May 9, 2008 1:24 pm US/Mountain
Heritage Cntr. Offers Glimpse Into Lakewood's Past
LAKEWOOD, Colo. (CBS4) ―
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The Streer sisters lived moved to what eventually became Lakewood in the early 1920s.
Tucked away in Belmar Park is the Lakewood Heritage Center. It features a look at 20th century lifestyles and is home to more than 10 historic structures.
One of those buildings was once Ethel's & Gil's Beauty Salon. Ethel Gomez and her husband Gil opened the salon in the 1950s near Alameda and Lakewood. Their nearest neighbor at the time was a turkey farm.
Ethel and her husband cut hair side by side; she says working together made a lot of sense.
"I got news for you, the women liked men to cut their back then too, so he would do that," Gomez said.
Scattered throughout the gallery spaces of the center are more details of Lakewood's history.
"We stress 20th century history because that is the time Lakewood grew the most," said Win Ferril who is a curator with the center.
The center is also home to the Streer-Peterson house, an actual house from a dairy farm.
"It is interpreted to an early 1920s time period when the Streer family owned. The Streers were Russian Jewish immigrants and they had two little girls and one baby boy when they first moved here."
The home boasts photographs of the family and some of the popular entertainment devices of the time, including a Victrola (a wind up record player).
The kitchen includes the exact model of stove the family had and the Streers even had a telephone, although they were on a party line.
Upstairs is the daughters' bedroom with a single bed. Because the home was only heated with a stove, the girls had to sleep together out of necessity.
The center also highlights influential people, such as Mae Bonfils Stanton who was a driving force in creating Lakewood.
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