The
Carriage House
Built in 1890, the structure has
withstood the elements for over 125 years.
Over the past decade it has had not TLC and the ravages of nature are
showing on the roof. Unless it gets some
care, it will soon beyond repairs. It
does offer me a chance to speculate on how it was used, way back when it was
built.
The home next door was built at the
same time and had its beginnings as a hotel.
So that opens lots of possibilities to how it was used. Next to the old hotel had been another
building that may have been a lunchroom/eatery as they were called back
then. It has been torn down and the
hotel has been modified so many times it would not be recognized. The carriage house looks original from way
back then, a lean-to on the back has been added.
So why a carriage house, being next
to a hotel, was this a rent a buggy operation.
Maybe it was a limo service, with the railroad depot close by. Maybe it was also a taxi service to shuttle
the business executives around the county seat.
Whatever it was used for, it leaves lots of memories of another
era.
When it was built, there would have been
no utilities. Heat would have been a
stove, water from the well and outhouse, outback. There would have been stables to house the
horses and feed them. A stable hand/
driver would have been employed or part of the hotel restaurant operation.
For me, it is fascinating to ponder
the daily routine of how these people would have went about their daily
lives.
Above the carriage house can be seen
living quarters. One big room over the
buggies. No electricity, so a lantern or
candles would have been used. No
running water, a bucket up the steps with a basin and trot out to the
privy. Heat would have been a coal
stove, being in a railroad town. Cold
winters, hot summers, yet at the time it had all the modern comforts of the
time. Kitchen would have been the eatery
a couple doors down.
For the worker back then, living in
a carriage house was probably a luxury.
Drive around town with horse n buggy was a status few enjoyed. Few folks could afford a horse and usually
did not have a place to keep it. So
walking to and from work was the norm.
Wonder what the life of a carriage boy would have been like in a small
RR town.
Hugo, Colorado is a small town that
was built by the railroad in 1870. Hugo
eventually became the county seat for Lincoln County, formed out of a variety
of other counties. With the railroad as
a main employer, Hugo thrived and ranching, Cattle and sheep, business grew to
help support the growing town.
One of the first Harvey House
lunchrooms was in Hugo. Located in a
local hotel, close the first roundhouse and near the depot. The Harvey House and hotel lasted through the
1890’s. With railroad changes, Hugo lost
lots of residents and businesses but it managed to survive.
Besides the town surviving, many of
its homes survived from the 1870’s and many are still lived in as homes. It is fascinating to drive around the town
and there are these little homes folks still living in them. The Dickinson House was restored a few years
back, built in 1872. It is still a
private residence. The town museum is in
a residence that was donated to the town, built 1877. The oldest house in town was constructed in
1870 and is in serious decay. The new
owner will probably tear it down rather then trying to restore it.
So a carriage House from 1890 is
kind of old, but kind of modern compared to other buildings in the town. The only sad part is, the Harvey House is
gone as is the old RR hotels. Oh, Hugo
does have a Boot Hill. It is in a
pasture north of town.
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