Hot Lake Hotel

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Coordinates: 45°14′36″N 117°57′24″W / 45.24333°N 117.95667°W / 45.24333; -117.95667
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Hot Lake Hotel
Shingle Style
LocationHot Lake, Oregon, U.S.
Coordinates45°14′36″N 117°57′24″W / 45.24333°N 117.95667°W / 45.24333; -117.95667
Design and construction
Architect(s)John Virginius Bennes[1]
Hot Lake Resort
Hot Lake Hotel is located in Oregon
Hot Lake Hotel
Hot Lake Hotel is located in the United States
Hot Lake Hotel
Built1864 (first incarnation)
1907 (final construction)
Restored2003–2010
NRHP reference No.79002148[2]
Added to NRHPMarch 15, 1979

Hot Lake Hotel (also known as Hot Lake Resort) is a historic

sanitorium during the turn of the century, advertising the medicinal attributes of the mineral water and drawing visitors worldwide. It is also the first known commercial building in the world to utilize geothermal energy as its primary heat source.[5]

After a fire burned down over half of the hotel in 1934, the remaining building was used for various purposes, including a retirement home, asylum, and a nurse's training school during World War II. After that, operations were intermittent under various owners before the building's abandonment in 1991. The hotel and surrounding structures were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.[2]

Today, it is operated as a hot springs resort, pub, and theater. Previous restoration done by the Manuels. Prior owners included future governor Walter M. Pierce and former state senator Parish L. Willis.[6]

Background

A portion of Hot Lake, as viewed from the hotel grounds

The

Nez Perce.[4] It is thought by historians that Hot Lake was one of the first thermal springs to be visited by European settlers,[7] and the springs themselves were documented by Washington Irving in his recording of Robert Stuart's explorations during the Astor Expedition in 1812.[8]
Irving wrote in his record:

Emerging from the chain of

sulphur spring, about ten feet in diameter, boiling up in one corner. The place was much frequented by elk, which were found in considerable numbers in the adjacent mountains, and their horns, shed in the spring-time, were strewed in every direction around the pond.[9]

After the

cattle ranch, and was purchased by a sailor named Tommy Atkins.[10] An apocryphal story claiming that Atkins was cured of numerous health ailments after falling into the spring was published in The Oregonian in 1914 in a piece detailing the hotel's history.[10] The lake's spring bubbles nearly a half-million gallons of water each day, and the average temperature of the lake is around 200°F (93°C).[11]

History

1864–1906: Initial construction

In 1864, Samuel Fitzgerald Newhart, a native of California, arrived in the Grande Ronde Valley, and constructed the original wooden structure on the lake, which faced toward the bluff rather than outward toward the lake.[12] The structure was similar to the contents of a modern-day shopping mall, containing a post office, blacksmith, dance hall, barber shop, bath house, and several other businesses.

By 1884, the

bath houses. Dr. Phy became involved with the project in 1904, and a brick structure intended for use as a hospital began construction.[10]

1907–1933: Heyday

An original examination table used in the hotel hospital

Well-renowned architect John V. Bennes of nearby Baker City has been attributed to the architectural design of the building, reminiscent of the Colonial era;[13] Bennes also designed numerous buildings on the Oregon State University campus, as well as several buildings in Portland.[14] In 1908, the main brick wing of the hotel was completed, which alone comprised 65,000 square feet.[12] The construct featured a Georgian-style U-shape with a solarium facing the bluff.[12] The building was heated with the geothermal waters, and was the first known commercial property in the world to use geothermal heating.[10][5]

Upon its re-opening, the hotel housed a total of 105 guest rooms, a 60-bed surgical ward, a ballroom, a barber shop, confectionery, drug store, news stand, reception rooms, laboratories, and a

operating room complete with an elevated observation deck, and a 1,500-guest dance hall.[15] The hotel came to be known by locals as "The Town Under One Roof," and was a mostly self-sufficient property, producing its own vegetables, dairy products, meats, and eggs.[12]

In 1910, the hotel grossed $178,811 in yearly revenue,

experimental medicine.[4][17]

By 1924, the hotel had become a major tourist attraction, attracting visitors worldwide. The

X-ray technician, and a bacteriologist, the hotel garnered a reputation as "The Mayo Clinic of the West."[18]

A promotional advertisement from the Oregon Pacific Railroad promoted the purported healing properties of the waters, stating:

[Hot Lake Hotel] is the largest, hottest, and most curative springs known; best bathing facilities, most courteous attendants; first-class medical and surgical conveniences; finest operating room in the west; steam heat, electric lights; hot and cold water throughout the building[18]

Other advertisements touted the drinking of the water as relieving a variety of ailments, as well as claiming mud baths and poultice made with lake sediment as being beneficial for treatment of rheumatism.[19]

1934–1990: Fire and decline

Hot Lake Hotel in the aftermath of the 1934 fire

Dr. Phy, the central manager and owner of the property, died in 1931 of pneumonia. On May 7, 1934, a fire destroyed the majority of the building's west wing,[20] completely demolishing the wood structures of the hotel; the 65,000-square-foot (6,000 m2) brick portion of the building, however, survived the fire. Prior to the fire, the building had contained nearly 300 rooms and dining areas for over 1,000 guests. From then on, business at the hotel declined, and eventually the hospital area on the third floor was the only functioning business.

