Globeville Story

Globeville Boxer, Henry Rein

2012-01-28T15:15:00.000-08:00

"I was the welterweight champion for awhile and then I got smart and quit." 85-year-old Henry Rein reminisced. "I worked at the Rio Grande Railroad and they had a group down there who worked out in the gymnasium all the time and that’s how I got started. We used to put on boxing shows down at the yard for the folks who worked at the Rio Grande, and they taught us how to box, which is different from street fighting.
"Gus Pappas was the guy who used to set up the matches at the carnivals and got in touch with you. He said I was his boy because I would always fight. I used to box against the carnivals — take all comers. I’d have four or five fights a night. I’d hurry and come home from the railroad and go over to the carnivals.
"I was about 17 when I went professional and we used to drive to Durango, Manassas, and Nebraska, working for a percentage of the gate. I never did make big chunks of money - $115 dollars is the most I ever made for a single fight, but that was good money those days. I was champ from ’29 to ’34.
"I married a Globeville girl, Lydia Engleman in 1934. We met at the Frieden’s Evangelical Lutheran Church there on 45th and Lincoln and we lived in Globeville after we got married. My wife didn't mind my fighting and used to come to see me box once in awhile.
"I retired from boxing in 1939. I had a bread route for Happy Home Bakery and also hauled trash. Then I was the business agent for the Teamsters Union, Local 13 who handled highway construction. I traveled the state, checking the sites, making sure new guys joined the union and that everyone was carrying their cards and were paid up."
Henry retired from the Teamsters Union and he and Lydia moved to the new retirement complex, Windsor Gardens in 1962. Lydia passed away in 1987 and Henry in 1997.
A conversation with Henry Rein, and his daughter Reneé and son-in-law Ron, in his home in June, 1996

Somebody up there likes me

2012-01-09T12:41:00.000-08:00

In the 1956 film biography of boxer Rocky Graziano, middleweight "Cowboy" Reuben Shank is mentioned, a detail for which Shank would receive a small royalty. In his later years, Reuben Shank would appreciate the monetary gesture.
Raised in a family of Germans who emigrated from Russia, sons Adam, Reuben and Emil Shank were all capable boxers, but it was young Reuben surprised the boxing world in 1942 when he easily won a match with Fritzie Zivic, a brawler who was noted for "thumbing" the eyes of his opponent. A win over triple-crown titleholder Henry Armstrong at the Denver Auditorium was much closer, causing some critics to complain of hometown bias.
Shank's continued success over former champions catapulted the 20-year-old newcomer to a bout with Sugar Ray Robinson in Madison Square Garden on August 22, 1942, one of the most important competitions in Shank's career.
The underdog Shank started fast, pummeling Robinson. But Robinson came back in Round 2 to drop his opponent four times and finish him. For several years, the scrappy Globeville resident continued to challenge big-name competitors, losing twice to former middleweight champ Fred Apostoli in 1946. However, it was a match with Melvin Brown in Minneapolis that resulted in Shank's knockout loss and damage so severe that he nearly lost his life. Although he slowly recovered, the National Boxing Association ruled that Shank couldn't fight again and his manager, Chris Dundee, agreed.
Shank challenged the decree in Denver District Court and Judge Henry Lindsley ruled in 1952 that the boxer could resume his career. Armed with the ruling, the 31-year-old Shank fought a dozen more times, possibly the cause of his labored speech during his later years.
For 28 years, he worked for the Denver Public Works Department and moonlighted at the Mile High Kennel Club. Reuben Shank passed away at age 74 in December 1995. Friend and former boxer Ray Schoeninger remembered, "Reuben was the nicest and most honest person you'd ever want to meet."

"Ex-boxer Shank Dies at 74", Denver Post, December 14, 1995. by Alan Katz.
Photo of "Cowboy" Reuben Shank with Roy Rogers, courtesy of Betty Reed.

Potica - Povitica

2011-12-07T20:37:00.000-08:00

Derived from the Slovenian word "poviti" meaning "to wrap in", potica (Serbs refer to it as Povitica) is a sweet yeast bread with a walnut, apple, poppy seed or cream cheese filling.
Making this treat should be mandatory during the holidays: several generations of family are gathered at Christmas or Easter, the process takes most of the day and there are tasks suitable for young and old family members. Small hands can grind walnuts while grandma explains how the recipe arrived from the "old country" with her mother "who left when she was 16-years-old, and was never able to see her parents again." A tattered recipe card contains ingredients and the steps, but the commentary provides the variations: "Your aunt Helen always adds raisins, and aunt Agnes uses honey instead of sugar. Folks worried when your Uncle Andy married a German girl but she learned to make the best potica, and it worked out all right."
More important than a written recipe is the action of kneading, of observing the dough rise (twice!), spreading the filling just so in order for the pastry to cook and pricking the bread so air bubbles can escape. The kitchen is filled with the aroma of baking bread and the warmth of family stories.

Whistles, bells and horns

2011-12-01T13:42:00.000-08:00

There was a time in Globeville when few people owned a watch or even a radio, yet most residents were aware of the time and of events important to the community.
"When we heard the Globe Smelter whistle in the morning, we knew we had about 10 minutes before school began and we'd better start walking," June Jackson Egan said. Whistles, bells and horns made sure the neighborhood and the blue-color labor force knew what time it was.
The meat packing plants used whistles to signal a shift change and lunch time at noon, church bells rang out before Mass each morning and trains blew their horns in warning at every crossing. All would peal in celebration at the end of World War I and on VJ Day, and sound an alarm whenever the Platte River would overflow its banks. New Year's Eve was a noisy affair of whistles, bells and inebriated gunfire.
Today, the smelter and packinghouses are quiet, and residents check updates from smart phones for detailed information. Yet the bells of Transfiguration, St. Joseph's and Holy Rosary Churches continue their tradition of announcing that Mass is about to begin, and trains interrupt the day with their horns.

Top photo, the silent Globe Smelter Plant, by Mary Lou Egan
Bottom photo, Employees of Armour and Company, 1929, courtesy of Dorothy Nevelos

1918 Spanish Influenza

2011-11-09T08:20:00.000-08:00

In 1918, the nation was at war and people were on the move. So too was a mysterious and lethal illness that first appeared in the spring in Fort Funston, Kansas and then traveled with soldiers going to Europe. There the virus mutated into a more deadly form before returning to the United States in the late summer of 1918, carried by men returning from the battlefields.
At first the virus targeted military camps on the East Coast, but rapidly spread to civilians and to inland cities and rural areas. By the time influenza was reported in Denver in September, it had already killed over 1000 people in Boston and 100 in Chicago.
Denver's manager of health, Dr. William H. Sharpley, hoped to avoid a panic and gave newspapers rules for combatting the disease..."breathe deeply when the air is pure" and to remember the three C's: "clean mouth, clean heart and clean clothes." As the epidemic progressed, Denver's Board of Health ordered all schools, churches, and theaters to close and indoor gatherings banned. Dairys and grocers stopped delivering to homes.
In Globeville, it seemed that every family had at least one member who was ill. Steve Machuga remembered two of the men who were boarding in their home. “John Stasienko and John Pastor both worked at the Globe Smelter and shared a room at our house. Stasienko got the flu in the morning and died that night and Pastor died the next week.” Records from St. Joseph Polish Church show a burial nearly every day, and sometimes two or three a day from September 1918 to the spring of 1919. Parishioner Tony Mandich lamented that he had served as a pallbearer eighteen times in four months.
Gradually, the occurrences of the flu subsided. Like the rest of the nation, Globeville lost fewer of its citizens in the World War than to the Spanish Influenza.*

* Globeville's two casualties in World War I were John Wysowatcky and Martin Clement. Numbers of people lost to the flu have not been compiled, but could be surmised from church burial records.
Statistics on the epidemic are not entirely reliable, but it is estimated that between September 1918 and June 1919, the lethal virus known as "Spanish Influenza" and its complications, particularly pneumonia, killed nearly 1,500 Denverites.

**The 1918 influenza outbreak: An unforgettable legacy by By Stephen J. Leonard, The Denver Post, May 5, 2009

Photo of Joseph Chintala's headstone, one of many graves at Riverside Cemetery with a story to tell. Photo by Mary Lou Egan

The Haunted House of Globeville

2011-10-19T19:17:00.000-07:00

A lot of decorations and haunted houses will appear in yards around Globeville during the month of October, but none of them will be as interesting as Globeville's real "haunted house."
The story begins with the discovery of gold in Colorado in 1858 and John B. Hindry, who made a fortune supplying lumber and cattle to others who came seeking mineral riches. In 1870, the wealthy Hindry purchased 110 acres of land north of Denver along the South Platte River to build a country home away from the grime and noise of frontier Denver, with plans to create an exclusive subdivision. He constructed his two-story Victorian mansion in 1873, a masterpiece crowned with an ornate cupola and an entrance watched over by two massive iron lions. The interior was decorated with black walnut paneling and Italian marble. A two-story brick stable for trotting horses and a greenhouse stood behind the house. A miniature playhouse for the Hindry children, William, Nettie, Horace, and Charles, was built in the style of the mansion.

By the turn of the century, Hindry’s fortunes had turned. He suffered the death of his son Charles in 1878 and of his wife in 1881; his other children had married and left to begin lives of their own. John Hindry was alone in his mansion.

His dream home soon become a nightmare. Not long after his mansion was completed, the Boston and Colorado Smelter began operating (1879), followed by the Grant (1882) and Globe Smelters (1889). The construction of railroads, foundries, and meat-packing plants made the area more suited to heavy industry than to exclusive homes. The fumes from the smelters killed the trees, and ate through the carpets and curtains in the mansion, and the stench from the meat-packing plants ruined any hopes for a subdivision. When Hindry's lawsuit against the Globe Smelter was unsuccessful, he became increasingly bitter.

Rumors circulated that the lonely old man had a hoard of money hidden in the house, and thieves began to prowl the property. After being robbed several times, Hindry set up a trap with a shotgun that would fire straight out the window when the sash was raised. It didn’t take long to get results.

On the morning of September 18, 1901, Hindry set his trap as usual, and went to Golden on business. When he returned home at 6 pm, he found a man dead in his front yard.*

Eventually the trap became Hindry’s undoing. One night he entered the room when he thought he’d heard a prowler, tripped over the trigger cord and was wounded by his own gun. Although he recovered, he abandoned his former dream home to move to California in 1906.

