Timberline Lodge & Ski Area

History

Timberline Lodge was opened on February 4, 1938 following a construction which boasted a great deal of public attention and excitement. When the project was announced publicly in 1935, bonds were sold by the three sponsors of the project which were the State of Oregon, Mount Hood Recreation Association of Portland, and the Regional office of the Forest Service.

After raising $10,000 for building materials, the project was sponsored by the Works Progress Administration for an expected cost of $275, 513. Crews of 150 men were interchanged every two weeks, and craftsmen and artists were commissioned to work on the Lodge, resulting in 760,000 person hours estimated worth of work.

This project greatly helped the local economy by employing men who were unable to find work elsewhere due to the Great Depression.  Marjory Hoffman Smith was hired as the interior decorator and she required that everything be made by hand and fall into the three main themes of Indian, wildlife, and pioneer. Throughout the Lodge, these themes were expressed in many different ways and each guest room was decorated so that no two were the same.

On September 28, 1937 President Franklin D. Roosevelt dedicated the Lodge. The Lodge was closed due to World War II in 1942, and finally reopened in 1945 as well as being able to draw its first profits in 1947. In 1955, the Lodge was closed due to mismanagement and an inability to be run properly. RLK & Co. picked up management of the Lodge leading to a renewed management strategy.

In 1975 the Friends of Timberline formed with a mission to restore Timberline Lodge to its original splendor. In 1978 Timberline Lodge became Oregon’s tenth National Landmark formally acknowledging by its importance to the history of Oregon and the United States as whole.