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811 Garfield Avenue was built around 1883 and our first records show Sara Dearing purchasing it in 1887. It was originally part of a small farm outside of the townsite. In 1888 it sold to CC Cotton, then to Charles Moore in 1889, and later to John Auld, a carpenter from Canada. Anna and Joseph Bardine (a miner in Marble) sold in 1898 to WJ and Emma Skidmore. The home next door was known as the "laundry house", and Emma was a laundress. In 1906 a series of owners named Needham occupied the property. The property was split, sold in shares and reassembled many times over the years, producing multiple owners and encumbrances. This Late Victorian home retains historic integrity in terms of its location, setting, feeling, and association; despite the loss of the original siding and windows, and the changes to the porch. At one time the entrance was on the 8th Street side. The shingles have been added in recent years. This home is a fine example of the style of the earliest building in town, and retains the integrity to convey its significance.

811 Garfield Ave

Carbondale Historical Society has created this tour to learn more about Carbondale's architectural heritage.

Carbondale Architecture Tour

Carbondale Historic Architecture Tour 1B

Carbondale Historical Society's Architecture Tour

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819 Garfield Avenue was converted to residential use in 1905 and this rustic style building was at one time the "laundry house" for the small farm. Interesting additions and subtractions include: an addition to west side around 1950, a metal roof that replaced asphalt shingles; tar paper was added to the exterior before 1984 and then removed around 1989, and another remodel in 2010. This structure is a good example of early building comprised of readily-available materials and straightforward methods of construction. Its transition from utility to residential is indicative of the need for adaptation as families grew or economic conditions changed.

819 Garfield Ave

899 Garfield Avenue, comprised of Lots 13-15, was owned by the town in the late 1800's, and then by a series of investors. Eliza and Frederick Childs moved from Denver in 1883 and settled on a farm in Satank (near the confluence of the Crystal and Roaring Fork rivers). In the late 1800's Frederick was the postmaster in Satank, and was appointed as a Garfield County judge; he then served as a county commissioner and superintendent of schools. When Frederick retired in 1910, they built this home. In 1928 the property was transferred to Hattie Zimmerman, their widowed daughter. She sold the home five months later to Carrie Kleiner Wald, a longtime Carbondale resident whose husband Conrad had died in an auto accident in the previous year. Evidently, Carrie rented the home to back to Hattie and her mother Eliza until 1932, when Eliza passed away. In 1964 William &amp; Myrtle Cook bought the home as an investment. The original Late Victorian home measured 24'x 43' and has a hipped roof. The entire home is clad in wood weatherboard siding. Like many of the Victorians in town, the central chimney would have vented a fireplace or stove. Modern shutter-like panels have been added.

899 Garfield Ave

Between 1940 and 1945, lots 4 to 12 were acquired by Elmer Bair, a prominent local sheep rancher. He and his family lived in a home on Main Street, and these lots appear to have been vacant at that time. Elmer transferred the property that would become 734 Garfield Ave to his daughter Laura and her husband John ("Jack") Farnum in 1948. This home was built around that time. Laura and Jack followed in his parents' footsteps, running Farnum Mortuary in Glenwood Springs. Jack served a term as president of Colorado Funeral Directors Association, and also served as the Garfield County coroner. Minimal Traditional in style, it is likely that this home has seen very few changes since it was built. County records suggest that the chimney may have been added in the 1970's, along with the carport. Wrought iron and wood trim are hallmarks of the late 1940's style.

734 Garfield Ave

 116 S 8th Street has had only four owners. In 1887 Milton Pauly purchased it, and in 1916 his son Charles sold the property to Katherine Robinson, who was married to HW Robinson -- both were teachers. The home was built in 1922. In 1940 the home sold to Elmer Bair, a sheep rancher in the Roaring Fork Valley; he owned Bair Ranch on the Colo River. In 1925 Elmer worked in Marble at the Yule Quarry. He lived to the age of 104. In 2003 the property was sold by the family trust. The Craftsman style is recognized here in the simple rectangular form, the deep-set porch, the exposed rafter tails, the tapered porch columns, and the grouped window pattern with divided lights in the upper sash. The substantial quality and design demonstrate a willingness to invest in the growing community, and an interest in the prevalent style of the day.

116 S 8th St

178 S 8th Street sat inside the original townsite, and J.E. and Adela White of Illinois purchased the property in 1888. J.E. was a merchant and a commissioner. They built the home in 1917 and Katherine, their daughter, would later live next door. J.E. passed away in 1929, and Katherine kept the home until 1936. She then sold to Clio and Bert Hinkle, proprietors of the livery stable. Sometime before 1975, Jeff and Anne Bier became the owners, and in the same year sold to Andrew & Priscilla Sue Taylor. In 1998, Priscilla's name was removed and Linda Halloran was added. This Craftsman exhibits the classic moderately pitched gable-on-hip roof, and has a two-story hipped addition. Typical details of the style include numerous windows with leaded glass, beamed ceilings, and dark wood interior detail. The principle facade retains its integrity in most aspects, although the porch post bases have been altered.

