Timeline of Denver

Denver

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Location of Denver in the United States of America .

The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Denver, Colorado, United States from its founding in 1858 to the present.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

19th century

• 1858
  • November 22 – Denver City founded in Kansas Territory as a rival to the settlement of Auraria. ^[1]
  • Prospect Hill Cemetery established.
• 1859
  • Rocky Mountain News begins publication. ^[2]
  • John C. Moore becomes mayor. ^[3]
• 1860
  • January – Denver Police Department established by Mayor Moore, replacing Denver Marshals. ^[4]
  • May, 18 – Barney Ford, who later became an important civil rights activist, arrives in Denver for the first time. ^[5]
  • July – Clark, Gruber & Co. a privately owned gold brokerage and mint, produces the first coins in Colorado. ^[6]
  • Construction of the first canal called, the "Big Ditch", to deliver water to the city begun by the Capitol Hydraulic Company. ^[7]
• 1861 – Denver City becomes part of Colorado Territory.
• 1863
  • Telegraph begins operating. ^[8]
  • Fire destroys much of Downtown and results in laws requiring new buildings to be made of brick. ^[9]
• 1864
  • University of Denver founded. ^[9]

    

    University of Denver Mary Reed Hall and Harper Humanities Garden

  • Cherry Creek floods destroying city records. ^[9]
• 1867
  • Capital of Colorado Territory relocated to Denver City from Golden City. ^[8]
  • Colorado Tribune newspaper begins publication. ^[2]
  • Platte Water Company finishes the "Big Ditch" to provide Denver with water, terminating in Smith Lake in what is today Washington Park. ^[7]
• 1870
  • Cheyenne-Denver and Kansas-Denver trains begin operating. ^[8]
  • Denver City Water Company formed. ^[10]
• 1871 – Denver Horse Railroad begins operating.
• 1873 – Palace Theater opens. ^[11]
• 1875 – East High School opens.

  

  Front of East High School in Denver Colorado

• 1876
  • Denver becomes part of new State of Colorado.
  • Riverside Cemetery established. ^[12]
• 1878 – Central Presbyterian Church built. ^[3]
• 1879 – State Historical and Natural History Society of Colorado headquartered in Denver. ^[13]
• 1881
  • Union Station ^[14] and Tabor Grand Opera House ^[11] open.
  • City Park ^[15] and Fortnightly Club ^[16] established.
• 1882
  • Colorado Scientific Society headquartered in Denver. ^[13]
  • High Line Canal opens. ^[17]
• 1883 – First St. Patrick's Day parade held. ^[17]
• 1884 – Denver Press Club ^[16] and Denver Athletic Club founded.
• 1886
  • Denver Union Stockyards established. ^[8]
  • Denver Tramway ^[18] and Mercantile Library begin operating.
  • "Ugly law" effected. ^[19]
• 1887
  • College of the Sacred Heart (later renamed Regis University) relocates to Denver.
• 1889
  • Soapy Smith assaults and injures Rocky Mountain News editor John Arkins. The News declares a crusade to rid Denver of the bad man, which took a decade to complete.
  • Denver Athletic Club's historic clubhouse is built.
• 1890
  • Elitch Gardens amusement venue opens. ^[20]
  • Masonic Temple built. ^[21]
• 1891
  • Colorado Camera Club formed. ^[16]
  • Central Presbyterian Church built.
  • Oxford Hotel built. ^[22]
• 1892
  • The Denver Post newspaper begins publication as the Evening Post. ^[2]
  • Brown Palace Hotel built. ^[22]
• 1893
  • Denver Depression begins.
  • Denver Artists Club founded. ^[23]
  • Denver's oldest continuously operating restaurant, the Buckhorn Exchange opens under the name "The Rio Grande Exchange". ^[24]
• 1894 – Colorado State Capitol building opens. ^[9]
• 1895 – Festival of Mountain and Plain begins.
• 1896 – Denver Zoo founded.
• 1897 – Denver Musicians Association founded.
• 1898 – Denver Public Library established. ^[25]
• 1899
  • Washington Park developed.
  • National Jewish Health opens.

