The History
of Golden, Colorado
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 the 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. 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 1890s, interurban rail lines
also brought visitors from Denver. During the mid-1900s,
Golden became the hub of industry and employed
many local residents.
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. In1990, 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 courthouse that graces
the ridge south of town, a thriving downtown, and the
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.
Source: Golden Old and New.
Cathleen Norman. © 1996. |
