This segment features a spotlight of one of our favorite historical sites: the Hotel de Paris! Contrary to its name, the hotel is actually located in Georgetown, Colorado. This inspiring piece of history been established at the Gateway to the West since 1875.
A front view of the Hotel de Paris.
Older than the state of Colorado (by a year, but that still counts), this building has experienced everything from westward expansion to mining booms. Frenchman Louis Dupuy officially established the hotel and restaurant on October 9th, 1875. Dupuy, more than a businessman, was also a former cook, miner, and journalist. His skills and talent for fine accommodations attracted visitors and Georgetownians immediately.
Georgetown itself was first and foremost, a mining town. Silver mines drew investors and other financial gurus - people that quickly spread the news about some of the finest French cuisine they had ever eaten. As the times changed, the hotel hosted railroad tycoons, wealthy businessmen, hunters, and fishers as well as the initial population. The hotel's location - its backdrop being the beautiful Rocky Mountains - harbored the continued hope in dreams that the West held for those daring enough to venture there.
Over time, the building reflected updates that were, at the time, quite recent. The hotel was outfitted with hot and cold running water, gaslights, electricity, and steam heat. Upon stepping into the hotel, residents were immersed in a world of fine china, beautiful carpets, and three well-made meals a day. Despite eventual declines (such as after the Silver Panic of 1893), the hotel maintained its world class dining and interior. Under the management of one Sarah Burkholder, who acquired the hotel in 1903, business boomed and the hotel's status remained as steadfast as ever. The Burkholder family owned the business until 1954, when it landed into the hands of a National Society. This Society reopened the hotel as what it is today: the Hotel de Paris Museum. Featuring authentic furnishings and architecture much like how it was in the 19th century, the location is a reservoir of history and preservation.
This effort to preserve and protect the hotel's history and its place in Georgetown's legacy only reaffirms the importance of doing the same for other sites. Putting the puzzle pieces of the past together allows us to learn from what has been done and apply it to our country's future!
See more of the hotel and its importance in Colorado's history using the links below.
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