Text of the 1998 - 1999 Annual Report to the Membership presented by Mary Riddle Clark, Chairman of the Board of Directors at the Annual Board Meeting, Saturday June 19, 1999 at the Georgetown Community Center.

More photos:

• James Grafton Rogers Award recipients
• Volunteer Award recipients
• Work on Hamill House back porch capitols
• Hamill Park concept drawing.

Last month marked the 29th Anniversary of the incorporation of Historic Georgetown. When we were founded in May of 1970, few people, if any, could have foreseen neither the many challenges that lay ahead nor the many accomplishments that would have taken place. From Hamill House to the Johnson Cabin, from Leavenworth Mountain to 1,000 acres of open lands, from archives to telecommunications, HGI has experienced nearly three decades of steady growth and steady progress towards meeting our mission of preserving this landmark district as one that all Coloradoans, indeed, all Americans, can take pride in.

It is our mission that must always be before us: To preserve the cultural and natural assets of this Landmark District - It's historic buildings and their furnishings, its streetscapes, its gardens, parks, open lands, & trails all of which intertwine with people, new residents and old, visitors and travelers, to create this very special place called Georgetown.

Aside from the collective wisdom of our membership, its Board of Directors and its Staff, we have no map that has guided us for that past 29 years. We have no map that tells us the best route to the future. Only the agreement amongst ourselves that we must be ever vigilant of the threats to the character of our Landmark District and that we must be ever alert to opportunities as they present themselves. Such has been the case in the past and such will be the case in the future. All of you are important parts of this effort and we welcome you today.

This past fiscal year has been one of continued steady growth:
Our thanks to Vice-Chairman Bob Primus for the preparation of the planning charts that show all our holdings and projects on just two sheets. I will cover most of that territory in my remarks. Please feel free to ask any questions and offer suggestions.

With regard to the key component in our activities, our Five Part Residential Interpretation Program, I am pleased to report that under the guidance of our last Curator, Jonathan Held and the advise of our architectural consultants, Long-Hoeft of Georgetown, several important projects were completed:

• Hamill House: The old staircase from the 2nd floor nursery to the 3rd floor was completed which, in addition to filling out the nursery, will give us the ability to interpret the daily life of the domestic staff in the 1880 house. Funding for the staircase was provided by the State Historic Fund and by Mr. and Mrs. John Roe. The nursery was also opened for public view this past Christmas with the help of donations from Darby O'Rourke (cast iron fire fighting toys and a quilt made by her late mother, Dorothy O'Rourke), Harry and Jane Robertson, with historic carpeting from the old Ecklund House on Rose Street and Marge Acker for the loan of two more quilts.
• The Butler's Closet China Case was reconstructed with the financial assistance of Dawn Janov of Georgetown with a donation in memory of her brother, Johnny C. Roberts. Financial assistance was also provided by Georgetown Masonic Lodge No. 12, AF&AM. The work was completed, at cost, by Emmett MacKenzie, Charles MacKenzie and Phil Marquez of MacKenzie Manufacturing of Greeley from plans and specifications by architect Gary Long.
• The back porch of Hamill House is nearing completion. As soon as the capitols for the columns are cast, Tim McDonough of Silver Plume Homes Services will install them, the contractor for the job. Jim Pequette of Georgetown volunteered many, many hours in carving a reproduction of the original capitol destroyed in the 1974 Hamill House Fire - it is a spectacular piece of carving - we hope to make additional castings for sale in our museum shops.
• Mr. Held, Mr. Long and Mr. McDonough were also responsible for the reconstruction of the stall dividers and six hay mangers in the Hamill Carriage House. With the counsel of Buff Rutherford, our resident horse expert, these projects add a great deal to the interpretation of this aspect of the 19th century Hamill property.
• Buff and Mary Lou Rutherford also donated a carriage and delivery wagon for display at Hamill Carriage along with a set of antique brass sleigh bells, charcoal foot warmer, and lap warmer. The placement of these items completes the major work in this building. We are most thankful for their generosity and kindness. While the oak woodwork on the delivery wagon is new, all the metal pieces are from an original delivery wagon from the old Buckley Brothers store in Silver Plume.

The Hamill House continues to receive original furnishings from the Hamill Family:
In June of 1998, Nancy Catherine (Hamill) Mosser, great granddaughter of William and Priscilla Hamill, and her husband Jim, of Fortuna, North Dakota, and their daughter Maria, of Denver, donated a tobacco humidor and two porcelain figurines (c.1880) original to the House. In September, Nancy and Jim returned to Georgetown with the original baby crib from the Hamill House nursery and a small wood carrying case, with Mr. Hamill's name stenciled on one end. The crib and case were given to us by Nancy's sister, Linda Jean (Hamill) Cooper of Klamath Falls, Oregon.

