Campus West Liquors- The First Liquor Store since Prohibition
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
Advertisement for Campus West Liquors circa 1970. http://campuswestliquors.com/about/our-history#rp_timeline
Modern Day Campus West Liquors. http://campuswestliquors.com/home
Modern Day Campus West Liquors. http://campuswestliquors.com/home
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
In 1969 Campus West Liquors was one of the first liquor stores to open after prohibition legally ended in Fort Collins. Founded by Fort Collins’ former liquor inspector, Red Ferrell, the store opened at 1107 City Park Avenue in October, just months after alcohol had been legalized on April 8, 1969.
Prior to the liquor store opening, Fort Collins’ residents would have to drive to bars outside of the city limits to have hard liquor. The opening of Campus West represented the end of an era for Fort Collins as the city entered into the future and exchanged a dry town for a wet city. In fact, Fort Collins would eventually be known as the “Napa Valley of Beer,” be home to the “brewmuda triangle” (New Belgium, Odell, and Fort Collins Brewery) and produce 70% of all beer in Colorado.
If anyone is further interested in this store or time period, they can look at newspaper articles from the Windsor Beacon dated April 10th and July 21st, 1969. They include information on the vote that allowed for alcohol to be served in Fort Collins and the 4 liquor licenses approved after Fort Collins allowed hard liquor. One can also look at the 1970 Fort Collins’ directory if they want to see the first time Campus West Liquors was listed as a business in Fort Collins.
Newspapers: https://coloradoan.newspapers.com/search/#dr_year=1969-1969&query=liquor&offset=3&oquery=1969+liquor
Directory: http://database.history.fcgov.com/cdm/compoundobject/collection/cid/id/32457/rec/3
Sources
"Fort Collins votes to Sell Hard Liquor in Town." Windsor Beacon(Windsor) April 10, 1969. https://coloradoan.newspapers.com/search/#dr_year=1969-1969&query=liquor&offset=18&oquery=1969+liquor
"Fort Collins Approves 4 Liquor Applications After 'Wet' Election." Windsor Beacon(Windsor) July 31, 1969. , 8-8. https://coloradoan.newspapers.com/search/#dr_year=1969-1969&query=liquor&offset=2&oquery=1969+liquor
Gorrell et al., Rose. A Thirst for Freedom in a Dry Town. Intermountain Histories. Accessed October 15, 2018. http://www.intermountainhistories.org/items/show/134.
Hannifin, Jenny. First Spirituous Drink in 20th Century Fort Collins. Fort Collins Museum of Discovery. August 02, 2017. Accessed October 15, 2018. https://fcmod.org/blog/2017/08/02/first-spirituous-drink-20th-century-fort-collins/.
Our History. Campus West Liquors. Accessed October 15, 2018. http://campuswestliquors.com/about/our-history#rp_timeline.
Willson, Mary. Timeline: Major events in Fort Collins history. Coloradoan. May 31, 2016. Accessed October 15, 2018. https://www.coloradoan.com/story/news/local/premium/2016/03/20/timeline-major-events-fort-collins-history/81917726/.
1970 Fort Collins Colorado City Directory. Fort Collins, Co. Johnson Publishing Company Inc. 57 1970.