Byers-Evans House Museum

Really fun to see the beautiful home and hear some history, but the tour guide that we had left something to be desired. I toured in the afternoon with a total of four guests and the guide was not particularly great at answering our questions nor in providing unsolicited and interesting stories resulting in a dry narration. The tour has potential with s more dynamic docent.

I came here on Night of the Museums and it was the attraction I enjoyed the most, despite the fact that they were only giving a short version of their regular tour. You could tell the staff really love their job. Our tour leader was great and she was extremely knowledgeable on the history of the house and did not mind answering any of our questions. Would definitely like to return and do the full tour someday.

This is another old house from a ¹⁹⁄₂₀^th century rich family showing their possessions and how they lived and well worth the price of admission for us hoi polloi to see. The guided tour provides a lot of household detail and of course gives a good sense of the local history. The owners of this house founded the Rocky Mountain Times and the tram system and one was a governor. The more recent decedent helped found and fund many of the arts in Denver, including the art museum and opera house. This house also has interesting paintings, pictures and items people used to amuse themselves before there was TV and other screens.

My mom and I visit historical homes (around New England before this) and this was possibly the best I’ve toured. It was fantastic to see so many original possessions from the family and to be able to walk around almost all of the rooms (no ropes!). The house is surprisingly large, so there’s quite a bit to see. They even have certain items that can be handled, to keep kids — and adults — engaged. It was interesting to learn about the families’ history and their renovations to the house over time. Since it was donated to the historical society after being owned by only two families, it is well preserved and really feels like a family home. You can get a real sense for the family members’ interests and lifestyle.
Highly recommended, if this is your kind of thing like it is mine!

Great tour and home with lots of original personal items and furniture found throughout. The tour lasts about an hour and cost only $ 6. Lots of information and history. Right across from the Denver Art Museum and within a block of Pints Pub!

I love me public museums and history!
We stumbled into this place last year during night of the museums, and finally made it back with MIL in tow!
It’s a really interesting story about Denver history, and how the house went straight from being owned by the Evan’s family to the historical society!
I’ts a 45 min tour with a 10 min intro. The docents are mostly all volunteers, they get to do their own research and give their own spin to the tour, which makes it different every time and interesting!
Close to the Denver Art Museum, Denver Public Library. Make a day of it and have brunch at Dozens!

This was a nice museum especially since most of the artifacts in the home are from the original owners. You usually find that museums of this kind use items in the home they believe to be in the home during that era, not necessarily the actual items. I thought that was really cool.
The tour guide was really nice and well informed. I did catch her off guard with a couple of questions that she didn’t know.
Overall, I learned a lot about Colorado history in the guided tour. One interesting thing is that The lady of the home was very much into Native American pottery/​weaved baskets (during a time when most during this time were not interested in NA’s let alone their art) and a good bit of her Native American collection is in the museum next door.
I won’t spoil it all for you. Go check it out for yourself!

The Byers-​Evans Museum is normally closed on A Sunday. But they offered free 3 room tours and delve into the history of the place and the owners and how long the family owned the place.
Its a 10k SQ Foot home who knew. I will be back to pay for the full tour. When Exiting the Gift Shop watch out for that First Step its a Doozy.

I did the restoration tour during Doors Open Denver. The museum workers are truly passionate about what they do and can go into great detail about anything in the house if you really want to know!
They’ve done a great job with the restoration and it definitely gives you a feel for how the house would have looked in the 20’s.
My favorite relic was the record player. It was before the flat records were invented, the music was actually on a cylindrical roll. The flat albums were easier to stack, so despite the better sound quality, the rolls were ousted. Very cool to look at though and see how it played!

My wife and I were docents at the BE House for 13 years, 1993 until we retired. It is the ultimate Denver family landmark, a «real» home full of family heirlooms, their own furniture, a treasure trove for the student of history, architecture, just a fun place to step back into the late 19^th and early 20^th century. Please vsit this jewel of a landmark, so adjacent to everything in the Golden Triangle, downtown Denver.

I love Denver history. As my new adopted home town I can’t get enough of it.
We did the tour on «night at the museum» so it was shortened, I can’t wait to go back and get the full tour.
So much awesome history in one building.
Go check it out.

Not long ago BF and I decided to play tourist in our own town. He’s native, but hadn’t been here. We live 4 blocks away and always meant to go and so glad we finally did.
This house is so full of Colorado and especially Denver history. It was kept in the Evans family for 90 years so it is in near perfect condition. Some years ago the family donated to Denver as a landmark/​museum for the rest of our enjoyment.
Byers started the Rocky Mountain news, which I’m still sad was lost. Evans was one of the first Governors, helped to found DU, and has his own road named after him. The chapel at DU was actually the Evans family chapel that was moved brick by brick to the campus. The house has fascinating architecture like The Stairway to Nowhere. I still try to figure out where this stairway was originally supposed to have gone or what the future plan might have been.
The tour guides are friendly and knowledgeable. There is a great little gift shop that has all sorts of fun Denver themed and other quirky gifts you can buy. I know throughout the year they have different dinners and other events for everyone to attend. I would completely recommend anyone who wants to know more about our fabulous city to at least visit the Byers-​Evans Museum once in their lifetime here.
Side note: If you get a jury summons then all of the Denver Museums are free for the rest of that day. This is just a short walk from the courthouse, so an ideal little reward for having to fulfill your civil duty.

