Echo Mountain House, Echo Mtn. Echoes Winter 1999

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Echo Mountain House

1894-1900

By Jake Brouwer

A lovely front view photograph of the Echo Mountain House 1894

I suppose we all subscribe to our own particular tastes in life, and as for me on this fine blustery evening in southern California, I managed to subscribe to the best that life has to offer. Nearly three months of scrimping and saving coins in an old cigar box, has led me to this finery on, February 4th 1900. A weekend of rest and relaxation in one of the finest resort hotels in the world, the Echo Mountain House, yes, that was certainly the ticket.

There was a wonderfully soft breeze, just a touch of winter in the air, as I sat on the veranda of the grand hotel overlooking Pasadena. I tilted back in my chair and tossed one leg over the other, up on the railing, and taking a puff on my cigar, I thought of life in the world below. I mused for hours, as it seemed a waste to go to bed, with this sparkling carpet below me. The soft music coming from the nearby Chalet lulled me near to sleep, when a gentleman with silver tipped cane tapped on my foot. I thought to myself, "It might be the Professor himself." It was Mr. Sattley, the house manager. "It's near midnight sir, and you're sure to catch your death of cold if you stay out much longer." He did not wait for a reply, but walked off down the length of the grand veranda.

"He's right." I thought, and headed off to bed on the third floor, not realizing that this would be my last evening in the Echo Mountain House, room paid for or not.

It was just six short years earlier that the grand hotel's shape began to take place. Amidst the scatterings of boards and beams, and kegs of nails, the Scenic Mount Lowe Railway continued its operations, and the tourists turned seemingly a blind eye to the activities and went about having fun.

The original designs by T. W. Parkes were altered slightly, reducing the finished form from two towers to one. The Carson Brothers, led by J. B. Carson and his son Gene, did the construction on the hotel and by the end of March the framing was raised on the first floor. Four months worth of laboring went by, in a time when work was hard to find, fifty workmen were nearly finished with the project. It was good timing as the Chalet was consistently running out of rooms.

August 1894, proved to be one of the busiest months on Echo Mountain. Activities of every sort seemed to go on all at the same time. Ads in the Star constantly promoted the Echo Mountain House while the construction was going on, however that month the ads changed from a photo of the Chalet and the Great Incline, to a line drawing of the new Echo Mountain House. Things were happening quickly, and the excitement of it kept then manager H. L. Warner scurrying around tying up loose ends. Warner's previous experience at the San Gabriel Hotel, and Bartlet Springs gave him a high reputation as a popular, and successful caterer to the tourist public, a welcome addition to Lowe's team.

In this early line drawing of Echo Mountain, we can see that the Lowe Observatory is in the early stages of building.

On Saturday, August 4, 1894 a Builders Dinner was held for the construction workers in the dining room of the Chalet. The dinner started around 6:00 PM, and it was a dinner fit for the elite of Pasadena, rather than the poor workingman. A specially lithographed menu was printed on heavy pink cardboard, destined to be a souvenir for those so inclined. It was of mutual respect that put such a dinner together. In a time of lockouts and strikes, these men were working, and treated with respect by Lowe. He was the "working mans friend."

Following Prime Ribs of Beef au Jus, Fricassee of Lamb, and a spread of desserts consisting of cakes, puddings, and pies, Lowe rose from his chair and thanked the men for a job well done promising a similar banquet upon completion of the next phase of building on the Alpine Division. When he finished, sons Leon, and Thad Jr., proudly looked on as J.B. Carson presented the Professor with a gold-topped cane as a token of their esteem. A brass plate was engraved and mounted on the cane that read, "BUILDERS OF THE ECHO MOUNTAIN HOUSE TO PROF. T.S.C. LOWE AUG. 4, 1894. The professor was completely surprised, and thanked them all for their generous gift. He expressed hope that as he grew older this cane would sustain him for many years, while continuing his work on the mountain. A round of, "For he's a jolly good fellow" followed, and topped a wonderful evening.