In December, Mrs. Mary Elizabeth Hamill, granddaughter (in-law) donated a beautiful silver and gold serving bowl with silver spoon with the initial "H" engraved. All these donations are currently on display at the House.

We are most grateful for the continued support of the Hamill Family. As a result of their continued support, the interpretation of the Hamill House is presented with much more depth and knowledge.

Our thanks to Becky Richardson for the oak rocking chair on permanent loan and displayed in the Hamill Library.

In the Hamill Office Building, overhead lighting on the first and second floors was finally completed. We can now enter the building at night and light our way to the second floor offices. The 19th century fixtures on the first floor complete the electrical portion of the restoration of this building. Thanks to Randy McIlvain of Clear Creek Electric for his many, many hours of hard work.

The Bowman/White House hallway now sports its new wallpaper - a careful exacting replication of the original paper was screened by Carter & Co./Mt. Diablo of Vallejo, California and hung by Heggum-Lundquist of Denver. Our thanks to Kathy Hoeft for her many hours of research and coordination with this effort.

The streetscapes now include two more new cottonwood trees, planted by Peter Werlin and Jonathan Held - both of which are doing well after their first Georgetown winter.

Bowman/White descendants have been most helpful. Joni White Taylor, granddaughter of Mellie White, donated the original hall-tree for the house and, with the assistance of her sister, Adria Krull, we were able to acquire an 100 piece set of Havilland China, also original to the house. The China is currently on display in the Hamill Butler's Pantry and will be moved to the Bowman/White House when it is ready to be opened to the public.

As you may remember from our last annual meeting, HGI has completed its acquisition of properties for the five-part plan with the Kneisel House on Biddle Street. This year work has focused on the development of plans and specifications for renovation by the firm of Long-Hoeft. Much of this work has been made possible by 76 members and friends who have, to date, donated $6,175 in memory of the late and beloved Ona Anderson, charter life member and granddaughter-in-law of Henry Kneisel, namesake of our house. New water and sewer lines are currently being installed to the house; our thanks by Banky Blackmer and "Fitzy", both of Georgetown. The Town has put in new mains in Biddle Street and installed a new red fire hydrant right across the street from the Kneisel House. It is red and squat, the way a fire hydrant is supposed to be.

One of the major projects of HGI over the past year has been the operation of the Gateway Visitor Center. Over 75,000 visitors have passed through the facility last year. We have noticed a steady increase in the number of visitors and the quantity of goods sold at the shop. The increase is due, in large part, to the new sign installed by Wendel Pugh of Western Pacific Signs of Idaho Springs. In order to provide directional information when the center is closed, two new maps on the exterior were created, also by Mr. Pugh. Plans are now underway for the construction of a new facility which will be better able to handle the needs of the visiting public.

I am pleased to announce that we have already received approval for a grant of $386,000 from TEA-21, federal highway funds. Our thanks to the Clear Creek County Commissioners for their support and advocacy with this grant. We also appreciate the cooperation of the Town of Georgetown in this endeavor. We currently are working with the Clear Creek Tourism Board Executive Director Barbara Boyer in applying for a grant from the Scenic Byways program. We are hoping to be able to have a new facility in place by 2002. In the meantime, a design team has been assembled to explore building options with a concentration on the interpretive exhibits the building will house. Representatives from Historic Georgetown, the Town of Georgetown, Town of Silver Plume, Colorado Historical Society, U.S. Forest Service, Colorado Division of Wildlife, National Park Service, Clear Creek County Tourism Board & Scenic By-Ways Coordinators, Silver Heritage Area, Georgetown Energy Museum, etc. Advisors are Gary Long, Project Architect and Michael Dotson, Colorado Department of Transportation.

By the way, those of you who contributed time and/or money to the tree project last year will be pleased to see that most of the trees are doing very well. All but one survived the winter wind. The trees were "guaranteed" so any, which may struggle, will be replaced. Thanks again to Pete Werlin and his committee for their assistance with this project.

