Valverde (Denver, Colorado)

 neighborhood, draw only border

 Upload a photo

The name "Valverde" means "green valley" in Spanish. The early developers saw the beautiful area buffering the South Platte River as a valley of flourishing green, natural vegetation, and trees. The incorporated Town of Valverde was dissolved and annexed to the City of Denver in 1902.

Historical development in the neighborhood took place first in the area along Alameda Avenue, and east of Tejon Street. This area formed the nucleus of the old Valverde community, along with the northeastern part of Athmar Park and the adjacent industrial areas of Athmar Park and Sun Valley neighborhoods. Early development also took place in the northwestern section of the area, which is closely related to the old Barnum community. In earlier times Federal Boulevard was narrow, did not carry much traffic, and did not create the physical and psychological barrier that it does today.

After the turn of the century development began in the area east of Tejon Street, but it was not until 1915 that substantial construction activity occurred.

Small truck farms flourished In the Valverde area. Farmers used their small trucks to take produce to the market place. The industrialization of the area surrounding the river basin started with the selling of truck farms for redevelopment. The construction of I-25 in the mid-1950s and the West 6th Avenue Freeway in the 1960s had a major impact on the industrialization of the Valverde neighborhood.

A major historical event for Valverde was the flood of the South Platte River that Denver experienced on June 16, 1965. One of the worst hit neighborhoods was Valverde, which suffered approximately $500,000 worth of property damage.