Healy House Museum was the

Leadville, Colorado The City of Leadville is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Statutory city, statutory city that is the county seat, the most populous community, and the only List of municipalities in Colorado, incorporated municipality in Lake County, Colorad ...

home built in 1878 by mining engineer and city father

August R. Meyer August Robert Meyer (August 20, 1851 – December 1, 1905) was an American mining engineer, founding organizer of Leadville, Colorado, and developed the park and boulevard system for Kansas City, Missouri as first president of the Commission of P ...

for his bride, Emma. It was purchased in 1888 by Daniel Healy (1857-1912), who operated a boarding house with his cousin Nellie Healy. An immigrant from Ireland, Healy served Leadville as a mail carrier and later assistant postmaster. He subsequently started several successful businesses and represented Leadville in Colorado's state legislature from 1903 to 1905. After Daniel Healy had died in 1912, the house was given to his sister, nieces, and cousin Nellie Healy. Nellie continued to live in and operate the boarding house until 1936. She donated the house to the historical association in 1936 under the condition that the house be used to benefit the city. In 1938, Clara Gaw Norton oversaw restoration work at the house paid for through grant money from the

Boettcher Foundation The Boettcher Foundation is a Denver-based philanthropic organization whose mission is to invest in the promise of Colorado and the potential of Coloradans. Founded by Claude K. Boettcher and his son, Charles, with additional support from other fa ...

. Norton hoped to turn the Healy House into the city's first history museum. Healy House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1970. Currently it is a Colorado State Historic Site and is operated as a Victorian era museum by the state under History Colorado, together with

Dexter Cabin Dexter Cabin was the Leadville, Colorado home and hunting lodge of James V. Dexter, a mining investor and businessman. Although it is a cabin, the interior has been described as "surprisingly plush," "elegantly finished," and "incredibly orna ...

. The two are located within the Leadville Historic District, which is itself a National Historic Landmark. The restored house serves as an example of the "Elegant Eighties". with

References

External links

Healy House Museum and Dexter Cabin
History Colorado
Historic Colorado Mansions and Castles
{{Registered Historic Places Houses completed in 1878 Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Colorado Historic house museums in Colorado Museums in Lake County, Colorado History Colorado Houses in Lake County, Colorado National Register of Historic Places in Lake County, Colorado Individually listed contributing properties to historic districts on the National Register in Colorado Leadville Historic District