What’s Happening in Golden Today?
10AM-5PM Holiday Art Market @ Foothills Art Center
10AM-3PM Brunch at the Rose @ Buffalo Rose
10AM-8PM Holiday Pet Bazaar @ Jefferson County Fairgrounds
10AM and 1PM Wild West Short Tour
10AM-2PM Mines Watch Party @ The Golden Mill
Come cheer on your Colorado School of Mines Football team as they play for the National Championship. Our doors are opening at 10AM and we will be having Blaster Bloody Marys, Mimosas, Breakfast Burritos and Happy Hour all game long. LETS GO OREDIGGERS!!!
10:15AM Family Time @ Golden Library
10:30AM-3PM Sewing Bee @ First Presbyterian Church of Golden
11AM-10PM Ugly Sweater Party @ Holidaily Brewing Company
11AM and 1PM The Story of the Nutcracker @ Miners Alley Children’s Theater
11AM-1PM Jingle on the Avenue – A Holiday Character Mingle – Downtown Golden
Spend a magical day in Golden meeting and mingling with family favorite holiday characters along Washington Avenue. The Golden Hayride will offer rides with music and entertainment, or take a ride with the Newfies! The adorable Newfoundland dogs are back for free dog cart rides during Jingle on the Avenue–look for them on 12th St., west of Washington Ave.
12-2:30PM Walk With a Geologist @ Dinosaur Ridge
2-5PM Homestead for the Holidays @ Golden History Park
Homestead for the Holidays lets you experience the winter season just like the pioneers did. This family-friendly event will have you strolling through the Golden History Park, taking in the colorful lights and decorations, making a craft that you get to take home, and basking in the season. It’s time to go homestead for the holidays!
Our valued volunteers make this event possible and will serve as interpreters within the historic structures to answer questions and guide your experience. $5 Member / $10 Non-member Register
2-6PM Holiday Shakedown Shakedown Street Market @ Over Yonder Brewing
3PM Cookie Decorating @ Windy Saddle Café
5-8PM Ugly Sweater Contest @ Goosetown Station
5PM CSM Women’s Basketball vs. MSU Denver @ Lockridge Arena
7PM CSM Men’s Basketball vs. MSU Denver @ Lockridge Arena
7:30PM A Christmas Story @ Miners Alley Playhouse
Live Music
11AM-2PM Southside Mike @ Buffalo Rose (Sky Bar Stage)
5-8PM Live Music @ Eddy Taproom
5-8PM Earl Nelson @ Goosetown Station
6PM Wink @ Dirty Dogs Roadhouse
7-10PM Howard Dlugasch @ Buffalo Rose (Sky Bar Stage)
9PM Karaoke @ Ace Hi Tavern
Golden History Moment
80 Years Ago
When the December 17, 1942 Colorado Transcript was published, the country had been at war for a year. Rationing was in place; materials were reserved for the war effort, and many of our young people were overseas.
The front page featured the article, Golden Blackout in Answer to Signal is 100 Percent Perfect. On Monday the 14th, the U.S. Army ordered a blackout for the entire state. Many people (those who were willing to use their gasoline ration) ventured to the top of Lookout Mountain. Those who watched the drill from that vantage point reported that Golden’s response to the signal (a whistle blast from Coors) was instantaneous–all lights went out immediately. Denver was a little slower, but their lights went out within a few minutes.
While Army officers watched from the D&F Tower in downtown Denver and casual observers watched from Lookout Mountain, one of our bombers was circling the area, assessing the response from the vantage point of someone trying to bomb the city.
The test identified some neighborhoods in Denver where the signal had not been heard. In fact, there was a strong wind from the west that night and some people on the west side of Golden hadn’t heard the Coors whistle, while residents of Wheat Ridge and Arvada had heard it clearly.
People who lived in the countryside between Denver and Golden (unable to hear signals), were advised to keep an eye on the “M” on Mount Zion. If it went out, people should assume that a blackout was in effect.
The editorial section provided an interesting summation of the drill:
We can all remember when Washington Avenue, Golden, had no lights or electric signs–some of the older folks can remember the days of coal oil lamps…. Then folks were used to dark houses and dark streets and thought nothing of it–now to be without our wonderful cheap electricity even for twenty minutes is an experience to be remembered–especially had two or three boxes of dynamite been touched off in the clay pits to make the thing realistic. We are all appreciative of the trained wardens and deputies on duty during this test and are glad to know that they will be on the job should a real thing ever happen.
Thanks to the Golden History Museum for providing the online cache of historic Transcripts, and to the Golden Transcript for documenting our history since 1866!
