The 1879 Avery House in Fort Collins

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328 W. Mountain Ave.
Fort Collins, CO 80521

Fort Collins has Franklin Avery to thank for the wide streets in Fort Collins; he took advantage of the open spaces when he surveyed the town in 1873. Avery later founded First National Bank and was instrumental in developing water projects that enabled agriculture to flourish in northern Colorado.

In 1879, he and his wife Sara built a family home on the corner of Mountain Avenue and Meldrum Street, now known as the Avery House, and raised their children, Edgar, Ethel, and Louise, there. The original two-story home consisted of two rooms on the first floor, now the entry area and dining room; three bedrooms upstairs; and a basement. Constructed of sandstone from local quarries, the house cost $3,000 when it was built. During the ensuing years, the Averys added to the house several times; the final addition included the distinctive Queen Anne tower.

Members of the Avery family lived in the house until 1962 when it was sold. Poudre Landmarks Foundation, Inc., was formed in 1972. The group worked with the City of Fort Collins to purchase the home in 1974 at a cost of $79,000. PLF then took responsibility to oversee restoration of the house. In 1981, Poudre Landmarks Foundation organized the Avery House Historic District Guild to assist with the project.

The Avery House, Margareth Merrill Memorial Gazebo, fountain, and carriage house are part of the Avery House Historic District listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Learn about select artifacts and pieces of art that are part of The Avery House collection here.

Historic Photos from the Archives at Fort Collins History Connection

Learn About the Avery House’s Historic Costume Collection

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Avery House Costume Collection
Avery House Costume Collection

Associate Professor of Costume Design Anne Medlock of West Texas A&M examines a piece from the historic costume collection at the Avery House

Creating Patterns from Historic Collections
Creating Patterns from Historic Collections

Associate Professor of Costume Design Anne Medlock visits the Avery House with a grant from the Center for the Study of the American West to study clothing pieces from the 1900’s in order to recreate patterns and costumes for the upcoming theater production A Flea in Her Ear at West Texas A&M showing February 8-17, 2018

“Typically, we would take the garment apart to figure out how it was made, and create a pattern out of it,” Medlock said. She can’t do that with these historical pieces -- instead, she is examining each piece and taking detailed notes, drawings and

“Typically, we would take the garment apart to figure out how it was made, and create a pattern out of it,” Medlock said. She can’t do that with these historical pieces -- instead, she is examining each piece and taking detailed notes, drawings and measurements.

Artifacts from the 1879 Avery House

Artifacts from the 1879 Avery House, Poudre Landmarks Foundation, Fort Collins CO

1879 Avery House Wedding Dress Collection

Exhibit and Narration by Tessa Beaty