[MUSIC] - HARTMAN CASTLE IS AN ICONIC BUILDING OF THE GOLDEN ERA OF DEVELOPMENT IN GUNNISON.

- HARTMAN CASTLE SYMBOLIZES STRENGTH.

IT'S STILL STANDING AFTER 130 YEARS.

THE MAN WAS STRONG, THE BUILDINGS STRONG.

- ALONZO HARTMAN CO-FOUNDED GUNNISON.

HE WAS INVOLVED IN VIRTUALLY EVERY ASPECT OF DEVELOPING THIS AS A COMMUNITY.

- AFTER THEY LEFT, THE HARTMAN ESTATE WENT THROUGH A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT OWNERSHIP GROUPS.

- THE CURRENT OWNER HAD NO DESIRE TO KEEP THIS HOUSE.

HE'S ALWAYS WANTED TO DO SOMETHING TO IT, TO BRING IT BACK TO LIFE.

JUST NEVER HAD THE TIME AND THE RESOURCES.

- I DON'T WANT TO BE THE ONE KNOWN AS THE PERSON WHO TORE DOWN THE CASTLE.

- THE GOAL IS TO RAISE $800,000 SO WE CAN BUY THIS PLACE.

IF WE'RE ABLE TO RESTORE IT, IT'LL BE A REAL TREASURE FOR THE PEOPLE OF GUNNISON AND THE GUNNISON COUNTRY.

[MUSIC] - I AM JUST AWASH IN EMOTION OF WHO THEY WERE.

I FEEL ANNIE AND ALONZO STILL.

STILL LIVING HERE.

I FEEL THE LOVE THAT THEY HAD FOR EACH OTHER, FOR THEIR FAMILY, FOR THEIR COMMUNITY.

AND THEY REALLY WANTED THIS COMMUNITY TO BE STRONG.

- MY FAVORITE TIME TO SPEND AT HARTMAN CASTLE IS AT DUSK.

YOU GET A FEELING, YOU GET A VIBE, IF YOU WILL.

SOME PEOPLE MIGHT CALL THEM SPIRITS.

YOU FEEL THE JOY AND THE DEPTH OF THE HISTORY OF THE PLACE.

WHEN YOU'RE INSIDE, OR YOU'RE OUTSIDE IN THE YARD WITH THE DEER WALKING BY, OR INSIDE IN THE GLOAMING AS THE SUN IS SETTING, YOU CAN ALMOST HEAR THE VOICES OF ANNIE AND ALONZO URGING US ON.

YOU KNOW, THEY'RE HERE WITH US.

THEY'RE HERE IN SPIRIT.

WE WANT TO MAKE THEM PROUD.

- COLORADO HISTORY IS FULL OF INCREDIBLY INTERESTING AND ICONIC CHARACTERS.

ALONZO HARTMAN IS ONE OF THEM.

ALONZO HARTMAN HELPED TO MAKE THE GUNNISON COUNTRY WHAT IT IS TODAY.

SAVING THE HARTMAN CASTLE AND BRINGING IT BACK TO LIFE WOULD HELP US TELL THE TALE OF THE GUNNISON COUNTRY.

- WHEN ALONZO HARTMAN ARRIVED HERE IN 1872, THERE WAS NO GUNNISON.

IN FACT, THERE WOULDN'T BE ANY GUNNISON FOR ABOUT SEVEN YEARS.

GUNNISON REALLY DIDN'T GET STARTED UNTIL 1879.

- AND HE WAS HERE ON BEHALF OF THE UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT TO CARETAKE THE GOVERNMENT CATTLE FOR THE INDIANS LIVING ON THE LOS PINOS INDIAN RESERVATION.

[MUSIC] - SO, GUNNISON AT THAT TIME, THE AREA THAT WE HAVE GUNNISON TODAY IS MADE UP OF UTE INDIANS, ABOUT 3,000 OF THEM, SUMMERING IN THE GUNNISON VALLEY.