If you have been reading your newsletters, you are probably aware of the fact that HGI is attempting to purchase the burned out building (formally known as the Mahany building) at the corner of Taos and 7th streets. We have submitted several grant requests over the past year, and hope to be able to proceed with the acquisition and restoration over the next two years. It is our intent to rehab the building to house two affordable living units and one commercial space. Our thanks to Clear Creek Economic Development Corporation, the Town of Georgetown, Clear Creek National Bank and the State Historic Fund in providing the funding for the Historic Structures Report which was completed by Gary Long of Long-Hoeft Architects. Our thanks also to the Colorado Division of Housing for their helpful planning assistance.

One of the most enjoyable series of events over the past year has been the Devils Gate History Club lecture series. Bill Wilson and his committee have provided a wonderful variety of speakers on a wide variety of topics. This past series began in September with Darby O'Rourke presenting Georgetown - "Remembrance of Things Past", followed in October with Dennis Seibel, Executive Director of the Georgetown Energy Museum with "An Energetic History of Georgetown"; November with Connie Primus with "Tales of Clear Creek County from Marcellus Merrill's Notebooks"; January with John Albright and "Preservation Education at CSU"; February with Christine Bradley, Clear Creek County Archivist and "Labor Unions in Georgetown at the Turn of the Century"; March with Jonathan Held, HGI Curator, and "History of the Red Oak Mining and Milling Co., Georgetown"; April with David Primus and "Travels with Jesse: A Trip to the Colorado Mines in 1879 with Jesse Randall, Former Editor of the Georgetown Courier"; and concluding with a field trip to the Silverdale/Marshall Tunnel area, conducted by Frank Young and Christine Bradley. The group meets on the 3rd Friday of the month, generally between September and May. Keep an eye out in the post office or newspapers for the schedule for the coming year. Donations by attendees were used to purchase a new, permanently installed roll-up projection screen for the Georgetown Community Center whom we also thank for their continued cooperation.

We have welcomed several new Life Members this past year: Salley and Bob Smith of Georgetown; Marianna Hatten of Fall River; Diane Dieter and Ted Jones of Boulder; General and Mrs. Robert Herres of San Antonio, Texas and Kerry and Joyce Pedlow of Newport Beach, California and Georgetown.

The Hamill House hosted a membership picnic last September organized by Tom Bennhoff and Salley Smith. Over sixty members were in attendance and enjoyed food donated by Dave Bauer of the Red Ram and the music of the Clear Creek No Name Band.

This past year's Christmas Market was a great success under the direction of volunteer Chairman Jennifer Babeon and Executive Director Jeanne Waligroski. We had great weather, good publicity (thanks to Rick Crandall and KEZW radio, the Denver Post, Rocky Mountain News, and the Clear Creek Courant) and wonderful entertainment (including the latest addition to the program-reindeer!). Some ten thousand visitors came for Christmas Market. Our thanks to Air Touch Cellular of Denver for underwriting the reindeer. And to Nancy Johnson and students of Georgetown Elementary School for once again providing the Market with the Ste. Lucia Processional and caroling. Thanks also to the Martins, Smiths & Paganos for the Santalet.

The Christmas receptions at the Hamill House were again well received and included several changes in the format - Boy Scouts to take coats at the front door, wassail bowl prepared by Christina Schleicher and her crew, and the reading of Dylan Thomas' "A Child's Christmas in Wales" by volunteer readers Dennis Seibel, Gary Long, and Rick Martin. And, for the first time, we had piano music - our 1879 Steinway sounded great, thanks to pianists Kathy Leighton, Jocelyn Pyle and Pauline Marshall. Ken Nelson acted as our Butler and most graciously presented each of the guests to the gatherings. Christmas at Hamill House would not be Christmas without the music and voices of the Silver Plume Singers and the Clear Creek No Name Band - a very special thanks to them. Over 50 other volunteers assisted with the seven receptions last December. Thank you one and all! Thanks also to our volunteers who portrayed St. Nicholas at both Market and Hamill House, Curt Claus, Bill Hawkes, Mort Stern, Ed Tharp and Frank Young - you brought a lot of wonderment to Christmas and a whole lot of smiles on the faces of a whole lot of children. The Hamill House also hosted a holiday reunion of approximately 60 Hamill descendants in Colorado and we look forward to sharing the house with Hamill family for many years to come. And a very special thanks to Pauline Marshall, Darby O'Rourke and students from Georgetown Elementary School for decorating the nursery tree. And, again, to Jennifer Babeon, for once again providing a special children's Christmas evening at Hamill House.

A new event was presented last summer under the enthusiastic guidance and underwriting of Dee Geisness - a croquet party on the lawn of the Bowman/White House brought out fine dresses and some healthy competition. The $585.00 in funds raised was earmarked for window coverings at the Bowman/White House. A good time was had by all. Thanks also to Ann Martin and Marilyn Pagano for organizing the event.

