Penrose House is more than a conference center. It is a place where history lives and breathes through its architecture, landscapes, collections, and the stories of the family who once lived here. This year, that history deepened in an extraordinary way. We are honored to announce the arrival of the personal book collection of Richard Alexander Fullerton Penrose Jr., an older brother of Spencer Penrose, one of El Pomar Foundation’s founders.
Who was Richard?
Richard was a renowned geologist and obtained his Ph.D. from Harvard in 1885. He was an influential figure in the development of the Cripple Creek mining district. As part of the team that conducted the first geological surveys around the town, he predicted that the ore veins ran deep into the mountain. This revelation helped launch Spencer’s mining success. Throughout their lives, Richard remained a trusted adviser and business partner to Spencer.
[The Penrose brothers and their father, ca. 1882. Left to right: Boies, Spencer, Philip, Richard Sr., Charles, and Richard Jr.]
How did Richard’s books come to El Pomar?
After Richard’s death in 1931, he bequeathed his fortune to two institutions he cared about deeply: The Geological Society of America (GSA) and the American Philosophical Society. To GSA he also bequeathed his personal archives, books, and office furniture. In 2025, as GSA prepared to move from its long-term headquarters in Boulder and scale down its physical collections, they reached out to El Pomar Foundation about acquiring Richard’s collection. We were thrilled to say yes.
Thus began a project that was a year in the making. From January 2025 to January 2026, our collections team traveled back and forth to Boulder to prepare the collection for its arrival to its new home. The archives and nearly 1,000 books had to be inventoried, measured, and photographed to ensure they would fit comfortably in the library at Penrose House.
[Here, our Chief Investment Officer (and great grandson of Spencer Penrose’s business partner, Charles L. Tutt), R. Thayer Tutt Jr., examines one of the books on our initial scouting trip to GSA headquarters.]
What’s inside the collection?
Richard’s archives hold personal letters exchanged between him and Spencer, business correspondence, and journals filled with field notes from his many travels and geological surveys. His library reflects a life of curiosity and discovery. The collection includes formative works on geology, mining, world history, and exploration, subjects which reflect the brothers’ shared interests and experiences. It also features books connected to the Penrose family history, the brothers’ Harvard years, and works written or published by various members of the Penrose family.
Many of the books in Richard’s collection are rare and early editions, some dating back to the 1700s, and contain annotations by previous owners or notes written by the author to Richard. One of my favorite discoveries was a little doodle dating back to around 1855 that captures the timeless playfulness of human nature.
[Doodle on the inside cover of “Exploration of the Red River of Louisiana” by Randolph Marcy, published in 1854.]
A new chapter.
Bringing this collection into Penrose House is more than an acquisition, it’s a reconnection. These books belonged to a man whose scientific insight shaped the fortunes that would later benefit communities across Colorado. Now, preserved and accessible, they continue to tell his story, deepen our understanding of the Penrose family, and inspire those who walk our halls.
[A portion of the books on display in their new home in the library at Penrose House.]
