Fun on Courthouse Hill
“Courthouse Hill,” which is Washington Avenue south of 14th Street, was a favorite location of settler children. In the winter, sleds packed with eager youth picked up sufficient speed on the Hill to be able to coast across the Washington Avenue Bridge. Some traveled as far as the Railroad Depot on 8th Street. This site was not just for winter entertainment; one newspaper had an account of children joy-riding in a wagon down Courthouse Hill.
Not only children enjoyed Courthouse Hill. It was also the site of the first bicycle hill climb competition recorded in Colorado. It was reported in the Colorado Transcript on September 12, 1892, as follows:
“The Rambler wheel Club of Denver came up to Golden Sunday to have a hill climbing contest…as this is the first event of its kind it was very interesting to the Wheelmen and the spectators. The course was over the steep sidewalk on Courthouse Hill and all of the contestants did good work considering that this is one of the toughest short hills in the state to climb owing to the steep pitch and the narrowness of the sidewalk. …First…was won by J.C. Epeneter, six times; second J.A. McGuire, five times; third A.V. Staufer, four times. The boys were highly pleased with the interest Golden people took in the contest and expressed a desire to try the hill again with a larger number of contestants. You are always welcome boys.”
Golden was a frequent tourist destination for cyclists in the late 19th century. As the article says they were always welcome, as they are now. Here we see the Denver Ramblers on Washington Avenue, in 1889. this photo, which is shot from the direction of the bridge, shows the courthouse in the far background at the right, atop Courthouse Hill.
Marker is on Washington Avenue.
Courtesy hmdb.org
