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Callahan House
312 Terry Street
Landmark Designation: 1973
National Register: 1985
Construction Date: 1892
Architectural Style: Queen Anne
The Callahan House, constructed in 1892, is a large two and one-half story Queen Anne style residence. The house is highly animated with steep pitched gable bays, porches, a porte cochere and a tower porch. It sits at the north end of a large landscaped corner site fenced on two sides by a low wrought iron fence set in a concrete base.
Thomas M. Callahan purchased the house from the original owner, James K. Sweeny in 1897, who moved to Pueblo to return to the milling business. During his years in Longmont, Mr. Sweeny was manager of the Longmont Flour Mill as well as a banker for Farmers National Bank of Longmont.
Soon after Callahan bought the house, he began to make improvements. He added hot water heat and a four-room, two-story addition on the south rear of the house. In 1904, the large, wrap-around front porch and porte cochere were built and in 1908 the property was increased in size by the purchase of additional land to the south and the expanded grounds were landscape in an "Italian" garden theme.
Thomas M. Callahan was a prominent Longmont retail merchant and founder of the Golden Rule Stores. Mr. Callahan along with his business partner, Guy Johnson, expanded to a seven-state area through franchised partnerships. One of Mr. Callahan's employees, J.C. Penney, went on to national fame. Penney worked with Callahan from 1899 to 1907. In 1907, Penney bought out Johnson and Callahan's interest in the Wyoming stores and established J.C. Penney Company.
During his years in Longmont, Callahan was very active in local civic affairs and franternal organizations. He served as an officer and/or director of several local banks and was involved in the formation of the Arbuckle Ditch Company.
In 1938, Mr. Callahan and his wife moved to Nevada, at which time they donated their house to the City of Longmont for exclusive use by women's groups and clubs for meetings and special events.
Today, the Callahan House is used for various events, from business meetings to wedding receptions. If you would like more information on the facility, please visit our Callahan House website.
Reference
HPC 1973-1