Mother Cabrini Shrine Wedding

Golden, Colorado

Stephanie + David

For Stephanie and David it felt perfect for them to hold their Colorado mountain wedding close to denver at the Mother Cabrini Shrine in Golden CO followed by a reception at the Crystal Rose on Lookout mountain. Stephanie and David are such a sweet couple. It's always a great reminder of why I photograph weddings when I can see such great care, love, and adoration they have for each other.

The chapel and the site itself has an interesting history. Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini found the property, which had two barns and a springhouse but no reliable source of water, on the side of Lookout Mountain in 1902. She negotiated the purchase of the property in 1910 to use as a summer camp for Queen of Heaven Orphanage. A small farming operation was established and operated by Sisters of the Sacred Heart and during the summer, the camp saw groups of girls from the orphanage to enjoy the outdoors and perform farm chores.

Water was hauled up to the camp from the stream in Mount Vernon Canyon until 1912, when Mother Cabrini discovered a spring on the property. A replica of the grotto of Lourdes was built over the spring in 1929, then demolished and replaced by the current sandstone grotto in 1959. The Stone House, designed as a dormitory for the summer camp, began construction in 1912 and was completed in 1914.

Today, the convent contains a chapel, meeting rooms, a gift shop, housing for the resident Sisters, and overnight accommodations for visitors.

After talking with the owner of the Crystal Rose I also got to learn a bit more about it as well. It was originally built in the early 1900s and served as a post for the Pony Express and as time went on several additions were made and you can see this different construction styles and techniques. Later, in the late 1960s-1970s it was a country bar that mainly catered to the biker crowd and I got to hear of some insane fights and crazy people. Great dinner conversation. I believe its been a wedding venue since the 1990s. The food was great and I always love hearing about history, expecially local history.