- Fact 1: The name Five Points is in reference to the intersection of Denver’s Washington Street, 27th Street, 26th Avenue, and Welton Street, which is a mixture of a downtown Denver street grid and a suburban street grid.
- Fact 2: Five Points is home to two internationally-known annual celebrations; the Five Points Jazz Festival and the Juneteenth Music Festival. Each event brings thousands of attendees to the Five Points neighborhood to enjoy music, vendors, food and fun.
- Fact 3: By the 1920s, more than ninety percent of Denver’s African American community lived within the bounds of Five Points and the adjacent Whittier neighborhood. This population growth was driven by the Black Railroad workers known as Pullman Porters.
- Fact 4: Five Points was the seat of Denver’s African American community through the 1930s, 1940s, and 1950s. It was a cultural and entertainment destination, with top jazz and blues musicians of the day such as Lena Horne, Count Bassie, Duke Ellington, Nat King Cole and Dinah Washington all staying and performing in Five Points.
- Fact 5: Five Points was a self-contained community home to dentists, attorneys, doctors, schools, fire and police departments and businesses that catered to the Black community. Black professionals who could not legally practice outside of Five Points were able to work and thrive in this neighborhood.
Five Facts About Five Points
Writer & Digital Content Specialist
February 1, 202411:54 AM MST