Beaumont Hotel (Ouray, Colorado) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Beaumont Hotel
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Beaumont Hotel on Main Street in Ouray, Colorado
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 Location in Colorado
Location in the United States
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| Location | US 550, Ouray, Colorado |
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| Area | 0.3 acres (0.12 ha) |
| Built | 1886 |
| Architect | Bulow, O. |
| Architectural style | Empire style |
| NRHP reference No. | 73000483 |
| Added to NRHP | October 30, 1973 |
The Beaumont Hotel is a super cool historic hotel in Ouray, Colorado. It's so important that it's listed on the United States National Register of Historic Places, which means it's a special building protected for future generations.
A Look Back in Time
The Beaumont Hotel was built a long time ago, starting on July 5, 1886. It was finished really fast, by December 15, 1886! Building it cost about $75,000, which was a huge amount of money back then. The grand opening happened on July 25, 1887. Even the furniture was special, made by a famous company called Marshall Field's.
This hotel was very modern for its time. It was one of the first hotels in the whole country to have electricity using "alternating current." This was a new way to power lights and other things. Many important people stayed here, including Presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Herbert Hoover!
Sadly, the hotel closed in 1964 because fewer tourists were visiting the area. For over 30 years, the Beaumont Hotel sat empty and started to fall apart. Part of its roof even collapsed! But in 1998, someone bought the hotel and decided to bring it back to life. It was carefully restored and reopened in 2003. Even though it used to have many rooms, it now has 12 very spacious guest rooms.
What Makes It Special?
The Beaumont Hotel has a really interesting look. Its design mixes different styles like Victorian, Queen Anne, and French Second Empire. It has a unique sloped roof called a Mansard roof, which is covered in slate.
Inside this three-story brick building, you'll find a grand staircase that leads into the main lobby. It's a beautiful sight! There's also a fancy dining room made of rosewood that takes up almost half of the second floor. Some people think the Beaumont Hotel looks like the Brown Palace in Denver, but the Beaumont was actually built first!
Fun Facts
If you look closely at the corner of the building, where Main Street meets 5th Avenue, you'll see a special marker. It's a benchmark from the United States Geological Survey. This marker tells you the exact elevation of that spot, which is 7,800 feet (about 2,377 meters) above sea level! It's a way for scientists to measure heights on Earth.