As the neglected and abandoned property deteriorated, stories of ghostly apparitions began to circulate. Some said they saw Hindry’s ghost, while others claim the figure was that of the man who had been shot there. The former mansion became known as Globeville's “haunted house.”
In 1921 Leo Bomareto bought the house at a tax auction for $6000 and leased it to the city for an isolation hospital for tuberculosis patients for five years, beginning in 1923. In the 1940s, the Bomareto family moved in, fixed up the house and converted the former stable in the backyard to a meat-packing plant. During the 1950s the family sold Christmas trees from a lot set up in the backyard. In July 1962, an unexplained explosion threw Frank Bomareto out of bed and the resulting fire destroyed the house.

Today nothing remains of the Hindry Mansion but memories.

*Automatic Gun Kills Thief” Rocky Mountain News, September 19, 1901

Top photo, Hindry mansion in its prime, Colorado Historical Society
Middle photo, deteriorating "haunted house" Colorado Historical Society
Bottom photo, the site today is occupied by Bomareto's Market, Mary Lou Egan

Easing the Way - Emigration

2011-10-04T09:24:00.000-07:00

Political unrest, religious and cultural oppression and economic uncertainty were some of the factors that motivated Eastern Europeans and German Russians to emigrate in the years before World War I. Improvements in transportation eased the way. Steamships crossed the Atlantic in as little as two weeks and offered a variety of accomodations and rates, including the opportunity for men to work off their passage. The invention of the prepaid ticket and the development of inexpensive and reliable means of transferring funds abroad made it easier for families to finance their own exodus.

A sample of a wire transfer of funds in 1902

Riverside Cemetery

2011-09-28T13:24:00.000-07:00

1876. The United States would celebrate its first centennial, Colorado would achieve statehood and Denver would begin to evolve from a rough mining camp to a respectable city. The stability was an incentive for business and families to put down roots and create permanent institutions: churches, schools and cemeteries. 1876 was a fitting year for the founding of Riverside Cemetery.
Globeville would evolve as well, from an area populated with prospectors and homesteaders to an industrial hub with smelters, railroads and meat packing plants, incorporating as a town in July, 1891. Many of Globeville's early settlers are buried at nearby Riverside Cemetery, in the company of mayors, Colorado governors, moguls, madams and military veterans. You can visit the well known and the humble at this historic and park-like burial ground.
Riverside Cemetery will celebrate its 135th anniversary this Saturday, October 1, from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm with free history displays, vintage baseball and historic tours. For information, see
http://fairmountheritagefoundation.org

Top photo by Mary Lou Egan: office, chapel and crematorium
Bottom photo by Mary Lou Egan: chapel

Conscription

2011-08-21T08:20:00.000-07:00

The people who arrived in Globeville during the 1880s were a diverse lot - Poles, Slovenes, Croats, Czechs, Slovaks, Bohemians, Ruthenians, Montenegrans and German Russians - yet census data would likely have recorded them as citizens of Germany, Austria-Hungary or Russia. These three powerful empires had annexed, or subdued those regions in a rush to increase their territory, suppressing native languages, cultures, and religion and making people second-class citizens in their own land. These occupying powers created the greatest resentment, however, with the conscription of young men to serve in their armies.
Poles could be forced into either the German or the Russian military depending on whether they lived in the western or eastern part of their partitioned homeland, while German-speaking colonists in Russia were required to serve a six-year term in the Russian army regardless of whether or not they spoke the Russian language. Likewise, citizens of the area absorbed by Austria-Hungary could be conscripted and possibly forced to fight fellow countrymen or family members. The situation motivated many to emigrate.
Andrew Boytz, a blacksmith, was conscripted into the Austrian army to teach soldiers the art of blacksmithing, but he rebelled against the idea. In the days before photos were used for identification, he was able to borrow a passport, desert the army and come to America, eventually settling in Globeville. Fred Gerhardt, however, served his six-year term in the Russian army before settling in Colorado.
Although their new life in Globeville could be difficult, these immigrants appreciated the freedoms we often take for granted.

top photo, Andrew Boytz lived a long life in Globeville
bottom photo, Fred Gerhardt in his Russian army uniform

Orthodox Food Festival & Globeville Days

2011-07-25T15:27:00.000-07:00

Strains of accordion music drift across Argo Park, along with the rich aroma of roast lamb, Serbian povitica, Italian sausage, Romanian Mici, Mexican tamales and Eritrean coffee. Crowds gather in the cool shade to watch dance troops and enjoy the music of various cultures, while children try to win prizes at games. Each summer, Globeville invites all of Denver to experience the ethnic diversity that defines the neighborhood with The Orthodox Food Festival & Globeville Days. Save the third weekend in July for next year's celebration.

Globe ASARCO

2011-05-23T14:44:00.000-07:00

According to historian Jerome C. Smiley in 1901,“...their [smelters] economic value to the city of Denver far exceeds that of any other industry; indeed, it may be said that it overshadows that of all other industries.”1. The remnants of one of the state’s most significant smelters, the Globe, rests on a hill just west of the neighborhood that shares it’s name.
The plant began life as the Holden Smelter and was organized in 1886 by entrepreneur Edward R. Holden as a silver/lead smelter, using the latest technology. Holden was known as a promoter and speculator and had borrowed great sums from the Colorado National Bank to build the operation. When the smelter veered toward bankruptcy under Holden, the bank appointed Dennis Sheedy manager and he reorganized the firm as the Globe Smelting and Refining Company on January 16, 1889. A company store, hotel and houses surrounding the plant, once called “Holdenville” were then referred to as “Globeville.”2.
The Globe Smelter was “integrated” with its own sampling works, crushing mills, roasting units, blast furnaces, refinery and was considered a major force in the industry. In 1899, the Globe joined a number of other smelting concerns to form a powerful trust, the American Smelting and Refining Company (ASARCO), with the clout to negotiate rates for labor, freight, ore, smelting and political influence.
The price of metals increased during World War I and mines and smelters prospered, but by 1919, market conditions had changed and many of the nation's rich ores had been depleted. The Globe discontinued smelting operations and turned to producing cadmium, becoming a leading supplier of the element used as a protective coating for aircraft during World War II. In 1993 the firm again changed direction and focused on the development of specialty metals, such as bismuth.
1993 is also the year a group of residents won a lawsuit against the corporate giant, alleging air, soil and groundwater pollution. A second group of citizens were awarded funds in 1997 to remediate the soil in the southern section of Globeville. ASARCO declared bankruptcy in 2006 and the plant sat empty and abandoned.
2011 marks the beginning of a new life for the area as EFB Brownfield Partners plans remediation and development for the property. It is hoped that an industry once so vital to the economy of the region could bring life and rebirth to the Globeville neighborhood.
1. Smiley, Jerome C. History of Denver, Denver, Colorado: The Times-Sun Publishing Company, 1901, page 556
2. Fell Jr., James E., Ores to Metals, The Rocky Mountain Smelting Industry, 1979,
University of Nebraska Press pg 149.

3. Contaminated Globeville May Get a Second Chance, March 24, 2011,
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/27303143/detail.html

top photo. Globe Smelter 1890

middle photo, Globe Smelter about 1926, courtesy of Steve Stevens

bottom photo, Globe plant today

The Omaha and Grant Smelter

2011-05-03T14:24:00.000-07:00

Denver's second smelter, the Omaha and Grant, moved to Denver from Leadville in 1882 to a site where the Denver Coliseum stands today. The plant used a different technology than the Boston and Colorado to recover silver and lead, accepting ore from the mountains via the Denver South Park and Pacific Railroad and shipping bullion to Omaha via the Union Pacific Railroad. By 1886, the Omaha and Grant Company was a highly integrated firm with its own mines, sampling works, reduction plants, refinery and even a marketing department. In 1892, Denver's largest smelter expanded, building a giant 350-foot chimney, the tallest structure in the region and a visible symbol of an industry considered vital to the region. A year after the completion of the stack, the nation experienced an economic depression that hit mining and smelting hard. Changes in technology, the depletion of rich ores and the long, violent labor strike of 1903 resulted in the closing of the smelter, leaving the massive plant unoccupied and 375 men unemployed. Over the years, the plant was gradually dismantled, leaving only the giant chimney as a reminder of the glory days of the city's largest smelting company. The chimney was demolished February 26, 1950 to make way for the Denver Coliseum.

Heritage of Smelting

2011-04-19T08:52:00.000-07:00

"Joint project expected to provide hundreds of jobs upon completion," the headline in the Metro Denver Economic Development newsletter gushes. The story describes plans to redevelop the former ASARCO site at 51st and Logan, all that remains of the important and powerful industry that once defined Globeville.
The story begins with the discovery of gold and silver in Colorado in 1858 and the "Rush to the Rockies" that followed, bringing hordes of fortune seekers to the territory. A crisis developed as business leaders realized that the mineral wealth was untouchable unless the metals could be separated from the complex ores that held them - settlers were leaving and eastern investors were withdrawing funds. What followed was a quest to find an economical, efficient and reliable method for recovering minerals - the region's survival was at stake. Entrepreneurs, businessmen, scientists and charlatans proposed remedies, but it was a professor of chemistry from Brown University, Nathaniel P. Hill, who found the solution and opened the Boston and Colorado Smelter near Black Hawk in 1867.
The smelter was wildly successful and soon outgrew its canyon location, moving in 1878 to a hill north of Denver and close to the Colorado Central and Denver Pacific Railroads. The new plant covered six acres between what is now West 44th and 47th Avenues, and Fox to Pecos Street. 350 men, mostly English, Welsh, Irish, Scotts and Swedes worked at the Smelter. The Boston and Colorado organized a classic company town, with three hotels for single men, houses for families and several company stores. The village was named Argo, after the mythical ship sailed by Jason in search of the golden fleece, and people soon referred to the smelter by the same name.
The firm's success lead to the construction of more smelting operations in the area, the Omaha and Grant in 1882 and the Globe in 1886. Changes in technology, and the depletion of the state's mineral-rich ores made the Boston and Colorado Smelter obsolete by 1902. A fire in the smelter's refinery in 1906 spelled the end of the smelter and the town of Argo, but the legacy of mining and refining lives on in the neighborhood in the remains of ASARCO's Globe plant. Again, there is a promise of jobs in processing and reprocessing the earth's minerals.

