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Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Columbia Gorge Hotel ...
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Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken June 4, 2005.
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Columbia Gorge Hotel and Spa, as seen from the frontage road.
View from moving car.
Image taken April 9, 2015.
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Phelps Creek and Wah Gwin Gwin Falls ...
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According to the Columbia River Basin Fish and Wildlife Program's website (2014), there are nineteen small rivers and creeks entering the Columbia River between the Bonneville Dam and Hood River, with the three largest drainages being Eagle Creek, Phelps Creek, and Herman Creek.
Phelps Creek is 6.5 miles long with the 207-foot-high (some sources say 208 feet) Wah Gwin Gwin falls being located near its mouth.
Wah Gwin Gwin Falls is located on the Hotel property and is one of the many falls in the Columbia River Gorge.
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Wah Gwin Gwin Falls, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Wah Gwin Gwin Falls, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Looking over Wah Gwin Gwin Falls at Phelps Creek, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Phelps Creek, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Lewis and Clark and Wah Gwin Gwin Falls ...
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The Lewis and Clark journals comment on Wah Gwin Gwin Falls on October 29, 1805.
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"... 6 miles to a high Clift of rocks Std bend passed a large creek
at 1 mile on the Stard. Side in which the Indians catch fish, a
large Sand bar from the Lard. Side for 4 miles, at which
place a small stream of water falls over a rock of 100 feet on
the Lard Side passed 4 Indian Houses at 5 miles in a bot-tom on the Lard Side ..."
[Clark, October 29, 1805, first draft]
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"... a butifull cascade falling over a rock of about 100 feet ..."
[Clark, October 29, 1805]
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"... Saw a beautiful Spring on the Lard. Side, which run off a high clift of rocks, and fell of the clift upwards of a hundred feet perpinticular ..."
[Ordway, October 29, 1805]
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"... and a Spring on Lard. Side which ran of a high clift of rocks which looked curious ..."
[Whitehouse, October 29, 1805, first draft]
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"... & a spring which lay on the South side of the River, which ran from off a high Clift of Rocks & had a curious appearance ..."
[Whitehouse, October 29, 1805]
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Columbia Gorge Hotel and Wah Gwin Gwin Falls, as seen from Washington State.
View from near the Spring Creek Fish Hatchery, Washington.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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"... a butifull cascade falling over a rock of about 100 feet ..."
[Clark, October 29, 1805]
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Columbia Cliff Villas, Wah Gwin Gwin Falls, and the historic Columbia Gorge Hotel, Oregon, as seen from the Spring Creek Fish Hatchery, Washington.
Image taken June 12, 2012.
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The Hotel History ...
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The "Wau Gwin Gwin Hotel" was built in 1904 by Robert Rand (Bobby Rand), an early Hood River settler who arrived in Hood River in the early 1880s. The hotel was built overlooking the waterfall where Phelps Creek joins the Columbia River. It had twenty rooms and served guests until 1921, when it was torn down to allow construction of the Columbia Gorge Hotel."
From an interview with Fred Lockley, appearing in the "Oregon Daily Journal" of March 29, 1915 (as found on the "Geneoalogytrails.com" website, 2015):
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"[According to Mr. Rand] 'In 1885 I bought the Mount Hood Hotel, which I conducted in Hoed River until 1893, when I sold out to C. A. Bell. Meanwhile I had opened a store in Hood River and conducted the business for five years with the assistance of my son, J. E. Rand. At the end of that time I disposed of the store and in 1904 built the Wau-gwin-gwin Hotel just west of Hoed River.' Mr. Rand took me over his place recently and set a pace which kept me going some. We went first to the north porch of his home. The porch overhangs a bluff which drops abruptly for nearly two hundred feet. Ten yards from the end of the porch Wau-gwin-gwin creek leaps over the cliff. At times, when the sun strikes the spray from the falling water, a rainbow trembles above the water. From below the wind-caught, milk-white water looks like a filmy veil of lace over the brow of the cliff. 'This used to be a great meeting place for the Indians in the early days,' said Mr. Rand. 'It was taken up by John Dye and his squaw. I bought it from a man named Amen and paid twenty-eight hundred dollars for the forty-three acres here. People thought I was an easy mark to pay that amount for forty-three acres of rocks and oak trees stretched along the bluffs overlooked the Columbia, They didn't know that sunsets and waterfalls, rugged old oaks and huge heaps of weather-worn rocks had any commercial value, but for every nickel I put into this place I will take a dollar out.' He later sold to Simon Benson for thirty-five thousand dollars which proved the wisdom of his opinion."
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"The stately site on which the Columbia Gorge Hotel now stands was originally developed in 1904 by Bobby Rand, a Hood River pioneer, as the Wah Gwin Gwin Hotel (a Native American name "rushing water" for the 208' waterfall on the grounds).
These were the days of steamers navigating the waters of the Columbia River from the Cascades to The Dalles. To alert the hotel, the captains would sound the whistle once for each guest he had on board. Maids would then quickly make up the appropriate number of beds.
