THE
E-TIME CAPSULE
1971 to 1980
Name: Regina
Age: 55
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
Everyone, it seems was heading west
in the 1970s. I was among the hordes headed for wide-open,
bright-blue-and-gold Colorado, from the dreary cities back East.
Denver was a totally different place than I had ever been before,
the air was light, people seemed honest and friendly. I didn’t
know a single soul out here. It was wonderful. I felt like I could
invent a whole new me, the Denver me.
What do
you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
I hope that it stays
just the way it is. It is fine.
Name: Jean
Age: 36
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
My first time at the Stock Show got me hooked on Denver. In
1978 I bought some tickets for myself and my girlfriends. We've
been going every year since then. One of them even married a
cowboy she met there. No better place on earth for a "girls
night out"
What do
you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
Name: Christy
Age: 35
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
My greatest memory of this decade is when my mother and
grandmother would take me downtown during the Christmas season to
look at the animated figures in the windows of May D&F and the
Denver Dry Goods department stores and then we would watch the
skaters at the skating rink that was right next to the May D &
F store.
What do
you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
Name: Mike
Age: 31
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
I am a Denver born and raised native. I remember in 6th grade
my friend and I riding the bus from north Denver to downtown and
just examining the city from head to toe like two explorers on an
expedition. We had a ball. The city was safe and clean then, and
remains so today. Denver is a great city.
What do
you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
I like the future of Denver. With the improvements to downtown
and the addition of world class attractions, the city will
continue to thrive. I hope the population in the suburbs around
Denver doesn't ruin the inner city from being a special place in
Colorado, along with the natural beauty around Denver.
Name: Margaret
Age:
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
Moving to Denver from Pueblo was probably one of the biggest
moves I have ever made. Moving to the BIG city. I found it to be
clean and fast paced. Being able to come downtown to the May
D&F and Denver Dry to see the Christmas windows. Also trying
to ice skate for the first time was fun.
What do
you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
Too many people for one thing. Hopefully there will be
affordable housing for the working poor. It seems that all the
housing going up is for those that have high paying jobs. It would
be nice to see people actually getting along with each other.
Social security for the baby boomers????????????
Name: Steve
Age: 49
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
Walking down the hill every morning to Azar’s Big Boy
restaurant, at 13th Ave. and Broadway, for a quick
breakfast of coffee and English muffin (the same thing every day).
On cold, dark winter mornings, Azars was a warm and friendly
haven, where everybody knew your name. This was my only
extravagance on a modest income at the time. I was new in town,
and I felt welcomed there.
What do
you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
More places in our lives, in our neighborhoods, where we can
gather and feel safe and warm, where people know your name.
Name: sarah
Age: 37
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
i remember going on hayrides at Glacier Barn in the heart of
beautiful Glendale. Another pastime was watching the planes land
at Stapleton Airport
What do
you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
Downtown will continue to be popular.
Name: Cathy Reynolds
Age: 55
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
Other than having our second son, my fondest memory is becoming
the first woman elected to the Denver City Council. I have been
privileged to be a part of the history of Denver for the final
quarter of the 20th century. I have closed and opened airports and
arenas, championed civil rights, fought guns, worked on downtown
renewal, negotiated the Avalanche into town, watched the Broncos
through all their phases, closed Lowry and opened it to a
fantastic new beginning, and was hip-deep in thousands of other
really interesting projects. I have laughed, cried, celebrated and
mourned with the best people in the world. Thank you, Denver. It
has been a wonderful ride.
What do
you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
DIA will still be wonderful, but we'll need more runways.
Downtown will be okay, but need a little redoing. Our
neighborhoods will be in great shape and we will have a major city
investment in affordable housing. We will still be trying to
expand our trade area and diversify our economy. The DPS will be
getting awards for excellence. The next political generation will
be delighted that we made the investments we did when we did. The
local press still won't believe that the City government does a
good job, but we will be hailed as exemplary by the rest of the
world. Denver will still be the best place to be.
