Red Rocks Park is a mountain park in
Jefferson County, Colorado
Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 census, the population was 582,910, making it the fourth-most populous county in Colorado. The county seat is Golden, and the most populous city is Lakewood.
...
, owned and maintained by the city of
Denver
Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...
as part of the
Denver Mountain Parks
The Denver Mountain Parks system contains more than of parklands in the mountains and foothills of Jefferson, Clear Creek, Douglas, and Grand counties in Colorado, west and south of Denver.
Owned and maintained by the City and County of Denver ...
system. The park is known for its very large red
sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks.
Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) ...
outcrops. Many of these
rock formations
A rock formation is an isolated, scenic, or spectacular surface rock outcrop. Rock formations are usually the result of weathering and erosion sculpting the existing rock. The term ''rock formation'' can also refer to specific sediment ...
within the park have names, from the mushroom-shaped Seat of Pluto to the inclined Cave of the Seven Ladders. The most visited rocks, around
Red Rocks Amphitheatre
Red Rocks Amphitheatre (also colloquially as simply Red Rocks) is an open-air amphitheatre built into a rock structure in the Western United States, western United States, near Morrison, Colorado, west of Denver. There is a large, tilted, flyi ...
, are Creation Rock to the north, Ship Rock to the south, and Stage Rock to the east.
The red sandstone found throughout Red Rocks Park is geologically identified as belonging to the
Fountain Formation
The Fountain Formation is a Pennsylvanian (geology), Pennsylvanian bedrock unit consisting primarily of conglomerate (geology), conglomerate, sandstone, or arkose, in the states of Colorado and Wyoming in the United States, along the east side of ...
. Other
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
examples of Fountain Formation geology include nearby
Roxborough State Park
Roxborough State Park is a state park of Colorado, United States, known for dramatic red sandstone formations. Located in Douglas County south of Denver, Colorado, the park was established in 1975. In 1980 it was recognized as a National Na ...
,
Garden of the Gods
Garden of the Gods (Arapaho: ''Ho3o’uu Niitko’usi’i'') is a public park located in Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States. It was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1971.
Name
The area now known as Garden of the Gods was fir ...
near
Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...
, and the
Flatirons
The Flatirons are rock formations in the western United States, near Boulder, Colorado, consisting of flatirons. There are five large, numbered Flatirons ranging from north to south (First through Fifth, respectively) along the east slope of ...
near
Boulder
In geology, a boulder (or rarely bowlder) is a rock fragment with size greater than in diameter. Smaller pieces are called cobbles and pebbles. While a boulder may be small enough to move or roll manually, others are extremely massive.
In c ...
. The rocks were formed about 290-296 million years ago when the
Ancestral Rocky Mountains
The geology of the Rocky Mountains is that of a discontinuous series of mountain ranges with distinct geological origins. Collectively these make up the Rocky Mountains, a mountain system that stretches from Northern British Columbia through cen ...
were eroded during the
Pennsylvanian epoch. Later, uplift during the
Laramide orogeny
The Laramide orogeny was a time period of mountain building in western North America, which started in the Late Cretaceous, 70 to 80 million years ago, and ended 35 to 55 million years ago. The exact duration and ages of beginning and end of the o ...
tilted the rocks to the angle at which they sit today.
An Army expedition led by
Stephen Long discovered present-day Red Rocks in 1820. The park was in times far past a favored campsite of the
Ute tribe
Ute () are the Indigenous people of the Ute tribe and culture among the Indigenous peoples of the Great Basin. They had lived in sovereignty in the regions of present-day Utah and Colorado in the Southwestern United States for many centuries unt ...
for it provided natural cover from the elements. Its earliest known name was the Garden of the Angels, reputedly given to it on July 4, 1870, by Martin Van Buren Luther, a pioneer Colorado judge. In 1872, Marion Burts became the first recorded owner of Red Rocks. He sold it to
Leonard H. Eicholtz, a
civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering – the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructure while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing ...
who helped build the
Union Pacific Railway
The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...
and who developed the property into a park in 1878. Eicholtz added roads, trails, picnic grounds, steps, and ladders so visitors could explore the park. In 1906, Eicholtz sold Red Rocks to famed editor
John Brisben Walker
John Brisben Walker (September 10, 1847 – July 7, 1931) was a magazine publisher and automobile entrepreneur in the United States. In his later years, he was a resident of Jefferson County, Colorado.
