Loveland Building and Coors Building
Encyclopedia
The Loveland Block and the Coors Building are adjacent historic storefront buildings in downtown Golden, Colorado
. The Loveland Block, named for pioneer William A.H. Loveland, once served as the territorial capitol building of Colorado
. Both buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places
as a single entity.
. It was built jointly by William A.H. Loveland and Golden City Lodge #1, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, the first Masonic lodge
in Colorado. Its building contractor was Duncan E. Harrison. Loveland occupied the first floor as his mercantile and the second floor served as the Masonic temple
. The building was a powerful statement in the face of adversity, signaling Golden's endurance in the face of an economic depression caused by the Civil War
.
addition spanning the present central section of the first story was built by Loveland during the mid-1860s. In 1866 Loveland extended the first floor the rest of the way to the rear property line and built a full second story addition as well. The purpose was to house the Colorado Territorial legislature under one roof, where the houses previously met in separate buildings across Washington Avenue. The House of Representatives met in the Masonic Hall, which became also known as Representatives Hall. The Council (Territorial identity of the Senate) met at the west end of the upper floor. Four committee rooms spanned the space in between, and the Territorial Library (now Colorado State Library, under charge of Edward L. Berthoud
, was housed at the west end of the lower floor. Under Territorial Governor Alexander Cummings
, the legislature met in Golden and this building from 1866 through 1867.
to Golden
in 1862, the rival city of Denver made attempts to secure the capital for itself. Indeed, several legislative sessions that opened in Golden adjourned to Denver. In December 1867 the issue came to a head when the legislature hotly debated the issue. According to the Colorado Transcript
newspaper, about $5,000 in case plus town lots were pledged "to influence the removal of the Capital to Denver." After the Council voted by a 1-vote margin to move the capital to Denver, it has been alleged even to the present time that the vote was secured by a bribe. The only known clue offering insight into this claim was published by George West, editor of the Transcript, on February 4, 1874:
"Now that the question of removing the capital has again come up - having passed the lower house by a vote of sixteen for to seven against - Mr. Lawrence, the interpreter of the Council, will have another show for his influence. In 1866, when the capital was removed from Golden, this same Lawrence was a member of the Legislature, and, if report be true, was promised $800 for his vote and influence in favor of removal to Denver. Evans & Co. paid $200 of the money down, and the other $600 was to have been forthcoming when the removal was effected. But Evans & Co., true to their general record, went back on their promise, and our friend Lawrence sought revenge in an affidavit, which he threatened to publish unless Evans & Co. came down according to contract. After some parley a compromise was brought about, Lawrence agreeing to take $400 instead of $600. Should this enterprising linguist be called on in the present instance, he will probably ask for the whole amount in advance, as an affidavit in regard to such a case, following the Las Animas land grab, would not create a ripple of excitement, and even the Denver Tribune would hardly feel called upon to publish it."
Today the Loveland Block is one of only two remaining buildings where the Colorado Territorial assembly is believed to have met, the other being as Colorado's first capital, Colorado City
. It is possible, but not confirmed, that the Colorado Territorial Supreme Court met at the Loveland Block as well.
, the first railroad to penetrate the Colorado mountains. In 1878 the upper floor became the emergency home of the Colorado School of Mines
and Jarvis Hall after their original campus was attacked by an arsonist. During the 1890s the upper floor became the hotel of Jasper Babcock. However, the building has been best known as the Mercantile, the store originally started by Loveland across Washington Avenue in 1859. This store was a Golden mainstay, finally closing in 1978 after a remarkable 119 years in operation. 57 of those years it was run by one family, headed by German
immigrant patriarch Nicholas Koenig. After the Mercantile faded away the building became a restaurant, progressively the Mercantile, Silverheels, and Old Capitol Grill.
third story was added in 1868. This continued largely unused throughout its existence. In 1905 Koenig hired contractor Perre O. Unger to convert the original arched lower story entrance into a plate glass storefront with ornamental corner support column, and also installed the building's signature 2-ton Diebold safe. In 1922 the upper storefront was remodeled to modernized appearance by contractor Michael Sweeney, at which point the building's cornerstone was removed and given to the Golden Masonic lodge, which had long since moved out of the building. In 1941 the plate glass storefront was extended partially along the south side of the building and clerestory covered. In 1992 the storefront, with a canopy added in the 1960s, was thoroughly renovated to an approximation of its 1922 appearance. After a nearly catastrophic fire gutted the rear upper floor with water heavily damaging the rest of the building on November 3, 2005, the interior was stripped completely and building thoroughly reinforced, a new rear replacement roof installed, and new more historically accurate upper story windows installed. The distinctive row of chimneys on the 12th Street side, mostly missing since being pared down in 1933, were restored, making the building look more historic after the fire than it did before.
tore down most of the Dold Building to build a new saloon and bottling works, as bottling on his brewery
grounds was then prohibited by state law. In its place rose the new Coors Building, a two-story storefront with tile mansard half third floor designed by the Baeressen Brothers of Denver and built by contractor Perre O. Unger. The building's main tenant was the saloon of Charles Sitterle, affiliated with Coors. In 1907 German immigrant Albert Treffeisen moved his north side grocery store here, where it remained as the City Market for many years. Afterward, the building had various tenants and first floor renovations. In 1992 it was renovated to an approximation of its original appearance, and its interior space merged with the Loveland Block to become part of the restaurant. The upper story was water damaged in the 2005 fire and has since been fully renovated. Today, the building still exhibits the "COORS" bannerhead at its cornice.
