John Cleveland Osgood and Redstone, Colorado

John Cleveland Osgood

John Cleveland Osgood was a prominent figure within the coal industry and best remembered for erecting the town, Redstone, Colorado. Born in Brooklyn on March 6, 1851, Osgood moved to Burlington, Iowa with his father when he was 6. A few years later, he was sent to live with relatives in Providence, Rhode Island after his father died. An office job at a cotton mill taught him business. He moved to New York City at 16 and found work in a Produce Exchange Commission while attending night school. Afterward, he returned to Burlington and took a job at White Breast Fuel Company and a position at First National Bank as a cashier.

   During his time with First National Bank, he learned the banking side of the business world. This led to him taking over the fuel company at age 26 and visiting Colorado to learn more about the state’s coal resources for the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy railroad. Osgood bought several tracts of coal land in Colorado and formed the Colorado Fuel Company. His business grew fast and he eventually merged with Colorado Coal and Iron Company to become Colorado Fuel and Iron Company. Bessemer Iron Works in Pueblo, Colorado became the company’s headquarters.  

   Colorado Fuel and Iron mined about three quarters of the coal in Colorado, but miner strikes between 1894-1901 proved costly for the company. Osgood testified before the Colorado General Assembly that he knew what was best for miners and not the labor unions, going so far as to declare labor unions a threat to the United States. During the same time frame, an idea to eliminate labor unions, known as welfare capitalism, was gaining popularity. Osgood approved this idea, believing a happy and content worker was a productive worker who didn’t strike, and set about providing for his employees’ every need by building Redstone, Colorado.

  

Coke ovens

Located west of Pueblo and south of Glenwood Springs, Redstone was constructed as a company town. Coke ovens were built to turn coal into coke (see explanation below on coke and coal). To carry the coal from the Coal Basin mines and the coke to the foundries in Pueblo, the Crystal River railroad was built. To accommodate employees’ housing needs, Osgood built 84 cottages for married workers and 1 dormitory with 40 rooms for single workers. The cottages and the dormitory were somewhat of a rarity as they all had indoor plumbing and electricity. Some of the cottages are still in existence today, as is the dormitory. To further accommodate his married employees' needs, Osgood built a school for their children.

Employee cottage

   Osgood also built the Redstone Club, which had reading rooms stocked with papers in different languages, weeklies and magazines. A library, small theater and a bath house were also part of the Redstone Club, which cost $25,000 to build; $707,000 in today’s market. Redstone boasted a saloon, with card tables and pool tables. Saloon rules were strictly enforced, to include a ‘No Treating’ rule, which prevented anyone from buying a round of drinks to avoid drunkenness. Gambling was kept to penny ante poker and dime wagers on a game of pool. Rounding off the town was an irrigated garden, a public barn for employee’s livestock, and a wash house for laundering clothes, but the crème-de-la-crème to Redstone was and still is Osgood’s castle, Cleveholm Manor.

  

Cleveholm Manor

Built to impress his second wife, Swedish Countess Alma Regina Shelgrem, Cleveholm Manor is a 24,000ft English Tudor-style castle. Designed by New York architects Boal and Harnois, work on the Manor began in 1897 and was finished in 1901, with a price tag of $50,000 (1.1 million in today’s market). Sometimes called Redstone Castle, the manor sits on 72 acres and includes servants’ quarters, a gamekeeper’s lodge, carriage house, greenhouse, and a kennel for dogs. Gate keeper’s homes were erected on the north and south boundaries. The stable housed horses, cattle and chickens, with a game preserve of deer, elk and bighorn sheep, and a stocked fishing pond.

   Sadly, Cleveholm Manor nearly fell to ruins. A strike at Colorado mines weakened Osgood’s company. He successfully foiled a takeover by John Gates from Chicago, but lost to John D. Rockefeller and Jay Gould in a stock war in 1903. Osgood was forced to abandon his welfare programs, though he did remain active in combating unions, this time around with violence. He founded the Victor-American Fuel Company and took up residence in New York City; his stay at Cleveholm now infrequent. Eventually the manor was boarded up when Osgood elected to spend time in Palm Springs or cruising to Europe. He finally returned to the manor with his third wife, Lucille, in 1925 when diagnosed with terminal cancer. He passed in 1926 and Lucille tried to turn the estate into a resort, but the Depression thwarted her plans.