The "mousetrap" occupies the smelter's location today
Photo of the Boston and Colorado Smelter, Colorado Historical Association

The Denver & Interurban

2011-03-29T20:52:00.000-07:00

The headline in the Denver Post proclaimed “Beautiful Boulder Is Now Within 55 Minutes of Denver,” and the story that followed described clean, efficient passenger service on low-cost, electric trains. The article was not about some imaginary light rail system of the future, but an enthusiastic report of the inaugural run of the Denver & Interurban Railroad of June 23, 1908. The Denver & Interurban was worthy of some excitement, providing service every hour between Denver and Boulder with stops at Globeville, Westminster, Broomfield, Louisville, and during the summer, the resort of Eldorado Springs. The Denver Post continued “the electric cars can attain the speed of a mile a minute. . . and passengers are not annoyed with cinders, smoke and dust.” The fare was fifty cents.

The line operated from the Denver Tramway’s Interurban Loop at 15th and Arapahoe Streets, which made it easy for passengers to transfer from any of the city’s streetcar lines. From there, the train traveled to the 23rd Street viaduct, past the Interurban shops at 36th and Fox and east on 45th Avenue to Washington Street in Globeville.

The Globeville station was a small building at 5125 Washington, rented from owner John Bohte for $25 a month. Ed Wargin recalls “If we wanted to go to Eldorado Springs, we’d buy our tickets at the station. It was a store-front kind of a thing with a big old pot-bellied stove.”

Globeville was the edge of the Denver city limits and the place where the switch was made from the tramway connector to the overhead electrification system, the pantograph. It was also the scene of the line’s only major wreck, when two cars collided on Labor Day 1920, killing 12 and injuring 214. The holiday may have contributed to the disaster; the cars were overloaded and the motormen called in to handle the extra crowds were inexperienced.

The cars involved in the wreck were restored, but the Interurban suffered financially from the settlements awarded to the survivors. After World War I, cars were more affordable, highways were improved and more people wanted to drive. The Interurban electric cars ceased operations in 1926.

The Kite Route, Story of the Denver & Interurban Railroad, William C. Jones and Noel T. Holley, 1986 Pruett Publishing Company, Boulder, Colorado

Interview with Ed Wargin

Interurban station is at the right on Washington Street, about 1913

Lower photo shows a parade on Washington, with the tracks for the line visible

Nicknames in Globeville

2011-03-08T09:27:00.000-08:00

Globeville was (and is) like a small town where everyone knew everyone else, a familiarity evident in the many nicknames given to people.
Joseph Yelenick remembered, "Everyone down here had a nickname. There were 'Buck' and 'Beans' Oletski, 'Dutch' Maier, 'Alias' Stefanski, 'Stash' (Stash is Polish for Stanley) Slovenski, 'Butch' Lunka, 'Too-tall' Vuksinich, 'Hawk-eye' Evanitich (because he couldn’t see very well), and 'Goose-eye' McGahan (because he was a great shot). Andy Jackson was 'Stonewall Jackson' because he had a military posture. There was a kid who played football in Wyoming that had such a long last name that they just called him 'Joe Alphabet'. There was 'Oogie' Ungehire, Johnny 'Chink' Horvat, and 'Butch' and 'Moose' Horvat."
Larry Summers added. "Cocky Spomer was a little fellow and that’s why they called him 'Cocky'. John Dreith was called 'Peggy' because he had a bad leg and Harold Schaffer was called 'Shugs'”.
"Gas-pipe" Joe Grabrian was a plumber and "lead-pipe John" Predovich managed the Polish Hall. John Wysowatcky was known as "Smitty" and Father Jarzynski as "Father Jar."
The nicknames were good-natured and well-meaning fun in a tight-knit community.

Top photo, John "Smitty" Wysowatcky
Bottom photo, Andy "Stonewall" Jackson

Matthew E. Eagleton

2011-02-20T21:04:00.000-08:00

The distinguished-looking man in the back row of the 1913 class at Garden Place School is Matthew E. Eagleton, principal from 1901 - 1920, and one of three Eagleton brothers who devoted their lives to schools in Denver.* When he began his career in 1901, Eagleton was in charge of three schools Argo, Globeville and Garden Place, driving a horse and buggy from one school to the other.

Eagleton was respected by the immigrant community, helping parents with the process of Americanization and holding citizenship classes in the evenings. The teachers at Garden Place admired "Mr. Eagleton, who did everything in his power to make things easier for us...getting supplies and books." He inspired teachers to fill the educational gaps for children who were out of school for several months to work in the beet fields. When Globeville's German-Russian population came under suspicion during World War I, Eagleton defended their patriotism, reminding public officials there were "72 service stars on the service flag, two of which are gold." Matthew E. Eagleton died in February, 1920, leaving his widow (and Garden Place teacher, Maude Long) and a grateful community.

*Brothers J. S. and W. H. Eagleton were also educators and principals in Denver.

History of Garden Place School, typed manuscript 1950

1913, Picture from Maxine DeDonato

http://gardenplace.dpsk12.org/

Barns and Sheds

2011-02-01T11:04:00.000-08:00

Early Globeville was more rural than urban and many people built a barn in the back for chickens, geese, cows, horses, wagons and storage. Lumber as well as paint could be obtained at the nearby Burlington shops, giving these buildings a distinctive look - tongue and groove wood painted "railroad red." As Globeville evolved, so did the use of these outbuildings - from barns to garages, workshops and mother-in-law apartments. Many of these structures survive - a tribute to the craftsmanship and enterprise of the pioneer builders, and an additional bit of charm in a neighborhood with personality to spare.

Photos, Mary Lou Egan

Wolgagesangbuch

2011-01-15T19:51:00.000-08:00

There were three German-Russian churches in Globeville whose congregations were composed (mainly) of people who from the same villages in Russia. The Congregational Church was founded by immigrants from the village of Norka, St. Paul’s Church by people from the village of Beideck, and the Friedens Evangelical Church by people from Doenhoff. Though belief varied a little, all three congregations used the same hymnal, the Wolgagesangbuch, with hymns being a conspicuous and important part of worship.

Lydia Heck remembered, “They were long songs, sometimes fifteen verses, and people knew them by heart. Those books had the words in them, but no music.” John H. Werner recalled, “I believe most of the people knew practically all of the 878 songs in the book from memory! Some of the favorites that come to mind are: Allein Gott in der Hoeh, Christi Blut, Ein Fester Burg Ist unser Gott, and Jesu, Geh Voran.”
With prosperity and assimilation, the German-Russian population of Globeville moved away from the neighborhood, but their descendants inherited their faith - a faith based on the Bible, a personal relationship with God and a simple lifestyle.

Wolgagesangbuch courtesy of Virginia and John Laber

http://heritagecommunity.net/
www.ahsgr.org

Developments at Holy Rosary Parish

2011-01-09T12:11:00.000-08:00

Red, white and blue bunting emphasizes that the Slovenian and Croatian immigrants are loyal to their new country, while lodge banners proclaim their determination to preserve the heritage of the home country. The stack from the Grant Smelter looms over the Globeville neighborhood and women hold umbrellas to ward off the hot sun. August 17, 1919 was the day on which the cornerstone of Holy Rosary Church at 4688 Pearl Street was blessed by Bishop J. Henry Tihen "in the presence of a great crowd of rejoicing people." These immigrants were proud of their new parish and devoted their time, treasure and talent to the church. Founding pastor, Father Cyril Zupan, O.S.B., was responsible for both Holy Rosary Parish and St. Mary's Parish in Pueblo, which meant a two-hour train ride each way to say Mass, administer the sacraments and supervise construction.

90 years later, the parish faces new challenges. Pastor Noé Carreón is charged with the task of restoring the church, convent and school and rebuilding both English-speaking and Spanish-speaking congregations. Although the task is great, Father Noé, the parishioners and the neighborhood are excited to see the progress that has been made.
The parish invites you to follow our journey on our blog/website at:
http://holyrosarydenver.com

Christmas postcards 1910

2010-12-24T09:06:00.000-08:00

These postcards are to and from family members and are dated 1910. The printing is beautiful with gold ink, complex graphics, many colors and some embossed surfaces. The message side is often used as we would use a phone call "will arrive by train on Thursday" or "please send a money order." Some notes are surprisingly personal and tender, considering how visible the content would be: "missing you tonight." Denver was much smaller, too. One card is simply addressed to the Globe Mercantile, Globeville and apparently arrived there alright.

45th Avenue Pharmacy

2010-11-26T10:40:00.000-08:00

Ex-Lax, ice cream, fountain service, Coca Cola, 7-Up - the details in the photo of Heck’s Pharmacy on 45th and Sherman tell the story of another era in Globeville. Unlike the quick, one-stop retail shop of today, the drugstore looks like the kind of place you might like to hang out. Lydia Gerhardt Heck remembered, "My husband worked at the drug store on the corner, and we lived next door. The depression years down in Globeville were very hard and it was nip and tuck for a few years. When liquor came back in 1932, he got an alcohol license and that helped him pay the rent and kept him going until the war. During the war, everybody went to work, made big money and spent money and then he did OK."
Bottom photo, courtesy of Lauren Summers. The man with the hat is Carl Gerhardt, Harry Heck’s father-in-law.
Top photo, the same location in 2010, Mary Lou Egan

Argo Park

2010-11-13T11:50:00.000-08:00

Argo is a name taken from Grecian mythology and refers to the ship on which Jason and the Argonauts sailed in search of the Golden Fleece. The fleece was guarded by a dragon in a grove of trees sacred to Mars, the god of war. It is also the name of a small park in the Globeville neighborhood, situated between Logan and Pennsylvania Streets and 47th and the railroad tracks.
Like the Greek myth of its namesake, this park was once a marvelous place with a theatre, dance pavilion, animal cages, bowling alley and towering cottonwood trees. Early residents of the towns of Argo and Globeville remember dances, concerts and picnics in the park. Welsh workers from the Argo Smelter held annual eisteddfods, or singing contests, in remembrance of customs in their native land.
When the Argo Smelter closed in 1910, the town declined and the size of the park diminished. The park today is home to a swimming pool and renovated playground.

