In the early 1890s, the Knapp family from Illinois built a sawmill near Harding Heights, then moved it first to Miller Fork and then to the point now known as Glen Haven in 1897. The Boulder Presbytery, with assistance from the Knapp family, formed an association in 1903 and sold lots for a summer resort called Glen Haven. The association built the Glen Haven General Store in 1921.[4] Under the direction of Ira Knapp, a lodge-style hotel was built called The Homestead, and opened in 1938. The Homestead became known as the Inn at Glen Haven and was mentioned in a Los Angeles Times travel article in 1986.[5] The Trail's End camps of Cheley Colorado Camps are also located near Glen Haven.[6]
Glen Haven's location in a narrow valley puts the area at risk for flooding. The Big Thompson Flood of 1976 moved the town hall several feet off its foundation.[7] In September 2013, approximately 80 percent of Glen Haven's downtown was destroyed in the 2013 Colorado floods.[8][9] Access to the town was cut off by the destruction of Larimer County Road 43 on both sides of town; the section connecting to the town of Drake and US 34 was reopened on December 6, 2013.[10]
Dunning, Harold Marion (1956). Over Hill and Vale; in the evening shadows of Colorado's Longs Peak. Boulder, Colorado: Johnson Publishing. OCLC3462957.
Easterday, Robert C (1989). Between two rocks: true tales of early Glen Haven. OCLC271540194.
Knapp, Joseph Grant (1967). The Glen Haven Story. Boulder, Colorado: Johnson Publishing. OCLC1969189.
^David, Olinger (January 1, 2014). "Many Glen Haven homeowners still homeless months after flood". Denver Post. Retrieved March 24, 2014. But the seemingly insurmountable problem is access to the network of dirt roads linking hundreds of houses in the woods.... The town needs at least $2 million to rebuild private roads that ran along two creeks.
^Sumonia, Duke (August 16, 1990). "The Inn of Glen Haven"(PDF). Estes Valley Library. Archived from the original(PDF) on March 25, 2014. Retrieved March 24, 2014.
^"Program On Cheley Camp At Estes Park Museum". Estes Park News. July 26, 2013. p. 7. Retrieved March 24, 2014. Trail's End for Boys and Trail's End for Girls camps near Glen Haven began in 1937 and 1941, respectively, and are focused on horsemanship.