It
was the end of baseball season in 1920 as the play by
play action flew out the door to the crowd gathered in
the intersection of Main and Commercial Streets.
The
Trinidad Cigar Store occupied the space on the North East
corner and had arranged with the local newspaper to carry
a game from the 1920's World Series.
It
was a heated battle between the Brooklyn Dodger's and
the Cleveland Indians.
Equipped
with an Associated Press wire that ran right into the
store, a quick telegraph operator decoded the plays as
they came down the wire and handed them off to the announcer.
With
megaphone in hand, the announcer shouted the incoming
plays to the crowd that was so large it blocked traffic
in the intersection. Swilling beer from nearby saloons,
the crowd listened to updates just minutes after they
happened as the Indians beat the Dodgers 3 to 1.
Probably
built in 1889, the McCormick Building was constructed
by John Packer who built many other buildings in the early
days of Trinidad. David McCormick bought the building
in 1901, hence the name of the structure.
McCormick
added the large bay windows that still distinguish the
building. Another feature of note is the second story
corner office with one of the few remaining examples of
curved glass in the area.
While
the McCormick Building has been home to many different
shops for more than a century, the corner space was a
cigar store for most of the building's life.
Sources:
"A
Walk Through the History of Trinidad" written by
Jerry Stokes on behalf of the Trinidad Historical Society.
1986. Trinidad, Colorado.