Biography
Walker was born on September 10 ...
which he purchased with proceeds from his sale of ''
Cosmopolitan Magazine
''Cosmopolitan'' is an American monthly fashion and entertainment magazine for women, first published based in New York City in March 1886 as a family magazine; it was later transformed into a literary magazine and, since 1965, has become a List ...
''; Walker organized concerts on a temporary platform at the Garden of the Titans. Known however by the folk name of ''Red Rocks'' since the area was settled, it was formally given that name when Denver acquired it in 1928 from John Brisben Walker.
Within the park boundaries is the Red Rocks Amphitheatre, a venue used since 1941. The Amphitheater was designed by Burnam Hoyt within the area between two massive slabs of Red stone (Ship Rock and Creation Rock).
Park construction
Denver Mayor Ben Stapleton resisted developing the already beautiful Red Rocks but the city used Depression-era
New Deal
The New Deal was a series of programs, public work projects, financial reforms, and regulations enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in the United States between 1933 and 1939. Major federal programs agencies included the Civilian Cons ...
funding and resources to build out the park, as part of the development of the Denver Mountain Parks system. City planner George Cranmer oversaw the development, securing federal funding and establishment of a
Civilian Conservation Corps
The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was a voluntary government work relief program that ran from 1933 to 1942 in the United States for unemployed, unmarried men ages 18–25 and eventually expanded to ages 17–28. The CCC was a major part of ...
(CCC) camp at Mount Morrison to facilitate the construction of the park's features. CCC crews were responsible for building out the early roads and the amphitheater, as well as a Pueblo-style concession stand.
The park along with surviving CCC camp (which is one of the best preserved of such camps) were designated a
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...
in 2015.
Trails
There are several short, pedestrian-only trails in the park: Funicular Trail, Geologic Overlook Trail, Mt. Vernon Creek Trail, Red Rocks Trail, and the Trading Post Trail. Other multi-use trails are open to mountain bikes, horses, and leashed dogs.
Gallery
P1010377redrocksfall.jpg, Layered feature in Red Rocks Park, Colorado. Features in the Red Rocks region were caused by the uplift of mountains.
John Denver "Spirit" statue, Red Rocks Park, Morrison, Colorado.jpg, John Denver "Spirit" statue
Close up of red rock in the Red Rocks Park, Morrison, Colorado.jpg, Close-up of red rock
Sunburst on trail in the Red Rocks Park, Morrison, Colorado.jpg, Sunburst on trail
Bridge in Red Rocks Park, Morrison, Colorado.jpg, Bridge in Red Rocks Park
Trading Post Trail sign, Red Rocks Park, Morrison, Colorado.jpg, Trading Post Trail sign
Red Rocks Park flower.jpg, Red Rocks Park
Red Rocks Park in Denver.jpg, Red Rocks Park in Denver
See also
*
List of National Historic Landmarks in Colorado
This is a list of National Historic Landmarks in Colorado. There are 26 National Historic Landmarks in Colorado, two of which extend into New Mexico..
__TOC__
National Historic Landmarks in Colorado
See also
*Bibli ...
*
*
Willowbrook Amphitheatre Willowbrook Amphitheatre, also known as Chief Colorow's Cave, is a cave-like structure composed of Paleozoic Age Fountain Formation sandstone. The top is open to the sky. Willowbrook Amphitheatre is located in the Willowbrook subdivision in Jeffer ...
*
List of contemporary amphitheatres
This is a list of amphitheatres in use today.
})
,
, align="right", 3,000
, -
, Rhode Island
, Providence
, Waterplace Park Amphitheatre
, Not covered
,
, -
, rowspan=2 , South Carolina
, Simpsonville
, Heritage Park Amphitheatre
,
, align=" ...
*
Live at Red Rocks (disambiguation)
*
Roxborough State Park
Roxborough State Park is a state park of Colorado, United States, known for dramatic red sandstone formations. Located in Douglas County south of Denver, Colorado, the park was established in 1975. In 1980 it was recognized as a National Na ...
and its
Archaeological District
References
* Klun, Kerry. "Historic Homes of Denver: Entertainment Series-Red Rocks." (n.d.): n. pag. 18 Feb. 2011. Web.
External links
Red Rocks Park and AmphitheatreDenver Mountain Parks - Red Rocksat Denvergov.org
Historic Red Rocks
{{Authority control
Landforms of Jefferson County, Colorado
Protected areas of Jefferson County, Colorado
Denver Mountain Parks
Fountain Formation
Parks on the National Register of Historic Places in Colorado
National Historic Landmarks in Colorado
1928 establishments in Colorado
National Register of Historic Places in Jefferson County, Colorado
Protected areas established in 1928