Top photo, Miss McCammon taught the third and fourth grades - photo of her class taken in 1914 with the dance pavilion in the background. Photo courtesy of Minnie Boge Herbert.

Middle and bottom photos, Argo Park today, Mary Lou Egan

Fell, James E., Jr. Ores to Metal: The Rocky Mountain Smelting Industry. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 1979.

www.recreationparks.net/CO/denver/argo-park-denver

201 East 45th Avenue

2010-10-14T14:41:00.000-07:00

The building at 201 East 45th Avenue dates from 1882 and has been a grocery for most of its life. Lydia Heck remembers hearing that the structure was one of the company stores of the big Globe Smelter Company. The building was purchased by her father, Carl Gerhardt, in 1922 and operated as a one-stop shopping venue with everything from canned goods, freshly-made ethnic sausage, cleaning supplies, material for sewing, to toys and penny candy. Larry Summers remembers, "Grandpa would be near the door on the right, where they had a long counter like they had in dry goods stores, to measure yard goods. He would sit on a stool near the door, and, when people came in and out, he would visit with them and “dun” them for payment on their account. Right in the middle of the store was a post with a couple of phones on it, pads hanging on nails and clerks taking orders. Groceries would be gathered in a collapsible box and clerks would go all around and deliver the goods in company trucks." Carl Gerhardt sold the store in 1945, just as supermarkets were moving into the area and residents were moving to newer homes in the suburbs.

Today, the location is alive and serves ethnic food favorites and some groceries.

Photo at top, Globe Mercantile in 1920. Andy Jackson is the middle fellow in the white apron. Photo from June Jackson Egan

Middle photo, Gerhardt Mercantile in 1932. Photo courtesy of Larry Summers.

Bottom photo taken in 2009 by Mary Lou Egan.

Konstanty Klimoski

2010-09-20T14:34:00.000-07:00

Many of the early arrivals to Globeville's Polish community, including Konstanty Klimoski, Piotr Skomorski, Andrew Kowalczyk, Gabriel Cymanski, Andrew Mantych, Jan, Jacob, and Frank Wargin came from the Russian sector of Poland. In the old country, they were subjected to political and religious persecution. It's not surprising that when they settled in Globeville, these men embraced the opportunity to shape the institutions important to them. These men were active in forming the Polish National Alliance, an ethnic, fraternal organization, and were also among the founders of St. Joseph’s Polish Church. Prominent among these leaders was Konstanty Klimoski.

Steve Klimoski remembers, “My grandfather, Konstanty Klimoski, was a big deal in Globeville. In those days, he was like a millionaire because he owned the Cozy Movie Theatre, this huge house at 48th and Washington and had one of the first automobiles in Globeville. He arrived about 1885 and worked in the Grant Smelter. Then he went into business for himself because he had all these kids. He put Wacie [Walter] into the grocery business and Joe Klimoski in the beer joint business, the JK Cafe. He contributed his time digging the foundation for the St. Joseph’s Church, donated a window in St. Joseph’s and one in Holy Rosary Church.”

Thanks from Holy Rosary

2010-09-06T20:23:00.000-07:00

Thanks to all who made the Holy Rosary bazaar a success. We were able to introduce the parish to the neighborhood, get to know our neighbors, have a great time and make a little money. Check out all this historic parish has to offer. Mass each weekday is at 9 am, Saturday at 5:30 pm. Sunday at 8, 10 and 11:30 am (Spanish). Religious education begins the week of September 5th. Call 303-297-1962.

Tradition Continues at Holy Rosary

2010-08-16T08:15:00.000-07:00

In the photo of the first Holy Rosary Parish bazaar in 1919, the men are wearing suits and the ladies are in their native Slovenian and Croatian dresses from the “old country.” They are hoping to raise money for their new church and one can imagine that there was singing, dancing, ethnic food and games.
Holy Rosary will continue this tradition on Sunday, August 29th from 8:30 am to 8 pm in the school parking lot. There will be music, dancing and ethnic food favorites from pancakes to potica and tamales. Music and entertainment will begin at 11:30 with Matachin dancers, live bands, a DJ and Slovenian accordion master, Joann Birsa. Activities for the children include face painting and pony rides. Historic Holy Rosary Church will be open for tours at 1 pm after all the Masses.

Holy Rosary Parish is located at 4688 Pearl Street in Denver, off of I-70 and Washington Street in the Globeville neighborhood. For more information call 303-297-1962 between 9 am and 1 pm.

1919 bazaar photo courtesy of Holy Rosary Church

photos of pony rides and potica by Mary Lou Egan

Father Mucha's Retirement

2010-07-27T10:41:00.000-07:00

In 1970, Father Jan Mucha stopped in Denver while visiting relatives in the United States - a visit that would change the course of his life and that of St. Joseph’s Polish Catholic Church in Globeville. Parishioners liked the young Polish priest and asked him to stay. Mucha accepted their invitation, assisting the pastor, Father Fraczkowski, and assuming the pastorate in January, 1974, after the death of Fraczkowski.

Under Father Mucha’s care, the parish has embraced its Polish heritage and traditions, with Sunday Mass in both English and Polish. Mucha also encouraged the practice of Polish customs associated with Christmas and Easter, and brought back the celebration of Corpus Christi with its procession through the neighborhood. The revitalization of the parish contributed to an improved self image for the Globeville area at a time when the neighborhood was under attack from both industry and Denver city planners.

Father Mucha completed a full restoration of the church in time for the parish’s 75th anniversary in 1977 and presided over the 100th anniversary of the parish in 1902.

With the fall of Communism, the parish has become home to a new generation of Polish immigrants and a center for Polish activities. The church has been restored, and the front entrance proudly bears the church's name in Polish, a striking sight to thousands who pass the church daily on interstate highway 70.

"When I came the parish was in danger of being closed,” Father Mucha told the Denver Catholic Register. “There was a small number of people who came here for Mass. Today we have many people, many youth. Our church has three choirs. It’s a wonderful community, one I will miss very much."

Good Time in Globeville

2010-07-20T15:17:00.000-07:00

The photos say it best - Globeville knows how to throw a great festival. Father Alex Vallens of Holy Transfiguration of Christ Orthodox Cathedral gave a brief history of the church and explained the iconostas, or icon screen, originally built by parishioners in 1904 in the late 19th century Russian style. Outside, vendors offered ethnic foods from Eastern Europe, Russia, Italy and Mexico, as well as crafts, gifts and an icon demonstration. Sunday's entertainment included Planina, singing songs of Eastern Europe, and enthusiastic performances by children in native dress from the Science, Art & Sport Center for Children. Grupo Folklorico Sabor Latino explained the meaning and construction of each part of their costumes and the meaning in each dance.

Mark the third weekend in July for next year's festival.

Celebrating Globeville

2010-07-14T10:57:00.001-07:00

Begin the weekend of celebrating Globeville's rich history at Riverside Cemetery for Walk-A-Bout: "The Other Side of Riverside" at 9:00 am Saturday, July 17. Historian Jeff Stoffel will honor Riverside's Globeville residents with a special focus on the Orthodox section of the cemetery. The walk begins at Riverside's office at 9 am and will conclude at 11 am. Bring water, wear sunscreen and your walking shoes. Remember that there are no facilities at Riverside. This event is free, but will be limited to 20 people, so make a reservation at events@friendsofriversidecemetery.org

Then follow the aroma of roasting lamb to the 7th Annual “Orthodox Food Festival and Old Globeville Days” on Saturday, July 17 and Sunday, July 18 at Argo Park, 349 E 47th Avenue (at Logan Street) in Denver. Sample food from Russia, Romania, Serbia, Ukraine, Eritrea, Greece, and Mexico while enjoying live music, activities for the children, entertainment and dance. Visit with your neighbors in the shade of the canopy, tour the craft booths or see a demonstration of iconography. Don't miss an opportunity to tour the beautiful 112-year-old Orthodox Cathedral, a historic landmark.

Saturday festivities will run from 11:00 am until 10:00 pm; on Sunday, the festival is open from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm. Admission is free.

For information, visit http://orthodoxfoodfestival.wetpaint.com/ or www.transfigcathedral.org or call 303-294-0938

Top photo, the beautiful Orthodox section of Riverside Cemetery

Second photo, lamb roasting at the 2009 celebration

Third photo, crafts and food from the 2009 evvent

Fourth photo, Fotia from Hellenic Dance Academy of Denver. All photos by Mary Lou Egan

Ironton School

2010-07-01T12:20:00.000-07:00

The Ironton School at 36th and Delgany Street was designed by architect John J. Huddart, a native of England who moved to Denver in 1882. Built in 1890, the school served children of workers at the Grant and Globe Smelters and the Union Pacific shops, who were mainly German, Swedish, Scotch, Irish and Slavs. As more industry moved into the neighborhood, families moved out of the area, the school was closed and students transferred to Garden Place School in 1937. The building then served as a temporary home to students of Annunciation Catholic Parish for two years while repair work was being done on the parish school. Ironton found new life as a WPA Sewing Center for several years and was then purchased by a private party and converted into apartments. This handsome building was demolished in 1955 and the site is now home to one of Denver's auto impound lots.

Photo of Ironton School, Denver Public Library

Photo of impound lot, Mary Lou Egan

The Globeville School

2010-06-04T07:43:00.000-07:00

Three large smelters, the Boston and Colorado, the Omaha and Grant and the Globe, operated in Globeville between 1878 and 1889 and workers moved to the town seeking jobs. As the population grew, the region evolved from a rural outpost to an industrial village and the small country schools that dotted the area became inadequate.

The Globeville School was built on the corner of 51st and Washington in 1890 on land belonging to the Globe Smelter, replacing a one-room country school that had been on that site since the 1870s. The community continued to expand and a new and larger Globeville School was completed in 1925 at 51st an Lincoln. However, the increase in the population reached its high point in the 1920s and declined afterward. With a dwindling enrollment, the Globeville School closed in 1943 and the remaining students were sent to Garden Place School.

In 1948, the building was given new life when Joseph and Elizabeth Calabrese created Laradon Hall, an organization that offers support, guidance and training to children with developmental disabilities.

