The Arnett-Fullen house is a fanciful combination of Gothic Revival and Vernacular Masonry elements. Designed by architect George King for Willamette Arnett, the house was constructed of local brick (now painted) on a stone foundation and features a French mansard tower with wrought iron cresting. The steeply pitched gables with scrolled bargeboards are Carpenter Gothic details, which give the dwelling its nickname, "The Gingerbread House." An additional $1,500 was spent to ship the ornate, wrought-iron fence by rail from Pittsburgh and then by oxcart from Omaha. Born in Illinois in 1848, Willamette Arnett was the son of Anthony Arnett (1819-1903), an early pioneer who immigrated to the United States from France in 1828. The family followed the gold rush to Boulder in 1859, where the senior Arnett prospered through real estate, mining investments, and the operation of a freight line. He is best known for being one of three local men who donated land for the University of Colorado. Of nine children, Willamette was one of only four who survived to adulthood. It is said that father and son were as different as night and day. Sometimes described as ostentatious, Willamette was rumored to have worn a coat with ten-dollar gold pieces for buttons and occasionally a sock on the outside of one shoe. Unfortunately, he also lacked his father's business sense, resulting in the incursion of many debts, believed to have been paid off by his mother. Willamette married twice and had two children. Lured to the Klondike during that gold rush, he died in Alaska in 1901. The Arnett house was purchased by Eliza Jane Fullen, the widow of Hiram Fullen, in 1914. Mr. Fullen (1845-1900) was one of Boulder County's first miners who discovered several mines, including the Magnolia and American mines. The latter turned out to be one of the county's richest mines. The Fullens had three sons, one of whom moved into the house in 1965 after it had been used as a rental property for Many years The building was renovated (retaining many of the original features), individually landmarked in 1990, and purchased at a public auction in 1993 by Historic Boulder. A new coat of paint was added in summer, 2000 and maintenance and planning on the adjacent Victorian Gardens continues.