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This article is
about the historic Colorado City, Colorado established in 1859. For other
places with the same name, see Colorado City (disambiguation).
Old Colorado
City, formerly Colorado City, was once a town, but it is now a
neighborhood within the city of Colorado Springs,
Colorado. Its commercial district was listed
on the National Register of
Historic Places in 1982.[2][3] It was founded during the Pikes Peak Gold Rush of 1859 and was involved in the mining industry, both as a supply
hub and as a gold ore processing center beginning in the 1890s. Residents of
Colorado City worked at some of the 50 coal mines of the Colorado Springs area.
It was briefly the capital of the Colorado Territory. For many years, Colorado Springs prohibited the use of alcohol within
its border due to the lifestyle of Colorado City's opium dens, bordellos, and saloons. It is now a tourist area, with boutiques, art galleries,
and restaurants.
Contents
·
1Etymology
·
2History
o
2.1Founded
o
2.2Territorial capital and
county seat
o
2.3Saloons and bordellos
o
2.4Coal miners
o
2.5Transportation
§ 2.5.1Historic trails and roads
§ 2.5.2Railroad spurs growth
o
2.6Supply hub and processing
mills
o
2.7Annexation
o
2.8Historic district
·
3Overview
·
4Notable people
·
5Gallery
·
6See also
·
7References
·
8Further reading
·
9External links
Garden of the Gods formations
It was initially and briefly known as El Dorado for the
gold mines found during the gold rush.[4] The name
Colorado City was selected by its founders because of the red sandstone rocks and
red outcroppings in the vicinity (specifically, the Rampart Range and Garden of the Gods formations).[5] The word
Colorado in Spanish means "to blush" or "to go red".[6]
Founded[edit]
Colorado City Town Company laid claim to two square miles
of land that would become Colorado City on May 22, 1859.[5] Founded at
the confluence of Fountainand Camp creeks on
August 13, 1859, it was the first Pikes Peak region
settlement.[7][8] The
founders— Melancthon Beach, Anthony Bott, George Bute, and Rufus
Cable[9]—envisioned
Colorado City as a major supply hub for the new gold mines in South Park and
the Blue River, where major
strikes in the Pike's Peak Gold Rush had recently been made.[5] The
location for the town was selected for its proximity to Ute Pass, the route
westward to the gold mines.[10]
In 1859,
Colorado City was in the most westerly part of Kansas Territory.[6] The
Colorado City area became part of the Jefferson Territory on October
24, 1859.[11] There were
more than 300 cabins that had been built by 1861.[4] Its
residents included ranchers, farmers, freighters, and outfitters for gold
prospectors.[9]
Territorial
capital and county seat[edit]
Former El Paso
County courthouse, Old Colorado City
Colorado Territory was established on November 5, 1861.[10] Until August 14, 1862 (including one legislative
session), the city was the Colorado Territory capital until it was moved to
Denver.[11] Colorado City effectively functioned as the capital
for only five days. When the second territorial legislature met at Colorado
City on July 7, 1862, in a log cabin that still stands on Colorado Avenue, they
found the accommodations so inadequate that they voted to adjourn on July 11
and reconvene in Denver on July 16.[11][12]
El Paso County was formed in 1861 and Colorado City was the county
seat until 1873, when the courthouse moved to Colorado Springs.[13]
Saloons and bordellos[edit]
For the first two decades, the
population of the town decreased. Some people chose to farm or ranch outside of
the town limits. In addition, the town did not get the travelers it anticipated
because most people chose to travel through Denver due to skirmishes with
Native Americans along the Arkansas River. Its primary
interest was as a "watering hole", due to its many saloons on the
south side of Colorado Avenue. There were brothels and gambling rooms on upper
floors of the saloons and brothels behind the saloons on Cucharras
Street. Tunnels under Colorado Avenue ensured that men could enter these
businesses without being seen.[10] In
addition to saloons and brothels, Colorado City had opium dens in its early
days. When William Jackson Palmer purchased
the land for Colorado Springs, he outlawed the consumption of alcohol within
the new town's borders in reaction to the businesses he found unsavory in
Colorado City.[14][15][16] In 1896
and until 1916, ordinances were passed that prohibited prostitution, opium
dens, and dance halls, but brothels continued to be established after 1896. The
mayor of the town had warned prostitutes to leave Colorado City by 1908 or
1909, when most of the red-light district was burned
down in two separate fires. Between 1902 and 1909, there were other fires along
Saloon Row and the red light district.[17] Liquor was
outlawed in Colorado City in 1916. For the bordellos that rebuilt or remained,
they received continued pressure to close down until Colorado City was annexed
to Colorado Springs in 1917. At that time, at least one owner, Laura Bell McDaniel, was arrested.[17] In 1933,
at the end of Prohibition, Colorado
Springs lifted the ban of the sale and consumption of alcohol.[15][16]
Colorado was a
rough town. Saloons were plentiful, and frequent brawls and gun fights broke
out. Justice was meted out by a citizens' court.
