Eastholme facts for kids
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Eastholme
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 Location in Colorado
Location in the United States
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| Location | 4445 Haggerman Avenue, Cascade, near Colorado Springs, Colorado |
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| Built | 1886-1887 |
| NRHP reference No. | 98001250 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | October 22, 1998 |
The Eastholme, also known as Eastholme of the Rockies, is a historic building. You can find it in Cascade, a town near Colorado Springs, Colorado. This special building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It has been a popular place for visitors for over a hundred years.
Contents
A Look Back: Eastholme's History
Eastholme was built in 1886 and opened its doors in 1887. It started as a boarding house, a place where people could rent a room and get meals.
Who Built Eastholme?
A woman named Eliza Marriott Hewlett built Eastholme. She was a widow from Schenectady, New York. Eliza moved to Colorado in the 1880s with her two children. Her two sisters, Ellen and Caroline, also came with her. It was quite rare for women like them to move to Colorado back then. Some people think they came because writers like Helen Hunt wrote about the beautiful Pikes Peak area.
The Hewlett sisters settled in Cascade Canyon. Caroline lived near French and Fountain Creeks. Ellen lived high up in the canyon, near waterfalls. Eliza built a log cabin at the entrance to Cascade Canyon. She loved to host parties there for her friends.
Eastholme and the Cascade Town Company
Eliza Hewlett became the secretary for the Cascade Town and Improvement Company. This was unusual for a woman in the 1880s. The company helped pay for the Pikes Peak Carriage Road. In 1886, they bought land from the sisters. Then, they opened two larger hotels in Cascade.
Eastholme was designed to look like fancy hotels in the eastern United States. It had eight gables, which are the triangular parts of a roof. When the railway came through Ute Pass, more tourists visited the area. This led to many large resort hotels being built. Eastholme is the only summer resort building from that time still standing in Cascade. It is also recognized as a Ute Pass Landmark.
Changes Over the Years
In 1888, Eliza Hewlett sold Eastholme to her sister. But Eliza was still listed as the hotel owner in 1892 and 1897. For a short time, Eastholme was used as a sanitarium, a place for people to recover from illness. It was also leased out as a boarding house.
William Slutz bought the property in 1899. Then, in 1913, Mr. and Mrs. A.S. Hewitt purchased it. After the Colorado Midland Railway closed, many large hotels disappeared in the 1920s. But Eastholme survived and kept offering lodging.
In the 1920s, more tourists started traveling by car instead of by train. Eastholme welcomed these travelers. It also hosted racers who came for the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.
Mrs. Hewitt ran the inn after her husband died in 1919. She managed it until 1940. During their time, the Hewitts added an extension to the house and built cottages. They also renamed the building the "East Home Hotel."
The Jacobsons bought the building in 1970. They ran it as a boarding house all year round. In 1988, they changed it into a bed and breakfast. Teresha Thompson bought Eastholme in 1995.
Summer Resorts in Ute Pass
The Colorado Midland Railway offered train service from Old Colorado City (now Colorado City) through Ute Pass. This led to the creation of communities for people seeking summer getaways. In the 1880s, some people in Cascade Canyon also ran businesses. They delivered supplies by mule trains to mining towns like Leadville and Cripple Creek.
The Cascade Town Company opened the Cascade Canyon House in 1887. The Ramona House, which was a main building in town, opened in 1891. Thousands of tourists traveled along the Pikes Peak Carriage Road. This road went up to Pikes Peak's summit. The Cascade Town Company opened it in 1888, and it closed in 1902.
Other towns like Ute Park (now Chipita), Green Mountain Falls, and Crystola also grew during this time.
Eastholme: A Bed and Breakfast Inn
The Eastholme, now called Eastholme in the Rockies, became a guest inn in 1988. It has 2 cottages, 2 suites, and 4 guest rooms. Each room has a fireplace. All cottages and rooms have their own bathrooms, except for two guest rooms on the third floor.
Guests can enjoy a large porch that stretches across the front of the building. There is also a spacious dining room and a parlor. Outside, you'll find a brick patio in the backyard. The inn has a gazebo that can be used for events like weddings. The inn is decorated with antiques from the late 1800s. It even has a piano that has been there since the late 19th century. Eastholme is a member of the Bed and Breakfast Innkeepers of Colorado.
Some of the inn's recipes are in the book Tasting Colorado: Favorite Recipes from the Centennial State. The inn was also featured in Country Magazine in January 2003.
A Friendly Ghost Story
People have reported seeing the ghost of a young woman at Eastholme. She is said to wear a red satin dress. Other strange things have happened when no one is visible. Notes have been played on the piano, and electrical equipment has acted strangely. Some guests have heard the name "Grace" whispered. The sound of footsteps has also been heard.
Famous Visitors
Before they were married, Dwight and Mamie Eisenhower stayed at Eastholme. Mamie's parents, the Douds from Denver, also stayed there many times. In the 1920s, racers from the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb stayed at the inn. They would soak their wooden car wheels in barrels in the yard to keep them strong.
