Denver Story Trek, the free interactive program that offers more than 70 stories about historic city sites, turned a year old recently.
Now there are Denver Story Trek signs marking the museums, mansions, landmarks and other sites, each listing the phone number to call on a mobile phone, along with the code for tales particular to each place. “Toronto has Murmur, New York City has Yellow Arrow, although that’s more text messages, with poems and personal expression, and we have Story Trek,” says Denver Story Trek deputy director Annie Levinsky.
This summer, Denver Story Trek is offering a five-pack — free admission to the five museums it features, plus a Denver Story Trek map — for $52.80.
As the program’s popularity increases, so do the contributions of residents sharing their own memories about institutions.
With a few exceptions, the Denver Story Trek sites make for a fairly easy walking or bicycling tour. Can’t get out? Go online to denverstorytrek , or call 303-562-2407, and input “200#” for a menu of stories. Here are a few highlights:
Colorado Governor’s Residence at Boettcher Mansion
East Eighth Avenue at Logan Street
Hear about the landmark (10#) designed by Denver architect Walter Cheesman, then completed by his wife, and about the Boettchers, who moved in later.
Denver Fire Station No. 3 2607 Glenarm Place
Learn about the all-African-American firefighters (21#) who worked here from 1893 through the late 1950s, when civil rights legislation prodded the Denver Fire Department to integrate.
Capitol Hill story site
East 12th Avenue and Pennsylvania Street
Listen to a story from Colorado folk musicologist Harry Tuft (218#), and find out why this area formerly was known as Brown’s Bluff.
Byers Evans House Museum
1310 Bannock St.
Margaret Hayden (208#), granddaughter of Denver Tramway president William Gray Evans, vividly remembers the constant smog of coal smoke and her girlhood spent darting around the mansion.
Four Mile Historic Park
715 S. Forest St.
Volunteer Constance Wyatt reflects on the park’s humble history (201#).
Confluence Park
Cherry Creek and South Platte River
Denver native Nick Sterner (204#) talks about how his rehabilitation foundation employs the creek paths as training grounds for positive change in people’s lives.
Wynkoop Brewing Co. 1634 18th St.
Denver mayor John Hickenlooper (210#) describes how he fell in love with this historic building, once a mercantile store.
Kirkland Museum of Fine & Decorative Art 1311 Pearl St.
Museum director and curator Hugh Grant (216#) tells stories of artist Vance Kirkland’s obsession with design and presentation.
Story No. 206: Molly Brown House Museum
by Maryellen Clifford, volunteer at the Molly Brown House Museum.
I more or less grew up with stories about Margaret Brown. . . . My mother says she remembers Mrs. Brown as being a very independent woman. She said when women weren’t driving or weren’t driving their own horse and buggies, she would be seen if she really wanted to go someplace and did not have someone to drive her, that she would be driving first her horse and buggy and then her electric Fritchle around town. Then in the summertime, on a hot day, she said that children found out that if they walked past the Browns’ house and Mrs. Brown was home, sometimes she would send one of the servants out and invite them up on the front porch for lemonade and cookies. Then, if they were well-mannered, she would ask them if they brought their jacks and let them play jacks on that front porch. Every time I knock there, I think “what a nice place that would be, a fun place to play on a hot afternoon.”
Story No. 212: Cheesman Park
Told by Denver City Auditor Dennis Gallagher
When I was in high school, I worked this one summer, I was working for The Denver Post as a stagehand at the Denver Post Opera and we actually built the whole set on the fountain in front of the Cheesman Pavilion.
Miss Helen Bonfils, the owner of The Denver Post, would invite the whole city to come and see her operettas that she would hire all the actors and stagehands, and the lights and everything. The custom was, she would drop by in her Rolls Royce and she would arrive and do inspections.
Well, this one day, she arrived with Father John Anderson, who taught me at Holy Family. So Father Anderson sees me and my overalls and my hammer, and my screwdriver and my saw and he says, “Oh, Dennis! Come over here and meet Miss Helen.”
So sure enough, I came over and he said, “Oh, Miss Helen, I want you to meet Dennis Gallagher, he’s one of my brightest students at Holy Family and he’s got a great future and I know we are going to hear more of him.” And so I told her how pleased I was to meet her and that my family had always been grateful that she built Holy Guild’s Church downtown.
And she said, “Oh, Dennis, I built that to get my father into purgatory.” Then, Father Anderson reminded me that Mr. Bonfils converted on his deathbed to the Catholic Church and so kiddingly, I smiled and said to him, “Well, Father Anderson, do you think Mr. Bonfils is out of purgatory yet?” and Father Anderson said in front of Miss Helen, “With his editorial policy, Dennis, he’ll be there until the end of time.” And so Miss Helen then turned to me and she said, “Oh, Dennis, you and I are going to have coffee and we are going to leave Father Anderson at home.” But I got to tell you, one of the worst mistakes of my life, I never did have coffee with Miss Helen by myself, and I should have.
Tell a tale
Do you have a story to share about a Denver ancestor, custom or institution? Add your anecdote to the Denver Story Trek tales. The stories must be 2 minutes or less in length, and must be relevant to Denver’s past. To record a story, call 303-562-2407, and then 0#. Stories will be monitored and edited before being considered for posting on .
