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City Cast Denver

Denver History

People, places, and scenes from Denver's past.

Peyton Garcia

This year, for the 120th National Western Stock Show, acclaimed local Chef Manny Barella of 

 will be slinging his distinctly Texas-meets-Mexico style barbecue at a 

 in the new Exchange dining hall — and it’s a full-circle moment for Barella. Linnea Covington with 

“The name Riot BBQ tips a hat to the 1898 barbecue riot in Denver’s Union Pacific stockyard, where the [National Western Complex] resides now. The event occurred when the city hosted a giant public barbecue. The event drew tens of thousands of people, and the city wasn’t prepared for the turn out. The meat ran out early, and chaos ensued.”

documentation from the Denver Public Library

 reports a spread of spiced bear meat, sugar-cured venison, mutton with mint sauce, and possum. Denver’s own barbecue pioneer Columbus B. Hill was there and described the offerings as "finer than any meal that the best hotel of the country can serve." What was supposed to be a gathering for 5,000 VIPs turned into a riot of 30,000 hungry. Publications of the time reported loaves of bread and bones sailing through the air and mobs clamoring for unopened barrels of beer.

We heard more about that infamous Denver food event — and the 

distinctly Black history of Colorado barbecue

 — when we sat down with James Beard award-winner 

 (aka The Soul Food Scholar) a few years ago to talk about his book “Black Smoke: African Americans and the United States of Barbecue.”

 everyday from 10 a.m.-2 a.m. throughout the duration of the Stock Show. Check out 

 from the 1898 barbecue riot in the DPL digital archive.

And its full-circle moment at this year's National Western Stock Show

Remembering Denver's Barbecue Riot of 1898

A Day In Denver History

With Thanksgiving coming up, we’re remembering one of Denver’s most beloved and influential residents who, for decades, utilized this holiday to feed his neighborhood and beyond. 

 was a model for community-level philanthropy, offering his cooking skills and humble barbecue restaurant as an outpost for families in need across the Mile High City.

One November in the 1960s, Daddy Bruce hosted his first community Thanksgiving, dishing up free meals for anyone who needed it. The event became a yearly tradition that has continued for nearly 60 years (even after Daddy Bruce’s passing) with the annual 

, volunteers assemble and deliver Thanksgiving baskets with enough food to feed a family of eight to Denverites who might not otherwise have a holiday meal. 

, even more Denver families are potentially facing food insecurity this month. You can support this year’s Feed-A-Family event by 

Born in 1900 on a small farm in Pastoria, Arkansas, Bruce Randolph (better known locally as “Daddy Bruce”) first learned how to cook his now-famous barbecue from his formerly enslaved grandmother, Laura Hart. After years doing farmwork, mining, and other odd jobs, he found his way to the kitchen, making and selling hog sandwiches. He eventually made his way to Colorado in 1959 where his son, Bruce Randolph Jr., operated a barbershop.

The chef would begin his smoked meat legacy here, cooking and selling food out of his son’s shop until eventually opening his famous Daddy Bruce’s Bar-B-Q at 1629 E. 34th Avenue. He also went on to strike up a relationship with the Denver Broncos and become the team’s caterer — even tagging along to feed players and staff for out-of-state games.

After successfully running his restaurant in Denver for nearly a decade, Daddy Bruce wanted to do more for his community. One Thanksgiving in the ’60s, he parked his food truck at City Park where he offered free, warm meals to a few 

 local families. From there, the event grew into an annual gathering. With help from community volunteers, Daddy Bruce distributed tens of thousands of free meals every Thanksgiving out of his restaurant, eventually adding a warm clothing drive to the event, a tradition that continues to this day.

The culinary philanthropist passed away in 1994 — hundreds in the city attended his funeral, which was paid for by Denver Broncos then-owner Pat Bowlen. But his spirit remains an integral part of Denver’s story. In 1985, the city of Denver officially christened 34th Avenue “Bruce Randolph Avenue,” and in 2010, a school in the Clayton neighborhood was also named after him. 

 was created to further his humanitarian work, hosting job fairs, an annual awards dinner, and more.

 for their reporting and resources on this subject.

He was a model for community-level philanthropy, serving families in need across the Mile High City.

Remembering Denver Thanksgiving Hero 'Daddy Bruce' Randolph

Why Denverites Honor 'Daddy Bruce' Randolph Every Thanksgiving

From haunted hotels to ghostly gardens, Denver has a darker side hiding in plain sight. How well do you know the city’s spookiest spots? Test your knowledge (and your courage) with this quiz to see how many of these ~allegedly~ haunted Mile High landmarks you can identify.

