15th-Wazee Street - Denver, CO
Posted by: 
Outspoken1
N 39° 45.023 W 105° 00.113
13S E 499838 N 4400052
A series of plaques from a walking tour of lower Downtown Denver (original Denver)
Waymark Code: WM39QW
Location: Colorado, United States
Date Posted: 03/02/2008
Views: 47
The settlement that became Denver was founded at the confluence of Cherry Creek and the South Platte river. These plaques highlight the growth of Denver. This plaque reads:
15th / Wazee Street
The two-story brick commercial structure is actually made up of three buildings, one on the corner and two smaller ones facing 15th Street. Notice the unusual corner entrance, an angled corner bay with complex dentiled corbeling work and stone lintels topping the windows.
The first business at 1610 15th Street is listed in the Denver Business Directory of 1881 as a saloon owned by the Schultz Brothers - Peter, John, and Henry. In 1883 the listing carries the name of the establishment as the Bon Ton Saloon. Peter Schultz first appears in the Denver directories in 1876 with a saloon on 13th Street in Auraria. With other partners listed at various times, Peter Schultz continued at the 1610 address until 1898, when the Bon Ton Saloon disappeared from city listings.
The early years of the twentieth century saw numerous implement and machinery businesses occupy the 1600 to 1610 addresses. In 1954 the buildings returned to their original use with the opening of the Wazee Supper Club by proprietors James C. Capillupo and Albert R. Rotola. In 1974, brothers Angelo and Jim Karagas of Detroit added the Wazee to their already successful ownership of My Brother's Bar, located at the other end of the then-standing 15th Street Viaduct.
The decor of the establishment is modeled for a classic urban atmosphere. The black-and-white tile floor is set off with Depression-era wainscoting; the benches come from the downtown chapter of the Elks Club. The most intriguing artifact is the 1936-37 warehouse door opener hanging on the right side of the bar, now used as a dumbwaiter to the second-floor seating area.
The operation of the Wazee Supper Club continues in the hands of Angelo's wife, Jane, and two sons, along with brother Jim after the untimely passing of Angelo in 1993. This makes the Wazee Supper Club, under the proprietorship of the Karagas family, the longest continuously operating business at this site.