You may have noticed a small red shed behind the Bowman/White House and near the Tucker/Rutherford House. It was donated by Tom Buckley and moved by the Town Crew. In danger of demolition, HGI accepted the gift as part of its belief that every historic building in this town should be saved, preserved and used, no matter how small. And this one is small.

The planned Hamill Park, to be located behind Hamill House on land donated by Bob and Karen Gibbs a few years ago, is beginning to take shape. On January 16th, an irrevocable trust agreement was signed. The agreement offers HGI a $75,000 endowment from Mrs. Alice B. Moore, mother of member Mrs. Bill (Kathie) Wilson to be used, exclusively, for maintenance of park once it is constructed. The trust agreement stipulates that the park must be built within five years of the date of the signing. Mrs. Moore has offered this gift both as a challenge to future donors and to assure them that the park constructed with their contributions will be maintained, in perpetuity. It is a rare case when an endowment is created prior to any capitol work being done. We are most grateful to Mrs. Moore for her generosity and foresight. Anyone interested in supporting this effort should contact the offices of HGI. In the meantime, we have submitted a request to the Great Outdoors Colorado Trust Fund asking them to support one half of the $200,000 needed to build the park and its support structures. Our thanks to Holland & Hart of Denver, HGI's pro-bono legal counsel for their assistance in this matter.

Henry Kneisel Anderson Park, our mini-park on Biddle and Main Streets, has also had improvements. Thanks to John and Sandra Roe and Kelley Davis, a new sprinkler system has been installed and a Mountain Ash tree was planted along the Main Street side of the park in memory of the late Ned Davis, good friend of Henry Anderson. Thanks also to Wendy Anderson and Denise Tenant for their help with these projects.

Another exciting and interesting project is the preservation and rehabilitation of the old Church Bros./Robertson House (formerly the Ecklund House) on Rose Street and Clear Creek. The State Historic Fund provided a grant through HGI to assist owners Harry, Jane, Dirk & Barbara Robertson in the important preservation undertaking. A perpetual conservation easement was given to HGI to insure the continued protection of this 1876 residence. With the help of the State Historic Fund and Federal and State Investment Tax Credits, the preservation of small buildings like this are becoming much more attractive financially. Private property owners should contact their accountants or legal counsel for details of the many opportunities to assist and encourage the preservation of historic structures. Our office will be happy to provide general information. Our thanks, again, to Holland & Hart of Denver, for their assistance with the conservation easement. This house is HGI's second conservation easement, the first being right next door at the Church/Long-Hoeft House.

The summit of Saxon Mountain welcomed its 4th, 5th and 6th tenants: US West Wireless, Sprint, and Western Wireless. They join Air Touch Cellular, Nextel, and AT&T Wireless who have been in place for the past six years. The successful consolidation of these communications sites into one area, virtually hidden from public view, is a part of our effort to protect the valley floor from scattered and unsightly towers and microwave dishes. We are most thankful to all six companies for their cooperation.

HGI's participation in with the Historic District Public Lands Commission and the Silver Heritage Area continues to be of great value. With the support of the Great Outdoors Colorado Trust fund and Clear Creek County, Project Director Cindy Neely is conducting a cultural and natural resource inventory of the Waldorf and Stevens Creek Basins in order to develop a local policy strategy. This Mountain Basin project is a vital element in the future management of these important resources. The open lands around our Landmark District, from Empire Junction to the Continental Divide, are playing increasingly important roles in our future.

Our other partners in preservation are likewise undertaking important and meaningful work: Our thanks to Police Judge (ex-officio Mayor) Janet Claus, the Board of Selectmen, the Planning Commission and the Design Review Commission for their continued work in protecting the Landmark District. They are currently revising and updating the town's Design Review Guidelines, policies and procedures and most importantly, conducting this program simultaneously with up-dating the Town's long range plan which will have a strong historic preservation component. With the efforts of planning coordinator Cindy Neely, the counsel of preservation consultant Winter and Associates of Boulder and the planning firm of Balloffet and Associates of Ft. Collins, we look forward to an even more meaningful role of the Town government is the preservation of our local cultural resources. The Alpine Hose Tower Fire House Commission, an official commission of the Town, continues its fine work of preserving Georgetown's most prominent cultural landmark under the leadership of Chairman Leo Stambaugh. HGI staff is pleased to be a part of this important work.

