Riede's City Bakery facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
|
|
Riede's City Bakery
|
|
North elevation, 2010
|
|
 Location in Colorado
|
|
| Location | Aspen, CO |
|---|---|
| Built | 1885 |
| MPS | Historic Resources of Aspen |
| NRHP reference No. | 87000182 |
| Added to NRHP | March 6, 1987 |
The Riede's City Bakery building is a historic wooden building in Aspen, United States. It was built in the 1880s. In 1987, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
This building is special because it's one of only two wooden commercial buildings left from Aspen's early days. Back then, Aspen was a fast-growing boomtown due to silver mining. Even though it wasn't always a bakery, it became famous for one that operated there for almost 20 years. Today, the building is home to a shop that sells art and handmade rugs.
About the Building
The Riede's building is on East Hyman Street. It's close to the Wheeler Opera House, another historic building. This part of East Hyman Street is now a pedestrian mall. This means only people can walk there, not cars. There are shops on both sides of the street. You can also see tall trees and a small stream. The area is flat, with a park nearby. Aspen Mountain and its ski area are a few blocks to the south.
The building itself has two stories. It's made of wood and has a special "false front" on the side facing the street. This false front makes the building look taller than it really is. On the ground floor, there's a glass storefront with double doors. Above that, there's a wooden section with horizontal wooden boards. The second story is not used for shops. The building has a lot of space inside for retail.
A Look at Its History
The Riede's building was built in 1885. We don't know what it was first used for, but it might have been a bakery. At that time, Aspen was growing very fast. This was because of the Colorado Silver Boom. Many new buildings were being built. Most of them were made of wood.
After a few big fires in the late 1880s, the city made a new rule. All new business buildings had to be made of brick or stone. This was to help prevent more fires.
In 1890, Raymond Riede bought the building. He opened his bakery and candy shop there. A few years later, in 1893, a law called the Sherman Silver Purchase Act was canceled. This meant the government bought much less silver. The demand for silver dropped a lot. Aspen's population started to shrink. This time is known as "the quiet years" for Aspen.
Raymond Riede kept his bakery open until 1908. As fewer people lived in Aspen, many old buildings became empty. They were often damaged by fires or the harsh mountain winters. But the bakery building, still known by Riede's name, stayed standing. During the Great Depression, it was used as a second-hand shop.
New owners from Denver bought the building in 1946. They fixed it up. While they were putting in new water pipes, they found parts of the old outdoor brick ovens. After the work was done, the building opened as Louie's Spirit House. This was Aspen's first store with a special license to sell liquor.
Louie's stayed in business until 1973. After that, it became Uncle Willy's Spirit House. Then, it was a women's clothing store. In 1985, the outside of the building was restored. It was made to look like it did when it was first built. Today, the building is home to Noori's Collection. This shop sells beautiful handmade Persian carpets and Native American and Asian art. Because of its great location in downtown Aspen, the building is now worth a lot of money.
