Collection NumberMSS 0528DescriptionGertrude Schellmann was born in Prairie City, Missouri on September 20, 1885. Due to her mother's poor health, the Schellmann family moved to Colorado Springs when Gertrude was fifteen. Gertrude's mother passed away not long after their arrival and Mr. Schellmann decided to return to Missouri. Having found work waiting tables, Gertrude decided to remain in Colorado Springs on her own. Sometime after 1901 Gertrude Schellmann began working at the newly opened Nordrach Ranch Sanatorium in an area called Austin's Bluffs, now known as Palmer Park. Housed in the mansion built for prominent banker William A. Otis, Nordrach Ranch stressed open air living and disciplined gluttony as a curative for patients suffering from tuberculosis. Gardiner Tents were erected across the property in which patients lived year round, regardless of the weather or seasons. Nordrach Ranch was Colorado's first open air sanatorium. Following a devastating fire which leveled the main building of the sanatorium in 1907, Gertrude Schellmann went to work at Glockner Tuberculosis Sanatorium. There she trained to be a nurse and graduated in 1911. Schellmann eventually married Bill Tyler and the couple settled in Denver. The remarkable photos in this collection come from the personal album of Gertrude Schellmann, primarily taken during her employment at Nordrach Ranch Sanatorium. They offer a rare glimpse into the lighter side of life at a tuberculosis treatment center as seen through the antics of young Gertrude Schellmann and her friends
