Denver Federal Center
Denver Federal Center, surrounded by Lakewood, Colorado, is part of the General Services Administration and is home to about 6,200 employees for many Federal government of the United States agencies. The Denver Federal Center encompasses an area of about 670 acres (2.7 km2) and has 90 buildings comprising over 4,000,000 square feet (400,000 m2) of office, warehouse, lab and special use space. There are 26 different Federal agencies on-site, making it the largest concentration of Federal agencies outside of Washington, D.C.
The major employers at the Denver Federal Center include the United States Department of the Interior (and its Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, and United States Geological Survey) and the General Services Administration. Special facilities at the Denver Federal Center include the National Ice Core Laboratory.
Major Jacob Downing, Colorado pioneer and judge, purchased the land in the late 1860s and developed it into a ranch, raising Arabian horses. Downing played a role in settling the West. He introduced new agriculture and wildlife, and helped lay the foundations for the city of Denver.
Thomas S. Hayden, a prominent Denver resident, purchased the Downing estate in 1913. He expanded it into a 20,000 acre (80 km²) cattle ranch.
The federal government purchased 2,040.207 acres (8.25642 km2) from the Hayden family in December 1940 for the purpose of building an ordnance (ammunition) plant, to be named The Denver Ordnance Plant (DOP). The site was chosen for its rural setting; because it was far from the nation's borders, it was presumed safer than coastal areas from enemy sabotage or attack. In late January 1941, the War Department signed a contract with the Remington Arms Company to produce small arms ammunition. Construction of the Plant started in early March 1941. Rapidly, the Government built over 200 buildings for the new Denver Ordnance complex, and ammunition production commenced in late September 1941. Denver Ordnance soon became known for the high quality and accuracy of its ammunition, particularly its lots of .30-06 Springfield rifle ammunition known as M2 ball, which were highly prized by snipers and other rifle marksmen in the U.S. Army. At the height of production in 1943, the Denver Ordnance Plant was the 4th largest “city” in Colorado with a workforce “population” of more than 22,000. These employees worked day and night, producing over six million cartridges a day.
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