— Nancy
Capace[4]
Coal miners[edit]
Coal was mined in Colorado
Springs beginning
in 1859. At the industry's height, there were 50 coal mines in the Colorado
Springs, mostly in the Rockrimmon and Cragmor - Colorado Springs Country Club area.[18][19] Mine workers often lived on the west side of town,
like Old Colorado City, while investors lived in the Old North End.[14]
Transportation[edit]
Historic trails and roads[edit]
Roads into the area included a toll
road that connected to the northeast with the Overland's 1865 "Despatch Express Route".[20] Southward
out of Colorado City a stage road (now Old Stage Road) traversed through South Cheyenne Creek's canyon to
Cripple Creek,[21] and a
carriage road through North and South Cheyenne Canyons[22] and
westward was the Ute Pass Wagon Road.[20] Another
route into the area was the north-south Cherokee Trail / Jimmy Camp Trail,[23] which was
near the Goodnight–Loving Trail.[20] The Jimmy
Camp Trail was one branch of the Trapper's Trail, a trail used
by trappers and explorers from 1820 and during the gold rush. Trapper's Trail
ran north-south from Fort Laramie to
the El Pueblo trading
post in the present Pueblo County, and from there
branched off to Bent's Old Fort or Taos, New Mexico.[24]
Railroad spurs growth[edit]
In 1883, the Colorado Midland Railroad came to
Colorado City, with its operating and administrative headquarters in the town.
Industries located in and around town to take
advantage of the convenient rail access. The industries that generated
thousands of jobs included ore processing mills, Ute Pass Paint Factory,
Colorado City Glass Works, and Hassell Iron Works.
Banks, restaurants, rooming houses, offices, meeting halls and other supporting
commercial establishments were built along the north side of Colorado Avenue
between Court and 26th Street. The town's workforce also included railroad
workers.[10]
Further
information: Colorado Springs and
Cripple Creek District Railway and Midland Terminal Railroad
Roundhouse
Supply hub and processing mills[edit]
Major gold strikes were made west of
Colorado City during the Cripple Creek Gold Rush in the
1890s. The town grew as ore was sent to the town to be processed and
prospectors came to purchase supplies and for amusement.[25] Ore
processing mills were established in Colorado City in the 1890s.[10] Eventually
Colorado City was processing much of the gold ore mined at Cripple Creek. There were
four processing companies in Colorado City before 1912.[26] Golden Cycle Mill had a
better reduction process and by 1912 the other mills had ceased to operate.[27]
Colorado City
was the location of a 1903 strike that spread to Cripple Creek and eventually
led to the Colorado Labor Wars.[13][28]In the 1910s, a
reduction in demand for the railroad and ore processing mills depressed
Colorado City's economy.[10]
Annexation[edit]
Part of Old Colorado City was annexed in 1898.[29] It was
finally incorporated into Colorado Springs in 1917 and called West Colorado
Springs,[13] or more
popularly, the West Side.[14]
Historic district[edit]
City Hall of Old
Colorado City, built in 1892
Since the
mid-1970s, Old Colorado City had been part of private and public revitalization
efforts, including capturing the historical character of its buildings, burying
utility wires, and landscaping. Buildings have been painted colors used around
