When entrepreneur William Daniels returned from a trip to Venice, mesmerized by Italian Renaissance architecture, he insisted on replicating the famous Campanile in St. Marks's square for the centerpiece of his mammoth department store. Thus, in 1911 the beautiful D&F Tower rose above downtown, becoming Denver's first skyscraper. It was anchored on both sides by a sprawling shopping complex. Today, only the Daniels and Fisher Tower remains, with a spot on the National Historic Register. It stands on the 16th Street Mall as one of the area's most recognizable landmarks.