How well do you know Denver's spookiest spots?

Denver's Most Haunted Locations

Denver Quiz: Mile High Hauntings

East High School is commemorating its 150th anniversary this month with homecoming and alumni celebrations, the opening of a time capsule, and the premiere of “Angel Power!: 150 Years of East High Excellence,” a documentary about the historic school which will be screened during the school’s own film festival. In honor of the milestone, we’re taking a look back at one of Denver’s oldest educational institutions.

East’s One-Room School House Beginnings

Years before Colorado was even officially recognized as a state, the earliest iteration of what would eventually become East High School opened as The Union School in 1859 at 12th and Market streets (known then as McGaa Street). The then-private school was a one-room log cabin that served families arriving in Denver by wagon train. The following year, the education space moved to a more structurally stable building at 14th and Market streets. By 1862, Denver established its first school district and school board.

In 1873, the Union School was expanded and relocated to Arapahoe Street between 17th and 18th. It was renamed the Arapahoe School and became the city’s first dedicated high school. In 1875, Denverite James H. Baker was named principal of “the high school section” of the school — this is considered the “official” start of East High. Finally, in 1889 when the student body grew large enough, a brand new building on Stout Street between 19th and 20th streets opened officially as the “original” East High School.

Known as “Old East,” this downtown version of the school on Stout Street served students for several decades before it was torn down; the new campus we know today at 1600 City Park Esplanade opened in 1925. “New East” was constructed during the City Beautiful Movement, a turn-of-the-century urban planning era that prioritized access to greenery, fresh air, and gorgeous architecture for all citizens regardless of economic status. This led to the inclusion of a clocktower, soaring windows, and greenspace on the campus.

Designed by architect and East graduate George Hebard Williamson, “New East” was an example of English Jacobean Revival or Jacobethan Revival-style architecture. Depression-era mural panels entitled “The Travels of Marco Polo” by artist Hugh Weller still adorn the exterior of the school’s library today. These factors contributed to the structure being designated a Denver historic landmark in1991.

Of all of the Denver metro’s public schools, East has perhaps had the most famous figures walk its halls. Among them, actors Don Cheadle, Pam Grier, Hattie McDaniel, Douglas Fairbanks, and TJ Miller. Musicians like Larry Dunn from Earth, Wind, and Fire and Jamie Laurie from Flobots, along with jazz greats Ron Miles and Bill Frisell, and singer Judy Collins also called East a scholarly home. Beat poet and underground icon Neal Cassady even spent time as a student at this Mile High education institution.

 for additional reporting and sources on this topic.

Looking back at a century-and-a-half of one of Denver's oldest education institutions.

The History of Denver's East High School at 150 Years Old

A Denver Landmark Celebrates 150 Years

The City Cast Denver team recently hosted a members-only event at the new-ish Schoolyard Beer Garden in the Golden Triangle neighborhood and it got me thinking. If you’re a 

 and joined us — or you’ve stopped by Schoolyard for a beer — you might have wondered about the gorgeous building. Yes, it used to be a school, but what’s the story behind this beautiful piece of Denver architecture?

The building at 1115 Acoma St. was built in 1904 and designed by architect David W. Dryden as the prototype for Denver’s public schools. You can see Dryden’s other work in the Renaissance Revival design of local schools like North High and the Steele Elementary School. The Evans Elementary School opened in 1905 — named after then-governor John Evans, who donated the land for the project.

For much of its 69-year history as an educational space, Evans School was the only one in the Denver area serving children who were deaf, blind, or living with physical disabilities. The school’s enrollment took a hit after the white flight to the suburbs in the 1960s, eventually leading to its closure in the early 1970s.

There was a looming prospect of demolition after Evans School closed, so Denverites Richard and Alan Eber purchased the property at auction in 1974 for $620,000 in an effort to save the building, despite having no real plans for it. The Ebers renovated many parts of the old school, but it sat mostly vacant for more than 40 years until it was sold for $18 million in 2019 and immediately sold again for $11 million.

Before opening in its current form, the school was temporarily home to nearly 60 artists who utilized the freshly-remodeled building as studio space through RedLine Gallery’s Satellite Studio program. Eventually, the artists were uprooted to make way for the Schoolyard Beer Garden.

