3435 Albion St
Denver, CO, USA

National Register of Historic Places - Robinson House (Kate's on 35th Restaurant; 5DV8271)

Statement of Significant:

The 1890 Robinson House is significant under Criterion C as the property embodies the distinctive characteristics of the Queen Anne style, the dominant residential style in the period 1880-1900. The method of construction is the balloon-framing technique common to the style. Architecture

The distinctive characteristics of Queen Anne-styled residences combine to avoid flat exterior wall surfaces and to present an asymmetrical facade. Roof lines are complex, exterior walls are made of more than one type of material, decorative porches are present, window shapes and sizes vary. In the Robinson House, a two-story house with attic, distinctive characteristics include a prominent front gable, patterned masonry exterior walls with several belt courses of brick and stone, recessed first and second story porches in the facade with spindle work porch supports, decorative balustrades and brackets. Other Queen Anne features include large panes of glass surrounded by smaller panes in the front windows and south side windows, a projecting cross gable containing the dining room and south bedroom, patterned masonry chimney, patterned shingles, patterned stickwork on the sleeping porch walls, and decorative eaves. Two striking round-arched windows with hood moldings of quarried stone that continue horizontally as belt courses add interest to the front and sides. Examples of Queen Anne residences can still be found in many parts of the city of Denver, however, in the eastern suburbs, only a few examples remain. This is an excellent example.

House History
According to a newspaper article in the Denver Republican, May 5, 1889, the Robinson house was probably constructed on speculation. The house was one of the first properties offered for sale by J. Cook, Jr. in his North Division of Capitol Hill located east of Denver, north and east of the city property where city park would be located, north of the new streetcar suburb of Montclair. The concept of building houses on speculation was relatively new in the 1880s. J. Cook offered lots and constructed "upscale" houses less expensively than in the downtown area, and promised to provide streetcar service in the future.

John Cook Jr., a popular businessman in Denver, known for his sharpshooting and pigeon hunting contests, was elected Alderman from the Fifth Ward of Denver in 1878. In 1888, he platted the J. Cook Jr.'s, North Division of Capitol Hill and began heavily promoting the development as a residential subdivision of a "nice class of houses" (Denver Republican, May 5, 1889). An article from that edition stated:

Live in J. Cook Jr.'s, North Capitol Hill, with the delightful air, scenery, pure artesian water, and away from the dust of the city, and you will live ten years longer. It is only two miles from the High School. An electric Car Line will run through the entire property.