Golden, Colorado
The City of Golden is a home rule municipality that is the county seat of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. Golden lies along Clear Creek at the edge of the foothills of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. Founded during the Pike's Peak Gold Rush on 16 June 1859, the mining camp was...
. The Loveland Block, named for pioneer William A.H. Loveland, once served as the territorial capitol building of Colorado
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
. Both buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
as a single entity.
History of the Loveland Block
The Loveland Block was originally constructed as the forward portion of the present building in 1863, according to the building's cornerstoneCornerstone
The cornerstone concept is derived from the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation, important since all other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure.Over time a cornerstone became a ceremonial masonry stone, or...
. It was built jointly by William A.H. Loveland and Golden City Lodge #1, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, the first Masonic lodge
Masonic Lodge
This article is about the Masonic term for a membership group. For buildings named Masonic Lodge, see Masonic Lodge A Masonic Lodge, often termed a Private Lodge or Constituent Lodge, is the basic organisation of Freemasonry...
in Colorado. Its building contractor was Duncan E. Harrison. Loveland occupied the first floor as his mercantile and the second floor served as the Masonic temple
Masonic Temple
Masonic Temple is a term commonly used in Freemasonry with multiple but related meanings. It is used to describe an abstract spiritual goal, the conceptual ritualistic space formed when a Masonic Lodge meets, and the physical rooms and structures in which a Lodge meets...
. The building was a powerful statement in the face of adversity, signaling Golden's endurance in the face of an economic depression caused by the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
Territorial Capitol
A warehouseWarehouse
A warehouse is a commercial building for storage of goods. Warehouses are used by manufacturers, importers, exporters, wholesalers, transport businesses, customs, etc. They are usually large plain buildings in industrial areas of cities and towns. They usually have loading docks to load and unload...
addition spanning the present central section of the first story was built by Loveland during the mid-1860s. In 1866 Loveland extended the first floor the rest of the way to the rear property line and built a full second story addition as well. The purpose was to house the Colorado Territorial legislature under one roof, where the houses previously met in separate buildings across Washington Avenue. The House of Representatives met in the Masonic Hall, which became also known as Representatives Hall. The Council (Territorial identity of the Senate) met at the west end of the upper floor. Four committee rooms spanned the space in between, and the Territorial Library (now Colorado State Library, under charge of Edward L. Berthoud
Edward L. Berthoud
Captain Edward Louis Berthoud was a military officer, statesman and engineer in the western United States during the late 19th century. He is primarily known as the chief engineer and secretary of the Colorado Central Railroad during its expansion throughout Colorado in the 1870s...
, was housed at the west end of the lower floor. Under Territorial Governor Alexander Cummings
Alexander Cummings
Alexander Cummings was a Scottish watchmaker who was the first to patent a design of the flush toilet. His premises were in Bond Street, London.Born in Edinburgh in 1733, Cummings was a mathematician and mechanic as well as a watchmaker...
, the legislature met in Golden and this building from 1866 through 1867.
Capital Removal Controversy
Ever since the Territorial Capital was moved from Colorado CityColorado City
Colorado City may refer to some places in the United States:*Colorado City, Arizona*Colorado City, Colorado, census designated place in Pueblo County, Colorado...
to Golden
Golden, Colorado
The City of Golden is a home rule municipality that is the county seat of Jefferson County, Colorado, United States. Golden lies along Clear Creek at the edge of the foothills of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. Founded during the Pike's Peak Gold Rush on 16 June 1859, the mining camp was...
in 1862, the rival city of Denver made attempts to secure the capital for itself. Indeed, several legislative sessions that opened in Golden adjourned to Denver. In December 1867 the issue came to a head when the legislature hotly debated the issue. According to the Colorado Transcript
Golden Transcript
The Golden Transcript is the second oldest newspaper in Colorado, behind the Central City Register-Call. The Transcript is also the oldest media outlet of the Denver metropolitan area. It is published by Mile High Newspapers in Golden, Colorado....
newspaper, about $5,000 in case plus town lots were pledged "to influence the removal of the Capital to Denver." After the Council voted by a 1-vote margin to move the capital to Denver, it has been alleged even to the present time that the vote was secured by a bribe. The only known clue offering insight into this claim was published by George West, editor of the Transcript, on February 4, 1874:
"Now that the question of removing the capital has again come up - having passed the lower house by a vote of sixteen for to seven against - Mr. Lawrence, the interpreter of the Council, will have another show for his influence. In 1866, when the capital was removed from Golden, this same Lawrence was a member of the Legislature, and, if report be true, was promised $800 for his vote and influence in favor of removal to Denver. Evans & Co. paid $200 of the money down, and the other $600 was to have been forthcoming when the removal was effected. But Evans & Co., true to their general record, went back on their promise, and our friend Lawrence sought revenge in an affidavit, which he threatened to publish unless Evans & Co. came down according to contract. After some parley a compromise was brought about, Lawrence agreeing to take $400 instead of $600. Should this enterprising linguist be called on in the present instance, he will probably ask for the whole amount in advance, as an affidavit in regard to such a case, following the Las Animas land grab, would not create a ripple of excitement, and even the Denver Tribune would hardly feel called upon to publish it."