- THE INDIAN RESERVATION BEGAN RIGHT ON OUR WESTERN BORDERS.

NOBODY COULD GO FURTHER THAN GUNNISON IN EARLY 1880.

THIS BECAME THE PLACE TO BE.

WE BEGAN TO SEE PIONEER SETTLEMENT IN THE LATE 1870S.

ALONZO HARTMAN WAS ONE OF OUR TOWN FOUNDERS WHEN THEY FOUNDED THE COMMUNITY IN 1879.

- THE DENVER AND RIO GRANDE RAILROAD ARRIVED IN GUNNISON ON AUGUST 6, 1881.

THOSE MINING CAMPS NEEDED FRESH MEAT.

SO, THE RANCHERS MADE OUT LIKE BANDITS BECAUSE THEY HAD A TREMENDOUS MARKET AND THEY CHARGED FAIRLY HIGH PRICES.

25,000 TO 40,000 PEOPLE CAME TO THE GUNNISON COUNTRY.

TO PUT THAT IN PERSPECTIVE, WE'VE GOT 17,000 PEOPLE IN THE COUNTY TODAY.

SO, DOUBLE AND ALMOST TRIPLE THE POPULATION CAME IN.

- ALONZO HARTMAN LIVED IN A TENT FOR A LONG TIME, AND THEN HE BUILT A LITTLE LOG CABIN, WHICH EVENTUALLY BECAME OUR FIRST POST OFFICE, WHICH IS ACTUALLY RIGHT ON THE GROUNDS OF THE PIONEER MUSEUM HERE.

AND THEN, GRADUALLY, HE LEFT THAT WORK, HE BOUGHT A LITTLE LAND, HE BOUGHT A FEW COWS, AND THEN HE WAS THE FIRST REAL RANCHER THAT STAYED IN THIS AREA.

AND OF COURSE, RANCHING IS A HUGE PART OF WHAT MAKES GUNNISON GUNNISON.

- I'M LOOKING AT ALONZO HARTMAN'S SCRAPBOOK THAT I GOT IN 1971 FROM HIS SON, BRUCE.

SO, THIS IS THE HOME OF THE GUNNISON COW CAMP, 1872, THAT SUPPLIED BEEF AND SHEEP FOR THE UTE INDIANS OUT AT THE LOS PINOS INDIAN RESERVATION.

THERE'S ALL KINDS OF OTHER GREAT PICTURES.

HERE IS A GUY, BRUCE HARTMAN.

THEY HAD SHETLAND PONIES.

I'M ALSO LOOKING AT ALL THE ANTLERS THAT SURROUNDED THE HOUSE, AND ALSO A FLOCK OF GEESE, WHICH ALONZO HARTMAN HAD ABOUT 30 GEESE.

- ALL OF THE CHILDREN WERE VERY INVOLVED IN THE DAY-TO-DAY WORKING OF THE RANCH.

THEY LOVED TO RIDE HORSES.

- ALONZO HARTMAN MET ANNIE.

SHE WAS THE ASSISTANT COUNTY CLERK HERE IN GUNNISON.

AND WITH ALL THE BUSINESS THAT HE HAD TO ATTEND TO WITH THE COUNTY, HE MET HER AT THE COUNTY OFFICE AND STARTED A RELATIONSHIP LEADING TO THEIR MARRIAGE.

- IN 1882 THEY GOT MARRIED.

AND THEN NINE YEARS LATER, AFTER LIVING IN THAT STONE HOUSE, ALONZO HARTMAN BUILT THE HARTMAN CASTLE FOR HIS WIFE IN 1891.

- I BELIEVE THAT WHAT LED TO THE BUILDING OF THE HARTMAN CASTLE WAS HIS STATUS, NOT ONLY IN OUR COMMUNITY BUT FAR BEYOND OUR COMMUNITY BORDER.

