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CHistory
History · Westminster

Westminster dates to 1859, and 6 of its places are on the National Register

More historic than 31% of U.S. towns · #72 of 159 in Colorado. What drives it

Most of Westminster was built recently: 0.8% of its homes predate 1940 and the median home dates from 1987. 6 places in town are on the National Register, among them a historic district with 11 buildings. Below: 4 old photos and papers, maps from 1941 on, and the census since 1920.

1859founded
6on the National Register
0.8%homes built before 1940
4old photos & papers
5famous people
Add an old photoShare a memory
From Westminster’s archive · credits on each photo
Quick answers

How Westminster began

When was Westminster founded?

1859

Westminster dates its founding to 1859 (Wikidata). The census first counted it in 1920.

First census: 235 in 19202020 census: 116,317167 years

How historic is Westminster?

C

More historic than 31% of U.S. towns, on its age, its old homes and the National Register.

What drives the grade ↓
Founding year: Wikidata. First post office: 1908.The full story ↓
History grade

What drives Westminster’s History grade

On its age, its old homes and the National Register, Westminster is more historic than 31% of U.S. towns, #72 of 159 in Colorado. Its National Register listings hold the grade up; its share of homes from before 1940 pulls it down.

C
HistoryA character grade: shown, never part of Westminster’s overall grade.
Founding era1859, from Wikidata: founded 1850–1899, an older era than 37% of U.S. townsC+Homes built before 19400.8% of homes (±0.5) · typical CO town 2.5% · U.S. 8.4%DNational Register6 listings, 16 historic buildings, 1.4 per 10,000 residents · typical CO town 1.1 · U.S. 2.4B
All U.S. towns we grade (21,289)Ahead of 31%
NewerOlder
Colorado towns of 2,500+ (159)Ahead of 55%

Among the 400 U.S. cities of 100,000 or more, Westminster ranks #301 on History.

Few Colorado towns list much on the Register (a typical Colorado town has 1.1 per 10,000 residents, the U.S. 2.4), so Westminster’s 1.4 sits near the middle of its state (52% of Colorado towns have fewer) while its 16 historic buildings outnumber those of 78% of U.S. towns.

Newer cities are common at Westminster’s size: in the typical U.S. city of 100,000 or more, 5% of homes predate 1940.

NoteThe founding year comes from Wikidata alone; no second source gives 1859.
How sure. Graded on any two of the three inputs instead, the letter would range from D to B−. The pre-1940 share (±0.5 points) is firm at this size.

Founding year: Wikidata (other dates in Quick answers). Homes: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register: National Park Service, May 2026 list; each listing counted once (boundary changes and added documentation belong to their listing), and a historic district counts its contributing buildings. How TownRatings grades history →

What stands out about Westminster’s past

Read from the archive, the National Register and the record. The page puts what stands out first.

Lost villages17 hamlets and corners are still on the map.A history waiting to be writtenOnly 4 old photos are in the public archives. The rest are in attics and albums.Landmarks on the Register6 places on the National Register.
★ What stands out · Places that used to be

Old corners, places now gone and burying grounds

Westminster’s post office has been open since 1908.

Hamlets and corners on the map
College HillsCotton CreekCountrysideCozy CornerHarris ParkHidden Creek ParkLakeview EstatesQuail HillSheridan GreenSkyline VistaSunset RidgeSunstreamWallace VillageWalnut GroveWandering ViewWestminster HillsWood Creek
Gone or out of use
Charles Lily MinemineOrchard Court SchoolschoolWestminster Hills Elementary SchoolschoolZerger Elementary Schoolschool
1cemetery inside Westminster
Wesley Chapel

US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock, CC0). Places and cemeteries from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

Help out

Start Westminster’s collection

The first neighbors to add old photos shape how Westminster’s history is told.

