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Historic Denver livestock building given official designation

The building has played a significant role in the history of agriculture in Colorado for decades.

DENVER — The National Western Center's 1916 Livestock Exchange building has been designated an official historic landmark by Denver City Council.

Located at 4701 Marion Street in the heart of the new National Western Center campus, the building has played an important role in the history of agriculture in Colorado.

"This building was where ag business happened in the region for most of the 20th century," Brad Buchanan, CEO of the National Western Center Authority said. "It’s an icon of local agricultural heritage, and at the National Western Center, we want to ensure it will continue to play an important role in food and ag innovation for the next 100 years."

After the official historic designation, the building's owners plan to return it to the forefront of food and agriculture innovation at the new National Western Center.

The building will feature a mix of office and meeting spaces with a focus on food and agricultural organizations whose work complements the vision and mission of the new National Western Center.

The building will also continue to house the Denver Stockyard Saloon — the saloon that’s the current iteration of the structures’ string of restaurants, inns and watering holes that first served stockmen in 1898.

Denver-based partners EXDO Development, Elevation Development Group, the Colorado Cattlemen’s Association, and the nonprofit National Western Center Authority joined to purchase the building in 2020.

The Denver Livestock Exchange was a nonprofit that oversaw livestock sales at the stockyards from 1906 to 1962. The longest tenant in the building was the Colorado Brand Inspection Board from 1906 to 2015.

Over time, ag-business uses and tenants left the building, and in recent years it has mainly been office space for a variety of private businesses.

Livestock Exchange Building history

Three connected wings comprise the building – built in 1898 (center), 1916 (east) and 1919 (west).

The National Western Center said the 1916 structure is the most visible and recognizable to Stock Show-goers, retaining much of its original features.

Floors, ceilings, staircases and wood trim are largely untouched. Wood, marble, granite and terrazzo finishes still grace the interior, and a second-story hall still features a chalkboard where livestock prices were listed.

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