<P> In 1903, Freelan Oscar Stanley was stricken with a life - threatening resurgence of tuberculosis . The most highly recommended treatment of the day was fresh, dry air with lots of sunlight and a hearty diet . Therefore, like many "lungers" of his day, Stanley resolved to take the curative air of Rocky Mountain Colorado . He and Flora arrived in Denver in March and, in June, decided to spend the rest of the summer in the mountains, in Estes Park . Over the course of the season, Stanley's health improved dramatically . Impressed by the beauty of the valley and grateful for his recovery, he decided to return every year . He lived to the ripe age of 91, dying of a heart attack in Newton, Massachusetts, one year after his wife, in 1940 . </P> <P> By 1907, Stanley had all but recovered and he returned to Newton for the winter rather than Denver . However, not content with the rustic accommodations, lazy pastimes and relaxed social scene of their new summer home, Stanley resolved to turn Estes Park into a resort town . In 1907, construction began on the Hotel Stanley, a 48 - room grand hotel that catered to the class of wealthy urbanites who composed the Stanleys' social circle in Newton . </P> <P> The land was acquired officially in 1908 through the representatives of the 4th Earl of Dunraven, an Anglo - Irish peer . Lord Dunraven first came to the area in 1872 while on a hunting trip with guide Texas Jack Omohundro . By stretching the provisions of the Homestead Act and pre-emption rights, Dunraven claimed 15,000 acres (61 km) of the Estes Valley in an unsuccessful attempt to create a private hunting preserve, making him one of the largest foreign holders of American lands . Unpopular with the local ranchers and farmers, Dunraven left the area in 1884 relegating the ranch to the management of his employee, Theodore Whyte . Dunraven's presence in Colorado had become so well known in the United States that his situation was parodied in Charles King's novel Dunraven Ranch (1892) as well as James A. Michener's Centennial (1974). His reputation was such that, when Stanley suggested "The Dunraven" as a name for his new hotel, 180 people signed a buckskin petition requesting that he name it for himself instead . </P> <P> The structure was completed in 1909 and featured a hydraulic elevator, dual electric and gas lighting, running water, a telephone in every guest room and a fleet of specially - designed Stanley "Model Z" Mountain Wagons to bring guests from the train depot twenty miles away; all of this at a time when Estes Park was little more than a locale for hunters and naturalists . The hotel was not equipped with heat until 1983 and closed for the winter every year . The presence of the hotel and Stanley's own involvement greatly contributed to the growth of Estes Park (incorporated in 1917) and the creation of the Rocky Mountain National Park (established in 1915). </P>

Where is the hotel from the movie the shining located