2637 W 26th Ave
Denver, CO, USA

National Register of Historic Places - William J. Dunwoody House (LaLoma Restaurant)

Statement of Significant:

The William J. Dunwoody Home is significant for its architectural distinction; for the high quality of its craftsmanship; and for its association with William J. Dunwoody, an important businessman whose work contributed to the industrial development of the region.
The Dunwoody Home is situated in an area of Denver known as Highlands. Originally, the Town of Highland was platted across the South Platte River from Denver, and was intended by its developers to be an elite residential suburb to which men who earned their living in the Mile-High City would return in the evening to enjoy the cooler air, fine homes, good schools, and high morals at a time when Denver was known for gambling, prostitution, and other unsavory practices. The hopes of the developers were short-lived, however, for Highland was annexed to Denver at an early date and was thenceforth known simply as Highlands.

The house is most notable for its association with William J. Dunwoody, its builder and first resident. Dunwoody was born in 1858 in Poughkeepsie, New York, where his family had been in the soap manufacturing business for some time. Dunwoody entered the business himself at an early age, but his health failed, he contracted tuberculosis, and in 1883 at the age of twenty-five he came to Colorado to recover. His health improved somewhat, and in 1884 he was able to return to New York, marry, and return to Colorado with his bride. At first, he worked for the Geyserite Soap Company, but in 1887 his brother, Foster Dunwoody, came west and the two established the Dunwoody Soap Company, which opened a plant on Nineteenth Street near the South Platte River. The enterprise prospered. Its major product, called Water White Soap, was sold as soap flakes "from the Missouri River to the Pacific Coast and from Montana to Texas" according to one source. The American Journal of Health once lauded it as a fine, pure, high-quality soap. Despite the company's success, Dunwoody's health did not prosper. Even with the tonic effect of the clean, dry, high-altitude air, he could not shake off the effects of consumption. He hung on, making winter trips to southern California, but on one such trip in 1901 he died at Banning, California. Eventually, Foster Dunwoody sold the enterprise to Proctor and Gambel.
Dunwoody built the house a few years after his marriage. He bought the land in 1887, had to build up his savings account in order to get a loan, and could not complete the structure until 1889. He lived there until his death, and his descendants continued to live there until 1960 when they sold the property to one Joseph Drobnick, who in turn sold the house to the present owners in 1974. By this time the structure had become quite run down, but the new owners took great pride in the artistic quality of the house and restored it with sensitivity in order to draw attention to the original lines, colors, and detailing. The exterior reflects the 19th century heritage while the interior has been remodeled in such a way as to preserve the fine woodwork and still operate what has become known as one of Denver's finest restaurants--La Loma.