Editing Denver, Pennsylvania (section)

==History==
[[File:Denver, Pennsylvania Keystone Marker, November 2013.jpg|thumb|right|Denver [[Keystone Marker]]]]
Denver was founded by in 1735, by Hans Bucher, a [[Swiss Americans|Swiss immigrant]]. It was originally known as ''Bucher's Thal'', or "Bucher Valley", in reference to the adjacent [[Cocalico Creek]]. In the mid-18th century, a [[gristmill]] was built along the creek, and by 1772 six dwellings had been built. A [[blacksmith]] shop and a [[sawmill]] were operating by 1820. Early advantages for the settlement were fertile soils and the [[limestone]] formations that were mined for the manufacture of mortar, plaster and whitewash. In the 1830s, settler John Bucher became an advocate for using the lime as a [[fertilizer]]. Several limestone quarries were in turn operating by the 1850s.<ref name="Umble">{{Cite web|title=5 key moments in Denver's history|url=https://lancasteronline.com/5-key-moments-in-denvers-history/article_1d2c8e72-6826-11e9-af40-ef9671d4e994.html|first=Chad|last=Umble|website=LancasterOnline|language=en|access-date=2020-05-03}}</ref>

During the [[American Civil War|Civil War]], the Reading and Columbia Railroad built a line through town, prompting a name change to "Union Station". With time, residents grew weary being referred to as a train station. After researching post offices in the country, Adam Brubaker found only one named Denver. On November 1, 1881, the town was officially renamed Denver.<ref>{{cite web|title=About Denver Borough|url=http://www.denverboro.net/2160/About-Denver-Borough|publisher=Denver Borough|access-date=December 20, 2017}}</ref>

By the late 19th century, continued growth had some residents considering incorporating as a borough. The tipping point was a major fire at the Denver House, a tavern built behind the train station in 1868. Water from a local well and the nearby Cocalico Creek was insufficient to fight the fire, prompting tobacco merchant Aaron Shirk, physician W.D. Fink and businessman Ephraim Renninger to press for [[municipal corporation|incorporation]], so a municipal water system could be created. The trio filed an application for incorporation in April 1900, and by that December, Denver Borough had come into being. It originally encompassed {{convert|183|acre}}, about a quarter its current size.<ref name="Umble"/>

With the turn of the century, the new borough purchased a reservoir site and constructed a water plant, which went online in 1902. By 1906, the one quarry still in operation today just outside Denver was opened in 1906 by Abram G. Kurtz. Around the time Denver was incorporated, [[cigar]] making was the dominant industry in the area, but mechanization eventually doomed the trade in hand-rolling cigars. New industries sprouted up, including the F&M Hat Company, founded in 1912 by brothers Samuel and Daniel Fichthorn along with their brother-in-law Ambrose Marburger. F&M Hat quickly grew into the town's largest employer, giving generations of residents jobs in its factory. By 1939 there were 835 employees working two shifts.<ref name="Umble"/>

In 1977, the [[Cocalico Senior High School|Cocalico Eagles]] boys basketball team, under the direction of coach Ed McIlmoyle, defeated [[Mercer Area Middle-High School|Mercer]], 75–59, in the PIAA Class AA state championship game.<ref>{{Cite web|title=LNP Sports 365: A title for Cocalico|url=https://lancasteronline.com/sports/highschool/boysbasketball/lnp-sports-365-a-title-for-cocalico/article_d4024f88-9224-11e4-9d23-bbb86a76a4c8.html|first=Laura Eckert|last=Thompson|website=LancasterOnline|language=en|access-date=2020-05-03}}</ref>

[[Bucher's Mill Covered Bridge]], south of Denver near [[Reamstown, Pennsylvania|Reamstown]], was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 1980.<ref name="nris">{{NRISref|version=2010a|dateform=mdy}}</ref>

In 2003, the body of [[Jonathan Luna|Jon Luna]], an [[Assistant United States Attorney]], was found in Denver.<ref>{{cite news|first1 = Carrie | last1 = Caldwell| first2 = Larry | last2= Alexander | date = December 5, 2003 | newspaper = Lancaster Intelligencer Journal| page =1 | title = U.S. prosecutor found slain|url = https://www.newspapers.com/image/567356337}}</ref>