University Hall, built in 1890

National Jewish Hospital of Denver Colorado circa 1920

20th century

Skeleton of Edmontosaurus Denver Museum of Nature and Science

Crystalline gold from Farncomb Hill, near Breckenridge, Colorado.

Saber Tooth Coin Display at Denver Museum of Nature and Science

1900s–1940s

• 1902 – Denver government home rule established. ^[8]
• 1903 – Denver Juvenile Court established. ^[8]
• 1904
  • Robert W. Speer becomes mayor.
  • Denver and Interurban Rail Road (Boulder-Denver) chartered.
• 1906
  • National Western Stock Show begins. ^[26]
  • Red Rocks Amphitheatre opens near city.
  • Municipal code adopted. ^[9]
  • U.S. Denver Mint begins operating. ^[8]
• 1907 – Mammoth Roller Skating Rink, and Denver and South Platte Railway ^[27] open.
• 1908
  • July: 1908 Democratic National Convention.
  • Municipal Auditorium opens. ^[11]
  • Colorado Museum of Natural History built. ^[28]
  • Denver Motor Club organized. ^[29]
• 1910 – Daniels & Fisher Tower built.
  • Dumb Friends League established.
• 1911
  • Cathedral Basilica of the Immaculate Conception built.
  • Mountain States Telephone & Telegraph Company in business.
• 1912 – Civic League of Denver ^[16] and University of Colorado's Extension Center established.
• 1915
  • Cheesman Park opens.

    

    The north end of Cheesman park.

  • Denver Tourist Bureau active.
• 1916
  • Griffith Opportunity School ^[11] and Garden Club of Denver ^[16] founded.
  • Post Office built. ^[11]
• 1918
  • Denver Water (public utility) and Federal Reserve Bank branch ^[8] established.
  • Denver Art Museum opens.
• 1919 – Civic Center park and Ogden Theatre open.
• 1920
  • August: Tramway strike. ^[30]
  • Fitzsimmons Army Hospital built. ^[31]
• 1922 – December 18: Denver Mint Robbery. ^[11]
• 1923
  • Benjamin F. Stapleton becomes mayor.
  • Stover Candies in business.
• 1924 – Glenarm YMCA opens. ^[32]
• 1925 – Denver Foundation established.
• 1927 – Santa Fe Theatre opens. ^[33]
• 1929 – Denver Municipal Airport begins operating.
• 1930
  • Paramount Theatre opens.
  • U.S. Customhouse built. ^[11]
• 1932 – City and County Building constructed. ^[11]
• 1934 – Denver Symphony Orchestra established.
• 1938 – U.S. Lowry Air Force Base established.
• 1941 – Denver Ordnance Plant begins operating.
• 1948 – Bears Stadium opens.

F W Olin Hall for Biological and Natural Sciences

1950s–2000s

• 1951
  • Denver Coliseum opens

    

