Page 582 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - USA

580  THE ROCKIES

Colorado in Hannibal, Missouri, she
came west to the boomtown
The name “Colorado” dates back to the 16th century, when of Leadville, Colorado, in 1886,
Spanish explorers first used the moniker in reference to the where she married a well-
red rock formations that skirt the Front Range of the Rocky known mining man, J.J. Brown.
Mountains. Over 400 years later, the term conjures images of When the silver market
collapsed, J.J. persevered until
majestic peaks and snow-clad ski slopes, with good reason. he laid claim to one of Colorado’s
Colorado is the most mountainous state in the US, with 54 richest veins of gold in 1893.
summits that measure more than 14,000 ft (4,267 m) above The couple then moved to
sea level. Officially a state since 1876, during the past century Denver, where they lived in
Colorado has evolved from a sparsely inhabited mining and luxury, despite not being
trapping country to become the most populous business accepted by the city’s elite.
Her courageous rescue efforts
center for the Rocky Mountain region. during the sinking of the Titanic
made her a national celebrity.
With this came the society
approval that had previously
eluded her. However, she died
in New York in 1932, penniless
and alone. Later, in the 1960s,
she was immortalized on stage
and screen.
Denver skyline with the Rockies forming a backdrop P Larimer Square & Lower
Downtown (LoDo)
v Denver State Capitol. This ornate Larimer Square: Larimer St between
structure houses the state 14th & 15th Sts. n (303) 685-8143.
* 663,900. k £ @ 7 ∑ larimersquare.com LoDo
n 1575 California St. Tel (303) 892- legislature and governor’s office. District: Bordered by Market &
1505. ∑ denver.org To the south of the park stands
the History Colorado Center, Wynkoop St. n (303) 628-5428. 7
Founded at the junction of the previously the Colorado History The birthplace of Denver,
Platte River and Cherry Creek as Museum, where exhibits focus Larimer Square remains a
a supply base for miners in on varied aspects of Colorado’s commercial and cultural hub
1858, Denver’s mild climate past. Continue clockwise for the city. Lying adjacent to
attracted settlers. Soon after, it around the park to reach the Confluence Park, where the
emerged as the region’s primary tiled, seven-story high Denver Platte River and Cherry Creek
trade and population center, Art Museum. This is one of the meet, this was the site where
and eventually became the city’s best museums and has white settlers first set up camp.
state capital in 1876. impressive collections of both The square bustles with activity
In the new millennium, Western as well as Native both day and night, mainly
abundant parklands, a vibrant American objects. Next to the because of its many boutiques,
downtown, and a number of art museum is the Clyfford galleries, bars, and restaurants.
well-known museums define Still Museum, which show- After a disastrous fire in
this growing city. Denver is set cases a rotating collection of 1863, wooden structures were
picturesquely at the foothills of the giant, swirling canvases prohibited. As a result, red-
the Rocky Mountains. of the abstract painting pioneer brick Victorian architecture
Clyfford Still. dominates both the square
P Civic Center Park and the neigh boring Lower
Between Colfax Ave & 14th Ave Pkwy, P Molly Brown House Downtown area (nicknamed
Broadway & Bannock St. History 1340 Pennsylvania St. Tel (303) 832- “LoDo”). Centered on Union
Colorado Center: 1200 & Broadway. 4092. Open 10am–4pm Tue–Sat, Station, LoDo experienced a
Open 10am–5pm daily. & 7 noon–4pm Sun. Closed public hols. renaissance of sorts in the
∑ historycolorado.org Denver & 8 ∑ mollybrown.org
Art Museum: 100 W 14th Ave Pkwy. This restored mansion, now a
Tel (720) 865-5000. Open 10am–5pm museum, was the home of “
Tue–Thu, 10am–8pm Fri, 10am–5pm The Unsinkable Molly Brown,”
Sat & Sun. Closed Thanksgiving,
Dec 25. & 7 ∑ denverart so-called for her survival of the
museum.org Titanic in 1912. Margaret Tobin
Brown was a flamboyant and
The geographical, cultural, and persistent woman whose life
political heart of Denver, the story exemplifies the boom-
Civic Center Park is dominated and-bust backdrop that is
by the gold-domed Colorado Colorado history. Born in 1867 Larimer Square, the birthplace of Denver
For hotels and restaurants in this region see pp592–3 and pp594–5

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