The Hotel de Paris in Georgetown.
By Sandra Dallas
Georgetown in the mountains west of Denver emerged as a silver mining camp in 1864.
Saloons and gambling hall rowdies caused frequent problems. The local newspaper reported in 1872, “Only last sabbath, we saw two ladies pushed into the gutter on Main Street, trembling in fear from eight young men who were riding at full speed.”
One editor kept a gun lying within easy reach on his desk. When he left his office, he always walked down the center of the street, armed with an arsenal.
But Georgetown had become an elegant town with pretentious Victorian houses, the most fanciful of which was the Maxwell House—to this day immaculately kept and considered one of the best examples of Victorian architecture in the country.
Georgetown’s prosperity was closely tied to the silver boom that swept through Colorado’s mountains in the late 19th century. Miners, merchants and entrepreneurs flocked to the area, and the town became an important center for the surrounding mining district. Its wealth helped support an impressive collection of commercial buildings, churches and private homes. Even as mining fortunes rose and fell, many of these structures remained, preserving a glimpse of the ambitions and lifestyles of Georgetown’s prosperous years.
Georgetown’s hotels were equally lavish. The most extraordinary was the Hotel de Paris, built by Louis Dupuy in 1875. It was built as a French country inn and furnished with heavy walnut pieces, including a matched pair of double beds in the bridal suite.
The Hotel de Paris bottled its own wine and kept trout in an indoor fountain so Dupuy could cook fresh fish for his guests.
He served elegant dinners of quail and mountain sheep, truffles and anchovies in the splendid dining room that had a floor of maple and walnut.
Dupuy placed vases of wild flowers in the rooms of female guests. When he died in 1900, he left the hotel to his female housekeeper.
In the 1950s the Hotel de Paris was acquired by the National Society of Colonial Dames. It is now operated as a museum, allowing visitors to explore the rooms, furnishings and stories associated with the hotel’s colorful past.
In 1966 Georgetown and neighboring Silver Plume were named a national historic district. Today Georgetown is Colorado’s best preserved Victorian town, its historic streets and architecture offering a tangible connection to the mining boom that helped shape the state.
Worth a Visit:
During the holiday season, Georgetown hosts its popular Christmas Market, transforming the historic downtown into a festive Victorian village with traditional European-style market stalls, holiday lights and horse-drawn wagon rides. The main Old World Christmas Market is held over two weekends, Saturday and Sunday, December 5th to 6th and 12th to 13th, 2026. All days run from 10 am to 5 pm.