Name: Dennis Chavez
Age: 44
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
My fondest memories of Denver were between the years of 1978
and 1979. I moved to Denver in 1978, from Pueblo. My girlfriend
had left me waiting at the altar and I had lost my job. I came
here looking for a new start. Exactly a year later in 1979, I was
accepted into the Denver Police Department. At first I hated
living within the city boundaries, as required by city charter.
Later, I stayed by choice, having come to love this great city,
which I call home now.That was 22 years ago, and I've loved every
minute of it. Denver has been very good to me.
What do
you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
Ten years...that's not so far off. I see more people living in
the city and surrounding areas. Aside from the usual stuff...new
mayor, new council people, new buildings...I don't see a whole lot
of changes in 10 years. Maybe a new Interstate and rail system,
but aside from that, this will still be the same Denver we've all
come to know and love.
Name: Joe
Age: 31
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
My mom would drag me downtown to shop and do things on
Saturdays. We'd take the #23 bus over the 15th Street viaduct, an
old iron bridge that looked ready to fall; over a wasteland of
weeds and railroad tracks. A real adventure from our home in
Northwest Denver. My favorite place was Woolworth’s because it
was so huge, and had so many toys. The bathrooms were totally
disgusting, nothing could be touched. My mom liked the big
department stores, like Denver Dry. For a treat we'd go to the
Orange drink stand on 16th Street, also have a corndogs there.
Other times we'd eat at Breakfast King and dodge the horseflies.
Sundays we'd come down for Mass at Holy Ghost Church, lots of bums
were around, and no glass building wrapped around it.
What do
you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
The city will have more people walking the streets, less
parking lots, more traffic. North Denver is the Wash park of
tomorrow. Central Platte will have many 'settlements', Capitol
Hill and Uptown area will be 'discovered' like LoDo is today. I
think the downtown region will be viewed like a 'little
SanFrancisco' in the years ahead, with restaurants and diversity
everywhere.
Name: Steve
Age: 50
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
I remember
watching the summer skies, and the immense thunderclouds float by,
from the roof of my apartment in Capitol Hill, and the incredible
sunsets over downtown. Very affordable entertainment for a
penniless young dreamer, just out of school.
I was drawn to this city by some invisible hand. It seemed
like the place to be…a community of creative energy, hopefulness
and opportunity. Now,
I can’t imagine living anyplace else.
What
do you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
Still a very friendly place to
live, where many hopes and dreams can be made real.
(And still dry and sunny. Too difficult to dream where it's
humid.)
Name: Estevan Bo-Ber'
Age: 58
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
The Wrong Bus.
Jason (11), Jessica (7) and I took the bus from North Denver to
downtown Denver to ice skate at the May D & F plaza rink. At
the end of the day, we took the bus to get home, but it was the
wrong bus: it took us to the Five Points realm where the driver
dropped us off, in the dark, at the last stop -- "It's
against policy to take you to the depot," he said. We waited
and waited in the cold dark, watching fleeting shadows scurry this
way and that, nervous but with a brave face. And, cold. The lights
from that northbound bus were the most welcome sight ever. Can you
dig it? It became an indelible memory.This is a true tale.
What
do you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
I'll be 68 by then, and Denver will
be way jacked up. The city will be populated with androids, bionic
mutants, aliens from the Black Lagoon, and corporate yupsters
packing heat. Everyone will have a big dog to fight off the
subterranean gangstas who come out at night to panhandle and mock
the androids. Suburbanites will sit around hobo fires eating
cheese whiz directly from the spout. I'll be in tall cotton,
masquerading as the Cosmic Clown. But, no one would be the wiser,
would they? Reality is so elusive.
Name: Phil Miller
Age: 43
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
My first day in 7th grade, which was the
first day of de-segragation in DPS at Merril Junior High. There
were white parents picketing out front, while five busloads of
African American Junior High School kids were pulling up. Up
until that time, other than on TV, I probably could have counted
on one hand the number of African Americans I'd seen in my whole
life.
Cruising 16th Street and avoiding Buster
Snyder, the policeman who had the reputation of ticketing the most
teenage kids.
