Est. 1912 · 1912 Arts and Crafts Commercial Architecture · Roland Boutwell Copper-Work Showroom · 1988 Discovery of Hidden Attic Room · Continuous Restaurant Operation
The building at 404 El Paso Blvd in Manitou Springs was constructed in 1912 by Roland Boutwell, an English craftsman who had established himself in the Pikes Peak region. Boutwell built the structure as a working showroom for his copper-work business—a space where prospective clients could view finished metalwork in an architecturally appropriate setting. The Arts and Crafts movement, then at its peak in the United States, emphasized handwork, natural materials, and regional craft traditions, and the building reflects those values in its design.
Boutwell also built the adjacent structure at 336 El Paso Blvd—now known as the Onaledge Bed and Breakfast—during the same period, giving the two buildings a shared provenance that local history accounts frequently link.
The copper-work business eventually gave way to restaurant use, a transition that preserved the building's architectural character while converting its commercial function. Craftwood Inn became established as an upscale dining destination, developing a reputation for Colorado game dishes—elk, bison, wild boar—served in a setting that emphasizes the regional craft tradition of the original structure.
During 1988 renovations, workers discovered an attic space that had been sealed and apparently overlooked, or deliberately concealed, for an indeterminate period. The discovery of a hidden room in a building of this age and character was notable in itself; it also became the anchor point for the building's paranormal narrative.
Sources
- https://craftwood.com/history-1
- http://www.hauntedcolorado.net/ManitouSprings.html
Sensed presencePhysical sensation (goosebumps)Unexplained phone line activity
The 1988 discovery of a sealed attic room during renovation work at Craftwood Inn introduced the building's paranormal dimension. Workers who entered the newly opened space described an immediate sense of presence—intense enough to cause physical discomfort—that distinguished the attic from the rest of the building. Staff accounts characterize the entity as pioneer-era in character without identifying a specific historical individual.
The phenomena most consistently reported involve physical sensation and technology interference: guests and staff experience unexplained goosebumps in proximity to certain areas of the building, and the restaurant's phone lines have reportedly experienced unexplained activity attributed, informally, to the attic presence. These are quiet manifestations—nothing theatrical, no apparitions reported in the dining rooms—which may partly account for the restaurant's continued operation as a mainstream fine-dining destination rather than a haunted attraction.
Roland Boutwell's construction of both Craftwood Inn and the adjacent Onaledge property in 1912 has led some to speculate about a shared paranormal geography between the two buildings, though the phenomena at each site have distinct characters: the Craftwood reports center on the attic and physical sensation, while Onaledge generates a more complex ensemble of visual apparitions.
The building's status as a working restaurant means that most paranormal contact is incidental—diners and staff experiencing the attic's influence without having sought it.
Notable Entities
Unidentified pioneer-era spirit
