The Hannah Barker House Rehabilitation
We Need Your Help!
This summer, we are partnering with HistoriCorps to rebuild the porch.
We need volunteers for three sessions in June:
14th-16th, 20th-23rd, and 27th-30th.
We know--we're excited too!
Not only will you help us move forward with this
rehabilitation project, but we also get to work beside
you and other members of our community.
You'll learn new skills, meet new friends (or
reconnect with old ones), and make a difference
in this city we all love.
To register, contact HistoriCorps' Amy Eller:
See you in June!
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Illustration by Tom Lyon, Wolff Lyon Architects
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The Hannah Barker House and a 7,656 square-foot lot was donated to Historic Boulder, Inc. on December 30, 2010. Historic Boulder intends to stabilize and rehabilitate the house. In order to take advantage of various grants and funding sources and for Historic Boulder to monitor and evaluate its next steps in stages, the project will likely be completed in five phases.
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Phase 1 – Emergency Protection – COMPLETED 2011
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Phase 2 – Foundation and Masonry Stabilization – COMPLETED 2012
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Phase 3A – Front Porch Restoration
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Phase 3B -- Roof, Interiors, and Chimneys, Cupola Reconstruction
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Phase 4 – Exterior Rehabilitation and Landscaping
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Phase 5 – MEP, Interior Finishes, and Site Rehabilitation
Donate or get involved
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The Woman of the House
The Hannah Barker House is significant for its association with one of Colorado's most prominent pioneer women, Hannah Connell Barker.
Born in Ireland, young Hannah Connell traveled West with the Davidson family, for whom Davidson Mesa was named. She lived first in Ward, then moved to Boulder where she was one of the city's first female teachers.
She married Ezra Barker and became a civic leader, philanthropist and businesswoman. Her life illiustrates some of the many roles women played in settling the West even as their contributions were often unacknowledged and lost to the historical record.
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A House with a History
The Hannah Barker House is located at 800 Arapahoe Ave. (originally 743 Valley Road) and is one of the oldest buildings in Boulder. The oldest portion of the existing house was built in 1875 by Caleb S. and Carrie A. Stowell and has slowly been modified over time.
Early additions to the house were built in the Italianate style, with a small front porch, a one-story bay window, five chimneys and a distinctive cupola. The Boulder County News reported in 1875 that “the building will be an ornament to any street and add another to the beautiful homes building in that desirable part of town.”
Hannah Connell Barker and her husband Ezra K. Barker purchased the house in 1877.
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1890 1900
 
Carnegie Branch Library for Local History Carnegie Branch Library for Local History
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Later additions included a prominent wraparound front porch with distinctive decorative brickwork and railings, and decorative brackets on the second story cornice of the house. The grounds featured an attractive and distinctive iron fence. Ezra died in 1883 and Hannah inherited Ezra’s landholdings and wealth. For more than 40 years, the house was the home of Hannah Barker, one of the most significant pioneer women in Boulder. |
1949 2010
 
Carnegie Branch Library for Local History Photo by Tom Lyon, Wolff Lyon Architects
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In later years, the house was converted into an apartment building, but it has been vacant and boarded up for almost two decades. Although the eight-room, 2,300-square-foot interior is deteriorated, it retains most of the historic wood trim and flooring, as well as two elaborate fireplaces. The property is prominently located on Arapahoe Avenue and has its original wrought-iron fence. |
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