A flight school and nurse's training center was established at the hotel in 1939 during World War II,[4] and U.S. Route 30 was later built, with Oregon Route 203 branching off of it and running right by the front of the hotel grounds. In 1941, the property was acquired by A.J. Roth, and was converted into a nursing home for the aged in 1951,[12] and later an asylum.[21] The building functioned as the asylum and rest home until 1974 when ownership of the building changed, and a short-lived restaurant and night club was opened, which operated unsuccessfully for two years;[4] rumors of hauntings plagued the building from the late 1970s onward.[22]

In the mid-1980s, Dr. Lyle Griffith purchased the property and used one corner of the hotel as a bath house; by 1991, the bath house closed down, and the hotel was abandoned, falling prey to local vandals and the elements; however, an RV park constructed in 1989 operated adjacent to the hotel.[4]

1991–2002: Abandonment

The building sat abandoned and decrepit for over a fifteen-year period, in spite of having been purchased by the

Seattle-based B.B.R. Holdings corporation.[4] Various stories circulated concerning reported hauntings in the hotel— it has been rumored to be haunted by vacationers, a gardener who committed suicide, and residents who lived in the building during its use as an insane asylum.[23] When the hotel was originally constructed it acquired a piano formerly owned by Robert E. Lee's wife, which was said to play all by itself up on the third floor.[24]

Other reports of screaming and crying were reported by owner Donna Pattee and caretaker Richard Owens coming from the hospital's surgery room, as well as rocking chairs moving at their own accord; Pattee and her husband owned the property in the 1970s when it was a restaurant; both they and Owens lived on the second floor of the building at the time.

The Scariest Places on Earth.[25]

2003–present: Restoration

In 2003, the building, which was literally falling apart, was purchased from Charles and Louise Rhea by David Manuel.[26] Restoration began soon after; the building was greatly dilapidated, with all 368 windows broken and/or missing, and a sparsely-remaining roof. After two years of construction, it was opened to the public for tours in 2005, while individual guest rooms were still being sponsored and renovated. In 2008, the west wing of the building collapsed.[27] the building previously functioned as a bed and breakfast, with dozens of restored rooms, a spa, restaurant, and a museum. The hotel's original pool was covered with landscape.

The hotel is part of the Hot Lake Resort, which was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.[2][28]

In culture

In addition to its appearance on The Scariest Places on Earth, the hotel was also used as a shooting location for a music video by musician Laura Gibson.[29]

See also

References

  1. ^ Landis, Lawrence (February 5, 2008). "John Bennes and OSU's Architectural Legacy, 1907-1941". Oregon State University: Valley Library. Retrieved May 18, 2010.
  2. ^ a b c "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
  3. ^ Barklow 1987, pp. 158–161.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h "History of Hot Lake Springs". Hot Lake Springs. Retrieved December 29, 2015.
  5. ^ a b Cleveland & Morris 2015, p. 291.
  6. ^ Clarke Woodward Drug Co. v. Hot Lake Sanatorium Co., 88 Ore. 284, 169 P. 796 (1918). West Publishing Company.
  7. ^ Birkby 2014, p. 119.
  8. ^ Birkby 2014, pp. 119–121.
  9. ^ Birkby 2014, p. 120-121.
  10. ^ a b c d Birkby 2014, p. 122.
  11. ^ Richard, Terry (September 17, 2011). "Hot Lake Springs restored, open for business near La Grande after seven-year overhaul". Oregon Live. Retrieved December 28, 2015.
  12. ^ a b c d e f g h "National Register of Historic Places Inventory—Nomination Form: Hot Lake Resort". National Park Service (NPS). March 15, 1979. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  13. ^ Landis, Larry. "John V. Bennes (1867-1943)". The Oregon Encyclopedia. Portland State University. Retrieved February 6, 2015.
  14. ^ "Oregon Historic Sites Database". Retrieved May 18, 2010.
  15. ^ Birkby 2014, pp. 122–123.
  16. OCLC 4383986
    .
  17. ^ a b Frazier, Joseph B. (March 9, 2007). "Hot Lake Springs: A reminder of gentler times". USA Today. Retrieved May 18, 2010.
  18. ^ a b Birkby 2014, p. 123.
  19. ^ Birkby 2014, p. 124.
  20. ^ Mason, Dick (August 2, 2008). "The Hot Lake Story". La Grande Observer. Archived from the original on July 13, 2011. Retrieved May 19, 2010.
  21. ^ Hicks, James. "Strange Destinations". Strange USA. Archived from the original on July 16, 2011. Retrieved May 18, 2010.
  22. ^ Wesche, Rachel (August 8, 2001). "Is Hot Lake one of the scariest places on earth?". The La Grande Observer. Archived from the original on March 4, 2016. Retrieved January 15, 2016.
  23. The Scariest Places on Earth
    . Season 2. Episode 25. Fox Family.
  24. ^ a b Smitten 2001, pp. 53–56.
  25. ^ Duffy, Lizzy (October 29, 2014). "Oregon's Most Haunted Places". Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB). Archived from the original on December 20, 2015. Retrieved January 9, 2016.
  26. ^ "Hot Lake Springs, Manuel Museum and Foundry". Archived from the original on April 20, 2010. Retrieved May 19, 2010.
  27. ^ "Hot Lake Springs, Manuel Museum and Foundry: Hot Lake Facts". Archived from the original on April 1, 2010. Retrieved May 19, 2010.
  28. ^ "oregon.gov: Oregon National Register List" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on June 9, 2011. Retrieved June 8, 2007.
  29. ^ Raby, Dan (January 26, 2012). "Laura Gibson's Western Ghost Story". National Public Radio (NPR). Retrieved January 15, 2016.

Bibliography

Further reading

External links

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