The Lake McDonald area in what is now Glacier National Park was a tourist destination long before the national park was created. In 1895, George Snyder constructed his Snyder Hotel on the shore of the lake. Since there were no roads along the lake, tourists would travel to Apgar at the foot of the lake and then by steamboat to the hotel.
In 1906, George Snyder sold his Glacier House hotel on Lake McDonald to John E. and Olive Lewis who owned the Gaylord Hotel in nearby Columbia Falls, Montana as well as the J.E. Lewis Fur Company which traded with local trappers and Indians. There are a number of different stories about the transfer of the deed. According to one version, Snyder had gotten drunk and lost the hotel to Lewis in a poker game. In another version, Snyder had simply gotten tired of the isolation of Lake McDonald and had sold the facility to Lewis for $1,500. The Lewises renamed the facility the Glacier Hotel.
In 1910, Glacier National Park was created which included Lake McDonald. The Great Northern Railway, which had advocated the formation of the park, created a subsidiary company, the Glacier Park Hotel Company, to build an extensive network of hotels and chalets in the Park. This meant that the Lewises’ rather austere Glacier Hotel would have to compete against the new hotels operated by the railway. In order to compete, they hired a prominent architect from Spokane, Washington, Kirtland Cutter, to design a new, Swiss-inspired hotel. One hundred years ago, on June 14, 1914, the Lake McDonald Lodge opened with a gala event attended by 500 people.
Shown above is the 1914 opening of the Lodge. The exterior featured balconies, clipped gables, and log columns. The interior of the Lodge featured massive cedar logs, a large stone fireplace, and gnarled log handrails. Much of the wood used in the construction of the facility was logged from the local area. It is generally reported the Louis Hill and his Great Northern Railway were not pleased at having a fine hotel in the park which they did not own. However, the Great Northern brochures promoting Glacier National Park mentioned the hotel as a stopover between Belton and Sperry Chalets.
Originally, guests arrived at the Lodge by boat, but with the opening of the Going-to-the-Sun Road in 1932, guests began arriving at the backdoor. The architect had intended the rear of the hotel to be used as a staff entrance and so the Lewises added balconies on the back and changed the lobby to accommodate the automobile tourists.
The Lewises eventually sold the hotel and the surrounding property to another subsidiary of the Great Northern Railway in 1930 for $275,000. The railway then sold the hotel and property to the National Park Service for half of their purchase price and a twenty-year lease on the property.
Between 1956 and 1966, the National Park Service, as a part of their Mission 66 program, upgraded and improved visitor facilities within the park. The National Park Service advocated the demolition of the Lake McDonald Lodge so that it could be replaced with modern motel units. However, Glacier Park, Inc., the concessioner resisted and as a result the interior of the Lodge was remodeled.
The Lodge:
Pictographs around the fireplace:
The pictographs around the fireplace were done by noted artist Charles Russell who had a cabin on Lake McDonald. The pictographs illustrate a Blackfoot legend.
The Cabins:
Shortly after acquiring the hotel, the Lewises constructed 13 cabins to the north of the hotel. These cabins are still in use.
The Creekside Reading Room:
Located just across Snyder Creek from the Lodge, the Creekside Reading Room provides a space for relaxing and has many historic photographs of the Lodge.
The Auditorium:
The National Park Service uses the auditorium for its evening programs.
Shown above is Blackfeet singer, poet, and songwriter Jack Gladstone preparing for a concert on the 30th anniversary of the Native America Speaks series.
The Grounds:
The Jammers:
In 1914 Louis Hill made arrangements with the White Motor Company to provide bus services in the park. The red jammers which transport tourists in the park today were originally built by White and more recently upgraded by Ford. The jammers now run on propane to reduce the carbon footprint in the park.