks and department stores. BURR STUDIO AND RESIDENCE From 1910 until 1924, artist George Elbert Burr lived and worked here, producing two of his most significant sets of work. Since 1924, the building has served as the home of the Denver Woman’s Press Club, an organization founded in 1898 to advance and encourage women in literary work. ALFRED BUTTERS HOUSE Distinguished Denver architect Frank Edbrooke designed this combination Queen Anne and Colonial Revival style house for former territorial legislator and State Senator Alfred Butters. From 1908 to 1916 the house was occupied by Charles M. Willcox, vice-president and general manager of the Daniels and Fisher Dry Goods Co. The house is one of a number of grand residences constructed between 1885 and 1893 in the area known as Quality Hill for its concentration of wealthy industrialists, bankers, lawyers, and other prominent citizens. BYERS-EVANS HOUSE The house was built in 1883 for Rocky Mountain News publisher William Byers. He sold it to the William Gray Evans family in 1889. The two-story Italianate style house has been restored to its 1912-24 appearance. The property is operated as a museum by the Colorado Historical Society and also houses the Denver History Museum. CRICHARD C. CAMPBELL HOUSE (Denver Botanic Gardens House) The circa 1927 house has strong associations with two important area businessmen: Richard Crawford Campbell, business manager for the Rocky Mountain News; and Elmer G. Hartner, president of the Western Seed Company. Jules Jacques Benoit Benedict designed the house which reflects Norman/Romantic Revival influences. The building is now a part of the Botanic Gardens complex. The property is associated with The Architecture of Jules Jacques Benois Benedict in Colorado Property Submission. CAPITOL HEIGHTS PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH Constructed in 1911, the Capitol Heights Presbyterian Church is an important local example of Gothic Revival style ecclesiastical design. Blending well with its surrounding residential neighborhood, the blond brick building is the work of master architects Montana S. Fallis and Robert Willison. CAPITOL LIFE INSURANCE BUILDING The 1924 Capitol Life Insurance Building is an outstanding example of the work of Denver architect Harry James Manning. This Classical Revival building, of yule marble with terra cotta trim, exhibits Manning’s skill in the use of architectural detailing. A 1994-95 project restored much of the interior to its original appearance. At the rear, a two-story connector wing leads to the 1963 New Formalism, thirteen story Capitol Life Tower Addition by Modernist architect Edwin A. Francis. CARTER-RICE BUILDING Carter-Rice and Company constructed this building in 1903 to house its paper distribution firm. The building is one of the few remaining examples of Second Renaissance Revival architecture in Denver’s central business district. It also typifies the small scale warehouse and commercial structures that dominated the lower downtown area after 1900. CATHEDRAL OF THE IMMACULATE CONCEPTION Denver architects Aaron Gove and Thomas Walsh designed the cathedral. Constructed between 1902 and 1912, the building is one of the best examples of Late Gothic Revival architecture in Colorado. CENTRAL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH The 1892 Romanesque Revival style church was designed by Denver architects Frank Edbrooke and Willis Marean. The red sandstone building is spare and simple with the vertical thrust emphasized in the tower by the tall, thin lantern openings topped by ogee arches. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE BUILDING (Chamber Lofts) As the headquarters for the Denver Chamber of Commerce from 1910 until 1950, the Neoclassical Revival style building is important for its association with the development of Denver as the business hub of the Rocky Mountain states. Designed by the Denver architectural firm of Marean and Norton, the six-story, steel frame building’s facade is faced with granite and terra cotta. The property is associated with the Historic Resources of Downtown Denver Multiple Property Submission. CHAMBERLIN OBSERVATORY The 1891 observatory is important for its role in education and science at the University of Denver. The building is also important for its fine architectural features in the Richardsonian Romanesque style. Robert A. Roeschlaub, one of the leading architects of 19th century Colorado, designed the structure. CHAPEL NO. 1 / EISENHOWER MEMORIAL CHAPEL The chapel was the first permanent religious structure erected at Lowry Field, a military base for the U.S. Army Air Corps. The 1941 building followed a standard army plan and is the only remaining example of the type in Colorado. During the 1950s, President Eisenhower often established a "summer White House" at Lowry and he and Mrs. Eisenhower worshipped in the chapel. THE CHATEAU (Chateau Apartments) 
The 1921 building is an important local variation of the early
twentieth-century courtyard apartment house. The Chateau reflects
an important stage in the development of the inner city housing
patterns–away from the single-family house and toward a more affordable,
community-oriented, urban arrangement maintaining turn-of-the-century
standards for natural lighting, ventilation, and privacy. The Chateau
