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Gigi Yang <br />Louisville Historical Museum <br />Department of Cultural Services <br />City of Louisville, Colorado <br />July 2025 <br />Cityof <br />Louisville <br />COLORADO • SINCE 1878 <br />601 Pine St. History <br />Legal Description: LOTS 10-11 BLK 7 PLEASANT HILL <br />Year of Construction: c.1890-1916 <br />Summary: The history of 601 Pine exemplifies the early growth of Louisville as a working class, <br />immigrant community. The unusual construction of the house as a combination of three different mine <br />buildings as well as the handmade construction for the foundation and garage make this a unique <br />example of adaptive reuse, building relocation, and family history embedded in the building structure. <br />Development of the Pleasant Hill Subdivision <br />The subdivision in which this house is located, Pleasant Hill Addition, was platted in 1894. The <br />subdivision was developed in the name of Orrin Welch, the half-brother of Charles C. Welch. Charles <br />Welch was the person most responsible for the establishment of Louisville in 1878 after he established <br />the first coal mine in what would become Louisville in 1877. Orrin Welch is not known to have ever <br />lived in Colorado, and it is Charles C. Welch who is thought to have been the de facto developer. <br />Early Property Ownership — Max Ferguson and Ella Wood Ferguson, 1905-1929 <br />The earliest deed for Lots 10-11, Block 7 is from Orrin Welch to Max Ferguson in 1905. Max Ferguson <br />(1870-1918) was born in Scotland and came to the US as an infant with his parents, James R. Ferguson <br />and Jane Brown Ferguson. He was one of six siblings and the youngest son. The family first lived in <br />Illinois where James Ferguson and his oldest son Robert (at age 15) worked as coal miners. They had <br />moved to Louisville by 1884 to work in the mines. <br />As a young man in the 1890s, Max Ferguson was an active participant in Louisville activities. He is listed <br />in newspaper reports as playing center field on the Louisville baseball team, becoming a charter <br />member of the Knights of Pythias Calanthe Lodge in Louisville, and playing the bass and snare drums in <br />