Roswell: Highway 285 to Berrendo Road - History

 

Roswell. A street view

Eh, UFOs are an established part of our history. This stunning flying saucer is not part of my block but it typifies an outstanding part of Roswell's character. You could say that it's a sufficient part of Roswell's place in history, but not a necessary one.

Of course, there was habitation by indigenous people far back. The first settlers in the area arrived from Missouri in 1865, but water was scarce in the area so they didn't stay. John Chissum had what was, at the time, the largest ranch on the United States, the Jingle Bob Ranch, about five miles from modern Roswell  

Van C. Smith established a permanent settlement around a way station in 1871. He was the first post master in New Mexico. He named the settlement after his father Roswell Smith 

But there still wasn't a reliable water source until Bathan Jaffa drilled his well in 1890. That put Roswell on the map.

North Roswell, the Roswell North of the current city center at the intersection of Main Street and 2nd Street (US 380) didn't become a thing until the latter part of the 1960s. (That was seven years after I was born in southern Florida.) That would include the section I'm currently studying....my home range.

I'll delve more deeply into the establishment and development of Roswell as I explore more of the town.

The area called Pine Lodge is a stone's throw from my yard.

Pine Lodge

Activity along Pine Lodge Road is recorded as far back as the 1960s with the current properties constructed around 1980 or later. The area has been agricultural since the beginning and has produced crops like corn and sheep since the 1960s.

I can't find when the pecan orchard on Pine Lodge Road was established but pecan growing in the area dates back to the late 1970s and early 1980s.

A lot has happened in this area including the opening of a shopping mall, many restaurants and motels, the establishment of the Bitter Lakes National Wildlife Refuge (in 1937), and the beginning of plans for big solar farms to provide electricity for the city.

And (hrmph) I moved here in October of 2025.

Do you know the history of your home territory? Finding out can be a fascinating adventure. And how does your home town fit into the rest of the world. If you look, it might surprise you.

--- Terminus: Union Station ---

Gold drew people to Colorado, but the promise of gold in the area that is now Denver proved to be illusory, so Denver restructured as a supply hub and thrived. Early settlements lay south of present Denver along the South Platte River and it's tributaries - Petersburg, Montana City, Auraria. Denver City grew across Cherry Creek from Auraria and when a bridge was built across Cherry Creek, the two settlements merged to become Denver.

The Union Station area was the location of early Denver.

On 1/8/19, I took the RTD E Line from University Station to it's terminus at Union Station, the central hub of the Regional Transportation District in Denver. At this point, 17th street is a mall with the light rail station at one end and the old Union Station building at the other.

                                                                 [17th Street mall]

                                                                 [Light rail station]

The mall includes the underground buss terminal and the Amtrak station, which will soon be the terminus for the light rail G Line out to Wheatridge.

The Amtrak station has light canopies that are sturdy because of their curvature. You can see the effect for yourself by holding a sheet of paper by one hand and trying hold something like a pencil or marble on it. The paper, of course, just collapses. Give it a slight valley and it will hold up a surprising amount of weight.

                                                              [Train station canopy]

The old station, built in 1881, burned in 1894, but was rebuilt in 1914. The whole complex was completed in 2012. The station house, reminiscent of many large city central stations with it's high arched windows, now houses the 112 room Crawford Hotel, several restaurants and shops, and a large train hall.

                                                                   [Union Station]

They were taking down the tall Christmas trees while I wandered around.

I once took the Flatirons Flier bus to Boulder. It leaves out from the Union Station mall. I wandered around the LoDo (Lower Downtown Denver) area for sometime before asking where the buses were.

They were underground. There are two pavilions at street level that house stairs and elevators to the underground bus terminal.

The ticket sellers are located in the underground bus terminal and I had some expired ticket books I needed to exchange. This time, I knew where I was going.

                                                                      [Bus terminal]

Merging back out into the sunlight at Chestnut Place, I was back at the light rail station and, looking west, saw the Millennium Bridge. I've seen a lot of reviews of the Millennium Bridge that remarked, "What's so special?"

Well, that's easy. It was the first of it's kind. It was one of three bridges begun in 1999 to connect the Highland community with LoDo. Before then, pedestrians would have to cross an interstate highway, a river, and a train yard to get to downtown Denver.

The Millennium Bridge crosses the train yard. It had to fit between some high bridges and the design was to provide a relatively small incline from street level, so an innovative cable-stayed design was used with a single 61 meter steel mast (the whole thing looks a lot like a pontoon boat with a single sail mast) to support the cables that support the walking deck. It is only 8 meters above street level, and it spans 40 meters (130 feet for you Imperial measurists) with a clearance of 61 meters (200 feet).

The Wikipedia has an informative article on the bridge here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denver_Millennium_Bridge

                                                            [The Millennium Bridge]

It's also famous for having been in a movie (The Frame) and engineering documentaries - notably Stephen Ressler's Teaching Company presentation - Understanding the World's Greatest Structures.