HE BECAME VERY WEALTHY BY RAISING CATTLE, AND HE JUST CONTINUED TO EXTEND HIS HOLDINGS, HIS LAND HOLDINGS.

I'M LARRY MCDONALD, AND WE'RE HERE TODAY AT THE PIONEER MUSEUM IN GUNNISON.

THE PIONEER MUSEUM HOLDS A LOT OF THE RELICS OF THE HARTMAN FAMILY IN OUR COLLECTION.

- ALONZO HARTMAN, RIGHT HERE, OUR TOWN FOUNDER, HIS WEDDING SUIT, HIS SMOKING JACKET, HIS WIFE'S DRESSES.

ALONZO HAD A HABIT OF SMOKING UNTIL TOO MANY POSTAL CUSTOMERS COMPLAINED, AND THEN HE QUIT SMOKING AT A PERIOD OF TIME.

THIS SMOKING JACKET HAS BURN MARKS IN IT TODAY STILL.

WE HAVE HERE A NUMBER OF ITEMS OF CHILDREN'S CLOTHING FROM THE HARTMAN FAMILY, AND THEY'RE JUST EXQUISITE.

MANY ITEMS WERE HOMEMADE BACK IN THE DAY, BUT THOSE WHO COULD AFFORD IT WOULD ORDER OUT OF A CATALOG AND HAVE THEM DELIVERED BY TRAIN.

AND A VERY FANCY FUR COAT WITH A HAND WARMER ATTACHED TO IT THERE.

RIGHT HERE, THESE ARE HARTMAN FAMILY TOY FURNITURE HERE.

CHILD'S TOY DRESSER, JUST DONATED BY THE HARTMAN FAMILY, CIRCA 1890.

THIS BELONGED TO HAZEL HARTMAN IN ABOUT 1894.

ALONZO AND ANNIE BOTH ATTENDED THE WORLD'S FAIR IN 1893 AND PURCHASED MANY BELONGINGS, FURNITURE, INCLUDING THE FIREPLACE THAT YOU SEE IN THE CASTLE TODAY.

- THIS FIREPLACE AND ALL THE FIREPLACE SURROUNDS WERE PURCHASED AT THE CHICAGO WORLD'S FAIR.

THE MANUFACTURER OF THESE TILES, THESE WERE IMPORTED FROM ITALY, BUT WE HOPE THAT WE CAN ALSO FIND REPLACEMENT PIECES THROUGH SALVAGE TO GET THE SAME HISTORY.

- YOU KNOW, HARTMAN CASTLE WAS A BUILDING THAT WAS BUILT IN 1891 FOR $45,000, WHICH WOULD BE EQUIVALENT TO ABOUT $1.6 MILLION TODAY.

- THIS HOUSE WAS BASED ON THE DRAWINGS OF ANNIE HARTMAN AND HER MINISTER, NEITHER OF WHOM HAD EVER DESIGNED A HOUSE BEFORE.

ONE OF THE FEATURES THAT SHE REALLY INSISTED ON WAS THE TURRET.

SHE WAS A LANDSCAPE ARTIST, AND SHE WANTED TO BE ABLE TO SEE ALL THE PROPERTY AROUND.

AND AT THAT TIME, THERE WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN MUCH FOR TREES, AND THE VIEW MUST HAVE BEEN JUST AMAZING.

- AND IN THE HARTMAN CASTLE THEY WOULD HAVE A LOT OF DANCES, AND A LOT OF PARTIES, AND A LOT OF GATHERINGS WHERE THE CATTLEMEN WOULD GET TOGETHER.

- A LOT OF GRAND BALLS HELD HERE.

THEY ALSO WERE VERY CONSCIENTIOUS OF GIVING BACK TO THE COMMUNITY.

THERE'S MANY, MANY INSTANCES OF THEIR PHILANTHROPIC WORK.

- HISTORICALLY, HARTMAN WAS A MAN OF INTEGRITY, AND THIS BUILDING IS FULL OF THAT INTEGRITY.

