Page 12
Sunnycrest, the Story of the Cheyenne Cañon Inn

THE KIDNAPPING: 1950's

A kidnapping may have taken place at Sunnycrest sometime in the 1950's.
Exact details of what happened are unclear because the case was kept quiet and
the police records are closed.

The most accurate testimony about the event claims that gangsters kidnapped a
young who was hiding out at Sunnycrest and abducted him to Minnesota for safe
keeping. Apparently, the victim owed the gang money. In order to collect the
hoodlums contacted the young man's father, a well known Colorado Springs car
dealer, and demanded a $2S0,OOO ransom for his son's release. The father
agreed to the terms, procured the money, and traveled to Minnesota where he
paid the ransom and collected his son.

QUIET YEARS FOR SUNNYCREST: 1961-1993

Even though a hushed up kidnapping with a happy ending is exciting stuff, life at
Sunnycrest was generally routine and quiet. Grace continued renting out rooms.
Some of the more glamorous boarders were young ice skaters, Olympic hopefuls
training at the Broadmoor Ice Arena. These athletes were some of the last
people she rented rooms to. Both Grace and Brinksy were getting older. It was
time to consider selling Sunnycrest.

Exactly when and to whom Grace sold Sunnycrest is a little fuzzy. Public records
show that Annabel Spangler bought the property in 1961, but John Starr's
research indicates that there may have been another sale in between,
Regardless of this anomaly, the sale brought an end to the long ownership
tenure started by Lillian and Grace fifty-six years earlier. These two women took
unusual chances to make Sunnycrest more than a mere home and business.
They made it a lasting part of Colorado Springs history .When Grace and
Brinksy left, Sunnycrest was still a grand house. It had been well cared for on
the inside, and the outside grounds were dutifully tended.

Upkeep was apparently not a priority in the Spangler family. Annabel purchased
Sunnycrest to be used as a house for her husband and herself, and their two
children. Neighbors that were interviewed by John Starr in the early 1990's said
the house changed dramatically while the Spanglers lived there. Outside, the
Dixieland Casino signs and awnings that Grace and Brinksy left were removed,
and the beautiful gardens and landscaping were neglected. Retaining walls
began to crumble and the flowerbeds turned into weed patches. This is also
when Oak Way was blocked off as an access.

Shocking changes also occurred in the inside of the house. The Spanglers
owned a drapery and carpet business, but they had a different idea about how to

Page 12

read more

got to page: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16