Long before the lower canyon road was opened through the Big and Little Narrows, there was access to the upper canyon. Tie hacking, cutting and delivering railroad ties to keep up with 19th century expansion into the West, was the catalyst for development of roads through the upper canyon, but interest in the prospect of gold drove road-building as well. The road ran through Livermore and ended with a terrifying trip down Pingree Hill. The hill was so steep that teamsters would often cut a log to drag behind the wagon as a make-shift brake.
With a way to the upper canyon, Fort Collins businessmen started clamoring for an extension of the road to North Park, at the time part of Larimer County. A number of alternatives were proposed; the winner was the North Park Toll Road, incorporated in May 1879. Samuel B. Stewart was a member of the three-person board of directors, the man given the job of managing construction of a wagon road following the existing tie trails from the base of Pingree Hill past Chambers Lake, over Cameron Pass, and into North Park. By July 1880 the road was open for business, with connections to the new mining towns of Lulu City and Teller City.
Stewart was an entrepreneur. He believed travelers would flock to his toll road and realized the value of a hotel at the junction of Pingree Hill road and the canyon toll road. On March 4, 1880, the Fort Collins Courier announced that Stewart was putting the finishing touches on his hotel, complete with a large kitchen from which travelers could get something to eat, as well as beds for spending the night. Stables and sheds were also available so that stage lines could change out their tired horses. Stewart named the hotel the Rustic House, though most people shortened it to The Rustic, and the name carried over to the little town that sprang up around it. Quickly, Stewart was advertising both his toll road and his hotel, as shown in this advertisement from the November 25, 1882 Fort Collins Courier.
The hotel was 24 feet by 31 feet and advertised as one and a half stories high. It was finished with board and batten siding (closely spaced boards, with narrow wood strips over the joints). Below is a real photo postcard of the hotel, dated August 1909, along with a close-up of the group on the porch for those of you who like period clothing.
By August 1909, the Rustic had changed hands a few times and in 1909 it was owned by Nathan E. Moffit. If you are interested in a detailed history of the Rustic, make sure you see A Place in Time: The Legend of the Rustic Resort by Linda Arndt Leigh. Leigh tracks the ownership of the property from when Stewart opened the Rustic House until the devastating fire in 2008.
The reverse side of the postcard carries this message, “Here is a picture of some very interesting people we met at the Rustic. . . . Part of them said they were from Kansas.”
The Rustic House not only went through a number of changes in owners, but also in name and appearance. A big change occurred in the early 1930s when the new owners, Will and Alice Richardson, refaced the building with lodgepole pine slabs. They also added five rental cabins and changed the name to the Rustic Lodge. The building went through cycles of repair and disrepair until it was finally closed in 1969 and then torn down in 1978.
The Richardson’s also built and opened a small store and gas station on the south side of the road. It opened in 1932. Below is a photograph of the store and gas station after it was expanded in the late 1940s.
According to Leigh, Charles and Iva Frost bought the resort in 1947 and, over the next few years, made a number of improvements. One of the improvements was an expansion of the store, adding a café on the west side of the structure and living quarters on the back. The message on the back of the postcard is from Pink and Velma Davis, who bought the facility in 1951. They called it the Rustic Resort.
Below are three images of the resort from approximately the same period.
This is an unusual image of the resort, showing it from the river side.
The lodge continued to change over time. Below is a photograph of it circa 1956. As you can see, the appearance has been modified significantly.
This is an advertising postcard, with the following information on the reverse side:
“Rustic Resort. 40 miles northwest of Fort Collins on Highway 14. Pink and Velma Davies, Bellvue, Colo.
“Altitude 7,200 feet. 13 housekeeping cabins on the bank of the Poudre River, where fishing is always good. Just the spot to enjoy a restful vacation or an exciting fishing trip. General Store, Souvenirs, Snack Bar and Dining Room.”
The resort’s final chapter closed in June 2008, when a fire destroyed the store, gas station and restaurant.
Fort Collins Images 