178 S 8th St

David C. Beaman, a lawyer from Ohio, purchased 835 Sopris Avenue in 1888 from the Carbondale Town &amp; Land Co.. In 1890 David was the attorney for the Colorado Coal &amp; Fuel Co. and also for the White Breast Coal Co.. The home was built in 1893. He was involved in re-writing the fish and game laws for Colorado in 1899. Leo Leonhardy lived here sometime in the early 1900's, and then in 1906 Fred Fredericks purchased the home. In the same year, he sold to Jacob Sonner, listed as a department store salesman... and days later it was sold to George Gay. In 1907 Gay sold it back to Sonner, and then two months later Sonner sold it to Thomas Davis. There were a variety of additional owners, but significant to Carbondale is the fact that in the 1980's Sosorie Diemoz lived in the home. She was a schoolteacher and the daughter of Earnest and Rosie Diemoz, one of the families that came to the valley from Val d' Aosta, Italy in 1907. This Late Victorian home represents the typical modest style of homes constructed throughout the townsite. The hip on gable roof compliments the simple shed roof, which projects from the main wall plane over the door, and is supported by two turned wood posts. The home is wood frame with simple coved lap siding. The metal roof replaced asphalt shingles in the 1990's, and the rear porch was enclosed at some later point.

835 Sopris Ave

David C. Beaman purchased 869 Sopris Avenue in 1888, and the home was built in 1897. In 1902 Fred Wathen purchased it, and then sold to a miner named C.C. Wilson in 1904. The home was inherited by Julia Wilson (Fuller) when her father died. In 1908 Edna &amp; Frank Sweet, farmers from CT purchased the home. They were active and popular in the community -- he filled in at the post office when the postmaster died in 1890, and he was a candidate for mayor in that same year. Frank Sweet was often referred to in the newspaper as an "obliging gentleman... made of the right kind of stuff." The fact that this Late Victorian is brick and has considerable brick detail, elevates it to a more substantial home, even thought its form is common in the modest buildings of the community. Brick indicates a substantial investment in the future of the town. Brick detail: the windows sit in segmental arches made of stretcher brick, with a header brick outline along the top and sides. Two courses are set proud of the brick field at the height of the spring line of the arches, and the band runs around the perimeter of the building.

869 Sopris Ave

710 Euclid Avenue comprised of lots 1 and 2, was sold in 1894 by Garfield County to a property investor named Channing Sweet, who in 1898 quit-claimed lot 2 to Anna Sumnicht for a token fee of $15. Over the next 20 years, she and her husband August assembled lots that comprised the entire eastern half of block 24. August served as a Carbondale town trustee and as a sales agent for the Carbondale Improvement Company. At one time in the late 1890's, he was the owner of the Carbondale town ditch, which supplied the community with water. By 1900 August and Anna had five children - he was working as a farm laborer, and the home was built around this time. In 1904 Anna was the Socialist Party's candidate for Superintendent of Schools, although she did not secure the position. August was later a rural letter carrier, and there were 7 Sumnicht children. In 1918 Harrison &amp; Susan Stiles from Kansas purchased the property for $1200. John Lamprecht purchased the home for $1400 in 1922. He was a Slovenian immigrant who was originally a coal miner living in Spring Gulch with his family. The Lamprechts had six children, and the family occupied this property for nearly 50 years. Mary Ferguson, one of the six children, would go on to become a key figure in Carbondale. One of her many contributions was founding the Mt. Sopris Historical Society. The home probably remained unchanged for many years, and was in dire need of attention by 2010. The original north building is a two-story timber and wood frame I-house; at 16'x26', it was one room deep &amp; two rooms wide. The original portion of the home has clapboard wood siding and a side-gabled roof. The reconstructed chimney rises from the roofline where the original chimney stood. The dormers are modern additions. This property is known in Carbondale as "Old Red".

710 Euclid Ave

Lots in the area of 682 Euclid Avenue were vacant from the late 1800's through the 1950's. In 1959 Eddis Fender filed a plat with Garfield County, and the property went on to have several owners before it was purchased in 1976 by Frank Daley of Glenwood Springs. Frank took out a $24K loan to purchase and move this home to this spot. It originally stood at 1009 Grand Avenue in Glenwood (now the parking lot of the Tamarack Bldg.). In 1977 this 1930 wood-frame bungalow was lifted onto a flatbed trailer and moved to Carbondale, where it was deposited onto a concrete foundation. Frank both lived in the home, and rented it to tenants. He served as president of the Colorado Cattleman's Association from 2014 to 2015. The property was sold in 1982. Little is known about this Bungalow, but it is possible that it was a kit home.

Carbondale Historic Architecture Tour 1B

811 Garfield Ave

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Backstory and Context

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