In 1920, Rand sold his interests in the hotel to Simon Benson. Benson had just helped complete what many of the era claimed to be the world's most beautiful road, the Columbia Gorge Scenic Highway. Benson's dream was to create an opulent hotel for travelers at the end of this road. He hired some of the same Italian stone masons that had built the highway to embellish his hotel. ...
During the depression, the Hotel fell on hard times and was purchased by the Neighbors of Woodcraft as a retirement home. Such it remained for a quarter of a century, until the ongoing restoration began in 1977. Now corporately owned and operated, The Columbia Gorge Hotel has been brilliantly restored to a new opulence. The Hotel stands proudly atop a bluff overlooking the mighty Columbia River greeting its visitors with warmth and elegance continuing to be an elegant oasis in the heart of the Columbia Gorge National Scenic Area.."
Source:
"ColumbiaGorgeHotel.com" website, 2015
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"The hotel site was acquired in 1920 from Bobby Rand who, for the past 17 years, had run the Wah-Gwin-Gwin Hotel. The latter was named for Wah-Gwin-Gwin Falls, falls which are located on the site and drop 150 feet to the Columbia River below. The demolition of the old hotel and construction of a new concrete and stucco hotel began immediately by Dinwiddie Constuction and Company of Hood River.
During this time, SImon Benson was remarried to Mrs. Harriet King of Hood River. The Del Monte Lodge in Monterey, where the Bensons spent their honeymoon, was to have an influence on the new hotel.
Construction for the new hotel was completed in May of 1921 and a grand opening was held in June. The hotel became the hub for social life in Hood River. Weddings, parties, banquets and formal dances were often held there.
The hotel did not succeed as had been envisioned. Ironically, it was Simon Benson's good roads that led to the demise of the hotel. Motorists drove from Portland, enjoyed the fine cuisine of master chef Henry Thiele, returned to Portland the same day, leaving the guestrooms empty.
Simon's son, Amos Benson, took over the hotel in 1922, but he too could not turn it into a successful venture. Finally in 1925, the hotel was up for foreclosure. The hotel underwent numerous years of shifting ownership and management, all unsuccessful.
In 1952, the hotel was purchased by the Neighbors of Woodcraft and turned into a home for the aged. It remained in this ownership until 1978, when plans again were made to reopen the structure as a resort hotel."
Source:
U.S. National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form, 1979.
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Auction of Wau-Gwin-Gwin Hotel, August 28, 1920 ...
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ADVERTISING: Auction of Wau-Gwin-Gwin Hotel, 1920, IN: Hood River Glacier, August 26, 1920.
Courtesy Historic Oregon Newspapers Archives, University of Oregon Libraries, 2015.
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Columbia Cliff Villas ...
In 2007 construction began on the Columbia Cliff Villas, immediately east of the historic Columbia Gorge Hotel.
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"Columbia Cliff Villas is unique in the Gorge. Spacious Villas feature grand living areas, including master suites, balconies and several guest suites that lock out for complete privacy, most with panoramic views of mountains, forests, valleys, cliffs and/or rivers. Two Carriage Houses help isolate the courtyard and provide charming accommodations at very reasonable prices. From our vantage point over 200' above the majesty of the mighty Columbia River, we share the view with eagles as you look down on one of the world's most famous windsurfing beaches.
In addition to countless nearby scenic attractions, our owners and guests also enjoy the amenities and romantic manicured gardens of the adjacent historic Columbia Gorge Hotel & Spa. So, you can stroll the connecting pathways through award-winning "Gardens of Distinction" along the tumbling creek to a 208' waterfall, listen to its soft roar and breathe in the fresh clean mist as you recharge and stimulate your senses before indulging in fine and casual (indoor and outdoor) dining at Simon's Cliffhouse Restaurant or experience total relaxation at their recently renovated spa facility.
Only one hour from Portland, Oregon we're easy to get to, hard to leave and impossible to forget."
Source:
"ColumbiaCliffVillas.com" website, 2015.
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Sign, Columbia Cliff Villas, with the historic Columbia Gorge Hotel in the background.
View from moving car.
Image taken November 10, 2014.
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Columbia Cliff Villas as seen from the frontage road.
View from moving car.
Image taken April 9, 2015.
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Columbia Cliff Villas, Wah Gwin Gwin Falls, and the historic Columbia Gorge Hotel, Oregon, as seen from the Spring Creek Fish Hatchery, Washington.
Image taken June 12, 2012.
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Views, Columbia Gorge Hotel, 2006 ...
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Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Cupola, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Front door, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Light, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Stone Arch, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Stone arch walkway across Phelps Creek.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Ducks, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Flowers Flowers Flowers ...
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Tulip, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Tulips, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Tulips, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Tulips, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Flowers and Ferns, Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Views from the Hotel ...
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Columbia River as seen from the Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Wells Island is on the right.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Washington State and the Columbia River as seen from the Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Mouth of Phelps Creek is in the foreground.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Underwood Mountain and the Broughton Mill, as seen from the Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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Spring Creek Fish Hatchery (Washington State), as seen from the Columbia Gorge Hotel, Hood River, Oregon.
Image taken May 10, 2006.
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From the Journals of Lewis and Clark ...
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Clark, October 29, 1805 ...
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