The Belmar Hub

The Belmar Hub. . , Affluent Denverites, like the Bonfils and Brown families, took vacations and built summer homes in the Lakewood area beginning late in the 19th century. , Frederick Bonds, an owner of the Denver Post, reportedly rented land on Kountze Lake in today's Belmar Park, and perhaps his daughters, May and Helen, vacationed there too. J.J. and Margaret Brown ("Unsinkable Molly") built a summer home in 1897 which they named Avoca Lodge, at what in now Wadworth Boulevard and Yale Avenue. , May (Bonfils) Staton built her year-round home, Belmar, here in 1937. She inherited large sums of money from her parents, and held investments of her own. Besides the cattle and sheep she raised to show, deer and peacocks roamed the estate. Her sheep and cattle won awards at fairs and stock shows. , The Calving Barn, Tractor Sheds, and Caretakers’ Cottage stand on their original foundations. The Auction Barn originally stood near where the Country School stands today.