For a relatively small city, Englewood, Colorado has a rich and varied history, much of which is not well-known among its 33,000 or so residents. In an effort to change that, a small group of citizens, not acquainted with one another at the time, all attended a city council meeting at which there was a proposal to sell the property on which was located an historic structure, the old Santa Fe train depot. That handful of citizens decided to form an organization with the goal of preserving and restoring the depot to its original condition and create a museum in it.

The city council at that time chose instead to sell the property to a different party, but those history activists were determined to not go away quietly. They founded an organization called Englewood Historic Preservation Society, DBA Historic Englewood. The organization, now more than 11 years old, has focused its attention on preserving the oral and written history of this unique city, the historic buildings, the people who have made it a special place to live, and stories of the amazing things that have been created in Englewood.

However, there is something missing. Many, or perhaps I should say most, of Arapahoe County's cities and small towns have a museum featuring its own local history, but Englewood does not. Now it's possible that we can change that and create what is missing. There is a good chance that a portion of the space in the Englewood Civic Center recently vacated by the Museum of Outdoor Arts may be made available to Historic Englewood to open a small museum of Englewood's history. That possibility is now in the hands of our current city council, which will soon vote whether to designate that space for a history museum.

Do you, the citizens of Englewood, agree that this small but great city needs a history museum? If so, call your representative on city council and urge him or her to vote in favor of providing the space in which a museum can be created. You will be glad you did, and you will be invited to visit it as soon as it is open.

Paul J. Skizinski

Vice president, Historic Englewood