Colorado possesses some wonderful architecture dating back many years. Wealthy families built grand residences and buildings to escape the hard, early American West life. Many of these structures remain and have found new life. However, there are some old lives who haven’t quite left.
Redstone Castle
Redstone Castle, or Cleveholm Manor, in Redstone (just south of Carbondale) was once home to the sixth wealthiest man in the world, John Cleveland Osgood. Mr. Osgood was a coal and steel pioneer in the late 19th century and came to Colorado for the mining. The home anchored a model company town and served as a retreat for world dignitaries and businessmen.
The English Tudor style structure is constructed of large sandstone blocks which were quarried and hand cut from the cliffs of the Crystal River. The 24,000 square foot home was built with the finest of craftsmanship inside and out.
Visitors to the manor have stories of the smell of cigar smoke or perfume wafting through the halls. John Osgood was rarely seen without a cigar in his day. Osgood’s first wife, Irene, died before the home was completed. Alma Osgood, the second wife, is rumored to have affairs with artists she commissioned for paintings and sculpture.
After the Osgoods abandon the castle, it sat empty for years. There have been a series of failed purchases and conversions, including a 1997 default on the motgage. The property was seized by the IRS in 2003 in connection with an investment scam. The property was later sold at auction in 2005 and now operates as a hotel and retreat.
Could it be the Osgoods were still watching over their beloved estate until the right owners came along?
Colorado possesses some wonderful architecture dating back many years. Wealthy families built grand residences and buildings to escape the hard, early American West life. Many of these structures remain and have found new life. However, there are some old lives who haven’t quite left.
Miramont Castle - Manitou Springs
Miramont Castle in Manitou Springs dates back to the 1890′s and was first occupied by Jean Baptiste Francolon, a Catholic priest and son of a wealthy French diplomat. He intended the structure to be a home for he and his mother Marie Francolon.
Father Francolon incorporated all architectural styles he liked into the Castle. What stands is a remarkable structure with nine distinct styles: Shingle-style Queen Anne, Romanesque, English Tudor, Flemish stepped gables, domestic Elizabethan, Venetian Ogee, Byzantine, Moorish, and half-timber Chateau are used randomly throughout the four stories. Father Francolon did not hire an architect, rather he and the builder, Angus Gillis, executed the designs on site.
In the early 20th century, the building was used as a sanatarium by the Sisters of Mercy. The building was converted to apartments for many years and was ultimately purchased by the Manitou Springs Historical Society in the early 1970′s. It now serves as a museum and Victorian tea room.
There are also many ghost stories told about the castle. Voices, children playing in different rooms, ghosts wandering the grand staircase. In these photos, you can see what appears to be an apparition in Lady Francolon’s bed chamber.
After leaving the castle to return to France, Mrs. Francolon passed away. Perhaps Marie Francolon made her way back to Miramont Castle and she wants her room back?
