August 13, 1892: Golden day for Brown Palace

Michael Madigan, Special to the Rocky

Published December 1, 2008 at 2:30 p.m.

Text size  

• 0 Comments
• Email
• Print

Front page from August 13, 1892

The Brown Palace Hotel marks its birthdate as Aug. 12, 1892. The Rocky gave a spartan headline and three columns of space on Page 2 the next day in covering the first banquet — the Triennial Conclave of Knights Templar.

One hundred sixteen years later, it just doesn't seem enough.

ROYAL DEDICATION

Banquet to the Grand Encampment

in the Brown Palace

Hotel.

Magnificent Appointments That Surpass

All Others and Bewilder

the Guests.

"The broad marble and onyx balcony which circles the rotunda of the hotel at the height of eight stories furnished a pleasant place wherein to chat while awaiting the signal to advance upon the enemy."

This was the evidently hungry newsman's description of the social graces leading up to dinner.

"Away down at the bottom of the huge shaft the Western band of Detroit was manufacturing harmony, which rolled and thundered upward until it reverberated against the roof. On every balcony were pretty girls who were so intent upon the scene below that they were quite unconscious of the gallant templars above. The ancient knightly order has improved considerably upon the frigid and uncomfortable ruin drawn up by St. Bernard.

" ... The great banquet hall is a splendid apartment of harmonious design about 130 feet in length and sixty feet wide, rounded at the end by a spacious alcove increasing the length by an addition of twenty-five feet."

The account goes on to describe the interior in minute detail, until —

"The company being seated, attacked without more ado the following menu."

It included Little Neck clams, a Haut Sauterne, mountain trout ravigote, potatoes serpentine, filet of beef, Chateau Pontet Canet, terrapin, Golden plover barde, Nesselrode pudding and more. Topped off by liqueurs and cigars.

The Brown Palace opened even though it still was not completed. It would be another five months, on Jan. 28, 1893, when the hotel formally opened and hosted a party given by the son of Horace Tabor and his wife. By now, the Rocky had a "Society" page, which covered the event.

Dying to subscribe

In 1892, the Rocky offered a truly unique incentive to subscribe to the newspaper — free life insurance, good for 24 hours from the date of publication. The two-column ad explaining the offer ran next to the story reporting the opening of the Brown Palace:

"Will pay $500 to the legal heir or heirs of any regular subscriber of The News who meets death by accident while in the pursuit of ordinary avocation, provided that the subscriber so dying has upon his or her body at the time of the accident from which death occurs, this coupon, dated as above, or a copy of The Rocky Mountain News of current date."

The ad listed the payouts for various injuries:

"$150 For the loss of two eyes

"$100 For the loss of two feet

"$50 For a broken ankle

"$125 For the loss of one hand and one foot."

And so on.

No reader could dispute the offer's legitimacy, for at the bottom of the ad it listed some of its beneficiaries, right there under the words ...

LOSSES PAID

"To the widow of Lee J. Dunham, killed while attempting to rescue little Annie Sopfe ... $500."

Featured

• Legislature Blog

  

  Read live updates from the opening of the 2009 legislative session.

• Rocky multimedia

  

  The news comes alive in our videos and slide shows. Catch up on what's happening today.

• Who's next?

  

  Complete coverage of the Broncos' search for a new coach.

• Rocky year in photos

  

  View an audio slide show of staff selections from 2008.

• Winter Escapes

  

  Your insider’s guide to the copious joys of the coolest season.

• Sam Adams' Open Mic

  

  Open Mic: Two-man advantage with Avs

• Shanahan's career

  

  See photos from Mike Shanahan's career as Broncos coach.

• 12 days of Drew

  

  Look back at the year that has been with Drew Litton.

• A dream fulfilled

  

  A Rocky Mountain News and MediaStorm production