Westminster University

A towering monolith of red sandstone located on what used to be known as Crown Point, the highest point in Adams County, Westminster University is a prominent landmark that commands a panorama of more than 600 square miles of the High Plains and the Rocky Mountains. The structure is significant for its roles in education, law, and religion, as well as for its architecture, a magnificent example of the Richardsonian Romanesque style.

The origins of the college date back to 1882 when the Presbytery of Denver petitioned the Colorado Synod for authorization to build a school whose excellence would make it the "Princeton of the West." When the Synod, however, selected the town of Del Norte, Presbyterians in Denver formed their own plans to build the Westminster University of Colorado on a tract of land out in the country northwest of Denver. One E. B. Gregory designed a building, but the final plans have long been attributed to Stanford B. White of New York, a student of Henry Hobson Richardson. The structure was initiated in 1892 but owing to financial crises, the college did not open to students until 1907. A few years later the village of Harris changed its name to Westminster and named many local streets after prestigious eastern universities. Despite the high hopes of its founders, Westminster University failed in 1917. Its only legacy was its law school which survived under the university charter and produced several individuals who went on to notable careers: Teller Ammons--Governor of Colorado; John Carroll--U.S. Senator; and Oscar Chapman--Secretary of the Interior. In 1957 this law school merged with that of the University of Denver.

In 1920 the Pillar of Fire, an indigenous Colorado religious, educational, and benevolent organization with religious tenets similar to that of Wesleyan Methodism, purchased the building, then threatened by ruin due to vandalism and neglect. Here the Pillar of Fire established a major center of Christian education, international in scope. Now housed in the structure, Belleview College seeks to fulfill the criteria for the sale: that it be an institution continuing the purpose of the founder. "Not to be ministered unto, but to minister," with the objective of promoting liberal education under the religious influence and training young people physically, intellectually, and spiritually for effective service in their respective vocations. As part of its mission, Pillar of Fire became the licensee of the radio station KPOF, a pioneer in Christian broadcasting and today the oldest radio station in Colorado under the same ownership.

From an architectural perspective, Westminster University manifests all the salient characteristics of the Richardsonian Romanesque style. The large blocks of sandstone, their straightforward use, and the broad roof planes give the structure massiveness, volume, and scale. The frequent use of the Roman arch over the major entrances and many windows plus the arcade along the main facade keep within the style; so does the use of windows with transoms, the deeply set fenestration, and the banks of narrow, ribbon-like windows seen in the towers. The chimneys and turrets are also short so as not to be obtrusive. And finally, there are the foliated forms that serve as decorative figures. The use of these elements makes Westminster University a classic of the style.