Greeley in Weld County, Colorado — The American Mountains (Southwest)
State Armory
Built 1921-22
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, July 31, 2022
1. State Armory Marker
Designed by John J. Huddart and Greeley architect Sidney Frazier, the State Armory served as the training facility for the Greeley unit of the Colorado National Guard and housed sporting events and community activities. It served as a morgue when a commercial airliner exploded over Weld County and again when children were killed in a train-school bus accident. It characterizes the Mediterranean Revival style, featuring the symmetrical façade, arched windows, use of brick and terra cotta and towers with parapets extending above the roof.
The City of Greeley Historic Preservation Commission designated this property on the Greeley Historic Register in 2009.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Disasters • Education • Notable Buildings. A significant historical year for this entry is 1921.
Location. 40° 25.595′ N, 104° 41.433′ W. Marker is in Greeley, Colorado, in Weld County. Marker is on 8th Avenue (Business U.S. 85) just south of 6th Street, on the left when traveling south. Marker is mounted at eye-level, directly on the subject
this page online
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker. Lincoln Park (approx. 0.2 miles away); Buckingham Gordon Building (approx. 0.2 miles away); Agriculture (approx. 0.2 miles away); Transportation (approx. 0.2 miles away); Greeley Historic Overview (approx. 0.2 miles away); Greeley Union Pacific Railroad Depot (approx. 0.2 miles away); Greeley Business District (approx. 0.2 miles away); The Pioneer Fountain (approx. 0.2 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Greeley.
Also see . . .
1. Greeley's Military Base Founded in 1922.
This building served as a National Guard training center for 37 years. The original military company was part of the 157th Infantry organized in 1921. The 157th was composed mostly of high school and college students. The company was redesignated as Company M in 1929 and converted from a headquarters to a machine gun company. This armory was authorized for the Greeley unit in 1921 and completed in 1922 at a cost of $50,000. During the 1930s and 1940s, the armory hosted USO dances and a vaudeville theater. The building was the scene of traveling shows, Saturday night fights, and professional wrestling matches.(Submitted on August 8, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)In 1978 the State Armory was sold the Grand American Fair Restaurant Chain. Thousands of people have lots of memories of the State Armory Bar and Grill. The Armory was a hang out favorite of many including the Denver Broncos. On December 31, 2006 the State Armory closed. In 2009 the contents of the building were auctioned off and later that year Greeley’s Historic Preservation Commissioned placed the State Armory on the Greeley Historic Registry.Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, July 31, 20222. State Armory Marker(marker is mounted at eye-level near right side of staircase)
2. Weld’s deadliest day: Nov. 1, 1955 Bomb blasted airliner from sky, killed 44 near Mead.
About 6:30 p.m. United Airlines Flight 629 from Denver to Seattle exploded over Weld County farmland. The bodies of the dead were brought to a temporary morgue set up at the Greeley Armory. It would be several days before the FBI released the information that the plane had been bombed. By mid-November, the agency had a suspect: John Gilbert Graham, a Denver man whose mother was on the doomed plane. Graham taken out extra life insurance on his mother and placed a bomb of 25 sticks of dynamite in her suitcase. The timer was set for one hour, and it exploded over Weld County. Gilbert was arrested, convicted of murder six months later and executed in the gas chamber in 1957, just(Submitted on August 8, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)14 months after the explosion.Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, July 31, 20223. State Armory Marker (southwest elevation)
3. 20 children killed as school bus slammed by train.
The morning of the worst traffic disaster in Colorado history was Dec. 14, 1961. When the yellow school bus approached County Road 52, it had to cross a set of diagonal railroad tracks. The bus never made it across. It was about 8:30 in the morning when the 79-mph train, called The City of Denver, slammed into the side of the 60-passenger school bus, tearing it in half, scattering pieces and parts of the bus for hundreds of feet along the tracks. In the train’s wake, 20 children died instantly and 16 more were injured. There was no room where officials could store the bodies of all the children, so they were taken to the State Armory building downtown – the same place where 44 bodies were stored just six years before in the bombing of an airliner in western Weld County.(Submitted on August 8, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.)
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, July 31, 2022
4. State Armory (west elevation)
Credits. This page was last revised on August 8, 2022. It was originally submitted on August 8, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. This page has been viewed 119 times since then and 62 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on August 8, 2022, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.
