GRANDPA AND GRANDMA’S HOUSE
Cynthia Ann Hendee Henry
November 2005; June 2010
I loved the home of my dear maternal grandparents, Sallie Marie Holwell Moore and Percy Lee Moore. They moved
to Denver from Colorado Springs around my first birthday---to a wonderful old two-story home at 645 Clarkson
Street.
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View of south side, showing living room in front and dining room with that huge, lovely bay window.
Grandpa and Cynthia around 1945
Percy, Laura Louise Hendee, Sallie holding Cynthia
1946
After retiring from his job as a grocer in Colorado Springs, Grandpa eventually worked for Daddy, who was a CPA,
in downtown Denver. I don't know when Grandpa quit driving, but he did not drive during my lifetime. He took the
bus from 7th Avenue, one-half block up, to Daddy’s office at 15th and Champa in downtown Denver.
Grandma’s job was managing their rooming house. The upstairs was composed of four bedrooms. One had its own
bathroom, and the other three shared the second small bathroom. The room above the dining room shared the bay
window effect, and Linda recalls it had a sitting room. The basement was a full apartment plus one or two storage
rooms. That renter had his own private entrance. The rooms were rented out, as I recall, mainly to older men who
had to pass through Grandma and Grandpa’s living room in order to access their own home upstairs. Grandma’s job
was to do all the cleaning, washing and ironing of linens, and changing the beds. The men ate out all meals. Mother
remembered a woman living there, a nurse, when I was quite small (see photo below). I well remember the now-oldfashioned wringer washing machine in the kitchen and the large mangle iron against the north wall in the dining
nook. She must have kept so busy!
The main roomers I recall are Tom (below) in the room above the dining room, Mr. Hadley above the front porch
(see windows in photo above), and Jack in the back apartment with his own bathroom and looking down on the
backyard. One occupant downstairs was Mother’s dear college roommate, Edith Lorimer (Graham), prior to her
marriage occurring when I was about five. I was the flower girl and wore a red velvet dress!
Of course the rented rooms were off limits, but we would occasionally accompany Grandma upstairs to help replace
the towels and were always intrigued with this very small, private world of some men who briefly passed through on
their way upstairs.
I loved the main floor of the home, Grandpa and Grandma’s living quarters. It seemed quite spacious to me at the
time. We entered from the lovely front porch into the living room where glass-fronted bookcases against the far
wall held all kinds of treasures, such as the stereoscopic viewer that magically transformed side-by-side onedimensional photo cards into three-dimensional scenes. I especially loved the ones in color!
No matter how much she must have had to do, Grandma always made time for us when we came to visit. While
Linda and I often entertained ourselves with the card games stored there, such as Authors, War or Slapjack,
Grandma was wonderful at joining us for these and other pastimes. A favorite image is of us all down on the floor
with the coffee can of magical marbles. These were like jewels to me, and I could endlessly sort through the cat
eyes, steelies and boulders, marveling at the multi-colors of them all. Grandma must have been bored to tears with
us each lining up these little gems and then rolling one at a time across the room to try and capture more for our
own side by hitting those of the opposition.
This was all done with Grandma in a house dress. “House dress” was a common term in our growing-up lives for
Mother, Grandma and all women of that era. Women would say, “I need a new house dress” as well as they today
say, “I need a new pair of slacks.” That is all Grandma wore. For Christmas, she would buy herself a new house
dress, wrap it up, put something like “To Sallie, Love Percy” on it and place it under our tree. Grandma also took
the bus downtown~~~to go shopping. This was well before neighborhood shopping malls.
Grandpa did his part by playing games of Chinese Checkers with us. Parcheesi and checkers were also in the mix. A
favorite time was lying on the couch while he rubbed my feet.
Also in the living room were a Victrola, that I wish I had now, and a huge old-time radio that must have brought
them hours of pleasure; though I don’t remember listening to it, it still fascinated me. That was certainly “the”
home entertainment prior to television. When Mother and Daddy bought a TV for us in 1955, they also bought one
for Grandpa and Grandma. They had said they never wanted one, but adjusted quickly!