I was a little unsure about how to proceed from the Millennium Bridge to see the other two bridges but I shouldn't have been. From the deck of the Millennium Bridge, the other two were in sight just to the north.

                                             [Commons Park from the Millennium Bridge]

Just north of Union Station is a strip of greenway along the South Platte River - Confluence and Commons Parks. If I had continued my hike north of Alameda on the Platte River Trail instead of moving east into Denver on my station-to-station hikes, I would have ended up here. Historically, this was a popular meeting place for Native Americans until gold was found here in 1858. Gold and water was the reason Denver was built here to start with.

                                                        [Speer Boulevard Bridge]

Looking west along Commons park (see the mountains?), I saw the Speer Boulevard  Bridge over the South Platte River. This is a classic steel arch cable suspension bridge. Cable risers hang the road bed from the arch. Just this side of Speer Boulevard is a more modern looking single span bridge that carries 15th Street and pedestrian traffic across the South Platte.

                                                               [Platte River Bridge]

The second of the  Highland access bridges is a light sidewalk held up by cables from two thin towers anchored midway the span. This bridge carries pedestrian traffic across the South Platte.

                                                                     [Platte River]

The 15th Street bridge separates Commons Park from Convergence Park, where Cherry Creek joins the South Platte. Here, the South Platte takes a turn to the east where it will join the Platte River far down stream in Nebraska near Ogallala. Cherry Creek, one of the larger tributaries in the Denver area, arises on the high plateau south of Denver and flows through Castlewood Canyon before becoming an urban stream.

                                                                     [Highland Bridge]

The Highland Bridge crosses Interstate 25. It is one of the three cable stay bridges and is the latest, having been completed December 16, 2006. The 325 foot long walkway is suspended under the sweeping arch constructed of steel pipe.

                                                            [Shoe hanging on the arch]

I thought this was a Southern thing. Down there you can see shoes hanging on power lines.

                                                                     [Confluence Park]

Cherry Creek isn't terribly spectacular, but the Platte River and most of it's main tributaries can become impressive when the weather is right - during the infrequent rain storms or when the snow pack melts from the mountains.

19th Street crosses the Platte River at the eastern end of Commons Park over an ornate steel trestle bridge.

                                                                [19th Street Bridge]

                                                                      [19th Street]

Following 19th Street back into town (I wanted to see Sakura Square and it is on 19th Street) is not as simple as it sounds. You have to get back across the train yard. Fortunately, there is a pedestrian bridge at the eastern end of Union Station that will do the trick.

                                                [Amtrak station from pedestrian bridge]

                                                                   [Sakura Square]

Sakura Square is a city block at 19th and Lamar Streets with a two story building with shops. The Japan American Society of Colorado has an office there on the second floor that (apparently) provides exhibits, but they were closed.

There is a small Japanese garden that commemorates three key figures in the Japanese American community.

                                                              [Yoshitaka Tamai]

Yoshitaka Tamai was a Buddhist priest who, born in 1900, moved to Denver in 1930 to establish the Buddhist temple at 20th and Lawrence Streets. The apartment complex at Sakura Square, Tamai Tower was dedicated to his memory in 1977, and the statue in the garden was placed on Sakura Square in 1996.

The engravings on the other statues, in white stone, didn't turn out well in the photographs, so you'll just have to visit Sakura Square to read them.

                                                                [Minoru Yasui]

Minoru Yasui (1916-1986) was a Japanese American lawyer and activist who was born in Hood River, Oregon. After internment in an American concentration camp during most of World War II, he moved to Denver in 1944. He received the Presidential Medal of Freedom posthumously in 2015.

The Wikipedia has a good article on the life of Minoru Yasui here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minoru_Yasui

                                                                    [Ralph Carr]

Colorado governor from 1939 to 1943, Ralph Lawrence Carr (1887-1950) supported the Japanese American cause during their internment in the concentration camps of World War II and afterward, the establishment of the Japanese American community in Colorado. He was the only elected official in the United States to publicly apologize for the treatment of American citizens of Japanese ancestry and that, arguably, cost him a U.S. Senate position.

I plan to visit the Ralph L. Carr Colorado Judicial Center in a few days and I will report on my trip afterward.

After eating at Sakura Square, I headed down Lamar Street to 15th Street and back to the light rail station at Union Station. From University Station, I walked to La Belle Rosette's for a signature espresso, and then to home. (jiggledy jig)

Bridges can be fascinating if you know how they work. There may be a famous one close to you. Take some time to really look at the bridges around you and see if you can figure out how they support their load.

If you want an in depth analysis of any of the interesting structures in Denver, Steven Ressler provides it in Understanding the World's Greatest Structures. Actually, I would recommend anything by him. He's knowledgeable, has a knack for getting difficult concepts across, is playful, and loves a good demonstration.

