Dubuque · Cathedral District
The Redstone Inn
Wagon maker Augustine A. Cooper's red brick and sandstone duplex by Thomas Carkeek, its family side more ornate than its tenant side.
- Built
- c. 1895Built as a 27-room duplex mansion. The 1976 nomination gave 1888; a later correction letter in the NRHP file cites the Dubuque Herald of January 1, 1895 and says 1895 is the correct year. Inn listings say 1894.
- Style
- Richardsonian Romanesque
- Architect
- Thomas Carkeek
- Type
- Inn
- Area
- Cathedral District
- Credentials
- Listed on the National Register of Historic Places; Inside a National Register historic district
The story
Redstone is one of three large homes that Augustine A. Cooper, whose fortune came from the Cooper Wagon and Buggy Works, built in Dubuque for himself and his two daughters. It was built as a duplex with 27 rooms, the family side more ornate than the tenant side. Thomas Carkeek designed the 2½-story red brick house with red sandstone trim in the Richardsonian Romanesque style. The mansion has since been converted into an inn.
The ghost story
Lore holds that Augustine A. Cooper, the wagon-works owner who built the house, still lingers: Bob Vila's 2023 roundup of haunted hotels says Cooper still makes his presence felt at the 12-room inn as a gentlemanly apparition whose soft footsteps are heard throughout the property.
Source: www.bobvila.com
Good to know
- Address: 504 Bluff Street, Dubuque, IA 52001
Sources (2)
Last verified October 2026. Details change; confirm with the inn before you book.