“We derive genuine pleasure in seeing our guests happy. Most of them are people who love a quiet vacation away from cities, close to nature. Many enjoy riding into the high country to see nature at its best. So very many enjoy fishing while others like to ride, hike, rest, or play games. All of them, the same as we, love to hear the early history of Redstone, which is most interesting.
“Fond are our memories of gatherings in the living room in front of a roaring fire in the huge fireplace listening to the guests tell of the big fish that got away, or the hunters tell of their day’s experiences in getting their elk, deer or bear.
“Our fondest wish is to keep Redstone and the surrounding area always a place where people like to return year after year, and that God will grant us many more years to live in this lovely spot.
“Yes, we love Redstone and to us the area in and near there is some of the most beautiful country we have ever seen. As we view the majestic, awe inspiring handiwork of God we feel very humble and grateful, and humbly say, ‘Thank you God, for the privilege of seeing and living in this lovely spot.’
“Most sincerely,” (_Signed_) Virginia Parker
[Illustration: SWISS VILLAGE RESORT—Lodge one mile above Redstone. It was originally the Osgood gamekeeper’s house. —_Photo courtesy_ Mrs. Olyn Parker, Redstone, Colo.]
[Illustration: OSGOOD MANOR—“Cleveholm” (across beautiful Crystal River from Swiss Village Resort) patterned after a castle in England. —_Photo courtesy_ John B. Schutte, Glenwood Spgs., Colo.]
of an Ideal Village for Miners (_Elevation Approximately 6,500 feet_)
John C. Osgood came to Colorado in the early 1880s to make a thorough investigation of all the coal deposits in the state. Those up Coal Creek, a branch of the Crystal River, seemed especially favorable for his plan, and he was able to buy them from their original owners for a few hundred dollars. The dream he had of building a model village for miners in this valley did not materialize for almost twenty years. He organized the Colorado Fuel Co. and later acquired the Colorado Coal & Iron Co. and merged them into one—Colorado Fuel & Iron Co. (CF&I)—and was its first president. Then he set out to carry through his dream and built Redstone, a model village of 40 workmen’s cottages (each styled and painted differently), a modern 40-roomed inn, a school house, a club house, and a library; all electrically lighted and as modern as they could be made at that time.