Schoolyard Beer Garden and Schoolyard Cafe opened in April 2025, repurposing the first floor and 5,000 square-foot outdoor patio into a casual food and beer hall. As for the rest of the vintage structure, developers have plans to add retail and offices on the second and third floors, and turn the 4,000-square-foot auditorium into an event space.

How this historic building went from an elementary school to a modern beer hall and event space.

The History of Denver's Evans School Building

It’s no secret — the Mile High City is blessed with a robust and accessible network of public parks and greenspaces. 

 of the best big-city parks systems in the country by the Trust for Public Land earlier this year. Soon, another 155 acres of greenspace will be coming online when a 

 at the site of the former Park HIll Golf Course opens. In honor of this moment, here’s a look at one of Denver’s most influential greenspace designers, Saco Rienk DeBoer, and the ways he shaped how we experience the city’s outdoor spaces today.

Saco Rienk DeBoer was born in the Netherlands in 1883. The son of an architect, he grew up to study engineering, horticulture, and landscape design, eventually opening his own landscaping office. But a bout of tuberculosis in 1908 sent DeBoer packing for America in search of a dryer climate. He ultimately settled in Denver, a well-known 

 for hundreds of thousands of TB patients at the time. He began working at the city nursery, and alongside fellow landscape architect George Kessler, used his expertise to convert a city dump into what is known today as 

. After this topographical transformation caught the attention of Mayor Robert Speer, DeBoer was named the official landscape architect of the city in 1910.

During Mayor Speer’s first term in office from 1904 to 1912, he embraced the 

 — a national shift in philosophy around the built environment, introducing public park space as something central to the vitality of urban life. DeBoer’s designs were integral in this transformation for Denver, as evidenced by his work on Alamo Placita Park, Berkeley Lake Park, South Marion Street Parkway, and Speer Boulevard’s greenways. Mayor Speer’s vision included installing decorative fountains, benches, playgrounds, and drinking fountains around the city, which DeBoer worked into many of his landscapes. He even had a hand in the design of Washington Park, but was stymied by a change in leadership when Speer left office and the new administration put a stop to that project.

Through his many years working with the city and beyond, DeBoer’s designs became a crucial part of Denver’s identity. His parks, parkways, and greenspaces along with the delicate landscapes he created for private residences gave DeBoer fertile ground to experiment with unique designs using a variety of plants, shrubbery, and flowers. While working under Mayor Benjamin Stapleton, DeBoer introduced the city to the Japanese crabapple tree, which produced gorgeous flowers while remaining hearty enough to live through Front Range winters. (Stapleton wanted cherry trees, but city gardeners found they couldn’t survive Denver’s climate.)

But DeBoer’s work with Mayor Stapleton — 

 — also included the creation of exclusionary zoning codes, which heavily emphasized single-family zoning. These land use laws discouraged the construction of apartments and other shared living opportunities, meaning lower income Denverites couldn’t afford to live in some of the most beautiful areas of the city. Today, many see these early zoning laws as the blueprint for redlining, a discriminatory practice that racially segregated cities across America and still continues to impact modern-day Denver.

However, through zoning codes and urban design, DeBoer also advocated for keeping factories and other industrial land use 

 from residential areas to limit Denverites’ interaction with pollution. In addition, his parks-centered approach called for restricted car traffic in neighborhoods, with an emphasis on keeping streetspace accessible and safe for children to play in. Throughout his career, he made an impact on the Front Range and beyond by designing dozens of landscapes, major parks, neighborhood passageways, and whole subdivisions. DeBoer’s work can be seen everywhere from the East 17th Avenue Parkway and the Cheesman Park Esplanade to his master plans for the Denver Botanic Gardens, the City of Lakewood, and Cherry Hills Village. He died in 1974 in Denver.

Here's how one man's touch shaped how we experience the outdoors today. 

Who Was Saco Rienk de Boer? Denver's Most Influential Greenspace Designer

Where Denver's Most Beautiful Greenspaces Came From

Welcome to your weekly Denver quiz! Mike Johnston marked the halfway point of his term as Denver mayor last night with his “State of the City” address, a peek into what he hopes his legacy will be. So, let’s take a trip through the history of Denver mayors and what they’re known for.

Denver Quiz: Famous Denver Mayors and Their Legacies

Denver Quiz: Do You Know These Denver Mayors?

Just in time for Juneteenth, History Colorado opened its updated exhibit on Lincoln Hills, one of the country’s first mountain resorts for the Black community. The refreshed exhibit features 

 told by visitors of the former resort, as well as photographs and keepsakes. Here’s a primer on the outdoor vacation spot’s unique story:

The Lincoln Hills Country Club first opened in 1922 as a haven for Black people looking to recreate and vacation in the mountains during a time when many resorts were segregated and only allowed white patrons. The outdoor retreat is located along the South Boulder River near Pinecliff and Rollinsville.