The dining room was truly lovely with a bay window behind the table. I have fond memories of Thanksgiving
dinners in that lovely area lined with Grandma’s beloved violets and other plants. Since they had a rooming house,
Grandpa and Grandma were required to have a pay phone rather than a regular one. It was on the east wall of the
dining room, around the corner behind Tom’s head. I believe it originally took a nickel per call, going up to a dime
and eventually a quarter.
Grandpa and Grandma, Tom, and our beloved Gretchen Thanksgiving 1962 Standing: Cynthia, Daddy, Linda holding Gretchen,
Mother. Seated: Grandpa and Grandma (Tom was the roomer above the dining room. He did not stay for dinner.)
Onto their bedroom with its wonderful feather mattress…. While Linda and I enjoyed sinking into their soft bed,
we didn’t really need to, as the little sunroom right off their bedroom was where we slept on our own feather bed!
Mother told me that these and the pillows were brought out from the family farm in Missouri, made from feathers
of their own geese and ducks. How Linda and I loved that bed! I delighted in listening to the chirp of crickets
outside their bedroom window on summer nights.
Grandpa and Grandma’s bedroom was a great play area. On her dresser was a box full of lovely handkerchiefs,
something women really used back in her day. These came with her from Missouri, though she may have added to
the collection during her time in Colorado. No doubt some were those of her own mother and likely her
grandmother. Linda and I loved going through these, admiring the never-ending styles, all enhanced by a delicate
perfume scent….and thinking of the stories behind them. As shown below, this box now sits on the bookcase in my
antique study and brings back fond memories when I open it and the aroma wafts out.
Grandma had somehow saved marvelous dress-up clothes that would make great antiques today. They were actually
antiques then! I mainly remember the bloomers, items once for real, but now toys for us. There was also a
garment of black lace that was pure magic at our young age. I can’t imagine what she was doing with it. On her
dresser beside the handkerchief box was a beautiful comb, mirror and brush set that we were allowed to use to
feel ever so grown up. In the sunroom that was set up as our guest room is where Grandma kept her jewelry in
what must have been even then a vintage jewelry box. These pieces added to whatever glamour we created with
the dress-up clothes.
The kitchen also seemed large to me, and I especially liked the sunny dining nook, a separate area off the kitchen.
This was extra intriguing, as it had its own entrance to the staircase leading to the roomers’ quarters. This was a
double two-step staircase, entered both from the dining room and from the dining nook. This must have saved time
and steps for Grandma, with the ironed sheets hot off the mangle.
The kitchen held its own special allures, of course. That fun area would start when we first came through the
front door and raced for the cake plate and breadbox to see what goodies she had in store for us; Linda recalls
this as “wonderful junk food!”
She also remembers French toast and Karo syrup. I enjoyed Grandma’s cooking, though was disappointed when she
made vegetable soup. I much preferred her fried chicken or spaghetti and butter. Her pecan pie remains my
favorite type to this day. We were grateful that we did not have to share in Grandpa’s choice of eggs and calves’
brains…..and this was the man who reprimanded us for stirring up our ice cream and chocolate syrup!
The basement storage room was my own little world with its trunks of old family letters. I am surprised now that
those intrigued me at that young age, but they did—a harbinger of a hobby to come.
We didn’t play a lot in the backyard, but I do remember it as a special place. The best part was a trellis along the
whole sidewalk that produced a marvelous orange trumpet vine each season. I once was amazed to find a horned
toad in the grass. I was seldom inside the garage and do not remember what it was used for.
Cynthia in one of Grandma’s bonnets with two of the few female roomers 1947
The best part out back was the great old alley, serving as the path to an even greater place, the corner drugstore,
where comic books were sold for ten cents. Mother would give us each a dime and send us on our way to choose
among Little Lulu, Archie, Nancy and Sluggo or others for a ride to fantasyland. I later learned this is the
narrowest alley in Denver; what a wonderful tidbit!
Further away was where Grandma did her grocery shopping. She never did drive, so her method was to wheel her
stand-up rolling cart down the somewhat steep hill of Clarkson to Piggly-Wiggly a couple of blocks away. We
occasionally went with her and so shared in her shopping experience. It must have been quite a journey hauling all
those groceries back up the hill.
We loved going over to Grandma and Grandpa’s! They were as grandparent-ish as any children could ask for, and I
thank them both for creating and supplying me with wonderful childhood memories.