---
title: "The Clock Tower | East High School, Denver"
url: https://eastangelfoundation.org/building/clock-tower
description: "East High School's clock tower is the school's most recognizable feature. The East Angel Foundation supports its restoration and ongoing care."
lang: en
---

Skip to content

Image: East High School's brick facade and landmark clock tower seen from the courtyard (https://eastangelfoundation.org/__l5e/assets-v1/a2b4cbd1-8552-4953-b5ad-77f842ba772b/campus-clock-tower.jpg)

The Building

# The clock tower.

East's most recognizable feature, and one of the campus projects the Foundation's Buildings & Grounds committee helps fund and oversee.

The restored tower clock is one of the campus improvements the Foundation names in its Buildings & Grounds work, alongside the auditorium sound system overhaul and the entry plaza.

Image: Sunlight pouring through tall arched windows onto the floor of the room inside East High School's clock tower (https://eastangelfoundation.org/__l5e/assets-v1/0da20118-4734-4ded-a1a1-3724c6635a96/campus-tower-room.jpg)

Light through the tower room windows

History

## The story of the clock tower

The tower rises from the building East opened in 1925 on the City Park Esplanade. Construction had begun three years earlier, in 1922, as Denver outgrew “Old East” on Welton and Stout Streets — the classical building nicknamed the city’s “Greek Temple of Learning.” The new school was designed by George Hebard Williamson, an architect who had graduated from East himself.

The building was conceived as a crown jewel of Mayor Robert Speer’s “City Beautiful” plan, sited with the Esplanade and the Sullivan Gateway in front of it. The tower, with its clock faces and terra cotta detailing, was the element that made the school legible from blocks away, and it remains the image most Denver residents picture when they hear the name East High. The school at Colfax and Detroit is an official Denver Historic Landmark.

### Preservation today

The Foundation’s Historic Preservation Review documents and protects the building’s historic and architectural features, and the Buildings & Grounds Committee works with East’s administration and Denver Public Schools on the repairs that keep the tower and its clock in working order. The restored tower clock is one of the projects the Foundation names in that work.

### Timeline

- 1922 Construction begins on the City Park Esplanade site.
- 1925 The new East High School opens, tower and clock included.
- Today The tower houses the Tower History Museum and Archives, curated by Foundation volunteers.

Compiled from the Foundation’s published school history and _Flights of Angels: A History of Denver East High School_. Additions and corrections from the History Committee are welcome.

Small stories

## Did you know?

Stories from the building, collected by the History Committee.

Did you know?

### The statues

Missing asset The origin story of East's statues — to be supplied by the History Committee.

Image: The historic East High School building and its landmark clock tower (https://eastangelfoundation.org/assets/building-CPSaIr2h.jpg)

Did you know?

### The divot in the floor

Missing asset The mark left by a fallen skylight — story and floor-divot photo to be supplied by the History Committee. A 15-30 second vertical clip can drop into `clip`.

## Support historic preservation at East.

Gifts directed to Historic Preservation and Buildings & Grounds keep East's landmark features in working order.

Donate (https://eastangelfoundation.org/donate)

Donate to East Angel Foundation: https://eastangelfoundation.org/donate

## Structured data

```json
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "NonprofitOrganization",
  "name": "East Angel Foundation",
  "alternateName": "EAF",
  "url": "https://eastangelfoundation.org/",
  "slogan": "Funding Angel Achievement and Connecting Angels Everywhere",
  "description": "From supporting current students through scholarships to connecting alumni around the world, the East Angel Foundation is a community committed to ensuring that every East Angel has the opportunity to succeed.",
  "email": "info@eastangelfoundation.org",
  "nonprofitStatus": "Nonprofit501c3",
  "taxID": "32-0069773",
  "address": {
    "@type": "PostalAddress",
    "postOfficeBoxNumber": "PO Box 6015",
    "addressLocality": "Denver",
    "addressRegion": "CO",
    "postalCode": "80206",
    "addressCountry": "US"
  },
  "sameAs": [
    "https://www.facebook.com/eastangelfoundation",
    "https://www.instagram.com/eastangelfoundation",
    "https://www.eastangels.network/"
  ]
}
```