Top photo, Globeville School at 51st and Washington, 1890, photo Denver Public Library

Second photo, Sam's Vintage Parts occupies the remains of the 1890 school, photo Mary Lou Egan

Third photo, new school 51st and Lincoln 1923, photo Denver Public Library

Fourth photo, Laradon Hall today, photo Mary Lou Egan

Argo School

2010-05-12T12:07:00.000-07:00

At the time of Globeville’s incorporation in 1891, four elementary schools, Argo, Ironton, Globeville and Garden Place, served the area's children. The Argo School was built in 1890 for the children of the company town known as Argo, home of the Boston and Colorado Smelter. The school was richly endowed with funds from the smelter and the railroads and embodied all that was modern in its day: toilets that flushed, a basement, and a furnace. The school also housed the office of the superintendent, who was responsible for all four schools.

After a fire destroyed the Boston and Colorado Smelter in 1906, the population of the town diminished, the smelter was dismantled, and the school torn down in 1916. The convergence of interstate highways known as the "Mousetrap" occupies the site of the once-massive smelter, and the Plaza Hotel at 48th Avenue and Broadway is the location of the Argo School.

Photo of the Argo School about 1891 courtesy of Nora Duryea.

Photo of Plaza Hotel, Mary Lou Egan.

Calling all students of Holy Rosary

2010-04-20T14:58:00.000-07:00

Holy Rosary Parish at 4688 Pearl Street in Globeville would like to reach out to all former students and graduates of Holy Rosary School, which was in operation from 1929 to 1969. The parish is creating a photographic history of the former school that will be available on a DVD.

The building was heavily damaged when water pipes broke in November of 2008 and work is underway to restore and reopen the school as a parish center for meetings, celebrations, receptions, classes and pancake breakfasts.

Call the parish at 303-297-1962 or email at holy.rosary@live.com.

Or as the sisters would say, you could join us for Mass, 9 am weekdays, 5:30 pm on Saturday, 8 and 10 am on Sundays, 11:30 am Sunday Spanish Mass (starting in May).

Top photo, the school in April, 2010 by Mary Lou Egan

Bottom photo, graduating class of 1938, from June Jackson Egan

Back row, left to right: Frank and Harold Krasovich, Leo Pollock, John Marolt, Bill Mauser, Joe Shaball, Mark Davidovich, Anthony (Nixie) Mencin

Front row, left to right: Mary Drobnich, Mathilda Horvat, Dorothy Kvas, June Jackson, Monsignor Judnic, Eileen Butler, Anne Horvat, Betty Ann Zalar, Sophie Pacheco.

The Sidewinder

2010-04-13T14:52:00.000-07:00

If buildings could talk, the Sidewinder Lounge at 4485 Logan Street in Globeville would surely have some tales to tell. In January, 1894, the building was home to the Golobvich and Slogar Saloon where a group of men gathered to form Sveti Jakov, St. Jacob’s Croatian-Slovenian Benefit Society, an ethnic fraternal insurance organization.

St. Jacob’s was a somewhat secret society for men only, and a password was required to gain entrance to a lodge meeting. The first year the password was “Sloboda” and the next year it was changed to “Hrvatska.” In April 1906, the women of Globeville, mostly wives of St. Jacob’s members, formed St. Ann’s Lodge 143, which merged with the men’s group in December, 1926.

Later, the tavern was called the 16 to One Exchange and was managed by the politically powerful Max Malich, known in Globeville as "the King of the Slavs." The site was home to weddings, funerals, meetings of the town council, and, during the bitter labor battles of 1903, the Mill and Smeltermen’s Union. Meetings to organize Holy Rosary Parish, as well as Mass and confession, were held there until the church was completed in 1920. After World War II, members of the Globeville Veteran’s Association gathered in the tavern for support and camaraderie.

Stop by the Sidewinder, enjoy a beer, watch the Denver Broncos and toast the former patrons of this historic place.

Top photo Mary Lou Egan

Bottom photo, funeral of Martin Kapsh in 1895, courtesy of Alma Mandarich.

Easter Blessing at St. Joseph's

2010-03-30T20:13:00.000-07:00

Swieconka (sh-vee-en-soon-kah) is one of the most enduring and beloved Polish traditions in which baskets containing a sampling of Easter foods are brought to church to be blessed on Holy Saturday. The basket is traditionally lined with a white linen or lace napkin and decorated with sprigs of boxwood (bukszpan), the typical Easter evergreen. Other items in basket may include sausage (Kielbasa), Easter rye bread, (symbolic of Jesus, the Bread of Life), cheese, horseradish and intricately decorated pasanky eggs.

The traditional blessing of food baskets will take place on Saturday, April 3rd at St. Joseph's Polish Church at:

10:00 am
12 noon
2:00 pm
5:00 pm

5 pm service followed by Mass in English: 8:00 pm in Polish.

St. Joseph's Polish Catholic church is located at 517 East 46th Avenue in Globeville.

http://www.swietyjozef.org/

Zvelichar

2010-03-23T10:57:00.000-07:00

"Zvelichar nash je vstal od smrti...Sing joyfully o Christian, because today on Easter is the day of your joy." For many years, this Slovenian hymn was sung during the procession on Easter morning at Holy Rosary Church, a parish founded by Slovenians and Croatians in 1919. Leading the procession would be a strong man carrying the statue of the Risen Christ, followed by children singing Zvelichar and carrying palms.

Today's congregation consists of older Eastern European parishioners and younger Hispanic families. This year's traditions begin with:

Mass of the Lord's Supper at 6:00 pm on Holy Thursday, April 1st
Service of the Lord's Passion at 3:00 pm on Good Friday, April 2nd
Easter Vigil at 7:00 pm Holy Saturday, April 3rd
Easter Mass at 8:00 and 10:00 am, Sunday April 4th

For more information, call 303-297-1962 between 9:00 am to 1:00 pm Monday through Friday. Holy Rosary Church is located at I-70 and Washington at 4688 Pearl Street in the Globeville neighborhood.

Orthodox Easter Traditions

2010-03-19T15:23:00.000-07:00

Helen Kohut Capron grew up across the alley from Holy Transfiguration Cathedral and had fond memories of traditions during Lent and Holy Week. Helen elaborated on Lenten practices. “For seven weeks, no meat and no dairy (butter, milk or eggs) were allowed, and there were a number of extra church services in each week culminating with Holy Week.

"On Good Friday, there were three services. One in the morning and one at three o’clock where people fixed the grave. Friday evening was a burial service, “Plashtanitza,” that featured a shroud with the figure of Jesus on it and flowers all around it.”

“There was a service on Saturday morning more like the resurrection, when all the purple fabric that covered everything during Lent was removed and the priest changed into white vestments. On Saturday night, they would do part of the service, and then everyone left the church with the priest and his servers, who circled the church three times. During that time, people inside the church took the grave away and put everything back in place. When the priest made his third circle, he came to the door and knocked and that was a symbol of the resurrection. Then the people went in to begin the Liturgy, the Easter Mass. So the Easter vigil service began at about 11:30 at night and continued until about 2 in the morning.”

“It was always the custom to bless the food people had prepared for Easter. And so people would bring their baskets of food to the church hall. It was always a big deal because, if you had fasted like you were supposed to during Lent, with no meat and no dairy, it was very special. Sausage, eggs, fruit, ham, butter cakes - everything you could think of was in those baskets. Our family had a big wire basket and it would take two men to carry it across the alley, it would be so full. The baskets would all be in the church hall and, right after church, the priest would bless them. Then people would go to their homes. Nowadays, people sometimes partake of the baskets right after the blessing and go home about 5 o’clock in the morning. On Easter morning itself, there was a short service right after the Liturgy about 11 or 11:30.”

For current Lenten and Easter services at Holy Transfiguration Cathedral, visit http://www.transfigcathedral.org

A Library for Globeville

2010-03-08T18:25:00.000-08:00

A public library was treasured by the immigrants who settled Globeville, as books and education were only available to the wealthy in eastern Europe. In the early 1900s, the community was served by a bookmobile from the Denver Public Library.

In 1921, the neighborhood would finally have a permanent branch library in the Globeville Community Center, constructed on the southeast corner of East 45th Avenue and Grant Street. Built through the efforts of the William P. McPhee family and the Denver Real Estate Exchange, the center also had an auditorium for community meetings, dances, and social functions. There was also a branch of the University of Colorado Extension and two part-time social workers who helped residents with housing, citizenship and family counseling. The building is still in use today as the Globeville Recreation Center.

During the Depression, the city of Denver struggled with diminishing funds and reduced the hours of the city’s libraries to two nights and one day a week. It closed the Globeville branch completely on January 3, 1934, posting a notice on the door. Immediately, Lad Felix and Adolph Anzich of the Globeville Voters Taxpayers Association organized the neighborhood, gathering signatures on petitions and demanding a meeting with the library’s board. At the meeting, Felix and Anzich explained that the library was used by foreign-born children and adults, and “played a great part in Americanizing residents.” The men pointed out that Globeville citizens paid a higher percentage of taxes than other areas of the city and were not receiving the same city services. The Rocky Mountain News kept the cause in the spotlight and the library was reopened on February 4, 1935. The News gladly proclaimed, “Globeville Branch Library Is Swamped as It Reopens.”

In 1950, the city again closed the neighborhood’s library, and, in 1952 the branch in nearby Elyria was closed as well. It would be more than forty years before the neighborhoods of Globeville, Elyria and Swansea would have a library in their community.

The Valdez-Perry Branch Library opened at 47th and Vine March 18, 1996. Part of a major capital improvement project that began in 1990 when Denver voters approved $91.6 million in bond money, the library features a bilingual staff, meeting rooms, a large collection of children’s books, audio books, videos and magazines. There are computers, internet access and instruction in the use of both. The building is slated for improvements during 2010.

Top two photos Denver Public Library, bottom photo Mary Lou Egan

Memory Eternal

2010-02-20T12:26:00.000-08:00

On Friday evening, February 19, the bells were ringing at Transfiguration Orthodox Cathedral in Globeville, part of a prayer service called a Panikhida for Matushka Paulette Hirsch who fell asleep in the Lord on Friday, February 12, 2010 after a brief illness. Matushka Paulette was the widow of the late Archpriest Joseph Hirsch, long-time cathedral rector, who fell asleep in the Lord on August 24, 2009.