is an eclectic mix of Tudor, Craftsman, and Chateauesque styles, with
its false half-timbering, verge boards, bracketed eaves, multi-pane
windows, and stucco finish all exhibiting a high degree of physical
integrity. The interior of the building preserves its original floor
plan of fifty apartments. Most of the apartments retain their original
built-ins and interior windows to the public corridor. DELOS ALLEN CHAPPELL HOUSE Delos Allen Chappell was closely associated with the early development of the coal and coke industry in Colorado and founded the Victor Fuel Company. The 1895 house, constructed for Chappell and his wife, May, only two years after the onset of the Silver Crash economic depression, represents the beginning of the trend away from the flamboyance of the Victorian era and the move toward the restraint of the Neoclassical style. The architect responsible for the design is believed to be Frank S. Snell. CHEESMAN-BOETTCHER MANSION (Governor’s Mansion) Walter S. Cheesman, an early and long-time Denver promoter and developer, began work on the house in 1904. He died before its completion in 1908. John Evans and his wife Gladys, Cheesman’s daughter, lived in the house until about 1926 when Claude Boettcher, son of the founder of the Great Western Sugar Company, purchased the property. In 1960, the Colonial Revival mansion was transferred from the Boettchers to the State of Colorado, and it became the official home for the state’s governor. CHEESMAN PARK Vincent Scully, former Yale University art historian, described the 1898 Cheesman Park as one of the finest urban spaces in America. The park is the masterpiece of Denver’s turn-of-the-century landscape architect, Reinhard Schuetze. His plan features a superbly graded meadow, a beautiful undulating forest edge, fine short views within the park and long views to the Rocky Mountains, and, at the highest point in the park, a neo-classical pavilion. The property is associated with the Denver Park and Parkway System Thematic Resource. CHEESMAN PARK DUPLEX The 1903 Cheesman Park Duplex is an important example of a combination of design elements - Mission Revival and Arts & Crafts. The brick building exhibits excellence in craftsmanship and detailing credited to builder William Thompson. When constructed, the duplex was located at 1520 E. 12th Avenue adjacent to Cheesman Park. The building was relocated to its present location in 1981 to avoid demolition. CHEESMAN PARK ESPLANADE Designed in 1912, the esplanade serves as a grand entry to Cheesman Park and is Saco R. DeBoer’s masterpiece and perhaps the most sophisticated piece of landscape design in the Denver park and parkway system. The complex composition includes terraces, meadows, and allees of trees, all executed with a refined selection of plant materials. The property is associated with the Denver Park and Parkway System Thematic Resource. CHRIST METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH (Sanctuary Lofts) Denver architect Frank E. Kidder designed the Gothic Revival style church which opened in 1891. The stone building is composed of gray rhyolite trimmed with red sandstone. The spire on the corner tower was removed in the late 1970s. The building was rehabilitated into residential lofts in 1995. CITY PARK City Park is the largest and among the oldest of Denver’s parks. Henry Meryweather laid out the park in 1882 in the romantic tradition exemplified by Olmsted’s Central Park. City Park is divided into active and passive zones in the tradition of late 19th century park design and is embellished with elaborate broiderie gardens, lakes, fountains and ponds, a zoo and a museum of natural history, important mountain vistas, playgrounds, and an extraordinary diversity of well designed and well planted landscapes. Reinhard Schuetze redesigned parts of the park around 1900, as did Saco R. DeBoer in the 1920s. The property is associated with the Denver Park and Parkway System Thematic Resource. CITY PARK ESPLANADE The esplanade incorporates the basic elements of classic French landscape design and is the most elegant, ceremonial, and architectural of the Denver parkways. The esplanade serves as a formal entry to the city’s largest park and as a frontispiece for East High School. Planning took place in 1905-06 and is attributed to Reinhard Schuetze. Planting occurred in 1907-18. The property is associated with the Denver Park and Parkway System Thematic Resource. CITY PARK GOLF The 1913 golf course represents a substantial commitment of urban open space to recreational use. The course provides unequaled mountain views and is illustrative of early municipal golf course design. The property is associated with the Denver Park and Parkway System Thematic Resource. CIVIC CENTER Although the State Capitol Building was completed in 1890, plans for the Civic Center, located to its west, were introduced in 1904 as part of Mayor Robert Speer’s City Beautiful vision for Denver. Zoning ordinances were implemented to preserve the view of the Rocky Mountains from the Capitol. Over the years, numerous public buildings and monuments have been constructed around the central open space which is now maintained as a well landscaped park. GEORGE W. CLAYTON TRUST AND COLLEGE 
The City and County of Denver established the George W. Clayton
Trust and College in 1911 through a bequest by George W. Clayton.
