Those were the days…these are the days
By Jan MacKell
Today, Cripple Creek boasts nine casinos including The Brass Ass, Bronco and Buffalo Billy’s, Century, Colorado Grande, Double Eagle and Gold Creek, Johnny Nolons, J.P. McGill’s, Midnight Rose and Wildwood.
Oct. 1, 1991. What a date! What an amazing day! Witnesses to Cripple Creek’s rebirth from a sleepy tourist town to one of Colorado’s three gambling Meccas will remember that day as one that changed the face of the state’s economy. Gambling brought new hope not just to the business people and residents of Cripple Creek, Central City and Black Hawk. The newly-created market also inspired historians, created a slew of new jobs, and gave budding entrepreneurs in the casino industry a chance to make it big.
As a veteran of the gambling industry, I remember well the changes brought forth just before Oct. 1. For months, Cripple Creek’s Bennett Avenue was a flurry of activity. Construction seemed to be taking place everywhere as the old business blocks were cleaned out, cleaned up, gutted, redesigned and refurbished. New carpet, paint, wallpaper, tin ceilings and glamorous lights were hauled up from Colorado Springs and other places as new life was installed behind the old facades. New buildings popped up where none had been for 20, 60, 80 years. Some old buildings went down. The sounds of hammers and saws reverberated throughout the city streets as Cripple Creek prepared for the newest chapter in its long life.
On the big day, I remember coming up to watch the city’s comeback and apply for a job. Seven casinos opened on Oct. 1, with more promising to swing their doors open soon. I had about $20 to my name that day, so I mostly just watched as those new to the game and with more money than I tried their luck. I watched a lady win $300 on a nickel slot machine, only to gamble it all back in. Free food and drinks were everywhere. Each casino featured hawkers at the door, giving out coupon books for free coin and all kinds of other goodies. Old Cripple Creek, once “The World’s Greatest Gold Camp,” fairly vibrated with activity and everyone seemed to have a look that resembled a child’s face on Christmas morning.
During excavation of the Double Eagle Hotel and Casino site, a layer of ashes from the 1896 was uncovered. On Oct. 1, 1991, Cripple Creek opened with seven casinos that would eventually peak at 34. File photo
In the coming months, years even, gambling seemed to smile on Cripple Creek and its willing participants. Those were the days—when you could walk up one side of Bennett and down the other gathering those coupon books. They said you could eat and drink for free during the whole trip, plus make a good $30 in the bargain with the free coin coupons. If you wanted to splurge you could eat a 50-cent breakfast at Bronco Billy’s (a promotion that is still in place), or a whole prime rib dinner at the Independence for $1.99. Free shrimp cocktail at the Black Diamond. Free hot dogs at the Midnight Rose. Free popcorn at Womack’s. Free cocktails at every bar. Free free free-free-free.
Glenda Hency and Cathy Keeler were just two of many favorite employees at the Black Diamond Casino's. The Black Diamond is now Bennett Station, a local tavern. Photo by Jan MacKell
And there was more. Amateur gamblers might walk off and leave a machine with credits on it, or hit the jackpot and leave thinking they broke the machine. Others mindlessly fed coins into the bar tops, not realizing that a little black cup underneath caught the extras.
Finding money on the floor was common; so was playing with blackjack dealers who didn’t know the game well and paid you whether you won or lost. Indeed it took quite a few years—over a decade in some cases—for the casinos to get their new gig down and learn how to cater to their players versus the freeloaders.
In 1996, Cripple Creek peaked with 34 casinos. You could still get a job bartending back then starting at $7 an hour, plus tips. Few bartenders, waiters or dealers walked with less than $100 in their pockets after a shift. The money simply flew, but it did come with a price as people began questioning the ethics of gambling versus historic preservation. Did they have to tear down the Masonic hall and “dismantle” Cripple Creek’s beautiful old bank building? Why were residents on West Bennett Avenue subject to higher taxes because they were in the gaming zone? How was it for the children of Cripple Creek during the 1990’s, when suddenly they were banned from most of the buildings downtown? Who was paying attention to the city’s infrastructure?
The famed Brass Ass still poses in the front window at the Brass Ass Casino, now part of Triple Crown Casinos. Photo by Jan MacKell
In time, Cripple Creek seems to have figured most of this out. The sacrifices made over the last 20 years finally seem to weigh less than the benefits. Thanks to gambling, Cripple Creek now has new water pipes. New ADA accessible sidewalks. A nicer city hall, fire station and police station. Paved streets. Better events. A beautiful theatre. Three museums and a heritage center that are all subsidized or owned by the city. Public art. A nice park. The cemetery is kept up. And there are still a good handful of casinos, many of which have been here since the early days.
Cripple Creek has also managed to weather a faltering economy quite nicely. TITO (ticket-in-ticket-out, which some casino workers contend actually stands for tipping-is-totally-optional) has replaced the jangling of coins from the machines, but the game remains the same. Now, with higher stakes and round the clock hours, Cripple Creek has even more chances to make more money and bring more visitors. It has indeed been a long strange trip for many, but its time as a gaming town has been good to Cripple Creek in this, its second “gold boom” and chance at a new life.
