What's in Alfred Wild's 1905 Cornerstone? Come to the Wild Lane Bed & Breakfast Inn October 9 to Find Out

Innkeepers Steven & Lanette Wild will open the 1905 cornerstone of their Wild Lane Bed & Breakfast Inn, 5445 Wild Lane in Loveland, on Sunday, October 9 at 1:00 p.m. to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the home's completion. Given the custom of putting artifacts and memorabilia into cornerstones, and the tendency of Alfred Wild, Steven's grandfather and the home's builder, towards grand, dramatic gestures, the Wilds are hopeful that they will find something of note stashed away behind the large sandstone panel.

Loveland, Colorado (PRWEB) October 3, 2005 -- Innkeepers Steven & Lanette Wild will open the 1905 cornerstone of their Wild Lane Bed & Breakfast Inn, 5445 Wild Lane in Loveland, on Sunday, October 9 at 1:00 p.m. to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the home's completion. Given the custom of putting artifacts and memorabilia into cornerstones, and the tendency of Alfred Wild, Steven's grandfather and the home's builder, towards grand, dramatic gestures, the Wilds are hopeful that they will find something of note stashed away behind the large sandstone panel.

In 1878, Alfred Wild set up a 640-acre homestead, Peep-O-Day Park, west of Loveland with his first wife. In 1905, Wild and his wife Anne moved in to their newly completed home, a grand 26-room, $40,000 mansion perched on a hill with views in all directions. Wild was responsible for developing the plaster industry in Colorado on the home site, planting 2,000 fruit trees over 32 acres, starting a brick manufacturing operation, and becoming the first person to grow hops commercially in Colorado, selling his crop to the P.H. Zang Brewing Company of Denver, Colorado's first brewery (http://www.americanbreweriana.org/history/zang.htm).

"My grandfather was a bit flamboyant," notes Innkeeper Steve Wild. "From the pictures in the family albums, you can see that he favored white Panama suits in warm weather, even when he was supervising operations at the plaster factory. When his first wife passed away, he married my grandmother, who was nearly 40 years his junior, and started a family."

After the cornerstone has been opened, and any contents that may be found are inspected, the Wilds will put a selection of items from the homestead's history, as well as some modern artifacts, into the stone and have it sealed again, to be re-opened in 2105.

Among the family heirlooms at the home is a 6- x 12-foot painting completed in 1907 by Charles Christian Eisele of the homestead and surrounding area. Eisele became well known as a traveling artist, and also did paintings for the cover of Harper's Bazaar magazine (www.harpersbazaar.com).

About the Wild Lane Bed & Breakfast
The Wild Lane Bed & Breakfast Inn is an elegant country mansion nestled in the foothills of northern Colorado. The landmark home, built in 1905 by Alfred Wild, sits atop a hill with spectacular views in all directions. Innkeepers Steven Wild and his wife Lanette have been hosting patrons at his grandfather's estate west of Loveland since 1993, serving overnight guests, corporate meetings and weddings. The home features five large bedrooms, each with a full private bath, along with three fireplaces, living and dining rooms, a parlor, library and spacious enclosed sun porch. Each room provides cozy comfort, with turn-of-the-century family heirlooms throughout. A full gourmet breakfast is served in either the dining room or sun porch. The extensively landscaped grounds are adjacent to the Devil's Backbone Open Space (http://www.co.larimer.co.us/parks/openlands/os_devils_backbone.htm), which features an eight-mile trail for hiking, biking or horseback riding. For more information, visit www.wildlane.com, or call (970) 669-0303.

Directions
The Wild Lane Bed & Breakfast Inn is located at 5445 Wild Lane, Loveland, Colorado, just west of town and just north of US Highway 34. Take I-25 to the US-34/Loveland exit and proceed west through Loveland and past the Wilson Avenue intersection (where there is a traffic light, K-Mart and Safeway on the right). Continue another 2.2 miles on US-34, then turn right onto Wild Lane. Go down the hill 1/4--mile and look for the sign.

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