Clayton sought to provide for the guardianship and education of
boys whose fathers had died and whose mothers were unable to care
for them. He wanted to provide a cost-free standard of care and
education significantly beyond that typical of the time. From 1911
through 1957, over 600 boys received shelter, support, and an education
at Clayton College. The campus is architecturally significant for
its initial buildings, especially the administration building, the
four dormitories, and the power house. Designed by Denver architects
Maurice Biscoe and Henry Hewitt, the buildings are good examples
of the Italian Renaissance Revival style and exhibit a high degree
of craftsmanship in their sandstone masonry. CLEMENTS ROWHOUSE The 1883 Rowhouse is one of the most intact examples of its type dating from the late 19th century. This form of housing became popular as Denver’s population boomed following the arrival of the railroad in 1870. Alfred Clements platted the area just east of downtown for residential construction. CLERMONT STREET PARKWAY The .3-mile parkway dates from 1911 and is a good example of the use of a parkway to connect a residential neighborhood and a neighborhood park to the main parkway system. This parkway also illustrates the evolution of parkway design toward open planting intended to appeal particularly to the motorist. The property is associated with the Denver Park and Parkway System Thematic Resource. COLE NEIGHBORHOOD HISTORIC DISTRICT The district contains an important collection of one and one-and-one-half story brick bungalows dating from the 1910s and early 1920s. The bungalow achieved a high degree of popularity as a type of single family housing in the first three decades of the twentieth century. Bungalows most often exhibit the Craftsman style, but some utilize the Mediterranean or Mission Revival styles. The district also contains several excellent examples of early 20th century, detached automobile garages. COLORADO STATE CAPITOL ANNEX AND BOILER PLANT The Capitol Annex benefited from two Depression era Federal programs - the Public Works Administration and the Works Progress Administration. The former program provided part of the funding for this two building complex. Colorado artists from the Fine Arts Project of the WPA adorned the building with works of art. The 1939-41 building is an important example of Art Deco architecture typical of Denver in the late 1930s. Prominent Denver architect G. Meredith Musick served as president of the Associated Architects for the State Capitol Annex, the collaboration responsible for the design of both buildings. CORNWALL APARTMENTS Denver architect Walter Rice designed the 1901 Cornwall in a style reminiscent of Italian Renaissance architecture. The owner of the building, William T. Cornwall, was an executive of the Denver Fire Clay Company and a local real estate developer. COUNTRY CLUB HISTORIC DISTRICT The Country Club Historic District includes one of Denver’s most prestigious early 20th century neighborhoods. Many of Denver’s prominent architects designed the area’s large houses. Among the architects represented are William E. and Arthur A. Fisher; John J. Huddart; Frank Frewen; Ernest and Lester Varian; and Merrill and Burnham Hoyt. The district also includes the 1902 Denver County Club with its park-like golf course along the banks of Cherry Creek.
