| The connection between the infamous “Red Baron”
of World War I and the Montclair neighborhood can be
found in Baron Manfred von Richthofen—he was the
uncle of the “Red Baron” and the father
of Montclair!
Richthofen arrived in Colorado from Germany in 1877.
A man of many interests, he started the Downtown Denver
Real Estate Company in 1881, was a novelist, and was
also a founding member of the Denver Chamber of Commerce.
With Matthias P. Cochrane, Richthofen established
the Montclair Town and Improvement Company in 1885.
Though promoted as a healthy place to live, away
from the smoke and fumes of the city, the Montclair
neighborhood was not drawing residents. To demonstrate
the wonderful quality of life there, the Baron decided
to build a castle of his own at 12th and Olive. He
had the Montclair ditch created, which was a lateral
of the Highline Canal, eventually flowing into Montclair
Park. The water supply enabled many flowers, trees,
and shrubs to be planted and to thrive where the land
had previously been essentially barren.
The Baron pushed for the Denver Tramway Company to
build four streetcar lines on 6th, 8th, and 17th Avenues
as well as Colfax. This convenient access to downtown
was the beginning of the Montclair boom. To further
promote Montclair (as not only a healthy place but
also as a prestigious neighborhood), strict building
requirements were in place including using only brick
or stone, planning for a minimum of two stories, and
building on double size lots (twice the size of the
typical 25’x125’ lots).
In 1890, the Baron platted his own addition to Montclair
and the building continued. With the Colorado Women’s
College (1890) and the Fairmount Cemetery (1890),
as well as the increasingly well-known reputation
as a community for people suffering from lung-related
illnesses, Montclair thrived. It was also home to
the National Jewish Hospital and Agnes Memorial Sanatorium,
one of the largest tuberculosis treatment centers
in Colorado.
With the Silver Crash in 1893, development quickly
halted. However, the foundation had already been laid
for Montclair to become a unique and architecturally
diverse community. In 1975, the area bounded by 7th
and 12th Avenues, from Newport to Pontiac, was designated
as a Historic District. And today, Montclair remains
one of the most popular neighborhoods in Denver.
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