Pack some Fort Collins facts into your workplace conversations
Whichever way you experience the workplace water cooler – Zoom calls, Slack chats, or the office breakroom – it pays to have some talking points for your peers.
So, courtesy of Chamber member Elevations Credit Union, here are five historical highlights about Old Town Fort Collins to stoke the conversation with your co-workers.
Original Old Town. Built at the edge of the military base, Old Town Fort Collins was plotted in 1866 by Jack Dow and Norman Meldrum. The boundaries included College Avenue on the west, Mountain Avenue on the south and the diagonal Riverside Avenue (Jefferson Street) on the north and east.
Early education. Fort Collins was designated as School District No. 5 in 1870, and residents rallied to raise money to build a small school in Old Town along Riverside/Jefferson.
Building blocks. Thanks to a local kiln that turned out bricks in the 1870s, residents had the supplies move beyond log structures and construct some of the Victorian-era buildings that came to define Fort Collins.
Meet you on Main Street. Artist and designer Harper Goff is credited for co-creating the Main Street USA exhibit in Disneyland, which happens to look a lot like Old Town. It’s no coincidence that Goff grew up in Fort Collins, which inspired the design along with Walt Disney’s hometown of Marceline, Mo.
Making history. More than 20 buildings in Old Town are designated as both national and local historic structures. Want to know even more about local history? Check out the resources available at the Fort Collins Museum of Discovery and Visit Fort Collins.
We hope you’ll think of ways you can make your mark on Northern Colorado!