Main Street Historic District

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 18, 2021

1. Main Street Historic District Marker

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Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 18, 2021

2. Main Street Historic District Marker

The marker is mounted at eye level between the left and center doorways on the north/front facade of the Town Hall Arts Center (formerly Littleton Town Hall).

From the National Register Nomination prepared by R. Laurie Simmons and Thomas H. Simmons, 11/28/1997:
The Littleton Main Street Historic District is a three-and-a-half block concentration of significant historic commercial and civic buildings located along and adjacent to the community's main commercial thoroughfare and encompassing the heart of the city's historic downtown. Littleton, which lies approximately ten miles southwest of Denver, developed as a supply center for surrounding farms and ranches and as a suburban residential community. Main Street, which was also part of U.S. Highway 85 connecting Denver with communities to the south, is aligned on a generally east-west axis through the center of the historic 1872 Littleton Townsite.

The buildings within the district are one to two stories in height, are predominantly of brick construction, and display a variety of architectural influences. The district includes buildings dating from 1890 through the 1960s. The nineteenth century buildings within the district were erected of red pressed brick, many with stone foundations and trim. These buildings gradually replaced smaller frame structures of Littleton's pioneer era and proclaimed the success of their builders through solid construction and application of exterior ornament. Most buildings are evenly setback from the one-way, two-lane street.

Streetscaping along Main Street includes concrete sidewalks and curbs, locust trees, and modern and reproduction streetlamps. Toward the east, Main Street rises in elevation, traversing the depressed railroad tracks which have played a significant role in the town's development and passing the Arapahoe County Courthouse, which emphasizes Littleton's role as county seat and overlooks the commercial district. Vistas toward the west include the Carnegie Library and, in the distance, the foothills and towering peaks of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. The Littleton Main Street Historic District includes thirty buildings along West Main Street, plus three side-street buildings.

The south side of the 2400 and 2500 blocks of Main Street filled with buildings during the 1890s. The 1890s buildings varied in height from one to two stories, with flat roofs, cornices of brick or metal, and generous display windows on the first story.

Several important commercial buildings were completed in the first decade of the twentieth century, the busiest period of construction within the district. Regular streetcar service along Main Street by the end of 1907 stimulated growth. The competitiveness of commercial construction during the era resulted in the addition of some of Littleton's finest architecture. A major grouping of buildings completed during the first decade of the twentieth century filled in the north side of the 2500 block of West Main Street and provided the town with a streetwall of substantial, finely crafted commercial structures. Three of the buildings were financed by Harry H. Lilley, who was joint investor with the First National Bank of Littleton in a corner block with lavishly ornamented cornice and cantilevered southeast corner.

Construction within the district resumed after World War I, allowing Littleton to keep pace with the latest trends and patterns of commercial development. The most architecturally significant building in the collection received national attention upon its completion in 1920. The Littleton Town Hall was described as the "finest town hall for a small American town." An appropriate addition to the Littleton Main Street Historic District following World War I was the Ivy W. Hunt car dealership. The large brick building conveyed a fashionable, pared down style which emphasized the modern vehicles available within. Another thoroughly twentieth century development which impacted Main Street after World War I was the appearance of the motion picture theater. The finest of Littleton's historic movie theaters was the Palm, erected in 1925. Also erected in 1925, Valore Hardware reflected popular elements of twentieth century commercial construction in its flat roof, red brick walls with white brick trim, and three storefronts with large display windows stretching along Main Street.

Photographed by Cosmos Mariner, July 18, 2021

3. Town Hall Arts Center (formerly Littleton Town Hall)

Excerpt:  The Littleton Main Street is a historic district located along W. Main Street, from South Curtice Street, to South Sycamore Street in Littleton, Colorado. The district dates from 1890. The nineteenth century buildings are red pressed brick, many with stone foundations and trim. These buildings replaced smaller frame structures from the pioneer era and proclaimed the success of their builders through solid construction and application of exterior ornament.

Excerpt:  Beginning in 1890 and extending through the first half of the 20th century, the district’s history is associated with the development of politics and government, commerce, and transportation within Littleton’s commercial core. Constructed primarily of brick, the one and two-story buildings reflect an eclectic mix of architectural styles ranging from Italianate

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to Art Moderne. The National Register listed Littleton Town Hall, a 1920 terra cotta clad Italian Renaissance design by noted architect Jules J.B. Benedict, is located within the district.