As shown in a previous column, the narrow-gauge railroad known as the “Switzerland Trail of America” captivated its riders in the early 20th century. Even so, automobiles were beginning to transport residents and tourists to places the trains couldn’t go. Horses were put out to pasture and trains ran on schedules, but the freedom of auto travel was contagious.
By 1911, Colorado had begun to lure motorists from all over the country. Wealthy families shipped their autos by rail to Denver, where many began their summer vacations. One of the most popular songs at the time was “Come away with me, Lucille, in my merry Oldsmobile.” In Boulder and the rest of the country, people began a love affair with the auto.
Colorado’s out-of-town speed limit at the time was 23 miles per hour. Even so, author Eugene Parsons, in his 1911 “Guidebook to Colorado,” wrote, “Speeding over a picturesque touring-road on the roof of the world stirs the spirit’s inner deeps.” Parsons then cautioned his readers by stating, “A stagecoach drawn by horses can ascend steep burro trails and hang on where an auto would lose its grip and topple over into a frowning abyss.”
At first, speeders were slowed down, not by a lack of enthusiasm but by a lack of good roads. To improve the situation in Boulder County, the commissioners imported convicts from the state penitentiary to work on the dirt road through Boulder Canyon. Beginning in 1915, a road gang lived in a camp in the canyon and widened the route from one lane to two.
Boulder residents were grateful. On Thanksgiving Day, 1915, county officials treated the convicts to turkey with all the trimmings, along with games, music, cigars, boxing matches and a “moving picture show.” Two years later, the management of the Hotel Boulderado honored the crew at a dinner in the hotel’s main dining room.
By the early 1920s, the City of Boulder had opened an auto camp at what is now Eben G. Fine Park, off of Arapahoe Avenue near the mouth of Boulder Canyon. Travelers were provided with electric lights, gas stoves, water, toilets, and laundry and bathing facilities. Everything was free. The shelter house is still standing and used as a picnic pavilion.
Many of these early campers used “auto tents.” Fold-out beds and awnings were attached to the running boards and roofs of their automobiles.
Long before the construction of the Boulder-Denver turnpike (now U.S. 36), motorists driving to Boulder from Denver would travel north on the Lincoln Highway (now U.S. 287), then turn west onto Arapahoe Road — the main entrance to Boulder. In 1928, this section of Arapahoe Road was named the “Road of Remembrance” in honor of the county’s World War I veterans.
Arapahoe Road also became the location of several cottage camps. The cottages attempted to provide the comforts of home and catered to motorists who didn’t want to camp. Instead of staying in a hotel, guests appreciated the convenience of parking their automobiles next to their cottage doors.
By 1930, at least four of these accommodations were located on Arapahoe Road. The Boulder Cottage Camp (later the Foot of the Mountain Camp) welcomed tourists at 100 Arapahoe Avenue and offered cottages by the day or week. Across Boulder Creek on Pearl Street was the Red Rock Cottage Camp and Barbecue. The Henshall Cottage Court (later Nifty Nix) was centrally located near Arapahoe Avenue and 20th Street, while those who preferred to be east of town stayed at Roxwood Park (at the former site of O. T. Jackson’s “resort”) at Arapahoe Avenue and 55th Street.
In addition, the Moss Rock Cottage Camp catered to travelers who continued north to Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park. The cottages were northwest of the intersection of Dellwood and 12th Street (now Broadway), immediately north of the still-standing house at 3011 Broadway.
“The Rockies hold a spell for all who come and sojourn for a while in their midst,” concluded Parsons in his guidebook. “A mountain drive is an unforgettable experience. The man who has motored through scenic Colorado once will want to come again and tour one route after another.”
Loved this piece Ms. Pettum. As a Boulder native, born at the Broadway hospital in 1962, I have yet to make it to the Carnegie Library but you have inspired me. And you have reminded me to recontribute to BRL.
—Amy Hollander
Wonderful piece of journalism, and as always with Ms. Pettem, meticulously researched and illustrated! Thank you for all you’ve done to preserve Boulder’s history.
Free auto camps sound pretty cool. I wonder how many people actually took advantage of that back then.
What a fabulous article! Silvia Pettem is such a gem, and I am so grateful for the many ways in which she shares her decades of research on Boulder’s history!