Day 355 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ Catacombs Stained Glass

This is from my favorite spot in Catacombs. I loved it so much I celebrated my 23rd birthday under it -- over a year before I started working at the Boulderado!

Day 243 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ Pirate Skeleton

How suitable that this pirate skeleton is located right next to the lobby entrance to Catacomb's Bar, where he can find enough rum to quench his thirst and sing, "Yo ho, yo ho, a pirate's life for me!"

Day 199 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ Entrance to Catacombs

While it's true that you can get to the Catacombs from inside the Hotel Boulderado, most people are more familiar with its street entrance, seen here.

Day 194 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ Half a Cow, Man

I had to ask some of the more experienced employees who have been here at the Hotel Boulderado for decades about the story behind the cow in the employee break room. Well, actually, it's half a cow now.

The cow (when it was whole) used to be found at the entrance of Catacomb's. (Maybe she kept the bouncer company?) But then Catacomb's did some rearranging of their layout, and there wasn't room any more for the cow. So the cow was sawed in half, and one piece was brought to an employee's home, and the other was brought to the employee break room.

Here at the Boulderado, we're not just about history and luxury; we love random shenanigans as well. So don't half a cow, man.

Day 172 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ Staircase to Basement

This is a shot of the staircase as it descends into the basement of the Hotel Boulderado, nowadays known as the Catacombs Bar.

Day 163 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ Catacombs Patio: Phase One

Did you hear the news? The Catacomb's Bar is working on a patio! Here is a shot of the work in progress, commonly known around the building as "Phase One."

Day 149 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ Catacombs' Clock

For the most part, when I'm capturing the photos for 365 Days of Boulderado Photos, I wander about the building for up to an hour trying to see it with fresh eyes. Once in a while, though, I'll notice something I never did before and have to run and grab my camera. The clock you see here was a result of the latter process, and it features the managers of Catacombs Bar.

Day 136 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ 86'ed Squirrel

Down in Catacomb's Bar, there is a system for keeping track of troublemakers known as the "86'ed Wall." This collection features photos and descriptions of people who have not behaved themselves in the Catacombs. The photo you see here is the 86 report for one of the most dangerous patrons ever seen on the premises. In case you can't read the description, let me reiterate for you, in case you ever come across this treacherous character.
Name: Squirrelly McNutts
Height: 5"
Age: 3 months
Gender: Male
Hair: Light Brown to Brown
Eyes: Black as Sin

Day 131 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ Catacomb's Bike

At first glance, you may think that we confiscated a patron's bicycle and are raffling it off. In reality, you can sign up for the CataCard at Catacomb's Bar in the basement of the Hotel Boulderado, receive happy hour prices whenever you visit, and can be entered in a weekly drawing. The bicycle is just one of the lucky prizes!

Day 56 of 365 Days of Boulderado Photos ~ Antique Trunks

Back when the Hotel Boulderado opened in 1909, travel was a much slower process. As a result, people would take longer vacations and trips. Huge trunks, like the ones you see here, were popular between the 18th and 20th centuries, when smaller, lighter suitcases were introduced. When a guest brought their trunk to the Boulderado, he or she would unpack the contents and the trunk itself was stored in our basement (now known as Catacomb's Bar).

Louis Winterberger

The Howards sold the Hotel Boulderado in 1967 to Court Plaza Inc, a group of local investors in Boulder. Louis Winterberger was a partner in the group, and he took over the day-to-day task of managing the hotel. Like the Howards, Winterberger wished to keep the hotel rooms period in nature.

In an attempt to keep the hotel full, Winterberger allowed more permanent residents to stay at the Boulderado. Most of them were elderly folks whose spouses had already passed away. One such resident was Walter Lawry, who marched such a familiar trail from the Boulderado to his favorite restaurant that the alley he walked down would later be renamed "Lawry Lane" in his honor. According to Legend of a Landmark, "Senility was a trait of . . . Winterberger's guests. 'A woman came to the front desk one day and asked if we had any rooms,' he said. 'I showed her her own room and she said it was delightful, and that she'd take it.'"

The same year that Court Plaza Inc. took over the Boulderado, Boulder residents finally voted to repeal the prohibition the city had been under since the 30s. For the first time, full-strength wine, beer, and liquor could be legally served within the city limits. Winterberger turned an unused space in the basement into Catacombs Bar and Restaurant, which opened in 1969 to thirsty patrons. He also added an entrance to the bar from 13th Street, paving the way for the hotel entrances to be switched in the future. (The hotel's main entrance since its 1909 opening was located on Spruce Street. But with the crumbling stone portico and Catacombs traffic, the entrance was eventually moved to 13th Street.)

When Court Plaza Inc. sold the Boulderado in 1976, Louis Winterberger shared his thoughts. "Naturally we have mixed emotions about selling the hotel. Our Christmas carol sing in the decorated lobby at Christmas time soon became a family tradition and we have pleasant memories of the lovely weddings, the Philharmonic Balls, and many other social events which have taken place in the lobby. We know the new owners feel as we do about the historic preservation of the hotel, and we are pleased they will be continuing our efforts."

Gwen, Winterberger's wife, shared her memories of running the hotel with her husband in our Memories of the Boulderado. Click here to read her story.

January Winner ~ Tell Us Your Boulderado Story

One of the components of the Boulderado's 100 year anniversary is the Tell Us Your Boulderado Story campaign, which is a collection of memories and narratives from the last century about the Hotel Boulderado. Our goal is to collect 100 stories which will be compiled into a coffee table book. The Boulderado selects a monthly favorite, and January's winner is Douglas Dellinger. Enjoy his story, "She said that I needed to sit down."

"My wife and I met in Palo Alto, California. She was originally from Montpellier, France, and I had grown up in rural Iowa. I had lived in Boulder in the 80's while attending graduate school so I was quite familiar with The Catacombs. When I asked my wife to marry me, she tearfully told me that she could never have children as a result of an endrocrine condition that was diagnosed when she was a teenager. Being a medical researcher myself, I contacted a friend who specialized in similar disorders, and he sent us to a local colleague at Stanford Medical School. The physician at Stanford confirmed my wife's condition and explained that our only option for having a family was through adoption; a pretty heart-wrenching depressing realization for my wife.

A few weeks later I traveled to Boulder on business and stayed at the Hotel Boulderado. To cheer my wife up, I arranged to stay at the Boulderado through the weekend and have her fly in to join me. After picking her up from the airport, she was quiet for the whole trip back to Boulder. The minute I got her suitcase into the hotel room, she said that I needed to sit down, that she had something to tell me. She told me that she was pregnant; the joy on her face was probably as remarkable as the shock and disbelief on mine! That weekend we so enjoyed Boulder that we schemed a plan to eventually move to Boulder to raise our family. Our first daughter was born November 15th of 1999 and we moved to Boulder two years later in December of 2001. We currently have three children, two of which were born at Boulder Community Hospital. Still, every time we walk by the Boulderado, my wife and I have to talk about that night and how it changed our lives."

Photos from Catacombs Opening

You never know what will turn up when you work in a historic hotel like the Boulderado! Just recently, photos resurfaced showing the Catacombs Bar when it opened in 1969. It was a noteworthy opening, because Boulder was "dry" until 1967, meaning bars couldn't serve full-strength alcohol or beer. The Catacombs was the first newly constructed restaurant with full service to serve beer, wine, and liquor at their intended strength. Since then, Catacombs has become a local favorite, popular enough to earn "Best Bar of Boulder County 2009." Congratulations to the Catacombs and all their loyal patrons!