    Entrance to the Denver Coliseum

  • Botanical Gardens Foundation incorporated. ^[34]
  • Joshel House (residence) built.
• 1952 – American Civil Liberties Union headquartered in city.^{[ citation needed ]}
• 1955 – Denver Regional Council of Governments formed.
• 1956 – KRMA-TV begins broadcasting.
• 1960 – Denver Broncos football team active. ^[8]
• 1965 – Metropolitan State University of Denver established.
• 1966 – Tropical Conservatory opens in the Botanic Gardens.
• 1967
  • Community College of Denver established.
  • On August 9 a 5.3 Mb earthquake affected the Denver area with a maximum Mercalli intensity of VII (Very strong). This was the largest in a swarm of over 300 events that spanned more than a year. Damage was focused in the Northglenn area where walls were cracked, windows were broken, and structural elements were damaged at a church. ^[35]
• 1968
  • William H. McNichols, Jr. becomes mayor.
• 1969 – Chicano Youth Liberation Conference held.
• 1970
  • Negative income tax program begins. ^[36]
  • Historic Denver nonprofit founded. ^[37]
  • Population: 514,678. ^[38]
• 1971
  • The Denver Tramway company ceases being operator of the city's transit system, transferring all assets to Denver Metro Transit (later folded into the Regional Transportation District)
  • People's Fair begins.
  • Black American West Museum founded. ^[39]
• 1972 – November: Voters reject city bid for the 1976 Winter Olympics.
• 1973
  • University of Colorado's School of Public Affairs ^[40] and Children's Museum of Denver established.
  • Patricia Schroeder becomes U.S. representative for Colorado's 1st congressional district.
• 1974 – University of Colorado Denver established.
• 1976 – PrideFest (Denver) begins.
• 1977 – Denver Young Artists Orchestra founded.
• 1978
  • Colorado Food Clearing House established. ^[41]
  • Denver Film Festival, and South Platte Greenway development ^[15] begins.
  • Boettcher Concert Hall built.
• 1979 – Denver Firefighters Museum established. ^[39]
• 1980
  • Population: 492,365. ^[42]
• 1981
  • Quiznos restaurant in business.
  • Opera Colorado; and Museum of Miniatures ^[39] founded.
• 1982 – 16th Street Mall (pedestrian way) opens.
• 1983 – Federico Peña becomes mayor.
• 1984
  • Colorado Coalition for the Homeless headquartered in Denver. ^[43]
  • Republic Plaza built.
  • Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum (formerly The Lowry Heritage Museum) opened.
• 1985 – Denver Urban Gardens nonprofit and Avenue Theater established.
• 1986 – Denver Enterprise Zone established by state legislature. ^{[44] [45]}
• 1988 – Wynkoop Brewing Company in business.
• 1989 – Byers-Evans House Museum established. ^[39]
• 1990
  • Colorado Convention Center opens.
  • Population: 467,610. ^[38]
• 1991
  • Wellington Webb becomes mayor.
  • Museo de las Americas founded. ^[39]
  • National Renewable Energy Laboratory established near city.
• 1993
  • August: Catholic Pope John Paul II visits city.
  • Chipotle Mexican Grill opens first location on Evans Avenue. ^[46]
  • 5280 magazine begins publication.
  • Molly Brown House restoration begins. ^[47]
• 1994 – Rocky Mountain Media Watch founded.
• 1995
  • Denver International Airport begins operating.
  • Coors Field opens.
  • Qdoba Mexican Grill founded under the name Zuma restaurant. ^[48]
  • First Fridays of the Golden Triangle Museum District begin. ^[49]
• 1996
  • June 10: Colorado Avalanche win first Stanley Cup title in franchise history in their inaugural season in Denver after relocating from Quebec.
• 1997
  • June: 23rd G8 summit held.
  • City website online (approximate date). ^{[50] [ chronology citation needed ]}
  • Denver Underground Film Festival begins.
  • Diana DeGette becomes U.S. representative for Colorado's 1st congressional district.
• 1998
  • January 25: Denver Broncos win first Super Bowl in franchise history.
  • December 20: Airplane crash.
• 1999 – Pepsi Center arena and Colorado's Ocean Journey aquarium ^[51] open.
• 2000 – Privacy Foundation headquartered in Denver (approximate date). ^[52]

21st century

2000s

• 2001
  • First Look Film Festival begins.
• 2003 – John Hickenlooper is elected Mayor of Denver.
• 2005
  • Marijuana legalization.
• 2006
  • Colorado T-REX Project (TRansportation EXpansion) completed.
  • Telemundo Denver begins broadcasting.
• 2008
  • August 6–10: 66th World Science Fiction Convention held.
  • August 25–28: 2008 Democratic National Convention held..
  • Education News Colorado begins publication. ^[53]
• 2009 – I-News investigative news nonprofit founded. ^[53]

2010s

• 2010
  • B-cycle bikeshare launched.
  • DaVita Inc. relocates to Denver. ^[54]
  • Population: 600,158; ^[55] metro 2,543,482. ^[56]
• 2011
  • January 12: Bill Vidal becomes mayor.
  • May 3: Denver mayoral election, 2011 held.
  • July 18: Michael Hancock becomes mayor.
  • StoryCorps interviews conducted. ^[16]
  • Clyfford Still museum opens. ^[43]
• 2012
  • History Colorado Center opens.
  • Denver Comic Con begins.
• 2013 – Population: 649,495. ^[57]
• 2017 – January 21: Women's protest against U.S. president Trump. ^[58]

2020s

• 2021 – December 27: A gunman goes on a shooting spree across the Denver metropolitan area, killing five and injuring two before dying in a shootout with police. ^{[59] [60]}
• 2023 – June 12: Denver Nuggets win first championship in franchise history after 47 years.