  

Historic Redstone Dormitory/Inn

Today, Redstone, Colorado is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and has a population of about 130. The dormitory is now the Redstone Inn and Cleveholm Manor and the gamekeeper’s cottage are listed independently on the National Register. The castle contained 75 percent of its furnishing as of 2004 and was bought by the owners of Hotel Denver in Glenwood Springs and underwent restoration, to include road and utility work. Currently, it is open for tours.

   ***Coke is made by heating coal in the absence of air to drive off impurities to leave an almost pure carbon. Cokes made from coal are hard, grey, and porous.

Interior Cleveholm Manor

Interior Cleveholm Manor

Leadville, Colorado Historical Buildings

 

Early Leadville

Sitting at 10,152ft above sea level, Leadville, Colorado is a small town known for its importance in 1800’s silver mining. Folks looking to ‘strike it rich’ flocked to the Continental Divide with picks and shovels, and before long the town was booming with business. Even the railroad eventually made its way to Leadville. With striking views of the peaks along the Continental Divide, two of the buildings from the 1800’s boom are still in existence and use today.   

D

Delaware Hotel 

elaware Hotel: Originally from the state of Delaware, William, George and John Callaway left the east coast and settled in Denver as ware merchants. The brothers decided to expand their business and chose Leadville for their next venture. They built the 2-story Callaway Block on the corner of Sixth and Harrison in the mid 1880’s. The Callaway burned and the brothers turned their attention to building the Delaware as a tribute to their home state. The Delaware opened in 1886, with the ground floor home to several shops. The second and third floors housed fifty furnished rooms for use as offices or bedrooms. The hotel had steam heat, hot and cold water, gas lighting, and six bathrooms. William and George eventually went back to Denver, leaving John in charge of the hotel. The brothers retired in 1890, wealthy from their business ventures and investments.      

Today, 

A gust room at the Delaware

The Delaware is Leadville’s only remaining hotel from the mining era. The hotel features a museum, gallery, and Victorian style rooms. The hotel is decorated with American and European antiques, with each bedroom telling a story relating to Leadville’s history.

The

Tabor Opera House

Tabor Opera House: Born in Vermont in 1830, Horace Tabor was a stone cutter. He moved to Leadville in 1850 with his wife, August, and mined what is known as California Gulch. That mine didn’t net him riches, so he sold it and became a Leadville merchant. During this time, e gave supplies to two men in exchange for 1/3 of their mining claim. Lucky for Tabor, the men struck silver, making Tabor rich. He used his wealth to start several other mining companies, making even wealthier. But Tabor was also a reckless spender, of which his wife didn’t approve. He eventually divorced August and married his mistress, Elizabeth McCourt, a.k.a. Baby Doe. Horace and Baby Doe continued to spend their wealth in a reckless manner, and when the silver market crashed in 1893, they were poor. Horace died in 1899 with the notion his mines would become profitable again, but he was wrong.

As

Interior of Tabor Opera House, circa 1800's

 a prominent historic figure in Leadville’s history, Tabor’s house is now a museum and open to the public. His other famous legacy is the Tabor Opera House. Before Tabor came to Leadville, Denver had a difficult time acquiring opera singers to come to the city and perform. Out of the way and off the beaten path, opera companies thought Denver unworthy of their time, as getting to and leaving the city meant the loss of other dates and revenue. After Tabor came to Leadville, he opened a small opera house, and later decided to build an even bigger one that Denver, ‘Queen City of the Plains’ deserved. Construction began during the summer months, with Tabor sparing no expense for the finest opera house in the west. Constructed of cherry wood from Japan and mahogany from Honduras, the house was furnished with paintings from Europe, silk plush chairs, tapestry and carpeting. Opening night was September 6, 1881, with Tabor securing Emma Abbott and her Grand English Opera Company to christen the house. The house was a success for a few years until the Broadway Theater opened on 16^th Street and took away most of the opera house’s business. Tabor had to sell his opera house in 1896, after he went bankrupt.       

The

Tabor Opera House today

Tabor Opera House still stands today and is undergoing major renovation, which is expected to last several years and is paid for in part by the town of Leadville. Improvements have been made to the roof and to structural support due to water seeping through the bricks and causing major problems from freezing and then thawing. Electrical work, plumbing, and the brick exterior also need to be improved as well as the heating. Currently the opera house is only open for performance during the summer because the building does not have heat.

**** To learn more about Leadville, or for directions and aaccomodations, Google offers several great links.