112 Years Ago
No more will the festive rubberneck automobile be heard chugging and groaning through the streets of Golden, as a deal has been made with the Tramway company whereby the sightseeing trade will be diverted to the “Seeing the Foothills” electric cars.
Colorado Transcript – August 15, 1912
“Rubberneck automobiles” were large touring cars used to bring passengers to the sights. “Seeing Denver” was a tour-guiding company based in the Brown Palace in Denver. They used chartered streetcars to provide guided tours to visitors. “Seeing the Foothills” was another service they offered, using chartered interurban cars to bring tourists to foothills towns, including Golden, Leyden, and at times Morrison.
One of their offerings was called the “Wishbone” Route. That would go from Denver to the coal-mining town of Leyden (map), giving passengers a view of the Ralston Creek valley. The car would then backtrack to Arvada and follow the Clear Creek valley into Golden.
Both routes traversed many miles of farmland, culminating in beautiful views of the foothills from both Leyden and Golden. The 3-hour round trip cost $1.
Many thanks to Esther Kettering for sponsoring Golden History Moments for the month of August.
