Whether you came from Nebraska, Massachusetts, Oklahoma, New York or even Wheat Ridge, if you came to Denver in your 20’s, chances are you logged time in a Capitol Hill apartment. (Want to date yourself? Brag about $250 one-bedrooms.)

If you never did laundry at Smiley’s Laundromat or horked down a burrito at the Satire Lounge, here’s some background on this iconic area:

Cap Hill is the Mile High City’s densest, most urban neighborhood. Encompassing Colorado’s Capitol building and some of the most colorful sections of East Colfax, the neighborhood has housed gold and silver barons, Molly Brown, artists, hippies, bohemians, Allen Ginsburg and Jack Kerouac along with countless people rich and poor, young and old drawn to the eclectic mix of mansions, early- and Mid-century apartment buildings, movie theaters, bars, treed avenues and live-and-let-live ethos.

It has served as the heart of Denver’s LGBTQ community, the birthplace of the People’s Fair and pioneered grassroots organizing in the city when Capitol Hill United Neighborhoods emerged, the city’s oldest and largest neighborhood association.

Almost a perfect square, it’s perimeters are demarcated by North Broadway to the west, North Downing to the east and Colfax and Seventh Avenues, north to south. (Cheesman Park, which many of us consider a Capitol Hill landmark, officially resides in the Cheesman Park neighborhood. Go figure.)

Historically young people have flocked here as a Denver landing spot for the long-gone cheap rents, pervading sense of possibility and eternal embrace of tie-dye. As one of Denver’s most vibrant inner city neighborhoods, Capitol Hill offers the chance of life-changing conversations on the Colfax bus, the opportunity to score a vinyl copy of the Beatles’ Revolver at Wax Trax (Cap Hill’s oldest independent record store), the prospect of discovering the work of local genius Vance Kirkland at the eponymous Kirkland Museum of Fine and Decorative Art and learn more about the Centennial State (good and bad) at the nearby Colorado History Museum.

There’s also plenty of music to be had, see The Bluebird and Ogden Theaters and Fillmore Auditorium, and epic food including vegetarian (City, O’ City), locally sourced and seasonal (Potager), date-night fare (Mizuna, American food with a French accent) and cheap (ZEPS Epiq Sandwiches, where they’re elevating the in-bun experience) and so many more.

But do get the burrito at the Satire and check the Satire off your OG Denver list. Truth? Not the best burrito in town, but one you can dine out on. According to Westword, Bob Dylan played there the summer of ’60 until he annoyed top billers, the Smothers Brothers.

Let the beat and the Beats go on.

Capitol Hill Highlights
Population: Just over 16,000
Location: Walking distance to downtown Denver
Housing stock: Historic and vintage single-family homes juxtaposed with Art Deco, Mid-century and contemporary apartments and condos
Public schools: Denver Public Schools
Public high school: East High School
Nearest hospitals: Denver Health Medical Center
Nearby park(s): Cheesman Park, Congress Park, Governors Park
Fun fact: A number of the historic mansions are reportedly haunted including the Molly Brown House, the Grant-Humphreys Mansion and the Patterson Inn.

Capitol Hill Rankings: Niche ranks thousands of neighborhoods based on key statistics from the U.S. Census and expert insights.
– #2 Best Neighborhoods for Young Professionals in Denver (out of 76)
– #9 Best Neighborhoods to Live in Denver (out of 76)