A
Brief History of
The
Christmas House Bed & Breakfast Inn
Main
Street, Ouray, Colorado
1-888-325-XMAS * e-mail: email@christmashousebandb.com
Owen
McCaffrey c. 1917
Barbershop
at the Svenson Building, Main Street, Ouray
This
1889 Victorian is featured in the book "America's
Painted Ladies: A Celebration of America's
Victorians".
It was built as a mere two story cabin by Robert Wilson for his new bride Mary
beginning in 1886 and finally completed in 1889 with a new kitchen with an
indoor pump and a second bedroom.
The
home was occupied the longest by Owen and Kathryn McCaffrey from 1896 to 1945
(see photos). Owen, as Irish as man can be, born in 1860 in Coatbridge, Ireland
immigrated to the U.S. where he and his wife made their way to Ouray in 1889.
They purchased the home with the income Owen had from his barbershop located in
the Svenson building located just a few blocks north of the Christmas House
across from the Beaumont Hotel, but only after his first shop was burned in the
Hess Building fire in 1893. He was quite civic minded and served as city
councilman, county commissioner, as an alderman and deputy county sheriff over
the years. Owen had the prestige of being the oldest continually working barber
in Colorado and was featured as such in Life Magazine. He worked all of his
life, mostly in Ouray, and was forced to retire from poor health in his 80's.
Kathryn made the home her own and lovingly raised four daughters and one son at
the main street address. She was quite the queen of the roost and only allowed
Owen his spirits with Sunday dinner. The delicious wine was homemade and stored
in the cool root cellar. Kathryn was known for her wonderful flower and
vegetable gardens as well as her fine Irish cooking.
The
original part of the home, the cabin, was only the present day parlor and the
upstairs bedroom, now the "Mistletoe Suite". The kitchen at the time was in the
parlor and used an enormous stove for heat as well as cooking. The thaw of 1889
allowed the savings of the Wilson's to be spent for a modern kitchen with a pump
water source through a well into the basement and a new bedroom, now the "Holly
Suite". The McCaffreys added gardens and storage to the property but did very
little to change the floor plan. The 1980's saw the home expanded with new
garages, bedrooms and bathrooms to encompass over 4000 sq.
ft.
After
various owners from 1945 to 1994 the home fell into decay and was quite
dilapidated when ownership fell to Larry and Alice Leeper of Ouray. Larry
lovingly and carefully restored the home to a duplex in 1995. After owning the
home as rental property they put it on the market and advertised it for sale as
the "Christmas House" as the locals had known the Main Street home for decades
due to its red color and green trim. The Crosby's saw that the property
perfectly suited their needs and purchased the home in the fall of 1997. The
Crosby's spent New Year's Eve 1998 moving into the home and making plans for
it's future. Work began in February 1998 and the Christmas House Bed and
Breakfast Inn opened May 26th 1998 with five luxury guest
suites.
Owen
& Kathryn McCaffrey
Christmas House B&B Inn Site Links
*Suite Descriptions/Rates * Menu * Policies *Rules
