The remnants are gone, but Denver was once home to the largest Chinese enclave in the Rocky Mountains. At its peak, nearly 1,000 residents lived along Wazee and Blake streets from 15th to 17th in what is now Lower Downtown. So what happened to them?

The latest documentary from the Denver Office of Storytelling, inspired by descendants of those early residents, explains. 

The history of the Chinese people and the integral role they played in Denver begins shortly after the city’s inception. They were instrumental in the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad but by 1880, the xenophobia reached a fever pitch. On Oct. 31 of that year, a bar fight led to Denver's first recorded race riot. 

Over the course of a year and a half, filmmakers Rowena Alegria, Emily Maxwell and Roxana A. Soto, spent time with Chinatown descendants who shared their families' stories, photos and artifacts, as well as historians and experts working to preserve this overlooked history. 

The 50-documentary "Reclaiming Denver's Chinatown" first premiered at the Denver Film Festival in November 2022. Read and watch more about this history and the individuals featured in the film on IAmDenver.org.