In that first week of the month, doors, windows and sashes were being put into place. The construction workers also started excavating for the grand granite wall, and stairway, which would lead guests from the Great Incline platform up to the hotel. The workmen also installed the mysterious cement pillars between the Echo Mountain House and the Chalet. One guest asked The Professor what they were for, to which Thaddeus, always at the ready replied, "To crack jokes on!"

The grand stairway in Echo Moutain House

The grand stairway in Echo Mountain House

During the rest of August, crowds continued to flock to the mountain resort, beating the heat and enjoying the life above the city. One of the conductors of the line, Mr. Haggin, said, "Score another good day for the Mount Lowe Railway, they keep coming and coming. The attractions are such that they cannot keep away. Best of all they go away pleased. Their largest expectations are met and that is the grandest surprise of all." Moonlight Excursions were also planned, with special flyers being posted about town. Additional trains were run to accommodate the crowds. Along with the crowds of tourists, furniture was an unusual but frequent traveler on the Incline, making daily trips with the occasional accompaniment of lush carpeting for the hotel.

The Echo Mountain House was not the only surprise that Thaddeus Lowe had planned for the public that fall. Work was started on the Lowe Observatory that summer, under the supervision of Lewis Swift, and by the fifteenth of August the dome of the monstrous 16-inch telescope was being put into place and lectures of comets and Nebula, soon would be the order of the day.

Another of The Professors surprises was being unpacked in early August. Fresh from its last appearance at the Mid Winter Carnival in San Francisco, was what was billed as the "World's Largest Searchlight." The 3 million candlepower searchlight was mounted on a hexagon platform across from the hotel.

Not to be outdone in any way, shape, or form, Thaddeus also was preparing twelve new cement cages for the zoological attraction, in addition to the work Lowe had David MacPherson doing, grading the Alpine Division.

The time came to be that the rooms received all their finishing touches, and the public gained entrance. August 17th came and went with a large contingent of bankers spending part of the day on Echo Mountain marveling at the new hotel.

When all was said and done, $55,000.00 was spent to complete the Echo Mountain House, and another $8,000.00 was spent in furnishings. The rooms were of the best that mountain hotels offered in the world. Some were "en suite" with private bathrooms and lavatories, boasting the finest in porcelain and marble equipments. The rooms were electric lighted, gas heated, and carefully ventilated. Fireplaces had specially constructed andirons for cheery fires. To top it off, each of the rooms in the 400-foot southern exposure, had a spectacular view of the valley floor below. There were seventy sleeping rooms, and the cost for an evening ran $5.00, and $17.00 to $25.00 per week, depending on the selection of the rooms. One could make reservations from nearly anywhere by telegraph at the hotels expense. Mark Jayner from Western Union Telegraph, approved the site in early August, and Edward Swift operated the telegraph.

In the grand velvet carpeted hallways, lobby, and dining room, were standpipes, providing what was said to be the best fire protection in a building in Southern California.

Guests gathered around a cheery fireplace.

Great fireplaces and chimneys adorned the lobby and dining room, with handsomely carved mantles and nearby staircases, becoming artistic attractions as well as functional built-ins.

Other areas were devoted to recreation. There were billiard rooms, a bowling alley, ladies drawing room, a barbershop and shoe shine stand, along with a wonderful forty by eighty foot social hall, in which the fumes of a cigar were never allowed to intrude.

In the splendid lobby, Anna Miller ran the photograph, curio, and souvenir department known as the Echo Mountain House Bazaar. Here one could purchase, postcards, cabinet photos, souvenir booklets, silver spoons, china, and many other items to cherish as a memory of this grand place.

Richard Scott was the clerk, and Thaddeus Lowe Jr. was appointed Notary Public, to afford the guest that convenience.

The spacious kitchen was designed to handle the largest order of meals, and was backed up by a cement basement under the hotel, storing perishables, ice, solid and liquid refreshments.

