EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW
• MEET THE PANEL •
SARAH BROUGHTON
Principal, Rowland & Broughton
CHRIS DAVIS
Principal, Boss Architecture
PATRICK EIDMAN
Chief Preservation Officer and Deputy State Historic Preservation Officer, History Colorado
POPPIE GULLETT
National and State Register Historian, History Colorado
ANNIE LEVINSKY
Chief of Staff, History Colorado; former Executive Director, Historic Denver
DON RUGGLES
Principal, Ruggles Mabe Studio
WILLIAM LANG (1846–1897)
LEGACY He designed many of Denver’s most elaborate single-family residences, including the Molly Brown House, now a museum but originally the home of legendary Colorado socialite and philanthropist Margaret Brown, aka the “Unsinkable Molly Brown.”
LIFE The Ohio native moved to Denver in 1885, and though he was not formally trained (he taught himself using architectural pattern books, which were popular at the time), Lang quickly became the architect most sought after by Denver’s wealthy elite. Because of his frequent use of turrets and exuberant, ornate detailing, a Lang-designed home was an indication of status, says Annie Levinsky of History Colorado. He designed approximately 250 homes and churches (several are now on the National Register of Historic Places) in Denver before the Panic of 1893, when silver prices crashed and many of Denver’s wealthy instantly lost their fortunes—drying up Lang’s business for good. He died penniless in Chicago four years later, but the stamp he left on Denver remains.
“[Lang] is known for his fairytale-inspired homes,” says Poppie