Incense rose as parishioners sang the liturgy and Bishop Benjamin spoke about the phrase "Memory Eternal" and the fear each of us has of being forgotten. Both Father Joseph and Matushka Paulette left an imprint on Holy Transfiguration Cathedral and the Globeville neighborhood from the moment they arrived in 1984, a time when many inner-city congregations were leaving for the suburbs. The Hirschs made a commitment to bring new life to both the cathedral and the surrounding community.

Largely through Matushka's efforts as president of the Globeville Civic Association, neighbors mobilized to clean up industrial waste, install sidewalks, and reduce crime and pollution. Matushka served as president of the Association until 1996 and continued to assist that group with her grant writing, negotiation and organizational skills.

Matushka Paulette is survived by her sons David, Joseph and Benjamin and their wives and children. She will long be remembered by a parish family and the Globeville neighborhood for her tireless efforts to improve life for them in so many ways.

Lest we forget

2010-02-05T20:14:00.000-08:00

The veterans memorial in Argo Park is dedicated to those servicemen from Globeville who lost their lives in service to their country. Two of those men, Martin Clements and John Wysowatcky, were killed in the last weeks of World War I. Martha Kulik Birch remembered, “We all came down in the hallway at Garden Place School and Smitty [John] Wysowatcky and Albert Metzger were standing in their uniforms with their big hats, and we gave them a concert before they left for war. We sang, ‘Tenting tonight, tenting tonight, tenting on the old camp ground.’ Before it ended, Smitty was killed with only two more weeks until the armistice. His mother said she knew something was wrong, even before they got the official notice, because a bird came in the house and flew all around the upper part of the ceiling and went out. John used to light the chandelier in the church before services. It was an omen.”

Martin John Clements was born in 1893, enlisted in the army in May, 1917 and attained the rank of sergeant with the Medical Corps of Field Artillery of the American Expeditionary Forces. He died August 23, 1918 as a result of wounds received in action near Chateau Terra.

John Wysowatcky was also born in 1893 and enlisted in the army in April, 1917. Serving in the infantry with the American Expeditionary Forces, he was killed in action in Argonne Forest, October 23, 1918 and is buried in Riverside Cemetery.

Photo, top, Veterans Memorial, Mary Lou Egan

Middle photo, Martin John Clements, from Globeville Veterans Club booklet

Bottom photo, John Wysowatcky from Globeville Veterans Club booklet

New Pastor at Holy Rosary Church

2010-01-18T19:58:00.000-08:00

Father Noé Carreón is the pastor at Our Lady of Grace Church in the Swansea neighborhood, serves on the deanery for Northern Colorado, acts as an advisor to Spanish-speaking priests and is a professor of math at Community College of Denver. When Archbishop Charles Chaput first approached Father Noé about taking over Holy Rosary parish following the retirement of Father Joseph Meznar, Father Noé was understandably reluctant to accept the post. Father Noé did accept the appointment on November 7, 2009, and explained to the first newly-organized parish council on January 17, that he realized the assignment to Holy Rosary was "a calling from God."

Father Noé marveled at the beauty of the church with its stained-glass windows, statues and the pattern painted on the interior. Holding up the booklet of the 25-year history of the church, Father talked about the faith and hard work of the Slovenian and Croatian immigrants who built the parish. "Many of the founders of this church dedicated their lives, their efforts and money to this church and we owe it to them to continue their work."

Plans for the parish include repair of the church and convent and restoration of the school for religious education classes. Needed are lay readers for all Masses and Eucharistic ministers - mandating Eucharistic ministers will occur after the 5:30 Mass on Saturday January 23rd, and Sunday January 24th at 9 am. All are welcome at Holy Rosary at 4688 Pearl Street in Globeville. Sunday Masses are at 8 and 10 am, Saturdays at 5:30 pm and weekdays at 9 am. The office is open from 9 am to 1 pm weekdays and the phone number is 303-297-1962.

Hispanics in Globeville

2010-01-07T18:33:00.000-08:00

After World War II, the children and grandchildren of Globeville’s pioneers would move out of the neighborhood and another group would take their place.

Hispanics who moved to Globeville were not new to Colorado or to America. Lalo C. de Baca came to Globeville from a farm in Las Vegas, New Mexico in 1936, but can trace his family’s ancestry to Spanish explorer Alvar Cabeza de Vaca, who traveled through northern New Mexico in the early part of the 16th century. Bea Trevino moved to Globeville from a farm near Firestone but her family’s roots go back farther. “My ancestors from my mother’s side all came from Spain. My dad’s mother was an Indian.”

Hispanics came to Globeville for the same reasons as the ethnic groups that preceded them: affordable housing, more opportunity for their children than farm life could offer and jobs that were nearby. In the 1950s and 60s, many of those jobs were in meat packing, the city’s largest industry, at ASARCO's Globe plant and in construction.

Unlike the Eastern Europeans who had preceded them, Hispanics found many of the institutions that were important to them already in place with Catholic Mass at St. Joseph’s Polish or Holy Rosary Church. Improvements in workplace safety also made forming a fraternal insurance association less of a necessity.

Today, 82 percent of Globeville's population has Hispanic heritage and the community reflects that change with church services at the Globeville Community Church at 5039 Lincoln and a Spanish-speaking priest, Father Noé Carreón, at Holy Rosary Church.

What has remained constant in the neighborhood's 150-year history is pride and neighbors caring for one another.

Christmas Memories

2009-12-19T14:59:00.000-08:00

Larry Summers is the grandson of Carl Gerhardt, proprietor of Gerhardt Mercantile, and remembers Christmas as a youngster during the Depression. “Mrs. Metzger was a Sunday School teacher who organized the children's program on Christmas Eve at St. Paul’s German Lutheran Church. Everyone had a few lines to say and some was in German. Afterward, we each got a little bag with an orange and a pyramid-looking chocolate with cream inside. I think Grandpa Gerhardt and Mr. Schaffer probably supplied most of the stuff inside the bag."

Globeville's Poles would celebrate with a special dinner on Christmas Eve known as wigilia with mushroom soup, boiled potatoes (kartofle), pickled herring (sledzie), fried fish, pierogi, beans and sauerkraut (groch i kapusta). A lighted candle in the windows symbolized the hope that the Christ child, in the form of a stranger, would come and an extra place was set at the table for the unexpected guest.

Southern Slavs enjoyed homemade wine and delicacies not eaten at other times of the year, such as smoked meats or potica (pronounced po-tee-sa), a Slovenian nut bread.

Using the old Julian calendar, Globeville's Orthodox Slavs observed Christmas on January 7th. Elaborate church services, feasting and visits with family remained the same when the switch was made to the Gregorian calendar in 1968.

Bea Trevino's Hispanic Christmas traditions are those her family observed growing up in New Mexico. "For Christmas and Easter we make meat empanadas. For New Years a lot of us make a chicken mole, or we make menudo with hominy. In New Mexico, we do hominy with ham or pork."

Commemorative Christmas plate, a gift of the Gerhardt Mercantile. Photo Larry Summers.

Southern Slavs

2009-12-03T12:32:00.000-08:00

Most of the Southern Slavs in Globeville were from Slovenia and Croatia but were citizens of the Austrian empire, which had absorbed their homelands, as well as those of Serbia, Bosnia, Montenegro and Macedonia. They began arriving in the 1880s, attracted by political and religious freedom and by jobs in the Grant and the Globe Smelters.

Work in the smelters was hard and dangerous with men risking death or disability from extreme heat, toxic fumes and dust from heavy metals. To provide financial security for themselves and their families, Slavs formed fraternal societies or lodges that offered sick and death benefits while seeking to preserve the language, culture and heritage of the home country. The lodge was like a clubhouse where members felt at home and Globeville's residents had many choices: St. Jacob's Croatian Society, the American Fraternal Union, the Slovene National Benefit Society, the American Slovenian Catholic Union or the Western Slavonic Association (Zapadna Slovanska Zveza). Croatians met in St. Jacob's Hall, now the Sidewinder Tavern at 4485 Logan, and many of the Slovenian lodges held their activities at the Slovenian Home at 44th and Washington. Weddings, funerals, labor rallies, Catholic Mass and confession were held in the lodge halls until Holy Rosary Church was built. Members of the fraternal organizations petitioned Bishop Tihen for permission to build a church and then set about raising the funds. Holy Rosary was dedicated in July 1920 with Reverend Cyril Zupan as the first pastor. The church, convent and school received state historic designation in 1999.

Holy Rosary Church and convent about 1930. Photo June Jackson Egan

Slovenian Societies hold a fund-raising bazaar outside the unfinished church about 1919. Photo Joseph Yelenick.

Orthodox Slavs

2009-11-28T08:30:00.000-08:00

Carpatho-Russians came to Globeville for the same reasons as the other Eastern European immigrants: religious freedom and economic opportunity. Living in territory ruled by Roman Catholic Austria or Protestant forces in Hungary, the Carpatho-Russian's Orthodox religion was suppressed and they were treated as second-class citizens. Hearing of jobs in Colorado's mines, smelters and railroads, and of a climate similar to the Carpathian or Tatra mountains of home, many flocked to Globeville in the 1880s. Helen Kohut Capron recalled, “My grandfather Peter got a job at the smelter and it must have been a difficult job because it made him sick. The children would come home from school and find him lying on the couch in pain."

Help for men and their families came from the ethnic fraternal lodges. In Globeville, the oldest of these Carpatho-Russian lodges was the Russian Orthodox Society Transfiguration of Christ, connected to the Russian Orthodox Catholic Mutual Aid Society founded in 1895 in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. In addition to providing insurance and moral support, the society’s goals included “the spread and preservation of the Orthodox Faith in America” and members of this lodge founded Holy Transfiguration of Christ Cathedral in 1898. The church has survived and prospered for over 100 years and received state historic designation in 1998.

The church about 1902, photo courtesy of Steve Klimoski.

One of the Orthodox Fraternal Societies, Sjedinjenih about 1905, photo courtesy of Steve Machuga.

The Poles

2009-11-15T13:26:00.000-08:00

In the 18th century, Poland was carved up by its jealous and powerful neighbors when, in 1772, Catherine the Great of Russia, Frederick the Great of Prussia and Maria Theresa of Austria annexed sections of Poland. By 1795, the once-great nation had almost disappeared from the map. The next century saw a relentless attack on Polish identity with restrictions to Polish language, culture and religion, as well as the conscription of their young men to serve in the armies of their oppressors. As conditions grew worse in the last three decades of the 19th century, legions of Poles fled to America.