As the days blew by, the guest register filled, and names of those on "Who's Who" lists of the nation filled its pages. One needed only to look up to the mountains from the valley below, to know this palace in this White City on the mount, was a place to behold and long to visit.

Half fare permit 1894

The first public use of the Social Hall was held on Sept 3, 1894 by the Los Angles Congregational Union, led by Reverend A. B. White. Members of the union were give half-fare permits for rides over the Mount Lowe Railway.

November brought announcements by publicist George Wharton James, of the official opening day ceremonies on November 24, 1894. It was a busy week. On the 23rd the Southern California Hotel Association put in a delightful afternoon on Echo Mountain, after having lunch earlier in the day at the Painter Hotel. They stayed and enjoyed all the entertainments of the Observatory, Zoo, and an early evening glimpse of the searchlight before heading down to a banquet at the Green Hotel.

Echo Mountain House Menu

On the 24th Bankers and members of the Los Angeles Clearing House held their banquet at the Echo Mountain House. An elaborately designed menu was made for the event that drew one hundred thirty attendees. The house was ablaze with a glitter of electric lights from top to bottom. In the banquet room, the members of the nine represented banks were greeted with beautifully garnished tables lined with roses, geraniums, and chrysanthemums. Over the entrance to the dining room a group of Italian musicians, the Musso Brothers, played the night away. All had a swell time.

The days went on, guests came, and were conquered by the spectacular views, and the fine hospitality. With Lowe's new additions to Echo Mountain, there was no shortage of things to do. Exploring Glen, Bear, and Echo Canyons, trying the bridal roads, finding the waterfalls, visiting the animals in the zoo, or watching that James character wrestling with the bear, Ursa Minor, were just part of a days activities. The botany and geology of the place was unequaled, and thoroughly investigated. Others took tours of the complicated machinery that ran the Great Incline, watched the grading of the Alpine Division, or simply enjoyed the view from the veranda. In the evenings, Ellen Norton would hold concerts in piano and flute, giving her renditions of the classical masters, and sometimes a chorus singing old-fashioned tunes accompanied her. On other occasions, a Mr. Dodsworth, gave cornet solos, and often would amaze the guests with echoed accompaniment from the back of the hotel. Let us not forget those wonderful lectures in the observatory by Dr. Swift, or the magic lantern lectures by George Wharton James. Just when you think the dusk is about to draw to a close, the giant searchlight swings into play, beams dancing across the expanses of the Los Angeles Basin.

Back view of Echo Mountain House. The Chalet is to the left and the Powerhouse is to the right of the hotel

Nearly six years of bliss in the finest hotel you could imagine. Unfortunately Thaddeus Lowe had long since lost control of most of his empire by 1900. The costs of building the railway and hotels had taken all he had. J. S. Torrance, who took the receivership of the properties in 1897, was in the process of turning everything over to Valentine Peyton, and heirs of H. M. Singer in the last week of January 1900. In parting, Torrance recommended putting additional insurance on the hotel, as it was drastically underinsured.

So I slept, that night of February 4, 1900, like a baby, after a soothing evening on the porch of the Echo Mountain House. I dreamt of waterfalls, photo opportunities, and waited the dawn's new adventures.

What an adventure it was to be. Near the hour of 5:00 AM, a pounding awakened me at my door. I did not remember signing up for an early morning bridal trip to the summit of Mt. Lowe. But again on opening the door, I was face to face with Sattley, the hotel Manager, only this time he was in his nightclothes. "It seems we have a fire sir," he said with the hurried calmness of an ever professional. "I expect we will extinguish the blaze, but I recommend you gather your things to be on the safe side, and head on downstairs." Once again he did not wait for an answer, and walked briskly to the next room down the hall. The smell of smoke was in the air, and my eyes were stinging.

Once outside I learned that the kitchen staff had risen, as was the custom, at around 4:30 that morning to prepare the fires for breakfast. The night watchman became aware smoke billowing from the roof, and awoke Sattley, who immediately started warning the thirty guests who lodged in the hotel that evening. Mrs. Sattley, who also slept with her husband on the third floor, was pulled from her room and rushed downstairs, leaving all her belongings behind her.