Decades since 1900 with photos
00s10s20s30s40s50s60s70s80s90s
1 of 10 decades. The empty ones are waiting for someone’s album.
Retake an old viewBEER BOTTLES ARE FED INTO BOTTLE CRUSHE…: stand where they stood+15Share a family photoSign in to add one+10
On the National Register

6 historic places in Westminster

The country’s official list of buildings and places worth saving.

places listed
6
National Historic Landmarks
0
none yet
historic buildings protected
16
each building in a district counts
first listed
1979
Westminster University
Westminster University, built 1892Bowles HouseHarris Park SchoolWilliam J. Gregory HouseUnion High SchoolMetzger Farm
BuildingsDistricts

Architectural styles listings

Colonial Revival2
Richardsonian Romanesque1
Italianate1
Vernacular1
Dutch Colonial Revival1
Late 19th and 20th Century Revivals1
Westminster UniversityRichardsonian Romanesque · Built 1892
Bowles HouseItalianate
Harris Park SchoolVernacular
William J. Gregory HouseColonial Revival
Union High SchoolLate 19th and 20th Century Revivals
Metzger FarmColonial Revival

National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each place’s page.

The story

How Westminster came to be

From Wikipedia’s history of Westminster.

Read it all →

Gold discovered in the South Platte River Valley in 1858 brought national attention to the area that would become Westminster, Colorado. The promise of fortune and The Homestead Act of 1862 encouraged many pioneers from the east to settle in Colorado rather than continue on to California. Before the settlements came, wildlife like antelope and buffalo made their homes in the area. There is also evidence of Arapaho Indians near the Crown Point (Gregory Hill) area.

ChaptersBell Tower

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Timeline

Westminster, 1859 to 1998

Woven from the archive, old maps, post office records, the National Register and the people born here.

  1. 19th century
  2. 1859
    FoundingWestminster is established
  3. 1892BuiltWestminster University is built
  4. 20th century
  5. 1908Post officeThe Westminster post office opens
  6. 1941On the mapFirst mapped by the U.S. Geological Survey
  7. 1972In the archiveBEER BOTTLES ARE FED INTO BOTTLE CRUSHER. PART OF A NEW AND MORE EFFECTIVE GLASS RECYCLIN…
  8. 1983Born hereSean Jarrett is born here
  9. 1985Born hereDerrick Martin is born here
  10. 1988Born hereLars Sullivan is born here
  11. 1998Born hereTrevor Amann is born here
By decade

Westminster, decade by decade

One decade in the archive so far: the 1970s. Scroll each row; tap a photo for its story.

1970s4 items
BEER BOTTLES ARE FED INTO BOTTLE CRUSHER. PART OF A NEW AND MORE EFFECTIVE GLASS RECYCLING PROCESS FOR COORS BREWERY...…1972BEER BOTTLES ARE FED INTO BOTTLE CRUSHER. PART OF A N…CLOSEUP OF BEER BOTTLES CRUSHED INTO FINE GLASS. THIS MIXTURE IS FED INTO THE GLASS FURNACE AND NEW BOTTLES ARE MADE...…1972CLOSEUP OF BEER BOTTLES CRUSHED INTO FINE GLASS. THIS…RECYCLED BEER BOTTLES RECEIVE HEAT TREATMENT PRIOR TO FINAL PACKAGING. ONE PART OF A NEW GLASS RECYCLING PROCESS FOR...…1972RECYCLED BEER BOTTLES RECEIVE HEAT TREATMENT PRIOR TO…RECYCLED BEER BOTTLES RECEIVE HEAT TREATMENT PRIOR TO FINAL PACKAGING. ONE PART OF A NEW GLASS RECYCLING PROCESS FOR...…1972RECYCLED BEER BOTTLES RECEIVE HEAT TREATMENT PRIOR TO…
1980s–1990snothing yet
Nothing in the archives for these yearsWeddings on Main Street, storms, parades, school pictures, the old store. If it’s in your family album, it belongs here.
Add from your album
Today14 recent
Interstate 252008Interstate 25Denver Skyline, Interstate 252008Denver Skyline, Interstate 25One of the residential units2007One of the residential unitsIndoor swimming pool, Westminster, Colorado2007Indoor swimming pool, Westminster, ColoradoFront entrance2007Front entranceDCW Administration Buiding2007DCW Administration BuidingCampus Grounds2007Campus GroundsWepcomplex22006Wepcomplex2FEMA - 27670 - Photograph by Michael Rieger taken on 12-20-2006 in Colorado2006FEMA - 27670 - Photograph by Michael Rieger taken on …Westminster citypark42005Westminster citypark4Westminster citypark32005Westminster citypark3Westminster citypark22005Westminster citypark2Westminster citypark12005Westminster citypark1Front Range CC-USGS2002Front Range CC-USGS
On the map