THESE BRICKS ARE 130 YEARS OLD.

- PATTERNED BRICK IS A CLASSIC OF QUEEN ANNE VICTORIAN ARCHITECTURE, SO THE RECESSED PIECES AGAIN, GETTING THAT TEXTURE AND THAT MOVEMENT IN THE WALL, AND THEN THE ACCENTS AGAIN OF THE STONE AROUND THE REALLY IMPORTANT ELEMENTS OF THE WINDOWS AND THIS SORT OF BANDING ACROSS HERE IS A REALLY BEAUTIFUL FEATURE OF THIS BUILDING.

MY NAME IS JODY RIESER.

I'M AN ARCHITECT.

ONE OF MY SPECIALTIES IS HISTORIC PRESERVATION.

SO, THIS IS A QUEEN ANNE VICTORIAN.

SOME DISTINCTIVE FEATURES OF THAT ARE LOTS OF DIFFERENT TEXTURES AND MATERIALS.

THEY TRY TO AVOID ANY SORT OF FLAT WALL SURFACE.

THIS TYPE OF STYLE IS, ALTHOUGH POPULAR IN A FAIR AMOUNT OF DIFFERENT MOUNTAIN COMMUNITIES ACROSS COLORADO, IN GUNNISON, WE DON'T SEE A LOT OF QUEEN ANNE.

HOWEVER, OUR MOST PROMINENT BUILDING OF HISTORY THAT NO LONGER EXISTS WOULD HAVE BEEN THE LA VETA HOTEL, AND THAT ONE WAS ALSO A BEAUTIFUL, ORNATE QUEEN ANNE.

BEAUTIFUL ARCHED WINDOWS, USED TO BE STAINED GLASS.

I UNDERSTAND THEY WERE FLOWERS AND OWLS, AND THEN THEY HAD SORT OF BANDS OF JUST JEWEL TONES ON THEM, AND THEN LEADED GLASS FEATURES DOWN ON THE BOTTOM.

IN BETWEEN, TO THE MAIN RIDGE LINE, YOU CAN SEE THAT METAL CRESTING.

THAT'S A CLASSIC VICTORIAN FEATURE THAT'S REALLY LOVELY THAT THIS HAD.

THAT IS VERY RARE TO SEE IN THIS AREA.

THE INTERIOR HAS SOME OF THOSE CLASSIC VICTORIAN FEATURES.

IT'S GOT NICE, TALL CEILINGS.

THE SCROLL WORKS, SO THE LITTLE LACY, INTRICATE DETAIL PANELS THAT ARE IN THE SITTING ROOM AND IN THE AREA BETWEEN THE LIBRARY AND THE SITTING ROOM, THOSE ARE REALLY UNIQUE.

WE DON'T SEE THOSE IN A LOT OF GUNNISON BUILDINGS.

DETAILS OF THE WOOD TRIM ARE REALLY FASCINATING.

OBVIOUSLY, JUST THE BEAUTIFUL CURVATURE OF THE STAIR WAS A REALLY GRAND AND PROMINENT ENTRY FEATURE.

HE WANTED PEOPLE TO COME IN AND REALLY BE ENAMORED BY THE GORGEOUS SPACE THAT THEY ENTERED.

THIS S-SHAPED BALUSTER IS REALLY UNIQUE.

IT'S NOT A MORE STANDARD, IF YOU WILL, SORT OF THE TURNED DETAIL THAT WE WOULD SEE IN A LOT OF HOMES.

AGAIN, THIS WAS, I UNDERSTAND, DESIGNED AND BUILT BY A LOCAL CRAFTSMAN OF ANOTHER LONGTIME FAMILY.

SO, NOW THAT WE'RE AT THE UPPER LANDING, YOU CAN SEE UP INTO THE TOP OF THE TURRET.

THIS WAS ANNIE HARTMAN'S PAINTING LOFT.

