John W. Metzger

John William Metzger (April 4, 1911 – January 25, 1984) was a prominent Denver lawyer. He was elected to the Attorney General for the state of Colorado in 1949 for one term. He was also briefly the owner of the historic Trianon property in Colorado Springs, Colorado, before moving much of the art to the Trianon Museum and Art Gallery in Denver.

Early life John W. Metzger is widely reported to have been born on April 4, 1911, in Logan County, Colorado, though some reports place his birth in Cripple Creek, Colorado, as late as 1914. Metzger's father, Charles William Metzger, homesteaded in Logan County in the early 1900s but abandoned it after a number of years to move to Cripple Creek and take up mining. Metzger's mother, Nora Mahoney Metzger, was previously married to miner named Lacaille and had three children with him. After Lacaille's death Nora married Charles who was now working as a miner. The date of their marriage and the fact they married in Cripple Creek lead the current Metzger family to believe John was born in 1911 or 1912 in Cripple Creek.

Thus far in his career, Mr. Metzger has not demonstrated the possession of a great store of legal learning. But he is certainly active, he pokes his long nose into everything and he doesn't mind trouble. And thereby he affords a decided contrast to most of the incumbents of his high office. ... He affords welcome relief from the reluctance of so many officials to take a position. He may get into trouble but at least he gives the action that is badly needed in public life.

Although in August 1949 he declared that he had no interest in running for any future political office, in the summer of 1950 he ran once again for attorney general where he was defeated. In 1952 he choose to run for governor but lost to incumbent Dan Thornton. In the following years he stayed engaged in local politics and ran for state office a number of times but was never elected.

Personal life John Metzger married Betty Amen on December 26, 1944. They had two children together Karen, born in 1945, and John William, born in 1949.

Around 1960 the historic Trianon property (formerly called "Claremont") in Colorado Springs was transferred to Metzger after the nuns for whom Metzger had helped acquire the property found they could not afford the upkeep. Metzger attempted to run it as a museum but due to issues regarding zoning laws was not able to keep it profitable. Metzger sold large portions of the art and book collection, including around 15,000 rare books to Colorado State University. Eventually he sold the property to The Colorado Springs School. He brought the remaining art pieces to Denver and placed them in a building at 14th Avenue and Tremont Street which became known as the Trianon Museum and Art Gallery. Metzger and his family maintained the museum until it closed in 2004.

John Metzger died of colon cancer in 1984 and is entombed in mausoleum at Fairmount Cemetery, in Denver. Betty Metzger died February 19, 2008, and was interred at Fairmount Cemetery.