Ashland
Springs Hotel
A
Western Hotel in
Ashland, Oregon
In
1925 the dream was realized to build a grand hotel on the slope
of the Siskiyou Mountains that would compare favorably with the
hotels in the East. This exquisite hotel was then called Lithia
Springs Hotel and opened with an elegant dinner for over 500 VIP
guests who had traveled great distances to marvel at the tallest
building between San Francisco and Portland. Ashland Oregon was
a natural destination, both for it's location as a stop over point
for travelers on their way to Portland and Seattle but also for
it's breathtaking mountain park, mineral rich springs and Chautauqua
series of lectures which featured such noted speakers as Susan B.
Anthony.
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Today,
it is
the Oregon
Shakespearean Festival that attracts visitors and the
grand landmark, now Ashland Springs Hotel welcomes visitors to relive
the enchantment of a past era. Ashland Springs Hotel is listed on
the National Register of Historic Places. Here you will enjoy everything
Ashland has become as a cultural center of arts and entertainment
and a bastion of refreshment and tranquility. The theme and spirit
of Ashland is reflected in the hotel's collections of art and botanicals
and its grand architecture, panoramic views of the Rogue Valley,
and superb service, enjoyed by travelers who discover Ashland as
their destination.
Recently
featured in Architectural Digest, The Ashland Springs Hotel has
received accolades for it's original features as well as an incredible
renovation, which authentically restored to hotel to former splendor.
In 1998 Doug and Becky Neuman purchased what was then known as The
Mark Anthony Hotel. This gothic beaux-art style hotel, had been
closed and abandoned and was in desperate need of restoration. Restoration
experts Candra Scott and Richard Anderson were called to create
interiors and WestCoast Hospitality was hired as the management
team. The results are a hotel with un-surpassed elegance and luxury
associated with another time.
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From
the moment you enter the light filled two-story lobby you will discover
unique collections in antique
cases that revolve around the theme of love, romance and nature.
There are old love letters displayed and a bird and egg collection,
many of these birds also found in a collection of bird etchings
decorating the halls of the hotel. The walls of the hotel are graced
with a botanical collection from Paris, with dried florals pressed
between glass and described in Latin.
Upon entering your room you will find every sense will be pampered
from the scent of lavender sachet you can later use in a lavender
bath to crisp white linens, light quilted feather down blankets,
full length mirrors on the antique doors and spectacular views of
the valley.
Every
detail has been attended to, from the custom Axminster wool carpets,
custom made in England, to the soft colors used on the walls and
on the upholstery, inspired by the original stained glass windows
in the lobby. In the Elfinwood Banquet space, there are also impressive
collectibles including a Bavarian Antler Collection intermingled
with English Transfer ware create a dramatic display and focal point
to the high ceilings within the room. This grand banquet room is
accented with unique period furnishings such as a Parisian Art Deco
Bar accented with lamps with antique lampshades hailing from the
famed New York club El Morocco.
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You
will enjoy a continental Breakfast, served on the Mezzanine level
where with floor to ceiling windows and
an
excellent view of the lobby, one can people watch while reading
the morning paper and enjoying fresh coffee, berry filled muffins,
whole grain cereal, eggs, fruit and juice selections. Later at Bulls
Eye Bistro, the hotel restaurant, you will be served excellent food
in a setting complete with vintage game collections of Carom Boards,
Chinese Checkers, DartBoards and an Antique Slot Machine.
This
is a wedding location destination, where a large botanical patio
garden and gazebo can host large weddings with an adjacent ballroom
and dance floor where guests are served from Gothic Antique Bars.
Here the couple can return on anniversaries and experience moonlit
evenings with Shakespeare under the stars. In the classic movie
"Somewhere in time" Christopher Reeves plays Richard Collier, a
modern play write who travels back in time to 1910 to fall in love
with Shakespearean actress Elise McKenna played by Jane Seymour.
In a reviting scene, he is torn back to his time and away from his
true love when he pulls a penny from 1989 out of his pocket and
is reminded he was from another time.
At
the Ashland Springs Hotel, there are few things to distract you
from reliving a gracious age of grandeur and at the same time experiencing
one of the most culturally edifying destinations in the Country.
Reflections
from the writer...
Twenty
years ago, I walked through Lythia Park, an enchanting mountain
park with a rushing creek running through the middle of its gardens,
meadows and playgrounds. Time spent here with friends was precious.
We were young and our children were small and they spent hours
wading in the creek near a vintage stone bridge that hinted of
the park history. Twenty years ago, I called this paradise home
and one day while sitting at the mineral fountain spring, I was
captivated by a little old lady Rose who spoke to me of Ashland
past.
Rose
spoke of the 1920's when people came to Ashland to rejuvenate
in Lithium rich mineral baths and gather in this little mountain
Mecca to celebrate the beauty of nature, family, friendship and
good health. She told me about the opening of the, then Lithia
Springs Hotel and travelers coming from great distances to marvel
a grandest hotel in the Pacific Northwest. There were band concerts
in the park and grand parties. It was a romantic era and I relived
it through her eyes while we sat at the fountain. At that time,
the hotel had fallen on bad times and its luster had faded.
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Upon
my return twenty years later, much has changed. Beautifu Rose
has long since passed away and those little feet that I once dipped
in Lithia Creek are now grown and stand with tiny feet beside
theirs that belong to my grandchildren. The magic that draws visitors
to Ashland remains the same and that once grand and shining landmark
that rose high on the hill overlooking the Rogue Valley has been
restored to her former glory as The Ashland Springs Hotel.
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