History
Spirited Living, Embodying a Legacy.
Our Muse
The Mae on Cascade pays homage to icon and namesake Fannie Mae Duncan. An African American entrepreneur, Fannie Mae brought world-class jazz, style and glamour to Colorado Springs in the 1950s and 60s.
As the creator and owner of the Cotton Club, the first integrated nightclub in Colorado Springs, Fannie Mae was a trailblazer. The Cotton Club was the only place in town to host legendary performers such as Louis Armstrong, Etta James, and Duke Ellington, inviting any and all to enjoy the best in entertainment.
Fannie Mae embodied a spirit of inclusion unparalleled in Colorado Springs, best exemplified by the “Everybody Welcome” sign that hung outside the Cotton Club — a symbol expressing her countercultural challenge to the prevailing ethos of time. Fannie Mae’s most enduring legacy, however, may be her legendary selflessness and hospitality. As the owner of multiple successful businesses, she used her position to give generously to her community without expecting recognition or anything in return.
The Mae on Cascade was inspired by Fannie Mae Duncan from the ground up — elegant and refined, yet resolute and bold. The apartment community aspires to honor Fannie Mae’s iconoclastic legacy and evoke her high-spirited charisma and charm via an elevated living experience. The Mae offers an incomparable, Fannie Mae-inspired joie de vivre for the Colorado Springs urbanite.
Photograph by Lew Tilley from the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum
Photograph by Lew Tilley from the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum
Photograph by Lew Tilley from the Colorado Springs Pioneers Museum