--- Auraria West to Osage ---

This was a very short hike. The light rail station is just at the very edge of Auraria campus near Colfax. The Domo is on the first block across Colfax, and the 10th Street and Osage Station is just a few blocks further. All in all, I doubt if Auraria West Station is two miles from 10th Street and Osage, but this hike is packed with interesting places.

Auraria West Station is my last station-to-station hike for a while. Next month, I start exploring the light rail termini. Alameda is the last station to transfer to other lines to the north and east. Auraria West is on the line that continues to Union Station and it is also where the W Line, which heads west to Golden, splits off.

As mentioned above, it is right on the border of the Auraria campus, which is shared by three colleges: Community College of Denver, Metropolitan State University of Denver, and the University of Colorado - Denver.

                                                              [Auraria West Station]

I've been through Auraria West Station several times. It's on the way to the Human Services offices in the Castro Building and the W Line serves the Golden area.

Frankly, the area isn't that impressive from the station, but there are some suggestive sights. I've heard of and seen the back of the Domo Restaurant from the light rail. It doesn't look like much from the back of the building but it has a good reputation. I can also see this building from the station - it looks like an old Spanish mission.

                                                      [Saint Cajetan's from the station]

As I walk around the parking area, I realize that it is on the Auraria Campus. Reaching Colfax, I saw a trail heading back onto the campus and I took that and am almost immediately at the Ninth Street Historic Park.

When the early settlers moved up stream from the short lived Montana City, they established a settlement called "Auraria". The name made plain the people's interest - gold.  It was founded in 1858, three weeks before William Larimer staked out the future Denver City across Cherry Creek. The settlers, lead by William Greeneberry Russell, was a group from Georgia, and the town was named after Auraria, Georgia.

I keep finding ties back to my homeland. Before I retired, I had left the Southeastern United States exactly four time, once on a construction ministry trip to Great Falls, Montana, and three times to Denver. I guess it was only natural that I would end up in Denver, and I keep finding all these links back to Georgia and Alabama.

The Ninth Street Historic Park has preserved a section of old Auraria - a row of houses that now serve as administrative buildings and museums for the Auraria Campus. The buildings display a variety of styles from the late 1800s and early 1900s and each has a plaque out front that provides a little of the history. Here are pictures of some of the buildings.

                                                        [Ninth Street Historic Park]

After wandering around the park a while, I made a beeline for the big Spanish style building and found that it was, indeed, an old church, built in 1920, which is now a part of the college campus. On the day I visited, they were having a blood drive but the registration crew told me quite a lot about the building. There are some interesting stained glass windows there.

                                                              [Saint Cajetan's]

They also told me a little about the chapel across the way, which was my next stop.

                                                            [Emmanuel Gallery]

The oldest religious structure still standing in Denver, the Emmanuel Chapel was built in 1876. First an Episcopal chapel, the building later became a Jewish synagogue, as indicated by the inscription now over the door, and is now an art gallery. It was hosting an exhibition by the German artist Aram Bartholl on the day of my visit.

His work is very modernistic and strikingly "clean". The gallery was spacious, white, and neon. He's worth looking up (hint: there's a Wikipedia article.)

Locals make great tour guides if you know how to talk to them. The folks at the art gallery directed me toward the student union building, an old, massive brewery called "Tivoli". The Tivoli Brewing Company, still in operation, was founded in 1859 in this huge brick building that looks like something right out of a Charles Dickens novel.

                                                           [Tivoli Brewing Company]

After another pass through the Ninth Street Historic Park, I left the campus, crossed Colfax, and walked to the Domo Japanese Restaurant, which is a reconstruction of a Japanese farmhouse. Restaurant, museum, gardens, and cultural center, it was an experience meal. The authentic Japanese food was served in an authentic manner in an authentic setting complete with tree stumps for seats. It made me happy.

                                                   [The Domo Japanese Restaurant]

After a big bowl of ramen and three sides (I don't know what they were, and I didn't ask. They were tasty.), I looked around the gardens, made a donation for the Myamar refuges, and headed down Osage toward Lincoln Park, a large green with a water park (closed for the winter) and a mural by Emanuel Martinez, that contains both modern and ancient symbols. It's called "La Alma" (The Soul, painted in 1978.

                                                                         [La Alma]

10th Street and Osage Station was close by. On the way back to University Station, I took the opportunity of taking pictures of the light rail reflected in upper stories of buildings as it passed on the elevated track just south of Broadway Station.

                                                               [Reflected train]

Does your town have any old buildings open to the public? One of my past hometowns, Selma, Alabama, had over 1000 antebellum structures. Old homes are great places to get in touch with past cultures.

I'll probably be making more trips to old Auraria. College campuses have always attracted me - they're like sprawling indoor-outdoor museums providing exhibitions in just about every field of interest, events, and many peoplewatching opportunities.