From the Archive: The Tedmon House

by Lesley Drayton, Curator, Fort Collins Local History Archive

A while back we featured a blog post about the Northern Hotel, a prominent way-station for folks visiting Fort Collins from the 1910s into the 1940s. Another famous hotel in Fort Collins was the Tedmon House, once located at the northwest corner of Linden and Jefferson Streets. A well-known landmark in Fort Collins, the Tedmon House was completed in 1880 but demolished 20 years later to make way for the Union Pacific Railroad passenger depot. Many artifacts and archival materials remain from the hotel and help us imagine what it must have been like to stay at the Tedmon House over 100 years ago…

View of the hotel, circa 1900

Ticket from the grand opening of the Tedmon House, dated May 20, 1800

Advertising card, circa 1881

Door hanging from the hotel specifying rules and regulations. My favorite is rule #8: “Guests are notified not to put their boots in the halls, as the proprietor will not be responsible for them if stolen.”

People from around the world came to Fort Collins and stayed at the Tedmon House. This section of the hotel register from 1903 highlights visitors from Denver, Boulder, Honolulu, and Chicago.

You can also view the finding aid for the Tedmon House collection in the Archive here.

From the Archive: Mrs. Phibbs Remembers

by Pat Walker, Research Assistant, Fort Collins Local History Archive

The Fort Collins Local History Archive has a large collection of oral histories taken in the early 1970s. Mrs. Phibbs Remembers is an ongoing series of excerpts taken from the interview with Alice and Sidney Phibbs, May 22, 1975.

Mrs. Phibbs Remembers – The Barber Shop

Alice Helene (Kirby) Phibbs, daughter of Katharine Philippi and John E. Kirby,was born on January 6, 1901. She married Sidney Terrance Phibbs in 1947.

“When my father was a young man he worked for Bert McCarty at his shop in the 100 block of Linden.…He was a barber all his life….and owned a shop facing west in the Northern Hotel….Lew Lyons came to work for him, and they just hit it off so well that eventually Lew bought into the shop as a partner.

“My father had what they considered a modern barbershop. He had running hot and cold water and bath facilities in it…. [The water] must have come from the town ditch and then been piped into the business buildings. 25¢ to take a bath; 15¢ for a shave and 25¢ for a haircut….He also had the first bootblack in town. If I remember correctly, it was one of Charlie Clay’s sons….It was probably 15¢ for blacking boots.”

Alice recalls how each barber had a chair and a mirror and around the mirror were little shelves just big enough to hold a customer’s mug.

“Every man that went in the barbershop had his own shaving mug….For a long time, my Mother had a one of the mugs from down there. It was white with brown lettering and it had some little fancy flowers on it.

“I know Dad furnished all the tools, you know, ‘cause he would buy ‘em from barber supply and I think he furnished the soap, no doubt, too….

“In those days women didn’t go into the barbershop unless it was absolutely necessary. Every time I came downtown I was allowed to go…in and get a nickel for candy.”

Seated: (L-R) John E. Kirby, Alice H. Philippi with grandson George Phillip Graham in lap, Christian Philippi with granddaughter Alice H. Kirby (later Phibbs) in lap, Mary (Philippi) Graham Standing: Katharine Kirby, George Graham

McCarty’s Barber Shop on left, Old Town Diner on right at 181 & 179 North College Avenue about 1996.

From the Archive: the Northern Hotel

by Lesley Drayton, Curator, Local History Archive

Feel like taking a little trip this summer? Why not visit the Northern Hotel in Fort Collins, Colorado? Prominently located at the corner of College Avenue and Walnut Street, the Northern Hotel was the premiere place for travelers to stay during its heyday from the 1910s through the 1930s.

Today, the upper floors of the building serve as housing for seniors, and the lobby has been painstakingly restored, featuring hand-stenciling on the walls, a snazzy tiled floor, and spectacular stained glass in the ceiling. It’s a must-see while you’re strolling through Old Town.

If you had stayed at the Northern in the mid 1930s, this building would have greeted you:

Step into the lobby to check in:

Need some matches? Here’s a vintage matchbook cover from the hotel:

Have a list of things to do? Jot it down on your authentic Northern Hotel stationery:

Feeling hungry? There were several choices to tempt your palate listed in a circa 1938 menu from the Northern Hotel dining room, including fresh deep sea eastern scallops fried in deep fat (50 cents), golden brown fried spring chicken (75 cents), grilled halibut steak with lemon slice (60 cents), and hot tamales smothered with chili (60 cents). Yum!

Do you have any Northern Hotel memories? Leave us a comment!