The Blake Street Vault - a brief history

Our building at 1526 Blake Street has a storied past as one of earliest brick structures in historic Lower Downtown (LoDo). It was built 5 years after gold was discovered in Cherry Creek, and right after an April 1863 fire that devastated early Denver.

Completed in 1863, it served as one of Denver's first saloons as shown on the earliest notated map of Denver - the 1868 Dougal map. In the years that followed, it housed a liquor distribution business, cigar factory, machinery business, and costume shop.

It was renovated in mid-1880s before many of the larger buildings in Lower Downtown were first built. At that time, the ground floor was raised off the street level, the secret basement vault and elevator were added. The vault, elevator machinery and entrance to the old tunnels under the streets of Denver still exist and can be seen during private tours.

For the story of early Denver, Blake Street and the Vault - click here.

More historical photos of the long, narrow buildings on Lower Blake Street can be found on our Photos page.

Today, nearly 145 years after its original construction, visitors can still step back into early Denver at the Blake Street Vault – where good drinks, great food, and even better stories tell of a time when life – and the occasional indiscretion – was lived for the moment. Enjoy!