Redstone Castle (Osgood Castle)
Introduction
Text-to-speech Audio
Images
Redstone Castle
Redstone Castle interior
Redstone Castle interior
Backstory and Context
Text-to-speech Audio
A native of Brooklyn, New York, John Cleveland Osgood first came to Colorado in 1882 to prospect for coal on behalf of the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad. Within a few years, Osgood was a prosperous coal miner and the founder of Colorado Fuel Company, which later became Colorado Fuel and Iron Company.
Like many other industrialists, Osgood planned a company town to house his miners. Osgood named the town Redstone, which consisted of 84 cottages and a dormitory for his unmarried miners. The housing was simple, but an improvement over the typical mining shacks.
For himself, Osgood had the New York architectural firm of Baol & Harnois design a massive, forty-two room home which was completed in 1903. The Tudor Revival home is estimated to have cost $2.5 million to build. It sits on 150 acres and includes 21 bedrooms and 14 bathrooms. It also features chandeliers designed by Louis Comfort Tiffany.
Eventually, Osgood’s fortunes declined and he began to spend less time in the home. Following his death, his widow attempted to convert the property into a resort, but because of the Great Depression, she was unsuccessful. In later years, however, subsequent owners were able to operate the home as a resort.
Over the years, Redstone Castle hosted numerous celebrities and political figures, including Theodore Roosevelt, John D. Rockefeller, and J. P. Morgan. In the 1970s, Jimmy Buffett's wedding was held in the house wile the Eagles performed on the lawn. The home is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Sources
Redstone Castle. Colorado Preservation, Inc.. Accessed October 25, 2017. http://coloradopreservation.org/programs/endangered-places/endangered-places-archives/redstone-castle/.