The Colorado Historical Society and the Georgetown Loop Railroad continue to attract over 100,000 visitors annually to the railroad and the Lebanon Mine tour. They continue to perform at a level of interpretive expertise that is unparalleled in the Rocky Mountain West; we are all proud to have them as preservation partners. To the aforementioned State Historic Fund, our deepest thanks for their continued support of our 'bricks & mortar" restoration and preservations efforts.

And to our five non-profit partners in preservation, we thank: The National Society of the Colonial Dames in America for their continued work on the Hotel De Paris; People for Silver Plume and the old schoolhouse; Georgetown Community Center, Ltd. with old courthouse; the Georgetown Energy Museum and the old hydro plant; and our newest partner, the Grace Episcopal Church Foundation of Georgetown with the acquisition of the 1869 Snetzer Building. Six historic preservation non-profits in one Landmark District with a population of only 1,250 (Georgetown and Silver Plume) is quite remarkable and indicative of the love of the past the residents of the valley have.

A thank you to Christine Bradley, Clear Creek County Archivist, for her countless hours in working with our publications: Memberabilia and the Journal and for her many hours in financial accounting in her capacity as Corporate Treasurer.

And to Hamill House neighbors Brent Kruger and Bob Terry for keeping a watchful eye on the Hamill property and for their annual help with the Hamill yard fountain and Brent's seemingly daily help with locksmithing. Neighbor and Board Member Tom Bennhoff is our best night watchman and we are grateful. Neighbor Kelly Babeon (Chief of our Volunteer Fire Department) spent many hours last November sawing and chopping the remains of one of the sixty foot Cottonwood trees along Third Street that finally succumbed to the wind. The Town Crew assisted Kelly in cleaning up this minor disaster in which, thankfully, no one was hurt and property damage was minimal. Our thanks for their help! We are ever thankful to Georgetown's resident Johnny Appleseed, Pete Werlin, for his many hours, and years, in tree planting at the Bowman/White House and the Visitor Center; our little town would be far less green without him.

Around the Hamill House and our offices: We are thankful for the continued volunteer work of Membership Coordinator Parthena Moore and Debbie Bailey for her many hours of tending the plants in the Hamill conservatory. And to our Staff: Executive Director Jeanne Waligroski; Gift Shops Manager Anne Izard; Tour Guides Jocelyn Pyle and Kim Hudson; Visitor Center Hosts Bernell Izard and Jan Shirlaw.

It is with regret that we note that our Curator of Properties and Collections for the past three years, Jonathan Held, has left our employ to work this summer with the Mountain Basin Project of the Silver Heritage Area. This important undertaking of research and survey work is vitally important to Georgetown and to Historic Georgetown, Inc. We hope Jonathan will be available for contract work with us in future. He is a very special person and was an exceptional employee. We will miss him.

Nan Rickey, of Evergreen, Colorado will be assuming the responsibilities of Curator later this Month. Many of you know Nan since she was on our Board of Directors for years and was Chairman of our Cultural Resources Management Committee. She has over 20 years of preservation, interpretation and management experience with the National Park Service. She has worked on projects in over 200 national parks and brings a world of knowledge and expertise to our organization. We welcome her. Assisting Nan and the office staff for this summer is Intern Sandra Scaffidi, a graduate student in the Public History program at Colorado State University. She is comfortably assuming many curatorial and interpretive duties and brings a pleasant ray of sunshine to our offices.

Our Fiscal Year beginning May 1, 1999 will continue to be a year of progress and accomplishment. In addition to working on the many programs earlier described, we will be conducting our biennial House Tour, next month, July 16, 17 & 18. Dana Abrahamson, Chair of the event, Jeanne in our office, Hospitality Consultants of Denver, and over 100 volunteers will present this event. Please contact our office is you can volunteer for this event. In the meantime, pray for good weather.

The summer of 2000 will see another fund raising auction on the grounds of the Hamill House. Thanks to Ted Jones and Diane Dieter of Boulder for underwriting this most important fund raising effort. Their employer, Amgen Corporation of Boulder and Thousand Oaks, California, matched their donations. Amgen is the world's largest independent biotechnology company and is an industry leader in developing therapeutics based on advances in cellular and molecular biology. We thank them.

And to the members of our Board of Directors who continue to donate countless volunteer hours in our behalf as we continue our efforts in doing our part in preserving our town and its surrounds. Historic Georgetown, Inc. has accomplished a great deal over the past 29 years. We have much to do in the upcoming year and the decades to follow: With the continued support of you, our members and friends, we will get it done and Georgetown will become one of the finest preserved historic landmark districts in the Rocky Mountain West.