Flagler Hospital Museum & Hal Borland Room
Flagler, Colorado
The Municipal Building at 311 Main Avenue in Flagler, Colorado, is truly a sum of all its parts. It is a stately structure, housing the town government offices and the public library.
But its history as a hotel and then hospital appeals to tourists, who visit all year ‘round.
Flagler Hospital Museum & Hal Borland Room
311 Main Avenue, Flagler, CO 80815
Open year-round Monday-Friday 8AM-4PM 719-765-4571
The Hotel
Built in 1909 by early Flagler developers W. H. Lavington and W. L. Price, the structure became the Hotel Flagler. The hotel was owned and managed by Henry C. Blanken, and served Rock Island Railroad travelers, Flagler rural residents who came to town on business, and others for two decades. It is remembered with a replica of a hotel room at the head of the stairs in the building’s second story.
The Hospital
In the fall of 1937, Dr. W. L. McBride of Seibert, Colorado, opened the remodeled hotel as the Flagler Hospital. When the nine-bed hospital was opened, it was considered to be the best-equipped hospital between Colby, Kansas and Denver. The story of the Flagler Hospital can’t be told without telling the story of Dr. McBride. He was able to bring the latest methods and procedures to his rural general practice, serving three generations of local families. The hospital’s operating team comprised a number of McBride relatives, and this family team is believed to be quite unique in medical history.
For more than 25 years, this private hospital performed a most important and unique service for the area. It closed in 1963 and is remembered today with medical memorabilia and interpretive signs in rooms on the building’s second floor. The life of Dr. McBride is also commemorated there.
The Hal Borland Room
It’s been said that a great man remembers his roots after he finds success. Hal Borland, noted author and columnist, did just that when he wrote County Editor’s Boy, a book about his high school years in Flagler. The town of Flagler established a memorial “Hal Borland Room” in the Flagler Public Library after Borland’s death in 1978.
The room contains significant photographs, books, articles, letters, and awards. In keeping with Borland’s modest manner and his widow’s request, this special room may be viewed by appointment only.