SO, IT HAD A DROP-DOWN STAIR LADDER SHE COULD GO UP THERE, AND PULL THE LADDER UP, AND HAVE HER PRIVACY, AND PAINT ALL DAY, AND NOBODY WOULD BOTHER HER.

THAT WAS THE GOAL.

IT'S REALLY BEAUTIFUL UP THERE WITH THE SURROUNDING WINDOWS TO SEE BOTH, NOT ONLY THE NATURAL LIGHT COME IN, BUT THE VIEWS OUT ARE JUST FANTASTIC.

THE PINK WAS NOT ORIGINAL, BUT I DO BELIEVE ALL THE MOLDINGS ARE STILL ORIGINAL.

THESE ARE THE BEDROOMS.

SO, THIS WAS TRADITIONAL IN A HOUSE OF THIS AREA.

THE PUBLIC SPACES ARE ON THE MAIN LEVEL, AND THEN UPSTAIRS IS WHERE ALL THE BEDROOMS ARE.

- THE WONDERFUL THING ABOUT THIS HOUSE IS THAT NO ONE HAS MOVED ANY WALLS.

WHAT WE SEE IS THE WAY IT WAS DESIGNED.

- SO, I REALLY LOVE THIS AREA RIGHT HERE.

THE CRAFTSMANSHIP THAT WENT INTO ALL OF THIS FRETWORK IS AMAZING.

I LOVE THE DETAILS IN THE CORNERS, AND ALL OF THIS IS ORIGINAL.

IT'S IN THE PHOTOS OF THE FAMILY.

HERE ARE THE CHILDREN IN FRONT OF THAT.

WE'VE GOT SOMEONE IN THE BACKGROUND THERE.

THIS IS A PICTURE THAT WE USE A LOT, BUT YOU CAN SEE THOSE HOPS GROWING UP HERE AND GROWING UP HERE.

THIS IS THE HARTMANS HOPS.

THEY'RE STILL HERE.

- ALONZO HARTMAN AND ANNIE HARTMAN MOVED IN IN 1891.

THEY LIVED HERE UNTIL ABOUT 1911, AND THEIR SON, BRUCE HARTMAN, DID NOT WANT TO TAKE OVER THE RANCH.

AND AS A RESULT, ALONZO HARTMAN SOLD OUT, AND A MAN NAMED FRANK GRUBB BOUGHT THE RANCH.

HARTMAN WENT OVER TO THE PARADOX VALLEY ON THE WESTERN SLOPE, A LITTLE OUTSIDE OF MONTROSE, BUILT THE BUCKEYE RESERVOIR, AND TRIED TO RAISE FRUIT.

DIDN'T WORK.

USED UP MOST OF HIS MONEY, WENT BROKE, CAME BACK TO GUNNISON IN 1921, AND LIVED IN GUNNISON UNTIL 1926.

AND THEN, HIS DAUGHTER, LEAH, GOT A JOB IN THE MOJAVE VALLEY IN CALIFORNIA.

AND FROM HERE, ALONZO HARTMAN AND ANNIE WENT TO LIVE IN THE SAME TOWN SHE DID, AND THEY WOULD COME BACK PERIODICALLY FOR PIONEER DAYS, CATTLEMEN'S DAYS, PART OF THE CATTLEMEN'S ASSOCIATION.

AND THEN, ALONZO HARTMAN IN 1940, DIED AT THE AGE OF 89, SO ALMOST 90 YEARS OLD.

[MUSIC] - THE HISTORY OF THE PROPERTY AFTER ALONZO AND ANNIE LEFT, WE'RE STILL PIECING EVERYTHING TOGETHER.

- ONE OF THE GALS ON OUR BOARD, DARA, HAS RESEARCHED THAT TO SOME DEGREE AND COME UP WITH SOMETHING LIKE A HUNDRED TENANTS OR SOMETHING RIDICULOUS.

