Auraria Neighborhood Resource Set

The resource set includes additional sources to accompany the Primary Source Set and Lesson Ideas to help extend lessons and further student understanding. Primary Source Analysis Worksheets are available on the Elementary Primary Source Sets main page.

A Depiction of the Auraria Gold Camp

William Greeneberry Russell and his brothers founded the township of Auraria City on Nov.1, 1858. The Russell brothers named the area after their hometown in Georgia, where the first major U.S. gold boom happened 20 years earlier. The name Auraria comes from Latin and means gold.

West Denver, 1865 (Photograph)

This photograph shows an area of West Denver where the Auraria neighborhood is located.

Friends in the Auraria neighborhood, 1955 (Photograph)

The Hispanic community called Auraria their home since the 1910s. The Denver’s West side was a close community, full of color and life. It was home to many who felt disenfranchised in Anglo society, but in Auraria, they had a center. Denver Public Library. Latinos/Hispanics in Colorado Collection

St. Cajetan's, 1960

Two St. Cajetan churches are cornerstones of Denver's Hispanic heritage. The old St. Cajetan, the peach and gray-painted landmark now used as an auditorium for the Auraria Campus at 9th and Lawrence streets, was the first Hispanic parish in Denver

St. Cajetan's ~ 1973

Surrounded by construction and demolition debris in anticipation of future Auraria Campus site. Denver Public Library. Latinos/Hispanics in Colorado Collection