I took a day off to play tourist in my town a few weeks ago. One of the places I was able to visit was the Byers-​Evans House Museum. It’s funny, because this place is so near the Denver Art Museum and I’ve passed it several times trying to figure out what it is. When I took the day off, I decided to visit the Molly Brown House and discovered this lovely house was in fact a museum and I stopped in to check it out as well. There are tours on the hour. When I arrived, I was the only person there, so I got have my own private tour with the docent.
There is a photo gallery that is free to the public and the tour is a small fee, $ 6 to view the house. Having a private tour is awesome, it is also pretty intense. I was really amazed at how large the house was. Lots of wings added on. The history of the former occupants was quite interesting, especially learning about some of Colorado’s historical families. Being a non-​native, it’s pretty cool to learn a bit of Colorado’s history and learning the significance of the Evans family.
I’m glad that I got a chance to visit this museum and learn more about both families influence on Colorado history.

This is one of the coolest historic homes to tour and they host great art shows for free in the front lobby.

Let’s just say that I was unprepared for the enormity of this house. It goes on and on and on. While I liked the tour it was hard to remember all the facts about everyone who had lived in the house which came in rapid fire pace from the tour guide. I felt like I was cramming for a pop quiz. However, just admiring the house and the original furnishings was fun and the tour gives a great historical overview of what life was like for the upper class in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s in Denver.

They’ve added a gallery in the back, and the events and exhibits connected with this gallery are very much worth your time.
The Mile High Underground exhibit is there now and will be there through July 31. Check with the museum about performances related to this exhibit, and about future exhibits.
I haven’t been on the tour, but will hopefully get a chance to do that when I go there for the Stan Brakhage (rare footage) films next month.

This is what a good historic house should be. It had engaging docents, a tour at the right pace (and with the right amount of information), and a house and furnishings worth touring. I asked a few odd/​obscure questions that I was curious about, and the docents handled my questions like a champ. Impressive! I walked away with a new respect for historic houses and all sorts of interesting facts and pieces of history floating in my head.
Best of all, it’s right by DAM, so if you’re as skeptical of historic houses as I was, it’s not too far out of your way to give it a try.

This is a fun, slightly offbeat historic home tour that I couldn’t pass up. Full of intrigue, the dramatic history equals the beauty of the home and the loving restoration that must have gone into it. Cheap as can be, you can fill your trivia bank with local factoids, be philanthropic and still get home in time to get a nap in.
The gift shop is also pretty cool. I found a big old-​school wooden robot nutcracker that is one of the stars of my weird little robot knick-​knack collection.

I’ve always thought this place looked haunted and turns out it is! I went on the downstairs home tour (upstairs is only available for tour during the day) during Free Museum Night on Friday. There have been many «sitings» here; it is an alleged paranormal hot spot. Creeeepy, but so cool!
The tour is really fascinating… at many times, I felt like I was at the Haunted Mansion at Disneyland. .except this is real. Home décor is representative of how the house would have appeared between approx 1918 and 1924. The Byers sounded relatively normal but the Evans were def. a bit freakish. They never upgraded from a coal burning oven — and people were living there until 1981! They were a bit obsessed with coal actually — when the art museum was undergoing construction, they agreed to share the alley if the Museum housed a coal room for the family… weird.
They also were the last family to receive ice deliveries in Denver. they used an icebox and not a refrigerator well into the 1950s. Very slow adapters to technology.
The dining room includes all of the family’s cherished china, silver and crystal… nothing but the finest.
So much more to learn on this tour and all so interesting. I’ll be going back for the full tour and there are special Halloween events that I am totally on board with.

A fascinating house with amazing ties to local history is open to you for just $ 5!
The name Byers-​Evans comes from the only two families to ever own and inhabit the house in the hundred years from the time it was built until it was given to the Colorado Historical society in the 1980s.
Built in 1883 for William Byers, the editor of Denver’s first newspaper, the Rocky Mountain News. In 1889, he sold the house to the son of John Evans (the second governor of the Colorado territory), William Evans, who was president of the Denver Tramway Company. The Evans family added onto the house 5 times, most significantly in 1900.
Anyway, the fascinating thing is that Margaret Evans donated the house and all the belongings! So, unlike the Molly Brown house, which has had to be recreated, this house was simply restored to look as it did between 1912 and 1924, and it is filled with the family’s actual belongings. There is actually ORIGINAL 1912 wallpaper in the music room. Beautiful original English tile in the parlor fireplace. Amazing, fun stuff, really!
Another note: this house, although sprawling, was not a mansion, but an upper-​middle class home, and the docents make you feel as if you knew the inhabitants personally.
The gift shop is very small, and the highlight there is the art pottery, made in Colorado Springs by Van Briggle, that are reproductions of items in the house which were featured on Antiques Roadshow.