Poles began arriving in Globeville during the 1880s to work in the nearby smelters. As people became established, they encouraged friends and relatives to join them and a small Polish community developed in the 4500—4800 blocks of Washington, Pearl, Pennsylvania, Logan and Grant Streets, and on Emerson Street near the Platte River.

Poles in Globeville formed organizations that would provide financial help in the event of sickness, injury and death and offered the comfort of old-country customs as they eased into American life. In 1889, Globeville's Poles organized Towarzystwo sw Marcina (St. Martin’s Society), Lodge #134, as part of the national Polish National Alliance.

Since they had been persecuted for their religion in the old country, lodge members then began to raise money for a Polish church and, in 1902, built St. Joseph's Polish Catholic Church.

Poles moved up the economic ladder, assimilated and moved to better neighborhood in Arvada and Wheat Ridge. Yet the "Polishness" of St. Joseph's persists as immigrants have arrived after the fall of communism and a younger generation calls St. Joseph's their spiritual home. The Polish lodge survives as well and makes its home in Wheat Ridge.

Father Jarzynski, pastor from 1902 to 1922, and a class of first communicants in 1914. Photo from Andy Jackson.

http://www.pnadenver.org/

http://www.swietyjozef.org/

Germans from Russia

2009-11-10T09:32:00.000-08:00

German-speaking people who began arriving in Globeville in the 1880s came, not from Germany, but from villages along the Volga River in Russia. Their odyssey began some 120 years earlier when they emigrated to Russia to escape the poverty and devastation that followed the Seven Years War (1754—1763). Germans settled the along the Volga in Russia at the invitation of Empress Catherine the Great, who promised free land, and freedom from taxes and military service (privileges not given to Russian citizens). In return, the settlers secured Russia's western frontier and provided the country with grain. 100 years later, Czar Alexander II rescinded those special rights and Germans began to emigrate to America.

There was a substantial community of German Russians in the Globeville area by 1887, with many of them coming from three colonies along the Volga — Norka, Beideck and Doenhoff. Since Germans had been persecuted for their religion while in Russia, they were quick to form their own churches in Globeville, with congregations corresponding to those of their villages in Russia. First German Congregational Church was founded by settlers from Norka, St. Paul's Lutheran Church by people from Beideck and the Friedens Evangelical Lutheran Church by immigrants from Doenhoff. As in the old country, life for German Russians centered around the family, church and work. Leaders in the community were those who were active in the churches, business owners and those who helped others to emigrate.

The Wolf family about 1914: first row, from left,grandfather Peter Wolf, David, father John Wolf Sr., Sarah, Ann Marie, nee Kilthau . Second row, from left, Christine, Katherine, Adam, John, Hulda.

Carl Gerhardt, owner of Gerhardt Mercantile, extended loans to citizens of Globeville and sponsored many events in the community.

Globeville: the Melting Pot

2009-10-26T15:21:00.000-07:00

The arrival of so many immigrants to Globeville was the product of perfect timing. The rapid growth of industry in Colorado during the 1870s and 80s motivated employers to recruit people who would work for less than American-born workers even as economic, religious and political unrest in eastern Europe and Russia led hundreds of thousands to emigrate. Agents from the railroads and the Gilpin County Cheap Labor Bureau distributed fliers that promised lucrative jobs on the railroads and in the mines; smelters welcomed those who would endure the gritty, dangerous work near furnaces. These factors led to an explosion in the number of immigrants arriving during the 1880s, and by the mid 1890s, one in four people in Denver was foreign-born.* Then the bottom fell out.

The nation’s economy collapsed in 1893, which hit Colorado’s mining-based economy particularly hard. Late arrivals found themselves competing with American-born workers, as well as with earlier groups, for fewer jobs. The newcomers were resented because they would work for lower wages, and therefore did not assimilate as easily as the earlier immigrants had done. They settled near their countrymen, creating ethnic enclaves within a larger neighborhood. This was a defining characteristic of Globeville, which became known as the “melting pot” because of the variety of people who lived there.

Each ethnic group tried to maintain its own language, religion and cultural traditions. These groups include:

The German-speaking group, who came not from Germany, but from a region of Russia along the Volga River.
The Poles, who began to migrate to the United States following partitions of Poland among Russia, Prussia, and Austria-Hungary that began in 1772. More political unrest in the 1870s and 1880s brought large numbers to Globeville.
Southern Slavs, including Slovenians, Croatians, Macedonians, and Serbs, who came from an area that had been part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
There were also Russian, Slovak, Czech and “Carpatho-Russian” families, whose countries had been annexed by Austria-Hungary or Russia.
Hispanic settlers, some who can trace their family's presence in America to the 16th century, began to settle in Globeville after World War II.

*Leonard, Stephen J. “Denver’s Foreign Born Immigrants, 1859-1900,” Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Claremont Graduate School, 1971

A printed advertisement from the turn of the century announces, “The Slovenian Singing Club will sing Slovenian folk songs in the City’s Fourth of July program.” The women are left, Carrie Grugan, and right, Mollie Zalar. Photo courtesy of Betty Zalar Paprocki

Shorty Maynard, Circus Clown, 1882 - 1950

2009-10-04T20:53:00.000-07:00

He was born to strict Catholic parents in Manchester, New Hampshire, in 1882 and was expected, at age 13, work in a shoe factory for 10 cents a day. At that point, Rudolf E. Pigeon did what most people only dream of doing: he ran away and joined the circus.

Pigeon began as a member of the Menard troupe of acrobats, traveling the East Coast with the Haggenback Wallace Circus. In 1906, he moved out West and joined the Sells-Floto Circus, owned by Frederick Bonfils and Harry H. Tammen, co-owners of the Denver Post. Known professionally as Shorty Maynard, Pigeon frequently worked with animals, riding atop a mule’s head and also hanging on to its tail to be dragged around the sawdust ring several times. Another audience favorite was Bill, the Trained Goose who performed tricks with Shorty for 14 seasons. Other acts featured trained roosters and acrobatic stunts.

By 1922, Pigeon had married. When he and wife Ada started a family, the travel and hardships of circus life proved exhausting, so Pigeon retired in 1923 after nearly 30 years in the big top. He first moved his family to Sterling to operate John’s Pool Hall, which became a casualty of the farm recession after World War I. Pigeon then moved his wife and daughter Carol to Globeville and sought out his old friend Harry Tammen, who arranged a position with Swift & Company, where Pigeon worked for more than twenty years.

Daughter Carol Christenson recalls, “I remember my dad walking across that bridge at 46th Avenue every morning at 5 a.m. to go to work in the packinghouse. He didn’t make much money, but we always paid our bills on time.”

The man who had traveled the country making people laugh lived quietly with his wife, daughters, Carol and Florence, and son Charles at 4801 Grant St. He died in August 1950 of heart failure and is buried at Riverside Cemetery in Denver.

Rudolf E. Pigeon in his garden in Globeville. Pigeon is buried at Riverside Cemetery in block 13, about 18 paces north of the Archer monument. The small dark gray marker features a picture of a clown.

Photo courtesy of Carol Christenson

Beautiful Globeville

2009-09-09T10:26:00.000-07:00

The Globeville tradition of lovely gardens and yards continues in many places. The area is challenged by noise and pollution from the Interstate highways and encroaching industry, yet there is still a sense of pride in the neighborhood. Take a walk some morning and look at the flowers in the front yards, peer over the fences and see the vegetable extravaganza in the back yards. Some folks could feed an army with the produce grown in these small spaces. Here are a few of my favorites on the north side of I-70.

Archpriest Joseph Hirsch 1944-2009

2009-08-31T20:27:00.000-07:00

Father Hirsch remembered, "In 1984 a bishop in Chicago asked me if I would come out to Denver for a couple of years and see what I could do about this church. I found out a little about the history of the parish and that there were two points of view — that some people thought that they ought to stay here and some people thought that they ought to sell and move. So I talked with them and I told them that, if they were willing to stay here and work on the situation, that I would come. I didn’t want to be responsible for abandoning a church that had as rich a history as this church did. That would have to be their choice." The people decided to stay and Father Joseph and Matushka Paulette Hirsch came to Transfiguration Parish and the Globeville neighborhood. Both the church and the neighborhood have been blessed by their presence.

Father Hirsch recalled, "First we had to fix up the property, so that people would feel better about it. And then we had to fix up the neighborhood around the church."

"Fixing up the property" included replacing the "old saw mill" with a new church hall, obtaining historic designation for the Temple and restoring the foundation and floor of the church. "Fixing up the neighborhood" resulted in developing and implementing a comprehensive neighborhood plan, obtaining development funds for lighting, successfully battling the highway department and instituting the Old Globeville Days and Orthodox Food Festival. Holy Transfiguration and the Globeville neighborhood have both blossomed.

These many accomplishments don't describe the joyful, spiritual, generous man that left so profound a mark on so many people. Father Joseph passed away August 24, 2009 after a brief illness. He will be greatly missed.

Baseball in Globeville

2009-08-14T14:17:00.000-07:00

Baseball was big in Globeville. Andy Jackson remembered, "The lodges had teams, all the packing houses, Armour & Company, Western Packing and Burkhardt, each had a team. The brickyards had a team that played at a ball field at 45th and Leaf Court on Sunday mornings. There were also ball fields at 49th and Washington and at 23rd and Welton. Lots of people played for several teams."

Top photo, 1923 team sponsored by the Gerhardt Mercantile Company.

Left to right, standing: Henry Heinz, Pete Shinall, Nick Walters, Pete Sterkel, Ollie Krieger, and Alec Hilzer, manager.

Left to right, seated: Henry Schlit, Horst Nickels, Charley Jack, Pete Spomer, Jake Sterkle, Henry Honstein, and Albert Tribelhorn, mascot. Photo courtesy Larry Summers.