In 1925, Obrey Wendell “Winks” Hamlet and William Pitts began building the country club out, constructing the Winks Lodge and several cabins, which would later house celebrities and activists like Duke Ellington, Lena Horne, Zora Neale Hurston, and Langston Hughes.

From the early 1920s to 1945, the resort was also home to an all-girls summer camp called Camp Nizhoni.

Though the Lincoln Hills Country Club closed in 1965, local nonprofit Lincoln Hills Cares still carries on the legacy by hosting outdoor education and recreation programs for youth and families, particularly those in Denver’s underserved neighborhoods.

Today, the land is owned by Colorado businessmen and philanthropists Robert Smith and Matthew Burkett, who are founders of Lincoln Hills Cares and the Lincoln Hills Fly Fishing Club, an invite-only recreational club separate from the nonprofit.

In 2023, U.S. Secretary of Interior Deb Haaland designated the Winks Panorama Lodge a National Historic Landmark. The effort to restore and preserve the lodge is ongoing.

 with documentarian donnie l. betts and retired judge Gary Jackson, who speak about their connections to the historic resort.

 for their reporting and additional resources on this topic.

The History of Lincoln Hills

Before 16th Street was christened a “mall” back in 1982 and officially became a pedestrian-centered thoroughfare, it was just like any other street downtown. If you didn’t get to experience that auto-friendly version of the strip, it can be hard to picture just how different these 13 blocks of built environment looked way back when.

Luckily, architecture photographer Thorney Lieberman 

, working for world renowned architecture firm I.M. Pei & Partners — the designers of the original 16th Street Mall concept — and he captured this urban landscape on the verge of a massive transformation. The Denver Public Library acquired 

, which include many a department store, empty parking lot, and office building along 16th, as well as the hotels, movie palaces, and restaurants on surrounding blocks.

The image at the top of this story is of several businesses at Court Place and 16th Street, including a Japanese restaurant, a souvenir store, and an optical shop. The second floor of the strip is occupied by Gart Bros., the sporting goods empire that once ruled the Mile High City (with the former 

 on Broadway being their most famous location). The building and the businesses along 16th are long gone and have since been replaced by an office building with restaurants on the ground floor.

Photos showing 16th Street before it was christened a “mall” back in 1982 and officially became a pedestrian-centered thoroughfare.

A Look Back at 16th Street Before the Mall

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the day Kate Slaughterback earned the nickname “Rattlesnake Kate.” To mark the occasion Neyla Pekarek, former member of The Lumineers, is performing a special rendition of her album inspired by Kate — “The Western Woman.” The performance will feature Augustana Arts’ 22-piece Stratus Chamber Orchestra, choral singers, and dancers from Life/Art Dance. See it on June 7 at the Stanley Marketplace!

Get Tickets!

Born in 1893, Kate became known as a Colorado frontierswoman who defied many traditional gender roles. She married and divorced multiple times, had training as a nurse and taxidermist, and had a love of shooting guns. It’s even rumored that Kate was a bootlegger.

Kate lived in Hudson, Colorado with her adopted son Ernie. Much of what’s known about Kate’s life comes from a 40-year off-and-on string of correspondence with an Iowa man known as Buckskin Bill. In one story, Kate gets struck by lightning, and in another, she exercises with cast iron to regain strength in her arm after a stroke caused it to go limp.

She died in 1969 at the age of 75, and her headstone is marked with the moniker “Rattlesnake Kate.”

In October 1925, Kate and her son Ernie were horseback riding to a local lake when they came across more than 100 rattlesnakes migrating across their path. Kate shot at the snakes until her gun was empty of bullets, but the shooting disturbed the remaining snakes. So Kate grabbed a nearby sign and began beating the reptiles to death.

In the end, Kate killed 140 snakes, which she then skinned and turned into a dress, as well as crafted their tails into a necklace. Her son would later say that Kate wore the dress to a few parties, including one in Mexico where she danced on a bar.

After the incident, Kate raised rattlesnakes on her farm to sell their venom and taxidermied souvenirs.

🐍Want to hear more about Kate from Neyla Pekarek? Check out 

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts

A look into the history of legendary Colorado frontierswoman Kate Slaughterback, known as "Rattlesnake Kate," and how she earned her nickname.