Promises.

• Author: Jeff, Rundles
• Position: RUNDLES wrap up

I WALK A LOT, DAILY, MOSTLY ON THE SIDEWALKS around my older south Denver neighborhood, and the exercise has done a lot for my weight, my health. my stamina, and my overall well-being. It has also, believe it or not, given me a perspective on modern-day business and not an altogether good one.

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With not much going on beyond my strident striding, I think a lot and notice the little things and I have been very much taken with the sidewalk signatures that cement and concrete companies used 10 routinely impress in their work. There was and "was" is the operational word - an obvious pride taken in the work to lay a sidewalk in earlier times. There are a ton of newer homes, and newer sidewalks, in the area, and none of the modern sidewalk makers feels the need, apparently, to sign their handiwork.

That's too bad. Not that the newer sidewalks are any less well made - I'm 110 expert in sidewalk work--but it seems to me that the guys who signed their work in the past did so after painstakingly ensuring that the job was clone right. Their names speak in some small, vet long-lasting measure to a bit of Denver business history. Not to mention the workman's pride.

Here's some I found: "City Sidewalk 1960," "Laid By K W Walker Concrete Construction 1988," "A. B. C. Concrete 19 (year left blank)," "Ideal Portland Cement Laid By Louis C Liley 1960," "Ideal Portland Ceinem Laid By W. R. VanHedkelem 71." "Laid By John Sandoval 1960," "George Kling 1937," "Q P Naptie Contr. 1952," Laid By Ray H Otto Contractor 1950," K Wirsing 1952," "Laid By Westra Bros. Construction 1952," "Albert Stavast 1965."

My absolute favorite isn't an impression made in the cement, but rather what looks like a brass plaque inlaid imp it. found twice on my walk: "The Hinchman--Renton Co." There was no date, but it taker! old. According to some research, Hinchman was James Barton Hinchman (1859-1944) who formed the Hinchman Roofing Co. in the 1890s, and merged it with the Renton Fireproofing Co. in 1902, and the company persevered for 40 years. I bund nothing on Renton, but apparently the company was a national pioneer in the then-new use of strengthening concrete with steel (today, I believe, we call that rebar), and the firm supplied fireproofing concrete for Union Station, the U.S. Denver Mint, and several sugar...