Laramie Plains Museum facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Ivinson Mansion and Grounds
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 Location in Wyoming
Location in the United States
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| Location | Lots 1--8, block 178, Laramie, Wyoming |
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| Area | 0 acres (0 ha) |
| Built | 1892 |
| Architect | Walter E. Ware |
| Architectural style | Late Victorian |
| NRHP reference No. | 72001295 |
| Added to NRHP | February 23, 1972 |
The Ivinson Mansion, now known as the Laramie Plains Museum, is a historic house in Laramie, Wyoming. It was built in 1892 by Jane and Edward Ivinson. The famous architect Walter E. Ware designed the mansion. A local builder named Frank Cook constructed it. When it was finished, people thought it was the most important house in Laramie.
Edward Ivinson later gave the mansion to the Episcopal Church. They used it as a boarding school for girls until 1958. After many years, the Laramie Plains Museum Association bought the house in 1972. Today, it is a museum and a place for special events.
What the Mansion Looks Like
The Ivinson Mansion is a large, beautiful house built in the Victorian style. It has three floors and a basement, with over 11,000 square feet of space. The first floor is made of strong stone. The upper floors are built with wood.
The front of the house is very wide. It has fancy wood, tile, and metal details. On the left side, there is a square tower with a steep, pointy roof. It also has a rounded part that sticks out. On the right side, there is a slightly smaller, eight-sided tower. This tower has a curved, bell-shaped roof.
In the middle, there is a porch on the first floor with detailed Victorian designs. Above it, there is a curved section and a small, steep gable roof. The upper parts of the house show special shingle designs. These include curved sections and rounded window frames. The back of the house has a lower roofline above the second floor. It also has small dormer windows that cut through the roof's edge. The main roof is flat on top, which looks different from the towers in the front.
Behind the main house, there is a brick building that used to be a carriage house. It is about 2,600 square feet. In 1921, it was changed to be part of the school and was called the Joslin Cottage. There is also another building nearby called the Virginia Cottage. It was built in 1924 and has two stories. It shows some features of a building style called Prairie Style.
The Ivinson Family Story
Edward Ivinson was born on September 20, 1830, on an island called St. Croix. His father was from England. Edward went to school in England. Around 1852, he moved to the United States to work in New York.
In 1854, Edward met and married Jane Wood. She was 13 years old and also an English immigrant. Soon after, the Ivinsons moved to Indiana, then to Illinois. In Illinois, Edward became a U.S. citizen. He worked in a dry goods store, selling things like fabric and clothing. In Peoria, they adopted a young girl named Margaret Ellen Watson. She was the daughter of a sick tailor. They raised her as their own child. She was their only child. Later, they moved to Tennessee around 1862.
In 1867, the Ivinsons decided to move to California. Edward went first. By early 1868, he decided to start a business in a new place. This place would later become Laramie, Wyoming. Jane and their daughter Maggie, who was eleven, arrived in Laramie on May 10, 1868.
Edward Ivinson sold many different goods and quickly grew his business. He also started working in banking. He bought the only bank in Laramie. Soon, he sold his dry goods store. For the next 50 years, he mostly focused on his banking businesses.
Jane Ivinson was very active in Laramie. She helped start the local Episcopal Church. She also helped create the city's first public school. Jane was important in Laramie's social life for many years. She was also involved in Edward's banking business. She was on the board of directors for his Wyoming National Bank. Jane also owned land in and near Laramie. Much of this land was later given to the Episcopal Church through the Ivinsons' will.
Maggie Ivinson married Galusha B. Grow on her 21st birthday in 1878. Galusha came from an important family in Pennsylvania. He moved west to experience life on the frontier. His uncle, Galusha A. Grow, was the Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. The Grows later moved to San Diego, California. The Ivinsons often spent their winters there.
Edward and Jane sold their shares in the Wyoming National Bank in 1888. Edward's next big banking move was to buy Merchants National Bank in San Diego in 1893. Galusha ran the bank for him until he sadly passed away in 1903. Soon after, Edward sold the bank for a lot of money. He then returned to banking in Laramie, Wyoming. He bought a large share in the First National Bank. He stayed in that business until 1922, when he finally retired.
Wyoming Republican party leaders asked Edward to run for governor of the new state of Wyoming in 1892. He tried but did not win. Later, in 1918, he was elected mayor of Laramie and served one term.
Jane Ivinson passed away on November 9, 1915. After her death, Edward focused on helping others. Over the next 10 years, he paid for a modern hospital in Laramie. He also helped finish the city's St. Matthews Cathedral. He built a monument to honor soldiers from World War I. He also gave important pieces of property to the Episcopal Church. Many of these properties had originally been in his wife's name.
In 1921, Edward gave his mansion and its grounds to the Episcopal Church. The church used the estate as a boarding school for girls. They added the Virginia Cottage in 1924. The school finally closed in 1958.
Edward remarried in 1921 when he was 90 years old. His new wife was Augusta Haley, who was 78. She was the widow of a family friend and business partner. The couple lived together for only a few months before they separated and later divorced.
Before Edward Ivinson died, he created a special fund. This fund used all his remaining money to build and care for a home for elderly ladies. It had been a dream of his first wife, Jane, to create a safe place for ladies who didn't have much money. They could live there comfortably in their later years. Edward Ivinson died on April 9, 1928, at the age of 97. He passed away in his rooms at the Brown Palace Hotel in Denver, Colorado. After his death, the fund built the facility. It is still open today. The Ivinson Home for Ladies is in its beautiful original building in Laramie, Wyoming. It still uses money from the Ivinson fund to operate.
The mansion that Edward gave to the Episcopal Church was eventually left empty. It became too expensive for the church to keep. After the school closed, the house started to fall apart. However, the Laramie Plains Museum Association bought it in 1972. The house was restored and now holds the museum's collections and offices. It is also used for events. The mansion was added to the National Register of Historic Places on February 3, 1972.