I'M NOT SURE THAT'S POSITIVELY THE FIGURE, BUT IT INITIALLY WENT TO A RANCH, A RANCHING PERSON NAMED GOODWIN.

FROM THERE, THIS LYNN FRENCH, HE STILL HAD 800 ACRES WHEN HE WAS HERE OUT OF THE 2200 ACRES.

AND THEN, HE SOLD, AND THEN IT JUST CONTINUED TO BE DIVIDED IN.

- SO, THAT MAKES IT COMPLICATED TO TRACE IT THROUGH THE RECORDS BECAUSE IT WAS SOLD OFF PRETTY PIECEMEAL.

SO, WE KNOW OF SOME OF THE OWNERS THAT HAVE BEEN IN THE CASTLE SINCE THEN.

- IN THE 1970S, IT WAS A RESTAURANT CALLED THE FISHERMAN INN AND LASTED FOR ABOUT FOUR OR FIVE YEARS.

- HARTMAN CASTLE HAS GONE THROUGH SO MANY CHAPTERS.

LET'S PUT IT THAT WAY.

IT'S HAD LOTS OF DIFFERENT PEOPLE LIVE THERE, AND PUT THEIR IMPRINT, AND TELL THEIR STORY.

THE GOOD NEWS IS IT'S IN REMARKABLY GOOD SHAPE FOR ALMOST A 135- YEAR-OLD BUILDING.

- THE CURRENT OWNER OF THE HARTMAN PROPERTY IS DAVE TAYLOR WITH THE KOA CAMPGROUND NEXT DOOR.

- MY NAME IS DAVE TAYLOR.

I'M KNOWN AROUND GUNNISON AS KOA DAVE BECAUSE WE OWN THE KOA CAMPGROUND.

MY WIFE AND I PURCHASED THE HARTMAN CASTLE IN 2012.

IT'S ADJACENT TO THE KOA CAMPGROUND.

AND OUR INTEREST WAS TO OWN THE PROPERTY RIGHT NEXT DOOR.

VERY EARLY ON, I THINK WE MADE THE ASSESSMENT THAT IT WAS GOING TO COST MORE MONEY THAN WE WERE WILLING TO INVEST IN THE CASTLE TO PRESERVE IT.

THAT BEGS THE QUESTION, WELL, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH IT?

THE ANSWER IS WE'VE DONE NOTHING WITH IT.

AND AS TIME HAS PASSED, WITH THE INTEREST OF OTHERS IN THE COMMUNITY THAT WANT TO SAVE THE CASTLE, THAT'S HELPED CLARIFY WHAT WE'RE GOING TO DO WITH THE CASTLE.

[MUSIC] - I WALKED IN HERE WITH THE OWNER AND THIS FRIEND OF MINE ABOUT A YEAR AND A HALF AGO, AND THAT'S THE FIRST TIME I'D BEEN INSIDE.

[MUSIC] IT WAS FABULOUS.

IT WAS ABSOLUTELY FABULOUS.

MY VERY FIRST THOUGHT WAS, WHOA.

MY SECOND THOUGHT WAS THIS HAS TO BE A COMMUNITY BUILDING, PERIOD.

- I WASN'T THE FIRST ONE WHO GOT STARTED WITH THIS PROJECT.

THAT WAS POLLY OBEROSLER AND DR. DUANE VANDENBUSCHE.

- I THINK POLLY OBEROSLER AND PAM WILLIAMS REALLY STARTED THE BALL ROLLING AND SAID, "WE'RE GOING TO DO THIS.

WE'RE GOING TO CREATE A NONPROFIT.

WE'RE GOING TO RAISE THE MONEY TO BUY THE BUILDING.” THE CURRENT OWNER IS VERY AMENABLE TO SELLING IT TO US.

HE'S ALWAYS WANTED TO DO SOMETHING TO IT, TO BRING IT BACK TO LIFE.

JUST NEVER HAD THE TIME AND THE RESOURCES.

SO, HERE WE ARE.

