Auraria was a gold mining camp established in 1858 in the
Kansas Territory of the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. Today it survives in its original location as a
neighborhood
A neighbourhood (Commonwealth English) or neighborhood (American English) is a geographically localized community within a larger town, city, suburb or rural area, sometimes consisting of a single street and the buildings lining it. Neigh ...
of
Denver
Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...
,
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...
, immediately south of the confluence of
Cherry Creek and the
South Platte River.
Geography
Auraria is in central Denver, just west of
downtown, and is roughly triangular, bordered by
Colfax Avenue on the south,
Cherry Creek to the northeast, and
South Platte River to the northwest.
History
On October 3, 1858, a group of
Georgia prospectors led by
Green Russell established the townsite of Auraria south of
Cherry Creek near the Cherry Creek Diggings, over a month before a group of
Kansas Territory speculators led by
William Larimer established the rival
Denver City on the other side of Cherry Creek.
Henry Allen, a surveyor, laid the town platte and was Auraria town company's first president.
The town was named for the
gold
Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...
mining settlement of
Auraria, Georgia. On October 29, Charles H. Blake and A.J. Williams opened a mercantile business out of wagons in Auraria.
On January 18, 1859, the
United States Post Office Department authorized the first three post offices in the
Pike's Peak gold region:
Auraria, Kansas Territory;
Montana, Kansas Territory; and
St. Vrain, Nebraska Territory.
Henry Allen was the first postmaster of Auraria.
On, April 15, 1859, ten delegates from six communities in the
Pike's Peak Country met in convention at
Dick Wooton’s store in Auraria to pass resolutions to organize a
Provisional State of Jefferson. On April 23,
William Byers published the first edition of the
Rocky Mountain News, the Rocky Mountain region's first newspaper, at Auraria. At an election on September 24, voters rejected the proposed state, but on October 24, voters approved the establishment of the
Provisional Government of the Territory of Jefferson.
Auraria ceased to exist as a separate town on December 3, 1859, when the
Jefferson Territory granted a charter to the consolidated
City of Denver, Auraria, and Highland, which would come to be known as just
Denver City, the territorial capital and seat of
Arrappahoe County. The Auraria post office was renamed Denver City on February 11, 1860.
[ The Jefferson Territory was itself superseded on February 28, 1861, when U.S. President James Buchanan signed An Act to provide a temporary Government for the Territory of Colorado.][ A few buildings from old Auraria are still standing today.
The name "Auraria" survives in Denver as the neighborhood along the west bank of Cherry Creek to the east bank of the South Platte River, bordered on the south by Colfax Avenue.
]
Pending redevelopment
A large section of Auraria not included in the Auraria Higher Education Campus, and located northwest of Auraria Parkway, is occupied by two large entertainment complexes and is bisected by the RTD lightrail tracks. Elitch Gardens is currently northwest of the rail lines, whereas Ball Arena is to the south. Plans have been proposed that suggest changes to these areas and have moved through some of the approval processes, but no firm date has been set for redevelopment. Despite mitigation after the 1965 flood, this part of Auraria is still largely within the 100-year flood plain, so rechanneling the South Platte River is a precondition for the developments.
In 2018, the City and County of Denver approved rezoning and development agreements for The "River Mile", 58 acres currently occupied by Elitch Gardens. To make room for this mixed use development, Elitch Gardens will move, but no date has been set.
In 2024, the City and County of Denver approved rezoning and development agreements for 64 acres of Auraria centered around the Ball Arena (which will remain).
Arts and culture
Attractions
* Auraria Campus
* Auraria Library
* Ball Arena
* Confluence Park
* Elitch Gardens
* Emmanuel Shearith Israel Chapel - Denver's oldest church building
* Meow Wolf Convergence Station
* Ninth Street Historic Park
* St. Cajetan’s Church - Historic Hispanic church
* St. Elizabeth's Church - Only active church on the Auraria campus
* Tivoli Student Union
Sports
Auraria contains the Ball Arena arena, home of the Colorado Avalanche, Denver Nuggets
The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division (NBA), Northwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA), W ...
, and Colorado Mammoth, as well as the venue of concerts and other events.
Education
The neighborhood of Auraria is dominated by the Auraria Campus, which is home to three institutions of higher learning: University of Colorado Denver (CU Denver), Metropolitan State University of Denver (MSU Denver), and Community College of Denver (CCD). Vestiges of the old neighborhood remain, however, in the Ninth Street Historic Park on the campus. The three institutions occupy the bulk of the Auraria Neighborhood, so there is very little permanent residence. The schools mainly serve commuter students, though housing has recently been developed at Campus Village Apartments (UCD), Auraria Student Lofts, and Regency Student Housing.
Media
There are two student newspapers that are published in Auraria. The University of Colorado Denver's newspaper is called the "CU Denver Sentry" and Metropolitan State University's newspaper is "Met Media".
Transportation
Auraria is serviced by the Regional Transportation District. In addition to service from several bus lines, it has four light rail stations within its boundaries: Colfax at Auraria station, Auraria West station, Empower Field at Mile High station and Ball Arena–Elitch Gardens station.
See also
* City and County of Denver
* Denver-Aurora-Lakewood, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area
* Front Range Urban Corridor
* List of ghost towns in Colorado
* List of neighborhoods in Denver
* List of populated places in Colorado
* List of post offices in Colorado
* Pike's Peak gold rush
References
External links
City and County of Denver
State of Colorado
*
History Colorado
{{authority control
1858 establishments in Kansas Territory
Colorado Mining Boom
Former populated places in Denver
Geography of Denver
Ghost towns in Colorado
History of Denver
Neighborhoods in Denver
Populated places established in 1858
Pre-statehood history of Colorado