Mile-High At the Turn of a Century

A companion historical database for use with CSU's Digital Denver Minecraft project. Please direct all questions to Dr. Robert Jordan at [email protected].

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Denver Mint

There are currently four active mints, but only those in Philadelphia and Denver mint coins for general circulation, while the San Francisco Mint produces only silver and commemorative coins, and West Point produces gold, silver, and commemorative coins, and also stores gold and silver bullion (“Mint and Other Coin Production Facilities”).

     The Denver Mint was officially established by an Act of Congress on 21 April 1862 as an Assay Office (to store and test the quality of gold and silver bullion).  The Clark, Gruber & Company had been producing coins at their private mint at 16th and Market Street.  In 1863, the federal government purchased their facilities and machinery for $25,000 (“United States Mint”).  This location was allowed to manufacture coins for the United States as well as some foreign countries in 1874.  It was not until 1895 that this branch officially became a part of the United States Mint (“United States Mint”).

     The current building at West Colfax and Delaware Street initiated assaying operations in 1904.  Construction began in 1897, but it did not commence production of coinage until 1906.  Delays in the construction of these facilities often occurred because funding was inadequate, frequently addressed through requests by the secretary of the treasury for more capital, as late as 1904 asking a further $25,000, plus $14,500 for other expenses (The Creede Candle).  Need for funds stemmed not only from the building itself, but from projected salaries of employees: $4,500 to the superintendent; $3,000 each for an assayer, a coiner, and a melter/refiner; $2,500 for a chief clerk; an assistant and two calculating clerks at $1,400 each; and $1,300 each for two clerks—laborers not included (The Creede Candle). The first superintendent was Frank L. Downer, formerly the assayer in charge of the Denver mint, who was promoted to the new position in 1904 (The Aspen Democrat).

     Largely, the coinage operations were delayed due to the fact that Denver was awaiting delivery and installation of then state-of-the-art machinery that had been on display at the St. Louis Fair.  Different types of presses were used for large or small coins, the former able to produce 90 coins per minute while the latter managed 120 in the same amount of time (The Daily Journal).

     Before the new coinage presses were put to their intended use in producing money, the Denver mint was first used to produce a medal commemorating this momentous event, which was presented to the “state historical museum at the capitol” (Akron Pioneer).  Even more curiously, the second reported work was a golden heart that was funded by “popular subscription,” or donations, which amounted to one penny per contribution for a grand total of 8,000 collected.  This was a gift intended to honor President Roosevelt’s efforts to bring about peace between Japan and Russia and was presented to the President on 4 Monday, 1905 (Breckenridge Bulletin).

Intriguing Historical Tidbits

Once minting and assaying were truly phased out of the old mint buildings at 16th and Market, cleanup operations found among the refuse $30,000 worth of precious metals (The Daily Journal).

A thoroughly planned robbery by use of dynamite was foiled in December 1912 not by great police work, but because the would-be perpetrators foolishly left their written plans in the “public comfort station” of the post office (The Yuma Pioneer).

In 1920 it was discovered that a long-time employee had been secreting away gold in his prosthetic leg, then hid it in a hole in his cellar which he covered with concrete once full.  Gold stolen after that was hidden under the walkway behind his home.  The man, Orville Harrington, managed to steal $81,400 before he was caught (The Plateau Voice).

At 10:40 am on 18 December 1922, three gunmen ambushed a delivery wagon outside the U.S. Mint at Denver, stealing $200,000 dollars in $5 bills and fatally injuring bank guard Charles Linton, who passed that afternoon.  Incredibly, not only the guards returned fire: employees rushed to arms stores and proceeded to aid in defending the mint (The Fort Collins Courier).  Days later, the suspects evaded authorities near Greeley (The Daily Journal).  The only man ever proven to be involved was J. C. Sloan, who was found dead in the getaway car the following month (Yampa Leader). By February, investigators turned up $80,000 of the stolen bills circulating the continental Northwest and linked it to an illicit clearing house in Minneapolis involving millions in thefts in the country throughout the previous year (The Daily Journal).

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Photograph of a hallway within the United States Mint in Denver. 

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Front view of the United States Mint in Denver. 

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Interior photograph of the archway within the United States Mint. 

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Rooftop view of Civic Center neighborhood. View of the U.S. Federal Mint building and the Colorado State Capitol building. 

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Construction of the Federal Mint in Denver at West Colfax Avenue and Delaware Street. 

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Theatres

Theatres in Denver played a prominent role in the culture of the city near the turn of the century.  The most notable example of high class theatre at this time was the grand Tabor Opera House.  It was situated on the famed Curtis Street, located in the heart of the city.  Curtis Street “was Denver’s Great White Way” and boasted many theatres for several decades (Dinar 34).  Sadly, this legacy does not survive to this day, most of the theatres are gone, including the crown jewel of the era, the Tabor Opera House.