Westminster on the map, 1941 to 1994

Every edition of the U.S. Geological Survey’s map of Westminster. Tap a year, or press play to watch the town change.

Westminster on the 1941 USGS mapWestminster on the 1950 USGS mapWestminster on the 1965 USGS mapWestminster on the 1971 USGS mapWestminster on the 1980 USGS mapWestminster on the 1994 USGS map1941Arvada sheet · 1:31,680

U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (public domain), via Esri’s collection of the scans. The red ring marks the center of Westminster.

Then & now

Stand where they stood

No then-and-now pairs yet. Take a photo from the same spot as an old one and they appear here side by side.

BEER BOTTLES ARE FED INTO BOTTLE CRUSHER. PART OF A NEW AND MORE EFFECTIVE GLASS RECYCLING PROCESS FOR COORS BREWERY...…
Retake this viewBEER BOTTLES ARE FED INTO BOTTLE CRUSHER. PART OF A NEW AND MORE EFFECTIVE GLASS RECYCLING PROCESS FOR COORS BREWERY...…, 1972

Find the spot, match the angle, and add your photo. It becomes the first then-and-now pair on Westminster’s page.

Retake this view · +15
People over time

Westminster, census by census

020,00040,00060,00080,000100,000120,000192019401960198020002020116,317

Grew from 235 people in 1920 to 116,317 in 2020, more than tenfold.

11 censuses, 1920–2020.

U.S. Census Bureau decennial counts, from the census table on Westminster’s Wikipedia page.

Famous people

5 famous people were born in Westminster

Writers, athletes, leaders and more, ranked by how widely they’re known.

See all →
Lars SullivanAmerican professional wrestler · b. 1988
Derrick MartinPlayer of American football · b. 1985
T
Trevor AmannAmerican soccer player · b. 1998
S
Sean JarrettAmerican baseball player · b. 1983
B
Brandon BaileyAmerican baseball player · b. 1994
Stories next door

History across the town line

Each neighbor’s History grade, on the same three inputs.

Broomfield1 historic placeC−Arvada6 historic placesC+BerkleyIts storyC−Twin LakesIts storyDShaw HeightsIts storyD−SherrelwoodIts storyDNorthglenn3 historic placesC−Federal HeightsIts storyD−Thornton1 historic placeD

Questions about Westminster’s history

What year was Westminster founded?

In 1859, according to Wikidata. Westminster’s post office opened in 1908, and the census of 1920 counted 235 people here.

How does Westminster rank for history?

Westminster is more historic than 31% of U.S. towns, #72 of 159 in Colorado. The History grade combines the town’s founding era, the share of homes built before 1940 and its National Register listings. It’s a character grade, so it isn’t part of the overall grade. How it works.

What is on the National Register in Westminster?

6 listings: 5 buildings, among them the Westminster University (listed 1979, the first), and 1 historic district, the Metzger Farm, with 11 contributing buildings. 16 historic buildings in all.

How old are the homes in Westminster?

0.8% of Westminster’s homes were built before 1940 (Census estimate), against a typical 2.5% for a Colorado town; the median home was built in 1987.

Memory lane

What the archives can’t tell you, neighbors can.

Town Square →
Start a conversation
Sources

Where this page comes from

Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021).

From Wikimedia Commons (18), the National Register of Historic Places (6), Wikipedia, Wikidata and Wikipedia for famous people, U.S. Geological Survey historical maps, U.S. Census counts (via Wikipedia), the US Post Offices dataset (Blevins & Helbock) and the USGS Geographic Names Information System. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.