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Early photo of
original brick building of Coors Brewery Golden prior to
1879 Late 1800s,
Golden had nearly a dozen hotels Armistice Day
Parade November 11, 1918 Golden was founded
during the gold rush of 1859, but gold seekers were
not its first inhabitants. The area had been
frequented by the Ute, Arapaho, and Cheyenne
tribes, as well as early trappers Louis Vasquez and
Rufus Sage. Most sources agree that the town was
named for settler Tom Golden, one of the early
gulch miners who panned gold in the valley of Clear
Creek. A toll bridge, two
stores, and the county's first commercial garden
were among the settlers' first endeavors. Golden's
location at the mouth of Clear Creek canyon
furthered the town's aspirations as a supply center
and aided its role as a transportation hub for
freight wagons and, later, the railroad. "Our city
is now full of energetic, go-ahead men enroute to
the gold mines" reported the Golden Mountaineer
in 1860. Although Golden was
site of the Territorial Capital from 1862 to 1867,
it lost the state capital to Denver when Colorado
achieved statehood. Instead, the town grew slowly
but steadily as a supply center for the mining
districts in the mountains to the west. Golden also
grew as an industrial town. Clear Creek provided
water for milling, smelting, manufacturing, and
generating electricity. Local coal mines yielded
resources for early industry and employed many
local residents. Early Golden industries also
included a cigar factory, candy factory, paper
mill, glass plant, three lime kilns, and several
stone quarries. Town building was
aided by the clay deposits that supplied material
for local brickmaking. Wood was used less
frequently in construction because it had to be
brought down from Clear Creek canyon. However,
cannonball sized stones from the creek were used in
foundations, retaining walls and porches of many
local buildings, as well as in the Armory Building
at Thirteenth and Arapahoe. Agriculture was a
chief Golden industry, made possible by irrigation
from Clear Creek. The crops planted by David K.
Wall in 1859 became the county's first commercial
garden, and by 1902 the town was "surrounded on all
sides by farming and stockraising," according to
Illustrated Golden. Wheat was a major crop
and accounted for the three flour mills. At one
time, the Rock Flour Mill produced 200 barrels of
flour a day. Orchards and vineyards grew on North
Table Mountain, while Clear Creek Valley was filled
with fruit trees and fields of strawberries and
raspberries, as well as vegetable gardens. Farmers
from east Golden came to town selling produce from
their horse-drawn wagons. The First
Jefferson County Courthouse Jefferson County
Courthouse Now 1873 Golden
Hotel and Calvary Episcopal Church Ford Street
early 1900s Toll roads were
Golden's first means of transportation; several
routes were built to the mining districts. In 1870
the railroad arrived in Golden. The Colorado
Central Railroad (later the Colorado &
Southern) was headquartered here and served Idaho
Springs, Georgetown, Central City, and Black Hawk.
The railroad hauled supplies to the mining
districts and returned with ore to be processed by
local smelters. In the 1890's, interurban rail
lines also brought visitors from Denver. During the
mid-1900s, Golden became the hub of two
transcontinental highways, Interstate 40 and
Interstate 70, which helped promote the town as a
tourist destination. Although Golden
lost the capital to Denver, it remained the
Jefferson County seat and built a splendid brick
courthouse that shared the hill with the Colorado
School of Mines campus. This Victorian beauty was
replaced in the 1960s by a boxy beige-brick
building with an adjacent five story Hall of
Justice. In 1990, Jefferson County began
construction on a new courthouse - the gleaming
building that dominates the ridge southeast of
town, gazing down at the state capitol on the
plains below. Golden became the
site of the Colorado School of Mines in the 1870s.
After a church-financed schoolhouse on the eastern
edge of Golden blew down in a windstorm, a brick
classroom was constructed on the present-day
campus. City fathers W. A. H. Loveland, Charles C.
Welch, and Edward L. Berthoud helped establish the
college, either by serving on the board of trustees
or by contributing funds or land to the fledgling
school. Today, the world-class institution offers
degree programs that include engineering, geology,
and environmental sciences. The Coors brewery
is another early enterprise that has had a lasting
influence in Golden. Founded by German immigrant
Adolph Coors, the brewing company has grown from a
small stone building near the foot of Castle Rock
to an industrial complex that expands eastward
along the Clear Creek Valley. Brewery tours have
become a major attraction for visitors coming to
Golden. In the early 1900s, Coors branched out into
ceramics manufacturing, a sideline that later
helped sustain the company during Prohibition.
Today, Coors is the largest single-source brewery
in the world, producing over twenty million barrels
of beer per year. Golden begins its
second century poised as one of Jefferson County's
leading communities. Diversified local industry,
the new courthouse that graces the ridge south of
town, a thriving downtown, and the recently -
completed Visitors Center represent the city's
optimistic outlook for the future. Golden struggles
with the challenge of retaining its small town
identity in the face of Denver's metropolitan
suburbs expanding ever westward. However, the
diligent efforts of the historic preservation board
and dedicated local preservationists are ensuring
that Golden's heritage lives on for future
generations to enjoy. Coors Brewery
began as a small stone building in late
1870s Early 1900
Golden Take
a virtual tour of downtown Golden To
add your event to the calendar:
(photo courtesy of Colorado School of
Mines)
(photo courtesy of Golden Pioneer
Museum)
and inns like the historic Hotel shown
above.
(Photo courtesey of Golden Pioneer
Museum)
(photo courtesy of Golden Pioneer
Museum)
(photo courtesy of Golden Pioneer
Museum)
(photo courtesy of Golden
Transcript)
(photo courtesy of Denver Public
Library)
(photo courtesy of Golden Pioneer
Museum)
(photo courtesy of Golden Pioneer
Museum)
(photo courtesy of Denver Public
Library)
Thanks to local
historian Rick Gardner
member of the
Evergreen, Colorado
Chamber of Commerce
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Chamber of Commerce
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Star Summer & Winter Year Round
Guide
member of the
Golden, Colorado
Chamber of Commerce
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member of the
Idaho Springs, Colorado
Chamber of Commerce
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