Getting two weeks off during my 7th-grade
year due to the teachers' strike. -Getting an extra two weeks
added to our Christmas break because of a supposed oil
shortage.
Attending DPS from 1964 to 1975 and never
once having a "snow-day."
Having the city not sand every square inch
of the street on snowy days so that the roads were great for
"bumper hitching."
Seeing the Mickey Mouse hand that one of my
classmates put on the South High Clock hands as a graduation
present. Painting the "Pump House" roof with
purple and white as it stood guard over the All City DPS Stadium.
Trying to sneak through "Senior
Hall" as a sophomore. Getting caught here was an immediate
ejection out a side door which meant a three- minute walk around
the building to get back in. This practice was outlawed, I have
been told, because it is considered hazing.
Folding our papers in a small shop in back
of the Gaylord Shopping Center before pedaling off to deliver
them. It had a long workbench with stalls to stack your papers.
After folding them, you would pull up your bike and load them into
your paper bags. Wednesday was the worst day because it was the
biggest newspaper day for the Post, because of all the ads. All
newspapers were delivered in the evening so the noise and
commotion that we raised wasn't too bad for the neighbors.
Woodstock West, a little-known Vietnam War
protest that took place at DU. "Hippies" from all over
the country set up tents on the DU campus and refused to move
until the National Guard was called in. My parents strictly
forbade me from going up there to see it. I think they were there
about a week before they packed it up.
What
do you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
Name: Tom
Age: 43
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
I remember going to the different disco
clubs in and around Denver in the later '70s like the "Yellow
Pages," "The Rush," and "Score Minus
Two." I usually went with a group of people and thought that
the fun would never end. Sometimes we'd catch a movie at the
Cooper or go swimming at Celebrity Sports Center.
What
do you think Denver will be like in the year 2010?
I think the Metro area will stretch
from Ft. Collins to Colorado Springs. It will be just one big
city.
Name: Fred
Age: 31
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
Born and raised in Denver (eventually
relocated to SF in '86), I would have to say that the fondest
memory of Denver would be the growth during the '70s. All I
remember was that there was building going on everywhere, and
Denver seemed to be the center of the ill-fated energy boom. I
guess I would also say I fondly remember "The Denver"
department store, city hall at Christmas, the fountain at
Northglenn Mall, driving to Stapleton, hearing the newest disco on
KIMN (AM) in my mom's '74 Ford Mustang driving down 1-25 or going
to Cinderella City!
What do you think
Denver will be like in the year 2010?
Denver will ALWAYS be my home in my
heart. I can only wish the city the best of luck in the coming
decade. I always hope that Denver would eventually become more of
a "world-class" city. Who knows, someday, I may just
move back and enjoy the city as an adult !
Name: Nancy Knerl and Mary
Maulis
Age:
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
During the 1970s and early '80s, there was
an influx of people into Colorado, which I believe changed the
face and attitude of downtown Denver forever. There was a lot of
indiscriminate demolition of early Denver homes and landmarks. A
lot of people sported bumper stickers on their cars, proudly
declaring they were natives (and their sudden loss of identity).
The newcomers were brash and sometimes contemptuous of the type of
culture they found here. They added a different sort of vitality,
but never respected what had been lost, a friendly city. It has
taken the intervening years and a building up of the downtown
image to make it once again a place you would like to visit.
What do you think
Denver will be like in the year 2010?
Name: Steve
Age: 50
What is your fondest
memory of Denver between 1971 and 1980?
I came to Colorado in this decade, like with so
many others at that time who felt the need to head west. I
definitely felt as though I was part of a young, fast-moving group
of outsiders that had invaded Denver. Once I settled in, I wished
there was a way we could "close the gates," so that no
more non-Coloradans would be allowed in!
This was in mid-summer of 1974, and I was so
surprised to see lush, green lawns everywhere, being lavishly
watered by underground water sprinklers -- a strange sight to an
Easterner. The big beautiful trees of many varieties along the
streets and in the parks made the city feel like one very
appreciated and lovingly tended garden
What do you think
Denver will be like in the year 2010?
Not much worth boasting about, if we don't pay
attention.
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