Max Beer Parlor Baseball Team 1934. Photo courtesy of Paul Goreski

Orthodox Food Festival & Globeville Days

2009-07-21T07:58:00.000-07:00

From its beginning, Globeville has been known for its ethnic diversity, with people from Eastern Europe and Russia settling the area in the 1880s for jobs in the smelters and meat packing plants. The neighborhood continues to embrace and celebrate diverse cultures during its annual Orthodox Food Festival and

Old Globeville Days, held Saturday

and Sunday July 18 and 19, 2009.

Visitors could find homemade food

and crafts from Eritrea, Greece,

Italy, Mexico, Romania, Russia

and Serbia. There were local

beverages, Coors, Bud and Miller

beers, as well as the Czech

Pilsner Irquel and the Slovenian

brandy Slivovitz.

The entertainment was a varied

with 10 different acts taking

the stage over the two-day

festival. Some highlights included

Mark Brissenden playing the

Gaida, a Bulgarian bagpipe,

Planina singing songs of

Eastern Europe and Willie &

the Po' Boys with Southern rock.

There were games and activities

for the children and tours of

the beautiful Orthodox Cathedral.

Mark the third weekend in July

for next year's event.

Top photo, lamb roasting

on a spit provides a delicious aroma.

Middle photo, Fotia from

Hellenic Dance Academy of Denver.

Bottom photo, food vendors

offer a multitude of choices.

Sheedy Row

2009-06-28T20:47:00.000-07:00

Dennis Sheedy's Globe Smelter provided some company housing for its employees. The company built the Globe Hotel on Washington Street, a four-story building containing a kitchen, dining hall, and 125 rooms, where single men boarded two to a room, alternating shifts to use a single bed.

Houses for families were available in an area called “Sheedy Row,” east of Washington Street at about 54th Avenue. Betty Zalar Paprocki’s family occupied a two-story brick home with a rather large yard. “There were ten houses on Sheedy Row and that was the name of the street, Sheedy Row. It was a cul de sac just east of Washington Street. They were nice little houses and each one was a little different from the others. They each had a kitchen and dining room, and a small yard with room for a garden. My grandfather worked in the smelter and that’s how we got a house there."

Left to right, Betty Zalar, and her cousins Juanita and Bob Chermas, taken from the front porch of her home on Sheedy Row. Photo, Betty Zalar Paprocki

Globeville Day Nursery

2009-04-27T15:11:00.000-07:00

Early in the 20th century, many women in Globeville found it necessary to work outside the home in commercial laundries, the packing plants or as domestics in the homes of Denver's wealthy citizens. Although some families had grandparents who could watch young children while mothers were at work, those who didn't could rely on the Globeville Day Nursery.

Garden Place teachers Annie Kelly and Luann B. Hanna were instrumental in founding the nursery in 1909, and served on the board of directors for the life of the center. The center was located at 4413 Logan Street and was managed for many years by Miss Mattie Parkhurst.

For 10 cents a day children were given "a nutritious hot lunch and a 3 pm snack of bread and jelly, milk and fruit." The children were under the medical supervision of Dr. Robert S. Burketwho visits each day." The nursery was open six days a week.

In addition to caring for children, the center was a resource for immigrant families assimilating into American life. A Mother's Club met on the third Tuesday of the month to study "America, her needs and ideals" and the English language.

The nursery served the neighborhood until 1948 when it closed because of declining enrollment. The house is now a private residence.

photos courtesy of Paul Goreski

Top photo, children in the front yard of the Globeville Day Nursery

Lower photos, left to right Florence Fanning, Mattie Parkhurst, unknown, Louise Goreski

February 26, 1950

2009-04-16T12:45:00.000-07:00

Both the Denver Post and the Rocky Mountain News featured the story, KOA radio carried the broadcast live and a score of airplanes flew overhead. An estimated 100,000 people gathered near the site while an additional 250,000 watched from rooftops and ridges all over the city. The occasion was the demolition of the Grant Smelter smokestack, a 350-foot remnant of Denver's glory days of mining and smelting.

The giant chimney was built in 1892, part of the expansion of Denver's largest smelter, the Omaha and Grant. The stack was the tallest structure in the region and a symbol of the city's largest industry.

A year after the completion of the chimney, the nation experienced a depression that hit mining and smelting hard. Changes in technology, the depletion of rich ores and the long, violent labor strike of 1903 resulted in the closing of the smelter, leaving the massive plant and stack.

The smelter was dismantled until only the enormous smokestack remained, and it became a playground for neighborhood children who rode their bikes in and out and dared each other to climb the steep walls. Issues of safety and economics eventually dictated the that the stack would be demolished.

Sunday, February 26, 1950, was the day selected for the demolition. Denver Mayor Quigg Newton, politicians and newspapermen made speeches eulogizing the structure as most of Denver's population waited. There was delay after delay until 5pm when five blasts, each two seconds apart, exploded in the base of the 7000-ton tower. Incredibly, nothing happened. When three more blasts were detonated, a million bricks crashed to earth and a blinding cloud of dust enveloped officials and spectators. It took more dynamite on the following day to finish the job. Denver had shed a piece of its industrial past and, in 1952, constructed the Denver Coliseum on the spot.

Photos of the stack courtesy of Janet Wagner

Sanguinette's Farm

2009-03-19T15:17:00.000-07:00

Brothers Louis and William Sanguinette are first listed in the Denver City Directory in 1876. Originally from Genoa, Italy, they stayed for a time in New Orleans before opening a saloon in the mining town of Georgetown, Colorado. Louis, William and their father Peter moved to Globeville after Peter purchased 10 acres of farmland from former Globeville mayor William Clark, who lived on Washington Street.

The Sanguinettes worked together to build a big home for their large, extended family (Louis and his wife Mary had 14 children) and raised enough vegetables, turkeys, and chickens to support themselves and supply local markets. The Sanguinette farm was best known for its celery, crisp, sweet and almost white in appearance.

Mary Sanguinette Dudymott, the great granddaughter of Peter, still lives close to her family's former farm in Globeville. She recalls her grandfather Jim who was born in 1882, and his tales of visiting with the gypsies and the Indian tribes who camped along the Platte River. She remembers his alarm as the area became increasingly industrial with the arrival of the smelters, railroads and the meat packing plants.

Family photo, top, left to right, Leroy Mosconi, Rose Sanguinette Mosconi, John, Lily and Louis Sanguinette. Photos courtesy of Mary Sanguinette Dudymott.

Bottom photo features Leroy Mosconi and Peter Sanguinette plowing fields along Watervliet, the name of Washington Street before 1903.

1st German Congregational Church

2009-02-17T14:47:00.000-08:00

German-speaking people in Globeville came, not from Germany, but from villages along the Volga River in Russia. Perhaps because they had been persecuted for their religion in Russia, German-Russians wasted no time organizing churches in Globeville. The earliest of these was the First German Congregational Church.

The church was founded by people from the village of Norka and was known as "the Norkera Church." The first structure, known as the shanty, was constructed at 44th and Lincoln in 1894 and was soon replaced by a larger brick building in 1896 or '97. As in the old country, life revolved around the church with Sunday services, prayer meetings, Bible studies and revivals. The services were held in German, and children attended "German school" after regular school during the week. Membership increased steadily and, in 1927, a larger church was built.

Throughout the years, attendance and contributions remained high, even as the neighborhood came under attack. The construction of I-25 and I-70 took the homes and businesses of many church members and led to discussions about relocating away from the neighborhood. A search committee purchased land at 5615 West 64th Avenue in Arvada and the new church was dedicated in 1974. The former building in Globeville was purchased by the city of Denver in 1976 and is now home to the Globeville Community Resource Center.

45th & Washington

2009-02-08T12:52:00.000-08:00

For over a hundred years, the corner at 45th and Washington has been the place to go for an inexpensive meal and visit with friends. Today the site is home to a McDonalds Restaurant; in 1908, it was home to the Western Slavonic Lodge.

Slavs began arriving in Globeville in the 1880s seeking jobs in the Grant and Globe Smelters. Work in the smelters was hard and dangerous with extreme heat, dust, and exposure to toxic fumes. To provide financial security for themselves and their families, the Slavs formed Zapadna Slovanska Zveza, the Western Slavonic Association, a fraternal society that offered sick and death benefits for its members.

The organization sought to preserve the language, culture and heritage of the mother country, Slovenia. Here, the newcomer felt comfortable and welcome, speaking his native tongue, enjoying familiar ethnic dishes and socializing with others from the old country. Slavs could find information about jobs, places to stay and where to meet other single people from home. New arrivals were introduced to American customs, music, dress and slang and helped with the process of Americanization.

Slavs gradually assimilated into American life, moved up the economic ladder and away from the Globeville neighborhood. The Western Slavonic is now Western Fraternal Life and still offers annuities, insurance products and fraternal activities at its location at 11265 Decatur Street in Westminster. The land was sold to McDonalds in 1988.

http://wsalife.com

First Mayor of Globeville

2009-01-22T20:53:00.000-08:00

William H Clark arrived with the hoards of gold seekers in October 1858 and built a small cabin in an area north of Denver. Along with his neighbors, a few homesteaders and native Americans, he did some farming, hunting and prospecting.

Clark had lived in his cabin for 20 years when the first of the state's big smelters, the Boston & Colorado was built in 1878. The Grant and Globe Smelters were constructed in 1882 and 1889 and Clark watched the district evolve from a rural outpost to an industrial area. The increasing population voted to incorporate as the town of Globeville in 1891 and selected Clark as the first Mayor.

After his mayoral term ended in 1894, Clark returned to farming. He was known as "Uncle Billy" and, at 59, was considered an old timer who would share his memories of the early days with anyone who had time to listen.

He was found dead of "advanced age" in his cabin on June 26, 1921 and is buried in Fairmount Cemetery. A street named "Clark Place" in the Globeville neighborhood pays tribute to this pioneer.

Globeville Story

2008-09-03T19:06:00.000-07:00

Every day, thousands of commuters speed along Interstate 70 at Washington Street, barely noticing the neighborhood of Globeville. There isn't enough time to see that the lettering on the tower of St. Joseph's Church is written in Polish or to catch a glimpse of the tiny golden dome of the Transfiguration Orthodox Cathedral. Other ethnic churches, taverns, lodge buildings and homes are lost from view on the elevated freeway. The remains of the Globe smelter, for which the neighborhood was named, is hardly visible at all. This neighborhood has a rich history, worth slowing down and taking a closer look.