the turn of the 20th century, modern signs have been replaced or removed, and
architectural details have been exposed.[10]
In 1982, the Old
Colorado Historic Commercial District was listed on the National Register of
Historic Places. It includes 27 properties situated primarily along Colorado
Avenue between 24th and 26th streets and some additional properties on Court
Street and the block between 26th and 27th streets.[10]
One-story frame
and brick buildings are the earliest known style of construction. Western
Victorian, turn-of-the-century commercial buildings are the second style. These
structures are generally two-story, red brick structures with Queen Anne, Romanesque Revival and Italianate style
architecture. Bancroft Park is located within the district. It
includes a bandshell, pavilion and early pioneer
cabin.[10]
Old Colorado City has a shopping district featuring art
galleries, boutiques, restaurants, and tourist shops.[3] Special
attractions include Simpich Showcase and Magic Town
at The Michael Garman Museum and Gallery.[30][31] Many of
the homes in Old Colorado City are cottages or Victorian houses.[14]
The approximate
boundaries are U.S. Highway 24 to the
south, 32nd Street to the west, 13th Street to the east and Uintah Street to
the north, with the town square restructured as Bancroft Park.[32]
·
Irving Howbert, one of the founders of Colorado Springs, lived briefly
in Old Colorado City prior to 1864.
·
Old Colorado City Branch
Carnegie Library
·
Old Colorado
City monument
·
Old Colorado
City Plaza at Bancroft Park
·
National Register of
Historic Places listings in El Paso County, Colorado
·
Manitou Springs, Colorado
1.
^ LaDonna
Gunn. "Founding of
Colorado City (1859)".Archived April 27, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.
2.
^ Jump up to:a b National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register
Information System". National Register of
Historic Places. National Park Service.
3.
^ Jump up to:a b Colorado. Fodor's Travel
Publications. April 1, 2008. p. 405. ISBN 978-1-4000-1909-0.
4.
^ Jump up to:a b c Capace, Nancy (January 1, 1999). Encyclopedia of Colorado. Somerset
Publishers, Inc. p. 171. ISBN 978-0-403-09813-2.
5.
^ Jump up to:a b c Anthony
Bott (1859). Life and Reminiscences of Anthony Bott. Special Collections Department, Pikes Peak
Library District.
6.
^ Jump up to:a b Jerome
C. Smiley (1913). Semi-Centennial History of Colorado. Chicago: Lewis.
pp. 267–268.
7.
^ "Colorado Springs
History and Heritage". Visit Colorado Springs. Retrieved May
24, 2013.
8.
^ "El Paso
County". History Colorado. Archived from the original on February 1, 2014.
9.
^ Jump up to:a b "Colorado City, El
Paso County History". Old
Colorado City Historical Society. Retrieved June 25, 2018.
10.
^ Jump up to:a b c d e f g h i Deborah
Edge Abel (November 2, 1982). "National Register
of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Old Colorado City Historic Commercial
District". National Park Service.
Retrieved June 24, 2018. With accompanying photos
11.
^ Jump up to:a b c Jerome
C. Smiley (1913). Semi-Centennial History of Colorado. Chicago: Lewis.
pp. 367–369.
12.
^ Duval, Linda; Banks, Marty (August 2,
2011). Insiders' Guide® to
Colorado Springs.
Insider's Guide. p. 29. ISBN 978-0-7627-6936-0.
13.
^ Jump up to:a b c Hellmann,
Paul T. (February 14, 2006). Historical Gazetteer of
the United States. Routledge. p. 129. ISBN 1-135-94859-3.
