The telephone building at 14th and Curtis streets in Denver is a venerable—and historic—landmark. But that doesn’t mean it’s always been there.

In 1928, the building was unfinished. In 1927, the building was but a dream of the Mountain States Telephone & Telegraph Company. Prior to that the area was a run-down skid row and then a business district. And prior to being slums, the area was the place for the well-to-do, for the movers and shakers of society to meet and live and play.

Even further back the area was home to the pioneering settlers of what came to be known as Denver, and before that the home of Native Americans. And before that the future site of the 15-story building was but part of a sea of prairie grass, intersected by creeks and rivers, with its western side facing the mountains and the eastern side facing the seemingly endless plains.

The 931 14th St. Historic Building online tour contains more information on the site history, including details on the Arapaho Indians and Prairie Schooners, Denver’s Growth, the site as skid row, and how the site was chosen for the location of the telephone building.

Click on the buttons below for more information about each section.