        The theatre got its name from Horace A.W. Tabor, who paid to have it built.  It was made by architects Willoughby and Frank Edbrooke.  About forty years later it got a facelift when the golden age of movies rolled around.  Pictures of the building from the time show a truly majestic building, and it is not difficult to imagine Denver’s elite flocking to see the many different kind of acts and performances that graced its stage over the years.  This magnificent building “even boasted Denver’s first elevator” a feature that surely added on to the respectability of the establishment.  “The building’s completion in 1881 signaled a new era in Denver building and a huge step forward in the cultural relevancy of Denver” (Dinar 30).  This sentence illustrates the importance that the Tabor Opera House had on the cultural scene in Denver at the time.  The grand opening was held in September of 1881 and boasted its first performance by singer Emma Abbott (Arps 131).

     Historical newspapers from this time indicate a lot of interest in the opera house, and show that it was used for more than just performances.  Indeed, newspaper articles tell about various conventions meeting in the Tabor Opera House, including a stock growers convention, in which “Among the important matters that will come up for discussion will be the land leasing bill now before Congress” and a meeting of what is referred to as “The Fraternal Order of Eagles” (“Eagles’ Convention Welcomed”).  Due to such meetings as this, and information gathered from newspapers of the time it can be shown that the Tabor could attract powerful people to meetings held in its halls.  “Governor McDonald was the first speaker”  and “Mayor Speer welcomed the guests in a happy manner” both come from the report on the Eagles’ Convention and illustrate the types of people such conventions attracted to the Opera House (“Eagles’ Convention Welcomed”).

     The Tabor Opera House could also attract many different kind of shows and famous performers besides just powerful political players of the day.  “The appearance in Denver of the young romantic actor, White Whittlesey, who is to be seen at the Tabor Grand…” this line comes from a publication of the time and tells of a popular, acclaimed actor who would be coming to perform at the Opera House (“’Heartsease’ at the Tabor”).  Most of the newspaper reports on the Tabor at this time tell of different performances or actors coming to the theatre in the upcoming weeks or months.  “Christmas week at the Tabor Grand is going to be just what it should be, a week of laughter and jollity, the attraction being Richard and Pringles Famous Georgia minstrels, who will furnish merriment galore for the thousands who will throng this temple of amusement” (“Minstrels at Tabor Christmas Week”). This clip from a newspaper of the time also gives an indication of how many people held interest in productions put on at the theatre.

     The Tabor Opera House was not the only theatre to be found in the city at this time.  Indeed there are records of other popular theatres in the same area of Denver, such as the Curtis.  “Denver’s new theatre, the Curtis, bids fair to take rank as one of the leading and most popular play-houses of the west”  however, due to perhaps the size and splendor of the Tabor, it is the theatre with the most record in pictures and newspapers to be found (“Denver’s new theatre”).  Given these historical records, and the rate at which mention of theatres and performances appear in publications during this time period, it can be inferred that stage productions held importance in the cultural scene of Denver.

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View of Curtis Street

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Another view of Curtis Street and the opera house

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Picture of a lamp in the Tabor Opera House

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Photograph of the famed Tabor Opera House

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Busy Curtis Street outside of the Tabor Opera House

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Hotels

     Denver like many burgeoning Western City during the turn of the 20th century had its fair share of hotels for those stopping by the Mile High City. With Union Depot up and running bringing people from the East and West upon the Transcontinental Railroad, hotels were essential for people looking to attend one of the many activities that the Front Range had to offer. For instance, the Oxford Hotel which opened in 1891 and the Brown Palace Hotel built in 1892 are the only two of the many hotels to accommodate visitors to Denver that still remain standing as functioning hotels (”Denver: Historic Denver Hotels”).  The hotels in Denver were known for the luxurious rooms, fair prices, unique architecture, and their ease of access to the shops as well as activities throughout the downtown Denver area. To give an example the Oxford Hotel built by Adolph Zang a local brewer set the standards for Gilded Age accommodations with fine hardwoods, dazzling chandeliers, fresco painted walls and outfitted with the latest technologies of the time.  The amenities that made the hotels the most technical for the early 1900’s included elevators, steam heating, both electric and gas lighting, and the real luxury “bathrooms with separate water closets” (”The Oxford Hotel”).  

     However the crown jewel of hotels in Denver at this time was the Brown Palace Hotel built by Henry Cordes Brown a carpenter turned real estate mogul who helped to dramatically shape Denver.  The Brown Palace was built by the same architect as the Oxford Frank Edbrooke on a triangular plot that was previously used by Henry Brown’s cattle to graze.  Nonetheless the hefty expenditure of $1.6 million dollars to create this impressive hotel rivaled the elegance, style, and amenities found in the big cities like New York or London and hosted presidents, royalty and even the Beatles in the 1960s (”The Brown Palace Hotel”).

     Most hotels during the early 1900’s Denver had rates that ranged from $1.00-$6.00 for a single night (Denver Public Library).  Denver Hotels during this period also boasted often that they were fireproof, trying to encourage prospective customers that they had the modern amenities that could assure support and prevention of fires in their hotel. It’s also interesting to note that whenever there was an advertisement of even a brief article explaining the arrival of someone of note it pays its respect to the management. In other words, your hotel was sometimes only as good as the reputation of not only the hotel but the manager(s) who were overseeing the hotel.

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An image of the St. James Hotel. The hotel was torn down in 1920 in order to build a theater. 

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The Columbia Hotel was built in 1890. Numerous United States’ flags are being flown on this street. 

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An advertisement for the Albany Hotel. 

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Photograph of the Albany Hotel located at 17th and Stout.