[The inn] is constructed on land originally owned by Lorens Lund. A Danish immigrant, Lund had come to the United States in 1870 where he met his Norwegian wife, Mari, who had arrived in 1859. The Lunds acquired 120 acres of land in 1884 and 1895 under the Homestead Act. Their acreage was located overlooking Crown Point in an area they eventually platted as Thor's Heights, in honor of the mythological Scandinavian deity who lived on a high place (Breidablikk) overlooking the entire world. In 1914 the Lunds donated a protion of their property to Multnomah County for highway purposes. They, Osmond Ryal, and George B. Van Waters, also gave to the City of Portland in 1917 the property where Vista House stands. Much of the Lunds' land was sold after 1917 and the site of the later View Point Inn was acquired by the Grace H. Palmer Corporation in 1924.

Grace Palmer and her associates ... opened the inn on 4 June 1925. The inn, named the Palmer Place, was designed by Carl Linde in the mode of a Shingle Style resort inn with half-timber detail. It was intended to be a tea room and restaurant (specializing in chicken dinners) with facilities for private parties. In spite of its attractive design and charming setting 1125 feet above the Columbia River, Grace Palmer and her children ... were not successful in managing the Palmer Place. Their property was repossessed ... and passed into the hands of William Moessner in 1927. ...

Moessner, a native of Pforzheim, Germany, was an experienced restauranteur. He had served as chef de cuisine at the Benson and Portland hotels before buying the Palmer Place which he renamed the View Point Inn. His enterprise advertised such diversions as hiking, fishing, and boating. During the prosperous Twenties and the depressed Thirties the Inn drew many guests, some of them famous. ...

The Second World War, with its gas rationing and shortage of labor, ended these prosperous days. The Inn was closed. Although William Moessner reopened his inn after the war, it was only a temporary reprieve for it. When the new Columbia River Highway (now Interstate 84) was opened in the 1950s, traffic bypassed the View Point Inn. Moessner served the inn's last meal in 1962. After his death on 11 September 1979 the property passed to his nephew, Erwin Geoltz, who sold the property to Douglas and Karen Watson in 1982. ..."

Thor's Heights promontory at the site of the hotel is 1125' above sea level. The inn is situated on .96 acres at the junction of the old Columbia River Highway (National Register Historic District) and Larch Mountain Road (formerly Brower Road). ...

Designed by architect Carl L. Linde, the massive wooden structure exhibits elements of Tudor style, but may be more aptly identified as a belated example of the Arts and Crafts style. The building, according to its second owner, was constructed at a cost of $47,000. ...

The upper level of the inn contains approxmiately 1683 square feet with four bedrooms and two bathrooms in their configuration. Between the major bedrooms at each end is a large sitting room with a fireplace flanked by two large bookcases. ... Historically, the bedrooms and the sitting room, which could contain about twelve cots, accommodated as many as 26 overnight guests. ..."

Purchased by the Grace H. Palmer Corporation, Mrs. Palmer hired highly renowned Portland architect Carl Linde to design and build a $47,000 Tudor Arts and Crafts Style “tea house” and “resort”. The Palmer House, as it came to be called, opened on June 4, 1925 when automobile tourism had come to the Gorge via the Columbia River Highway. ...

In 1927 bankruptcy forced the Grace H. Palmer Corporation to liquidate and sell the Palmer House. William Moessner from Pforzheim, Germany and chef de cuisine of the prestigious Benson Hotel in downtown Portland, purchased it and renamed it The View Point Hotel. He created and ran a highly successful business with his wife Clara for 50 years. It was during this time that such notables as President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Charlie Chaplin and other Hollywood and European royalty frequented Moessner’s establishment. The View Point Hotel remained highly successful into the 1960’s.

After the opening of Interstate 84 automobile tourism along the Columbia River Highway faded away with the other inns and restaurants dotting the scenic highway. ...

The inn was subsequently purchased in 1982 by Doug and Karen Watson and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. Only four properties boast this prestigious distinction in the entire National Scenic Area. The other three properties are government owned and operated. The Watson’s were unable to maintain The View Point Inn as a residence and in 1997 ... [Geoff Thompson] secured his View Point Inn. ...

After losing the inn in 1999 Geoff Thompson went to Los Angeles, California ... The View Point Inn sat vacant and abandoned for four years. Thompson returned to Oregon ... in December of 2003 to secure and once again purchase The View Point Inn with partner Angelo Simione. ...

Spearheaded by Geoff Thompson, the inn continues to be restored, renovated and loved into what he refers to as a “step back in time”. His visionary master plan and continued commitment is seeing his View Point Inn become a world class 5 star boutique hotel with restaurant, gift shop and visitors center. ... The complete vision is to return the property to its original grandeur including furnishings and decor that invite guests to step back to an earlier period of time. As one of the last remaining and best preserved of these 1920’s and 30’s era resorts and inns, and as recognized by its status on the National Register of Historic Places, The View Point Inn is uniquely positioned to provide an experience and perspective otherwise not available in the Scenic Area. "


Source:    "The View Point Inn" website, 2009.