CRANMER HOUSE 
Denver architect Jules Jacques Benois Benedict designed the Cranmer House in 1917. Construction of large houses for wealthy clients was one of the principal components of Benedict’s practice, reaching its zenith in the 1920s. The Italian Renaissance style selected for the Cranmer residence was a favorite of the architect. Many of the features of the house became Benedict trademarks for residential design, including the use of quality materials in an elegant manner, elaborate ornamentation of the main entrance as the focal point of the facade, and the inclusion of finely crafted interior features, such as vaulted ceilings, decoratively painted wood, stone fireplaces, exterior courtyards, and interior fountains. Benedict designed the house for George Ernest Cranmer and his wife, Jean Louise Chappell Cranmer. Under George Cranmer’s bold and innovative tenure as Denver manager of improvements and parks from 1935 to 1947, the city constructed Red Rocks amphitheater, acquired the Winter Park Ski Area, built parkways, made improvements to the channels of Cherry Creek and the South Platte River, and developed or improved parks within the city. Jean Cranmer was a moving force in Denver’s cultural community, serving as president of the Civic Symphony Society in 1930 and being one of three founders of the Denver Symphony Orchestra in 1934. To help defray costs for the fledgling orchestra, visiting artists often stayed in the Cranmer home and performed in the dwelling’s large, vaulted living room. The property is associated with The Architecture of Jules Jacques Benois Benedict in Colorado Multiple Property Submission. CRANMER PARK / MOUNTAIN VIEW PARK Formerly called Mountain View Park, Cranmer Park’s unique open design emphasizes its high plains setting and frames exceptional views of the Rocky Mountains. The 1919 park is the work of an unknown designer. The property is associated with the Denver Park and Parkway System Thematic Resource. CRESWELL MANSION John J. Huddart designed the 1889 sandstone house for Denver businessman Joseph Creswell. Huddart was considered by his contemporaries to be one of the city’s finest architects. His buildings were known for the quality of their design and construction. The mansion, built during the middle of Huddart’s career, exemplifies his fondness for eclecticism. In this case he skillfully combined elements of Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival architecture. F.W. CROCKER & COMPANY STEAM CRACKER FACTORY F.W. Crocker constructed the building in 1881 to house his cracker factory. The American Biscuit Manufacturing Company used the steam cracker bakery beginning in 1890 and was succeeded by the National Biscuit Company (Nabisco) which operated the bakery until approximately 1940. The building is a good representative example of the utilitarian architectural style applied to industrial buildings in Denver’s warehouse district in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. CROKE-PATTERSON-CAMPBELL MANSION The 1890 sandstone residence with attached carriage house is a rare example of the use of Chateauesque style architecture in Denver. Thomas B. Croke, who gained fame as a merchant and experimental plant breeder and later served as a state senator, commissioned the house and lived there until he sold the property to Thomas M. Patterson in 1892. Patterson served as a territorial delegate to Congress in 1874, a U.S. Congressman in 1877-79, U.S. Senator from 1901 to 1907, and edited and published the Rocky Mountain News until 1913. Patterson’s daughter, Margaret, married Richard C. Campbell, and the couple lived with the Senator until 1916. Campbell became a prominent local financial leader and worked as business manager for his father-in-law at the Rocky Mountain News. CURRY-CHUCOVICH HOUSE Architect Fred Hale designed the 1887-88 sandstone townhouse using elements of the Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival styles. The building is the oldest remaining residential structure in downtown Denver. The house was built for James M. Curry who operated the Douglas County Lava Quarries in Castle Rock. Vasco L. Chucovich, a Yugoslavian immigrant, took possession of the house in 1902. Chucovich invested in real estate but made a substantial income from his gambling connections. He became involved in local politics and counted Mayor Robert Speer among his close friends. CURTIS-CHAMPA STREETS DISTRICT/CURTIS PARK HISTORIC DISTRICT The buildings in the district reflect a wide diversity of styles and levels of sophistication in their design. While some wood frame examples survive, most are masonry. The oldest surviving residence dates from 1876, and the majority of the buildings were constructed between 1885 and 1890. Examples of the Italianate, Second Empire, Romanesque, Carpenter Gothic, Queen Anne, and Eastlake styles are among those represented. Building types include small and large rowhouses, large single family homes, and small cottages. Located adjacent Denver’s early urban core, the district reflects the period in Denver’s development when a rapid increase in commercial construction resulted in the need for new residential neighborhoods. For additional Denver listings please see: |
National Register 5/5/2004, 5DV.2614
1100 Fillmore St.
State Register 6/10/1998, National Register 1/16/2001, 5DV.527