Outside I watched the smoke form a pyramid in the air above the Echo Mountain House. The guests quickly made it out, and moved their belongings to an area near the Chalet. Valentine Peyton, who was in the house that night with his wife and children, organized the employees in an effort to save the building, and it's contents.

One of the early standpipes of Echo Mountain House.

The fire, which was caused by a defective flue, had made itself a cozy nest between the floors of the hotel, rendering all hopes of extinguishing the blaze with water from the standpipes entirely useless. The water filled reservoir six hundred feet above the hotel, would be of no help. By a quarter to six the fire was gaining possession of the building and all efforts were directed to removing furniture, trunks, and carpeting. Myself, and other guests pitched in with the effort, tossing the carpets across the roof of the powerhouse and wetting them down in a successful effort to save that building. There was a good deal of work to do, but not enough hands to do it. Phone and telegraph wires were strung over the roof of the hotel, which the fire took out very early, leaving communications with the hundreds of onlookers below in the valley impossible. We were left to our own.

Sattley, who spent the entire time looking after others, finally dashed up to his room on the third floor in an attempt to retrieve some of his personal items, including $65.00 his wife had left in her haste to leave. The flames by now were raging across the roof. Sattley had waited too long, and as he rummaged around his room in the smoke and heat, he collapsed to the floor. He gave a feeble cry for help as he went down. Thankfully, an employee, making a last run, heard the cry, and pulled him downstairs. Sattley was the only injury of the event with singed hair, and lungs from the furnace like air. All of the other guests made it out safely.

Thanks to the lack of wind that morning, the fire burned remarkably slow enough for most everything to be saved of any importance, except of course the hotel itself. Most of the valuables of the guests were saved, except for those who in their haste forgot wearing apparel. One woman reported the loss of her diamonds. Sattley it seems was the biggest loser, having lost all his worldly possessions in his room on the third floor.

By 7:00 the hotel lie in smoldering ruins. Some the guests were shuttled off to Alpine Tavern, and others like myself, went to the Chalet to await the running of the Incline cars. The line was not damaged in any way, but all hands were much too busy at the moment. J. S. Torrance caught the first car into Rubio Canyon that morning from the city, and spoke over a private wire to the powerhouse in an effort to offer whatever assistance he could.

Early line drawing of Echo Mountain House

Later in the morning, I watched as the men explored the ruins of the fire. They found a few souvenirs, and after awhile in the debris, the hotel safe, which held the books, and funds. Finally the cars began to run again, and in the first arrival from below, the tourists came to view the ruins on the way up to the Alpine Division. It was destined to be business as usual, for all outward appearances to the public. I caught a ride down later that day, along with Peyton, who was to meet with his associates, and poor Mr. Sattley, who was still in his nightclothes, as all else was lost. Peyton also had the duty of wiring Thaddeus Lowe the bad news. The Professor was in San Francisco at the time visiting relatives.

In the days that followed, I read the papers after work and I found that plans were already being made for building a bigger, and better Echo Mountain House to be made out of granite from Mt. Lowe. The opinions were, it could be rebuilt for one-third the original cost of building it in the boom times. Sadly the news also came out that the Echo Mountain House was in fact underinsured. The London, Liverpool and Globe Insurance Co., and the Insurance Co. of North America held the policies for the house in the amount of a mere $7,000.00 for the building, and $2,000.00 for the contents. The loss will fall entirely on Mr. Peyton and Mr. Singer.

I worked, and saved hard for that trip up to Echo Mountain house that February, in 1900, and to this day I remember it as if it were yesterday. On occasion I pull from my bureau drawer, a folded white handkerchief, to gaze inside at the souvenir match safe I bought the day before the fire, and fondly remember that blustery evening on the veranda of the Echo Mountain House.

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Last modified: February 12, 1999