See also

• History of Denver
• List of mayors of Denver
• Timeline of Colorado history
• Timelines of other cities in Colorado: Aurora, Boulder, Colorado Springs

References

1. Noel, Thomas J. "Denver". Colorado Encyclopedia. History Colorado. Retrieved 24 November 2023.
2. "US Newspaper Directory". Chronicling America. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
3. Bancroft 1890.
4. Encyclopedia Staff. "The Denver Police Department, 1859–1933". Colorado Encyclopedia. History Colorado. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
5. Crutchfield, James (2017). It Happened in Colorado (3rd ed.). Guilford, Connecticut: TwoDot. p. 105. ISBN   978-1-4930-2351-6.
6. Crutchfield, James (2017). It Happened in Colorado (3rd ed.). Guilford, Connecticut: TwoDot. pp. 50–51. ISBN   978-1-4930-2351-6.
7. Limerick & Hanson 2012, p. 29–30.
8. Colorado State Archives (2013-09-17). "Colorado History Chronology". State of Colorado.
9. Auditor 1911: "Chronology"
10. "Historical Timeline". Denver Water. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
11. Federal Writers’ Project 1945.
12. "Denver Area Cemeteries". Western History and Genealogy. Denver Public Library. Archived from the original on February 6, 2014. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
13. "Colorado". Handbook of Learned Societies and Institutions: America. Carnegie Institution of Washington. 1908. ISBN   9780598345967.
14. "Denver Union Station History and Timeline". Denver Union Station Public Authority. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
15. "Denver Parks Timeline". Western History and Genealogy. Denver Public Library. Archived from the original on August 22, 2013. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
16. "Archives Finding Aids: Western History Collection". Western History and Genealogy. Denver Public Library . Retrieved February 17, 2014.
17. Noel, Thomas J. "Mile High City – 4. Immigrants". DenverGov. Archived from the original on July 29, 2009.
18. Hall, Frank (1895), History of the State of Colorado, vol. 4, Chicago: Blakely Printing Co.
19. Schweik, Susan M. (2010). The Ugly Laws: Disability in Public. New York University Press. ISBN   978-0-8147-8361-0.
20. Encyclopedia Staff. "Elitch Gardens". Colorado Encyclopedia. History Colorado. Retrieved 17 November 2023.
21. Stone 1892.
22. Bridgman 1903.
23. Levy, Florence, ed. (1911), American Art Annual, vol. 9, New York: R.R. Bowker.
24. Clint Lanier; Derek Hembree (14 May 2013). Bucket List Bars: Historic Saloons, Pubs, and Dives of America. Emerald Book Company. p. 232. ISBN   978-1-937110-44-4.
25. Colorado's Century of Public Libraries. Denver: Colorado State Library. 1959.
26. "Timeline". Denver: Western Stock Show Association. Archived from the original on July 31, 2010. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
27. Poor's Manual of Public Utilities, Poor's Manual Company, 1917, pp. 6 v
28. Denver Chamber of Commerce 1912.
29. Good Roads Magazine, New York: E.L. Powers Co., December 1909, pp. v
30. Denver tramway strike of 1920: report of an investigation, Denver Commission of Religious Forces, 1921
31. Wyckoff 1992.
32. Mjagkij, Nina (1994). Light in the Darkness: African Americans and the YMCA, 1852–1946. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN   0-8131-2801-3.
33. "Movie Theaters in Denver, CO". CinemaTreasures.org. Los Angeles: Cinema Treasures LLC. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