Today the Loveland Block is one of only two remaining buildings where the Colorado Territorial assembly is believed to have met, the other being as Colorado's first capital, Colorado City
Colorado City
Colorado City may refer to some places in the United States:*Colorado City, Arizona*Colorado City, Colorado, census designated place in Pueblo County, Colorado...
. It is possible, but not confirmed, that the Colorado Territorial Supreme Court met at the Loveland Block as well.
The Mercantile
After the loss of the capital, the Loveland Block found other important uses. It became the headquarters of the Colorado Central RailroadColorado Central Railroad
The Colorado Central Railroad was a U.S. railroad company that operated in Colorado and southeastern Wyoming in the late 19th century. Originally founded in the Colorado Territory in the wake of the Colorado Gold Rush to ship gold from the mountains, it eventually expanded from its initial...
, the first railroad to penetrate the Colorado mountains. In 1878 the upper floor became the emergency home of the Colorado School of Mines
Colorado School of Mines
The Colorado School of Mines is a small public teaching and research university devoted to engineering and applied science, with special expertise in the development and stewardship of the Earth's natural resources. Located in Golden, Colorado, CSM was ranked 29th, in America among national...
and Jarvis Hall after their original campus was attacked by an arsonist. During the 1890s the upper floor became the hotel of Jasper Babcock. However, the building has been best known as the Mercantile, the store originally started by Loveland across Washington Avenue in 1859. This store was a Golden mainstay, finally closing in 1978 after a remarkable 119 years in operation. 57 of those years it was run by one family, headed by German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
immigrant patriarch Nicholas Koenig. After the Mercantile faded away the building became a restaurant, progressively the Mercantile, Silverheels, and Old Capitol Grill.
Renovations
In origin the building was of the Second Empire style of design. Subsequent to its mid-1860s additions, a mansard roofMansard roof
A mansard or mansard roof is a four-sided gambrel-style hip roof characterized by two slopes on each of its sides with the lower slope at a steeper angle than the upper that is punctured by dormer windows. The roof creates an additional floor of habitable space, such as a garret...
third story was added in 1868. This continued largely unused throughout its existence. In 1905 Koenig hired contractor Perre O. Unger to convert the original arched lower story entrance into a plate glass storefront with ornamental corner support column, and also installed the building's signature 2-ton Diebold safe. In 1922 the upper storefront was remodeled to modernized appearance by contractor Michael Sweeney, at which point the building's cornerstone was removed and given to the Golden Masonic lodge, which had long since moved out of the building. In 1941 the plate glass storefront was extended partially along the south side of the building and clerestory covered. In 1992 the storefront, with a canopy added in the 1960s, was thoroughly renovated to an approximation of its 1922 appearance. After a nearly catastrophic fire gutted the rear upper floor with water heavily damaging the rest of the building on November 3, 2005, the interior was stripped completely and building thoroughly reinforced, a new rear replacement roof installed, and new more historically accurate upper story windows installed. The distinctive row of chimneys on the 12th Street side, mostly missing since being pared down in 1933, were restored, making the building look more historic after the fire than it did before.
History of the Coors Building
The earliest portion of this building is its north wall, originally built by William A. Wortham for a prior two-story building on the site, the Dold Building, a grocery, later bakery and saloon, which stood here from 1873 to 1906. In 1906 Adolph CoorsAdolph Coors
Adolph Herman Joseph Coors, Sr. was a brewman who started the Adolph Coors Company in Golden, Colorado in 1873.-Early years:...
tore down most of the Dold Building to build a new saloon and bottling works, as bottling on his brewery
Coors Brewing Company
The Coors Brewing Company is a regional division of the world's fifth-largest brewing company, the Canadian Molson Coors Brewing Company and is the third-largest brewer in the United States...
grounds was then prohibited by state law. In its place rose the new Coors Building, a two-story storefront with tile mansard half third floor designed by the Baeressen Brothers of Denver and built by contractor Perre O. Unger. The building's main tenant was the saloon of Charles Sitterle, affiliated with Coors. In 1907 German immigrant Albert Treffeisen moved his north side grocery store here, where it remained as the City Market for many years. Afterward, the building had various tenants and first floor renovations. In 1992 it was renovated to an approximation of its original appearance, and its interior space merged with the Loveland Block to become part of the restaurant. The upper story was water damaged in the 2005 fire and has since been fully renovated. Today, the building still exhibits the "COORS" bannerhead at its cornice.