RUSSELL GULCH — Gilpin County commissioners met with the Historic Preservation Commission (HPC), residents, and landowners on September 15, 2026, for a tour of Russell Gulch.

The HPC joined the commissioners for the tour. The Commission works with the County to identify and preserve historic buildings, sites, and other pieces of Gilpin County’s past. 

The County is now taking an early look at Russell Gulch and what it would take to create a local historic district. There is a County process for creating one, but it has never been exercised, although there are locally designated historic landmarks. And Nevadaville is within the Central City-Black Hawk National Historic Landmark District, which is a federal designation rather than a county-created historic district.

Commissioners and Historic Preservation Commission members tour the historic “murder house” in Russell Gulch.

Photo by Mindy Leary

The group walked through old buildings, stopped at historic homes, and looked at some of what remains from the mining town's early days.

There is already one landmark: the Odd Fellows building at 95 Russell Gulch Road, just outside Central City. The commissioners toured the building.

For now, they are exploring the idea. No decisions were made during the work session.

“This is extremely, extremely early. This is the first step,” County Planner Jack Zeman said.

But what would a historic district mean for the people who live there?

Historic buildings and homes are scattered throughout Russell Gulch.

Photo by Mindy Leary

The Mountain-Ear asked whether it could affect what residents would be allowed to build or change on their property, and whether historic designation could help with grant money for renovations.

Commissioner Sandy Hollingsworth also expressed those concerns at the work session earlier that day.

Zeman said those details haven't been worked out.

“It’s just figuring out if a historic district is viable, and then once that decision is made, we’ll go through, talk with HPC, and then decide the nitty-gritty, if there’s any sort of design regulations. Maybe, maybe not,” he said.

There could be benefits. The group talked about grants, tax credits, help with renovations, and the possibility of drawing more attention to Russell Gulch and its history. Property owners would be included in the conversation along the way.

The first stop was the old Odd Fellows building, owned by Ed and Ann DeCicco.

According to History Colorado, the Russell Gulch Independent Order of Odd Fellows Hall #41, built in 1895, served for 50 years as a gathering place where miners and lodge members could socialize, hold community meetings, and receive help from fellow members during times of need. But it has served in other roles.

Ed DeCicco bought the building in September 1973. The Odd Fellows once met upstairs. Downstairs was a store and the Russell Gulch post office, which closed in 1941.

The building was a mess when he got it.

“When I bought it, it was if you stepped on the floor, or on the roof in that corner of the building, you’d hit the ground,” DeCicco said. “Wet, vandalized, a total mess.”

He has spent years working on it.

The stone walls are about two feet thick. Old writing is still visible on some of the brick, and pieces of Russell Gulch history fill the rooms. Tools, knick-knacks, postal memorabilia, and old bottles line the shelves. DeCicco loves collecting old things, especially those from this area.

He restored the storefront closer to its original look.

Original wood siding dating to the 1860s remains on the “murder house,” one of the historic properties toured in Russell Gulch.

Photo by Mindy Leary

The building was added to the Gilpin County Historic Register in 2011 and later to the National Register of Historic Places.

Old records tell another part of the story. Zeman pointed out how many women were listed as landowners in Russell Gulch. The group discussed women who owned property and businesses there at a time when that was much less common.

That is one piece of Russell Gulch history the County wants to know more about.

From the Odd Fellows building, the tour moved down the road, walking to the property known around Russell Gulch as the “murder house.” The current owners, Brian O’Donnell and his wife, bought the place in 2013 and have worked on restoring it ever since. The murder house is now used as O'Donnell's art studio.

A surprising amount of the original house remains. The group examined original woodwork dating to the 1860s and discussed the simple frontier-style construction. The house was built a long time ago, but much of that original work is still there.

The house earned its grim nickname from a murder that was committed there more than a century ago. 

According to the history revealed during the tour, a mine foreman who lived in the house came home drunk and killed his family. Their bodies remained inside for about a month while he went on a binge and returned to the property to remove furniture and other belongings. 

The local sheriff became suspicious, and the man was eventually arrested in Denver, taken to Cañon City, and hanged. The murder weapon, described as a small handgun, was reportedly recovered and kept in Gilpin County.

An early historic survey identified the building as one of three properties in the area that could potentially qualify for local, state, and national historic recognition.

As everyone walked through Russell Gulch, they stopped here and there to look at other houses, old foundations, and pieces of buildings that once made up the town.

They also looked at where the Gilpin Tram once ran. The narrow-gauge railroad made its way through the steep gulch using switchbacks. Some signs of the old route can still be seen.

There is a lot more to determine before Russell Gulch can become a historic district, and what that would mean for the people who own property there.

For now, Zeman said, they are “laying the groundwork for potential historic districts in the future.”

“This is like the first step,” he said.