- I THINK AMONGST THEM, THEY TALKED ABOUT IT, AND WE KIND OF STARTED KICKING THINGS BACK AND FORTH.

AND I THOUGHT, GREAT.

I WOULD LOVE FOR THE CASTLE TO BE RESTORED.

I DON'T WANT TO BE THE ONE KNOWN AS THE PERSON WHO TORE DOWN THE CASTLE.

I WOULD LOVE TO SEE IT PRESERVED.

I WOULD LOVE TO SEE SOMEBODY ELSE PRESERVE IT OTHER THAN ME.

AND I'D LOVE TO BE THEIR NEIGHBOR.

I HAVE AGREED TO FINANCE THE PART OF THE PURCHASE.

IF THEY CAN RAISE ENOUGH MONEY TO BUY IT OUTRIGHT, EVERYTHING WILL BE SMOOTH.

THE PRICE FOR THE CASTLE IS $700,000.

THAT INCLUDES THE CASTLE, THE CARRIAGE HOUSE, AND TWO AND A HALF ACRES OF PROPERTY.

- THIS IS THE OTHER HOME THAT SITS RIGHT BEHIND THE CASTLE.

AND WE WILL BE PURCHASING THAT AS WELL.

- I TELL PEOPLE, "THIS IS THE BEST PRICE THAT THE CASTLE WILL EVER BE SOLD FOR.” - HARTMAN CASTLE PRESERVATION CORPORATION, A SMALL BUT MIGHTY GROUP OF LOCAL PEOPLE WHO ARE PASSIONATE ABOUT SAVING THE CASTLE, PURCHASING THE CASTLE AT A GREATLY DISCOUNTED RATE FROM ITS CURRENT OWNER.

AND WE'RE SO HAPPY FOR THAT.

AND THEN, ONCE THAT HAPPENS, IT WILL BE DECLARED A HISTORIC SITE AND WE WILL BE ELIGIBLE FOR FUNDS, GRANT MONIES FROM VARIOUS HISTORIC PRESERVATION GROUPS TO BRING IT BACK TO ITS ORIGINAL BEAUTY.

- BEING IN CONSTRUCTION FOR ALL THE YEARS THAT I HAVE BEEN, I'M A REALIST.

AND YOU SEE THIS, AND YOUR FIRST THOUGHT IS, WHAT ARE WE DOING?

(MUSIC) AND THEN, YOU START TO WARM UP TO IT AND IT STARTS TO BECOME, YEAH, THIS IS DOABLE.

THE CURRENT STATE OF THIS STRUCTURE IS STABLE.

THERE'S VERY LITTLE STRUCTURAL DAMAGE THAT'S OCCURRED OVER THE PAST HUNDRED YEARS.

SO, IT IS A REALLY GOOD CANDIDATE FOR RESTORATION.

YOU CAN SEE ON THE WALL ABOVE THE DOOR WHERE THE PLASTER IS STARTING TO DELAMINATE FROM THE BRICK BEHIND IT.

AND THERE'S JUST ENOUGH WATER THAT COMES DOWN HERE, GOES THROUGH THE FREEZE-THAW PROCESS IN THE WINTER, AND IT POPS THE PLASTER LOOSE.

SO, THESE ARE THE THINGS THAT WE'LL HAVE TO KEEP A CLOSE EYE ON.

[MUSIC] - TO ME, IT WOULD BE WASTEFUL, TERRIBLY WASTEFUL AND TERRIBLY CARELESS TO LET THE CASTLE DWINDLE AWAY, YOU KNOW, MOLDER AWAY INTO THE GROUND WHEN IT'S SUCH A UNIQUE STRUCTURE.

I'M VERY SAD AT THE LOSS OF SO MANY HISTORIC STRUCTURES IN THIS VALLEY.