34. "History". Denver Botanic Gardens. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
35. Stover, C. W.; Coffman, J. L. (1993), Seismicity of the United States, 1568–1989 (Revised), U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1527, United States Government Printing Office, pp. 188, 190, 191
36. Sreenivasan 2009.
37. "History". Historic Denver. Retrieved March 23, 2014.
38. Population of the 100 Largest Cities and Other Urban Places in the United States: 1790 to 1990, US Census Bureau, 1998
39. American Association for State and Local History (2002). "Colorado: Denver". Directory of Historical Organizations in the United States and Canada. Rowman Altamira. ISBN   0759100020.
40. "History: Timeline". University of Colorado Denver. Regents of the University of Colorado. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
41. "About FBR". Food Bank of the Rockies. Archived from the original on December 11, 2002.
42. United States Census Bureau (1984), County and City Data Book, 1983, Statistical Abstract, Washington, D.C., OL   14997563M
43. Mike Tigas and Sisi Wei, ed. (9 May 2013). "Denver, Colorado". Nonprofit Explorer. New York: ProPublica . Retrieved February 17, 2014.
44. "Denver Enterprise Zone". City and County of Denver. Retrieved September 16, 2016.
45. "Under Colorado program, companies said they were owed $75M in tax credits, but created only 564 jobs", Denver Post, November 5, 2011
46. Brand, Rachel (December 23, 2006). "Chipotle founder had big dreams". Rocky Mountain News . Archived from the original on April 3, 2008. Retrieved June 28, 2008.
47. Guide to Colorado Historic Places: Sites Supported by the Colorado Historical Society's State Historical Fund. Big Earth Publishing. 2006. ISBN   978-1-56579-493-1.
48. Cox, Jack (December 21, 1995). "Devouring a Dream Financier, chef concoct winning restaurant" . Denver Post (Rockies ed.). pp. E-01.
49. "About". Golden Triangle Museum District. Archived from the original on December 25, 2013. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
50. "City and County of Denver". Archived from the original on 1998-01-10 – via Internet Archive, Wayback Machine.
51. Kisling, Vernon N., ed. (2000). "Zoological Gardens of the United States (chronological list)". Zoo and Aquarium History. USA: CRC Press. ISBN   978-1-4200-3924-5.
52. "Organizations". International Relations and Security Network . Switzerland: Eidgenössische Technische Hochschule Zürich . Retrieved March 23, 2014.
53. "Colorado". CJR's Guide to Online News Startups. New York: Columbia Journalism Review . Retrieved February 17, 2014.
54. Brandt, Nadja (December 31, 2013). "Denver Real Estate". Bloomberg.com .
55. "Denver (city), Colorado". State & County QuickFacts. U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on June 21, 2012. Retrieved February 17, 2014.
56. "Largest Urbanized Areas With Selected Cities and Metro Areas (2010)". US Census Bureau. 2012.
57. "The 15 Cities with the Largest Numeric Increase from July 1, 2012 to July 1, 2013" (PDF). US Census Bureau. 2014. Vintage 2013 Population Estimates
58. Women lead unprecedented worldwide mass protests against Trump, Reuters, January 22, 2017
59. Chavira, Danielle. "6 Dead, Including Suspect, In Violent Crime Spree In Denver & Lakewood" . Retrieved 2021-12-27.
60. Isenberg, Sydney (28 December 2021). "Gunman kills four, injures three in shooting spree that spanned Denver, ended in Lakewood".

