I have been writing my second Pueblo Lore article for a while now, and it has turned into a minor struggle. I have all my notes, old newspaper articles, and original documents, including the Ledger A record for this very interesting patient.

As you can see in the Ledger A record, they misspelled his name. Anyone who studies this period of history will tell you that is quite common. In fact, one of the best articles I have about Dr. Rhynus refers to him as “Dr. Lyman”!

My delay in writing this story is simply that I had to digest so much of this information and sleep on it before it really all fit together.

Here’s a few facts. Dr. Rhynus came to Denver from the east coast. He wrote a book about the proper care of insane patients. He and his wife used the Fairview Hotel in Denver as a private asylum. It did not go well. Dr. Rhynus shot and killed his wife. He was found to be insane and that’s how he came to be a patient himself here in Pueblo.