No visit is complete without experiencing African American cultural influences in the historic Five Points neighborhood, one of the nation’s first business districts to be predominantly African American owned. Considered the “Harlem of the West” in the early 20th century, many of the world’s greatest jazz musicians played here, including Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington and Miles Davis and is home to several first-rate jazz clubs today.

Just blocks from the city center, you’ll find the impressive Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library, housing an extensive collection of exhibits and reference materials that trace black history in the West. It was named after Omar Blair, a member of the Tuskegee Airmen, and Elvin R. Caldwell, a local politician. Former Denver Mayor Wellington Webb’s office, the city’s first African American mayor, has been re-created. The library also houses extensive collections of publications, personal papers, church histories and artworks that document everything from political to music history.

A short walk from the Blair-Caldwell Library is the Black American West Museum & Heritage Center. The museum details the contributions blacks made to the settlement of the American West and brings the stories vividly alive through historic photographs and rare artifacts.

The building itself was once the home of Dr. Justina Ford, Colorado’s first African American female doctor. Nearby, the Stiles African American Heritage Center celebrates the positive contributions made by African Americans through guided tours, cultural exhibits, artifacts and memorabilia.