WE'VE HAD A LONG AND PRETTY UNIQUE HISTORY HERE, AND I FEEL LIKE WE'VE SQUANDERED A FAIR AMOUNT OF IT, AT LEAST BY NOT HAVING THE STRUCTURES TO HELP US TELL THE STORIES.

- HARTMAN CASTLE IS A ONE-OF-A-KIND STRUCTURE THAT WILL NEVER BE REPLICATED.

IT HAS ONE MORE OPPORTUNITY TO BE RESTORED, AND IT WOULD BE A TRAGIC DAY IF THIS BUILDING IS EVER TORN DOWN WITHOUT BEING RESTORED.

BECAUSE IT HAS SUCH SIGNIFICANCE TO THE GUNNISON VALLEY, I MEAN ALONZO AND ANNIE HARTMAN WERE SUCH AMAZING PEOPLE, AND THEY GAVE SO MUCH OF THEMSELVES TO THE COMMUNITY THAT, YOU KNOW, FOR ALL OF THIS TO GO AWAY WOULD REALLY BE TOUGH.

- THIS BUILDING IS WORTH A BROADER LEVEL OF ATTENTION THAN JUST OUR VALLEY BECAUSE IT IS SUCH AN ICON, IF YOU WILL, FOR THE SUCCESS OF A SMALL REMOTE RANCHING TOWN THROUGHOUT HISTORY AND WHAT PEOPLE WERE ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH WITH VERY LITTLE AT THAT TIME.

SO, I THINK IT SPEAKS TO THAT HEARTY PIONEERING SPIRIT THAT THE MOUNTAIN TOWNS OF COLORADO CERTAINLY HAD, AND THIS BUILDING BEING RESTORED AND HAVING PEOPLE BE ABLE TO COME EXPERIENCE IT FIRSTHAND, WHETHER IT'S FOR A GATHERING OR SOME SORT OF PUBLIC ACTIVITY, IT REALLY BRINGS A LOT OF PEOPLE IN TO FEEL WHAT THE HISTORY OF A PLACE CAN BE AND HOW IT CAN EXTEND THROUGH TIME, AND THAT FABRIC CAN STILL BE PART OF MODERN DAY, EVEN THOUGH IT IS SO SYMBOLIC OF WHAT WAS HAPPENING BEFORE.

- A MEMENTO OF THE DAYS GONE BY, WHAT HAD BEEN A VERY PROMISING ERA IN GUNNISON COUNTRY HISTORY.

YOU LEARN FROM HISTORY, AND WE'RE ALL INTERCONNECTED, AREN'T WE?

DOESN'T MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE IF YOU'RE FROM DENVER, OR FROM STEAMBOAT SPRINGS, OR OURAY, OR MONTROSE, OR THE PARADOX VALLEY.

WHAT WE DO IMPACTS OTHER PEOPLE AND VICE VERSA.

WE'RE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER.

- IF WE ARE ABLE TO SAVE THE HARTMAN CASTLE AND BRING IT BACK TO LIFE, IT WILL BE THE MOST UNIQUE BUILDING OF ITS KIND.

NOTHING LIKE IT.

WHETHER YOU'RE TALKING UP VALLEY OR DOWN VALLEY, THERE'S NOTHING QUITE LIKE THE HARTMAN CASTLE AND THE GROUNDS THAT GO WITH IT.

AND WE'RE REALLY INTERESTED IN NOT JUST THE PRESERVATION PIECE OF IT.

AS IMPORTANT IS WHAT WE DO WITH IT AFTERWARDS.

OPEN IT UP TO THE COMMUNITY AS A MULTIFUNCTIONAL SPACE.

- TO PRESERVE HISTORY IS TO HELP US LEARN LESSONS.

IF THIS CASTLE WERE DESTROYED, IF WE WERE UNSUCCESSFUL IN OUR QUEST TO PURCHASE IT AND PRESERVE IT, I THINK THAT WE AS A COMMUNITY WOULD BE DEVASTATED TO LOSE YET ANOTHER ICONIC BUILDING.