Historical Commission Corner
NOVEMBER 2021
The Superior Historical Commission is excited to announce a first-time event on November 6th: Grasso Park Open House. We have a busy day planned for those interested in local history. First, the Superior Historical Museum will be open, as usual, from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Second is our new event from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
We will open the Hake Homestead House, barn, and outhouse to the public. Docents from the Historical Commission will be on hand to answer questions and guide you through the grounds. Furthermore, a food truck from the Pierogi Factory restaurant in Wheat Ridge will be on site to serve traditional Polish treats in honor of the Grasso family, long-time residents at the location who came from Poland in the late 19th century.
This is a family-oriented event. Bring one, bring all to this opportunity to explore Superior’s history and sample a tasty dish from the old country.
Located on the banks of Coal Creek and nestled in the shade of cottonwoods, Grasso Park illustrates a small family farm that was typical in 1900. The Park sits on land first settled by William and Emmaline Hake in 1860. The Hakes left their home in Platteville, Wisconsin as a part of the Colorado gold rush of 1859 and formally purchased the 160 acres from the U.S. Government in 1870. Today Grasso Park is situated on the southeast corner of the original 160-acres.
Over the years it came to be called the Hake Homestead. The “Homestead house” was built in 1895 followed by the barn, privy and root cellar. We feel that since the Hakes did not homestead the property, the use of the term homestead was comparable to calling a property “the home place.”
Local coal miner Frank Grasso acquired this parcel and had a small dairy operation here. He kept a few milk cattle, pigs, chickens, etc. and supplied milk to his customers in the region.
Area resident Martin Phillips built the bungalow that now houses the Town Building Department at the northwest corner of the property around 1904. Frank Grasso’s son John purchased the bungalow in 1928 and took up residence there. In 1995 John Grasso sold the property to the Town of Superior with the provision that it would be preserved as a park. The property was placed on the Colorado State Register of Historic Properties in 1998. The Colorado Historical Society (now History Colorado) issued a monetary grant to the Town of Superior for the rehabilitation of the buildings, including the bungalow.
Grasso Park is located at First and William Street (south of the Town Hall) in Original Town Superior. Look for the Town Event signs. For further information, contact Lydia Yecke, Town Staff, at 303-499-3675.
Did you know that . . .
- On November 7, 1882, a large 6.5 earthquake hit west of Ft. Collins?
- Southern Colorado’s Huerfano County is so named because of a lonely volcanic plug called Huerfano Butte that was found there? Huerfano means orphan in Spanish. Apparently the singular geological formation conjured an image of abandonment in the minds of early Spanish explorers. It is visible from I-25 south of Walsenburg.
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Colorado has a tree more than 2,440 years old? This bristlecone pine is somewhere in the Windy Ridge Reserve north of Alma? The exact location is kept secret by the U.S. Forest Service to prevent vandalism.
For further information on Superior Historical Commission and Museum activities please contact Lydia Yecke, Town Staff, at 303-499-3675 or Larry Dorsey, Commission Chair, at 303-499-1969. Content by Larry Dorsey and Maureen Hogg, Town of Superior Historical Commission. Proofed by Dorothy Mahan.
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