How Was Colorado’s Longest Continuous Commercial Street Named?

Today, Denver's Colfax Avenue is known for a few things, some of which aren't exactly the most favorable. Statistically, Colfax Avenue is the longest continuous commercial street in the United States, but the eastern portion has a reputation for being a notoriously dangerous part of the city.

On the other hand, the famous street is also home to numerous Colorado staples including Casa Bonita, Fillmore Auditorium, The Ogden Theater, and the Bluebird Theater, just to name a few.

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While most Coloradans will recognize the street's name immediately, those same residents would likely have difficulty coming up with how Colfax Avenue got its name.

How Did Colorado's Colfax Avenue Get its Name?

Believe it or not, Colfax Avenue actually predates the state of Colorado by roughly eight years. Back in 1868, the box state we all know and love today was eagerly awaiting statehood and in an attempt to butter up one of the state's most influential politicians at the time, named the newly established street after an Indiana Congressman.

The politician, Schuyler Colfax, was a United States House Representative at the time and while he represented Indiana, he had made a widely-publicized trip to Denver in 1865.

Of course, Colorado would receive statehood in 1876, giving it its nickname, "The Centennial State," but what became of Colfax?

Well, roughly a year after the iconic street was named after him, Colfax became Vice President of the United States under Ulysses S. Grant from 1869 to 1873.