Bibliography

See also: History of Denver § Bibliography

Published in 19th century

• C. Exera Brown (1869). "Denver City". Brown's Gazetteer of the Chicago and Northwestern Railway. Chicago: Bassett Brothers' Steam Printing House. hdl:2027/wu.89073021735.
• "Denver", Rocky Mountain Directory and Colorado Gazetteer, for 1871, Denver: Samuel S. Wallihan & Company, 1870
• A. von Steinwehr (1875). "Denver". Centennial Gazetteer of the United States. Philadelphia: McCurdy.
• Crofutt, George A. (1880). "Denver". Crofutt's New Overland Tourist, and Pacific Coast Guide. Overland Publishing Company.
• Ballenger & Richards, Denver (1882–1910), Denver City Directory, Denver, Colo.: Ballenger & Richards
  • 1890
  • 1897
• John Franklin Graff (1882). "City of Denver". Graybeard's Colorado. J.B. Lippincott & Company.
• "Denver". Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Nevada, Wyoming and Arizona Gazetteer and Business Directory. Chicago: Polk & Co. and A.C. Danser. 1884.
• Denver Illustrated. Pictorial Bureau of the Press. 1887.
• Hubert Howe Bancroft (1890), "Denver and Araphoe County", History of Nevada, Colorado, and Wyoming, 1540–1888, Works of Hubert Howe Bancroft, vol. 25, San Francisco: History Co.
• William G. M. Stone (1892). Denver and its Outings. Barkhausen & Lester, printers.
• Denver, by pen and picture, Denver: F.S. Thayer, 1898, OL   7042912M
• Portrait and Biographical Record of Denver and Vicinity, Colorado. Chicago: Chapman Publishing Company. 1898.

Published in 20th century

• History of Denver, by Jerome C. Smiley, 1901
• W. E. Bridgman (1903). Seeing Denver. American Sight-Seeing Car and Coach Company.
• Wood, Stanley (1904), "Denver", Over the range to the Golden Gate, Chicago: R. R. Donnelley, OCLC   2303711
• Auditor's Office, Denver (Colo.) (1911), "Chronology", Report of the Auditor of the City and County of Denver
• "Facts about Denver", The City Hall, League of American Municipalities, 1911
• "Denver", Ames Guide, Los Angeles: Ames Bros. Company, 1912
• Denver Today: Descriptive, Statistical, Pictorial. Denver Chamber of Commerce. 1912.
• City of Denver. Denver City and County. 1912–1914. OCLC   8393377.
• Bureau of Municipal Research (1914), City and County of Denver, New York, N.Y., Prepared for the Colorado Taxpayers Protective League
• Mae Lacy Baggs (1918), "Queen City of the Plains", Colorado, the Queen Jewel of the Rockies, See America First, Boston: Page Company
• Marius Robinson Campbell (1922). "Denver". The Denver & Rio Grande Western Route. Vol. E. U.S. Government Printing Office.{{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
• Federal Writers’ Project (1945). "Denver". Colorado: a Guide to the Highest State. American Guide Series. New York: Hastings House. p. 124+. OL   24557683M.
• Gunther Paul Barth (1975). Instant Cities: Urbanization and the Rise of San Francisco and Denver . Oxford University Press. ISBN   978-0-19-501899-8.
• Ory Mazar Nergal, ed. (1980), "Denver", Encyclopedia of American Cities, New York: E.P. Dutton, OL   4120668M
• Wyckoff, William (1992), "Denver's Aging Commercial Strip", Geographical Review, 82 (3): 282–294, doi:10.2307/215352, JSTOR   215352
• George Thomas Kurian (1994), "Denver", World Encyclopedia of Cities, Vol. 1: North America, Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO, OL   1431653M (fulltext via Open Library)
• "Colorado: Denver & Boulder", Rocky Mountains, Lonely Planet, 1999, OL   22952362M

Published in 21st century

• Limerick, Patricia Nelson; Hanson, Jason L. (2012). A Ditch in Time : the City, the West, and Water (1st ed.). Golden, Colorado: Fulcrum Publishing. ISBN   978-1-55591-366-3 . Retrieved 25 November 2023.
• Wishart, David J., ed. (2004). "Cities and Towns: Denver, Colorado". Encyclopedia of the Great Plains. University of Nebraska Press. ISBN   0-8032-4787-7.
• Sreenivasan, Jyotsna (2009). "Seattle/Denver Income Maintenance Experiments". Poverty and the Government in America: A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC-CLIO. p.  558+. ISBN   978-1-59884-168-8.

External links

• Items related to Denver, various dates (via Digital Public Library of America)

39°44′21″N104°59′05″W / 39.739167°N 104.984722°W / 39.739167; -104.984722