Brass mile‑high step at the Colorado State Capitol

A brass plate set into the 13th step of the west entrance to the Colorado State Capitol in Denver marks exactly one mile (5,280 feet) above sea level and has been a long-standing civic landmark. The marker is part of the Capitol building’s public tours and is a common symbol used in Denver’s “Mile High City” identity. Modern geodetic surveys using newer vertical datums show slight differences in elevation, so the exact one‑mile claim is sometimes debated in technical terms. The marker remains an official and popular tourist photo spot associated with that local mythos.