For many years, Coors was known for the beautiful flowers that decorated their grounds and reception areas. They were grown in greenhouses and gardens on the brewery grounds. Transcript articles indicate that they began as a personal hobby of Coors family members. A 1910 article refers to banana trees in the greenhouse, “the special pride of Mr. Coors.” (That would be the original Mr. Coors, founder of the brewery.)
After his death, his daughter-in-law, Mrs. Adolph Coors Jr. (Alice), seems to have adopted the growing operation. She was well-known for personally arranging the flowers on display around offices and receptions areas. Even after she lost her eyesight later in life, she continued to arrange them ‘by feel.” She died in 1970.
The Coors family employed full-time gardeners to maintain their fields and greenhouses. During the Depression, they sold flowers. During World War II, they raised food as well as flowers in the greenhouse. The greenhouse occasionally hosted group tours and was a favorite destination for the Golden Garden Club.
The greenhouse was adjacent to the Coors family home. When the home was moved to make way for brewery expansion, the old greenhouses were demolished. A new, larger greenhouse (60×176 ft) was built in 1961.
A 2012 thread on Reddit mentioned that the greenhouse was being demolished at that time: “There’s also a greenhouse right next to it that supplies the flowers in the bldg and tour (but they’re tearing it down).”
A current satellite view of the brewery shows that the greenhouses are, indeed, gone.
Many thanks to the Golden Rotary Club for sponsoring for sponsoring Golden History Moments for the month of September.