14.
^ Jump up to:a b c d Linda
Duval; Marty Banks (August 2, 2011). Insiders' Guide® to
Colorado Springs. Insider's Guide. pp. 8,
24. ISBN 978-0-7627-6936-0.
15.
^ Jump up to:a b Jan MacKell (2007). Brothels, Bordellos, and
Bad Girls: Prostitution in Colorado, 1860-1930. UNM Press.
p. 72. ISBN 978-0-8263-3343-8.
16.
^ Jump up to:a b Inner
Source Designs; Kathy and Lee Hayward (November 1, 2009). Drinking and Driving in
Colorado: A Guide to Colorado's Brewpubs. Inner Source
Designs. p. 112. ISBN 978-0-9822571-1-1.
17.
^ Jump up to:a b MacKell, Jan (October 12, 2011). Red Light Women of the
Rocky Mountains. UNM Press. pp. 101,
104–105. ISBN 978-0-8263-4612-4.
18.
^ Johnson & Higgins; Schnabel Engineering
Associates (March 21, 1988). "Cragmor
Area Map, Colorado Springs Coal Field"(PDF).
Mined Land Reclamation Division, State of Colorado. Retrieved May
5, 2017.
19.
^ "Geologic Hazards
(Colorado Springs)" (PDF). CIDBIMENA - Biblioteca Médica Nacional - UNAH. c. 1986. pp. 23–26.
Retrieved May 5, 2017.
20.
^ Jump up to:a b c Historic Trail Map ...
Central Colorado (PDF) (Map). Geologic Investigations
Series I-2639 (Sheet 1 of 2). Cartography by Scott,
Glenn R. USGS. 1999.
21.
^ Randy Jacobs; Robert Ormes
(March 1, 2000). Guide to the Colorado
Mountains.
The Mountaineers Books. p. 91. ISBN 978-0-9671466-0-7.
22.
^ Chicago, Rock Island; Pacific Railway Company
(1898). Manitou and the Mountains. Chicago: Poole Brothers. pp. 15–16.
23.
^ Stanley Buchholz Kimball (January 1, 1988). Historic Sites and
Markers Along the Mormon and Other Great Western
Trails.
University of Illinois Press. p. 179. ISBN 978-0-252-01456-7.
24.
^ Stanley Buchholz Kimball (1988). Historic Sites and
Markers Along the Mormon and Other Great Western
Trails.
University of Illinois Press. pp. 169, 179. ISBN 978-0-252-01456-7.
25.
^ Project, Federal Writers' (October 31,
2013). The WPA Guide to
Colorado: The Highest State. Trinity University Press. p. PT125. ISBN 978-1-59534-205-8.
26.
^ MacKell, Jan
(October 12, 2011). Red Light Women of the
Rocky Mountains.
UNM Press. p. 101. ISBN 978-0-8263-4612-4.
27.
^ Capace, Nancy
(January 1, 1999). Encyclopedia of Colorado. Somerset Publishers, Inc. p. 174. ISBN 978-0-403-09813-2.
28.
^ George G. Suggs, Jr. (1972). Colorado's War
on Militant Unionism, James H. Peabody and the Western Federation of Miners.
p. 47.
29. ^ Stephanie Waters (2012). Ghosts of Colorado
Springs and Pikes Peak. The History Press. p. 97. ISBN 978-1-60949-467-4.
30.
^ "Simpich
Showcase". Colorado
Springs Independent. Retrieved June 24, 2018.
31.
^ Duval, Linda; Banks, Marty (August 2,
2011). Insiders' Guide® to
Colorado Springs.
Insider's Guide. p. 108. ISBN 978-0-7627-6936-0.
32.
^ "Old Colorado City
Historical Maps". Archived from the original on 2008-04-06. Retrieved 2008-09-13.
·
"Colorado City 51
years". Colorado
Springs Gazette. August 12, 1910. pp. 4–3, 4.
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