Denver City Cable Railway Building - Denver, CO
Posted by: 
Outspoken1
N 39° 45.032 W 104° 59.629
13S E 500529 N 4400069
Surviving building from one of Denver's two tramway companies
Waymark Code: WMC8T4
Location: Colorado, United States
Date Posted: 08/09/2011
Views: 5
Denver was an early adopter of public transportation as part of the City Beautiful Movement (
visit link) adopted by Denver Mayor Speer. Denver boasted two competing tramway companies. This was the powerhouse for the Denver City Cable Railway, one of Denver's two cable railways. Denver's cable cars lasted until 1900 primarily because of political resistance to conversion (actually disputes over franchises) and financial burdens placed on the lines.
"The two-story red brick building was constructed in 1889 to house the operations of the Denver City Cable Railway Company. Incorporated in 1888, by the early 1890s the company had thirty miles of cable railway running through Denver business and residential areas. Soon displaced by electric streetcars, the last Denver cable car ran in 1900. The Romanesque Revival style building features intricate brickwork and numerous semicircular arches. A tall polygonal chimney rises above the flat roof. The property is associated with the Historic Resources of Downtown Denver Multiple Property Submission." (from (
visit link)
This building has housed the Old Spaghetti Factory for many years. (
visit link) It is a charming structure which has been preserved in lower downtown Denver amid the high-rise glass boxes.