Colfax History:

 

Cathedral of Immaculate Conception
Colfax & Logan

The Cathedral of Immaculate Conception is one of the biggest Catholic churches in Denver. J.J. Brown and his wife, the Unsinkable Molly Brown, donated funds for the Cathedral along with J.K. Mullen, John Campion and Dennis Sheedy. The outside of the cathedral is made of limestone and granite from Colorado and Indiana. The altar, statuary and the bishop’s chair are made of marble. All seventy five stained glass windows came from Munich, Germany. The Cathedral was finished in 1912.



Ogden Theater
Colfax & Ogden

Before 1995 this star attraction was an old vacant movie house. Then a concert promoter bought it and fixed it up as a very popular music venue. The old building is still on of Denver’s most visited places. It was also popular in the 1930’s and the 1940’s when it was a visited movie house. Now many famous people like Smashing Pumpkins, Morphine, and James Taylor have played the Ogden.

East High School
Colfax & Detroit

The current East High School is the school’s third building. It was constructed as part of the City Beautiful Movement of the early 20th century. George Hebard Williamson, a graduate of the old East High School, was hired to design the new building. He won national recognition for the Jacobean design. The school closely resembles the style of Philadelphia’s independence Hall. In 1991, East High School was declared an official historic landmark by the Denver Landmark commission and the Denver City Council.

Greek Town

Colfax’s unique character comes in part from its abundance of ethnic restaurants. Greek Town is the only official cultural town in Denver. It occupies six blocks on Colfax from St. Paul Street to Elizabeth Street. It was officially named Greek Town eleven years ago by the City Council and includes and ice cream shop, a pastry shop and the other Greek restaurants. In the heart of Greek Town lies a Caribbean restaurant. It serves scrumptious Caribbean food, including their most popular pastry patty.

The Esplanade
Colfax & Esplanade

In addition to the historic nature of East High School, the City Park Esplanade running in front of the school connects 17th Avenue with Colfax. Chicago architect Edward Herbert Bennett designed the gateway at the south end that consists of two free-standing piers, one on each side of the motorway. The figures on the east are of two miners. On the west are two pioneer women. A lion head is mounted on each wall facing east Colfax Avenue.



Capital Hill State Bank
Colfax & York

The Capital Hill State Bank was built in 1925 and was only used as the Capital Hill State Bank for one year when scandal forced its closure. Before 1940, it was a regular bank. After 1940 it became a ladies clothing store and has always been an important Colfax landmark. The building currently houses The Bank Bar and Grill.

The Bonfils/Lowenstein Theater
Colfax & Elizabeth

Across the street from East High School is the old Bonfils Theater, which later became the Lowenstein Theater and is now in the process of becoming a retail center, anchored by the Tattered Cover Bookstore, a Denver landmark in its own right. The building was built in 1953 for the purpose of maintaining live theater in the midst of the success of Hollywood films. The Bonfils served as a multipurpose theater; presenting plays, operas, movies, concerts, lectures and television productions. However, in the 1960’s the Denver Center for the Performing Arts (DCPA) opened downtown. As the DCPA took off, the Bonfils Theater suffered. It became part of the DCPA and was later renamed the Lowenstein Theatre, but its location far from the other theaters caused its closure.

The Bluebird District
Colfax & Adams

Opened in 1913 as a small movie house, the Bluebird theater has survived various incarnations. It was initially called the Thompson Theater, named after John Thompson, its first owner. The theater was so successful that Thompson expanded his operation to include the Ogden Theater and others along Colfax in the 1920’s. During the Depression, customers were treated to cash giveaways and other enticing offers. In 1994 it was refurbished and restored. The three-tiered theater now serves as a multi-purpose venue hosting a diverse group of national acts, emerging recording artists, and the hottest local bands.

National Jewish
Colfax & Jackson

The Fisher Brothers, who designed many buildings around Denver, designed the Mediterranean style National Jewish Hospital on the corner of Colorado Boulevard and Colfax in 1926. Frances Wisebart Jacobs and Rabbi William Sterne Friedman founded the hospital to serve the many people who moved to Colorado hoping the climate would cure them of tuberculosis. At the time, TB was the leading cause of death in the United States. The hospital opened on December 10, 1899. Its slogan was “none may enter who can  pay – none can pay who enter.” National Jewish is still a functioning hospital that provides millions of dollars of free/heavily subsidized care.

Thank you!

Content for the 26 Miles of Colfax History brochure was created by students in the metro-area in collaboration with Historic Denver, Inc. The students dedicated themselves to learning local history and sharing the stores of Colfax as part of the History Channel’s Save Our History Program. Historic Denver would like to thank all the students who participated and our educational partners:

Cole College Prep
Denver East High School
Girls Inc. of Metro Denver
Hulstrom Options
Montclair Elementary
Colfax on the Hill Inc.

Please visit www.historicdenver.org to read more about Colfax and listen to special Colfax Podcasts!

Historic Denver
Save Our History   
Post-News – Colfax Marathon
Colfax on the Hill
The Denver Public Library
CBID –Colfax Business Improvement District
Metropolitan State College’s Adventures of the American Mind
Denver Public Schools – Adams 12 School District
Aurora History Museum – Molly Brown House Museum
Edgellworks