Lodge named to historical registry

Last updated 12/24/2018 at Noon

Santiam Pass Ski Lodge has been added to the National Register of Historic Places. photo provided

The Santiam Pass Ski Lodge in Linn County is among Oregon's latest entries in the National Register of Historic Places.

The Forest Service prepared and nominated this property to the National Register and Oregon's State Advisory Committee on Historic Preservation supported the listing of this nomination. The National Park Service - which maintains the National Register - accepted the nomination October 18.

The Santiam Pass Ski Lodge is representative of an important period of development that shaped public lands to facilitate access and usage for outdoor recreation for the general public. The lodge was constructed between July 1939 and February 1940 and was the result of collaborative efforts by the USDA Forest Service with Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) labor.

Located on the Santiam Pass on Highway 20 in the McKenzie River Ranger District of the Willamette National Forest, the Santiam Lodge was instrumental in creating a place for citizens to sleep and get meals in the mountains at a reasonable cost while they participated in winter sports activities around the area. It was operated in the capacity of winter ski lodge from 1939 until 1958.

Santiam Pass Ski Lodge in 1940. photo provided

This property is one of the few remaining extant rustic ski lodge facilities built by the Forest Service in the Pacific Northwest during the intensive building program between 1939 and 1941. The Santiam Lodge building was built in the "rustic" style, an architectural style known for embracing a philosophy that is cohesive with the surrounding environment, using materials derived from local sources with a simple or natural finish.

On May 10, the Willamette National Forest signed the operating plan and special-use permit for the restoration of the Santiam Pass Ski Lodge. The new permittees, Susan and Dwight Sheets, will be working with community members and foundations to renovate the CCC-built Lodge to its former condition. You can learn more about the work they are doing by visiting their website www.santiampassskilodge.org.

Learn more about the Forest Service Heritage Program at www.fs.fed.us/recreation/programs/heritage.