Mile Marker 78: Oregon's Vista House

We were on the road to Portland, we saw a building on a ledge from the freeway, we stopped to see what we could see, from this historic stop, we could see everything.  Join us as we talk about the historic Vista House just outside of Portland, Oregon.

Transcript

Vista House

Key: Drifter, Male voice. Gypsie, Female voice

Uplifting rock/western tune plays for 15 seconds, music begins to taper down then:

(Drifter) Welcome to the Rebel At Large Adventure Podcast. I’m Drifter

(Gypsie) And I’m  Gypsie

(Drifter) Talking about Ghost towns,

(Gypsie) Graveyards,

(Drifter) Outlaws, Heroes

(Gypsie) And Ladies of the night.

Music tapers to an end

(Drifter) Howdy folks, Thanks for joining us for yet another adventure. Today we are taking you to the Pacific North West to a place surrounded by waterfalls and 20 mile views from a peak over 700 feet above the freeway. 

(Gypsie) Most of our travels are on the road, we like to have the freedom of driving and find it less stressful than flying, plus some places we travel to you can’t fly to! While on the road we notice a lot of rest stops and most times while I’m reading Drifter will ask me if I need to stop. Rest stops are also a great place for us if we need a place to sleep for the night. Some rest stops are very nice and well maintained while others are very run down and dirty. 

(Drifter) On a recent trip to the Portland, Oregon area, we made a stop at the Vista house, it has to be the fanciest rest stop we have ever been in. We didn’t stop to use the restroom this time, rather we stopped for the history of the building and the views of the Columbia River and the gorge it offers. Before we get into the history of the Vista House we need to talk a bit about the highway that takes you there. 

(Gypsie) Construction for the Columbia River Highway began in 1913. It’s 70 miles long and takes you through some beautiful and historic sites. Samuel C. Lancaster was the man behind the creation, and it was a major feat for him to create. The highway takes you to Multnomah Falls where you can see the second highest year round waterfall in  the United States. There is a paved trail you can hike on that will take you to a platform and give you a direct and unobstructed view of the falls and bridge. If you want to visit the falls you will need to make plans for it. You have to purchase a time permit that gives you access to the parking lot. You can also rent e-bikes if you want to ride up to it or you can take the Waterfall Shuttle. 

(Drifter) If you don’t want to deal with getting a permit, renting a bike, or paying for a shuttle you can continue on the Columbia River Highway, there is a lot more to see and do. You can stop and see the  Bonneville Lock and Dam. There are two visitor centers there where you can learn about how the dam works, the fish migration ladders and how much water flows through the dam. If that doesn’t sound like your jam you can continue on the Highway where you can see the Mosier Twin Tunnels that were opened in 1996. You can also see the Bridal Veil Falls where a paper mill once stood. All of these places we talked about have several hiking trails you can explore as well. 

(Gypsie) If you are interested in driving the Columbia River Highway, it is suggested to plan on 3 to 5 hours minimum. Or if you have more time you can stop and stay in several of the towns along the highway. To get to the Highway from Portland you need to take I-84 east to Sandy River in Troutdale. Take exit 18 and travel south along the Sandy River to the Sandy River Bridge. From there you will see keystone signs directing the way through Moiser, Rowena Crest and then to Chenoweth Creek. Also a little warning, the Highway is a small two lane road with several twists and turns, it has steep inclines and declines and we suggest not driving it if you are pulling a trailer, some of the spots may get a little scary. 

(Drifter) We were in a bit of a time crunch and did not have time to travel the Highway; rather we only drove it for a short while to get to the Vista House. (Gypsie) The part that we did drive on was very beautiful so I can only imagine what the rest of it is like. (Drifter) Prior to the Highway’s construction, travel through the area was very difficult. There were several routes through there but they were unpaved and travel was very slow. The completion of the Highway allowed for a more convenient and faster path through the area. This is the time when cars were starting to become a bigger deal, more people were taking vacations and this meant you would have more tourists if it were easier for them to travel in the area. 

(Gypsie) The new Highway made it so more people would come through the area and those people would spend money. Lorens Lund and his family were some of the first settlers in the area. He arrived in the summer of 1878 and loved the place so much that he stayed. When word got out they were going to build a road, Lorens supported the idea fully. He sold a parcel of land on Thor’s Height to Multnomah County for the road and then donated 1.5 acres to the City of Portland for the Vista House. 

(Drifter) As travelers made their way along the Highway it soon became known that a rest stop was needed for people to go to the bathroom, take a break, and freshen up. It was decided in 1916 that a modest rest stop would be built on the land donated by Lorens. It was originally meant to be underground restrooms at a cost of 18,000 dollars, which would be just over $540K today.

(Gypsie) John Yeon was put in charge of creating, designing, and overseeing the construction of the rest stop. John was so passionate about the project that he agreed to do it for free. He envisioned a place of beauty to match its surroundings. He wanted a place that people wanted to stop and see and it would provide them views of the area they could not see anywhere else. 

(Drifter) John hired architect Edgar Lazarus to design a building that could hold up to the 100 mph winds, not uncommon on the peak, and stand out in its beauty and design. 

(Gypsie) Construction began in early 1917 and the plans for a modest rest stop had evolved into a magnificent building. By July of that year it was estimated that almost 60,000 dollars had been spent on the building and wasn’t even completed (Drifter) (over $1.4M). (Gypsie) Over 15,000 dollars had been spent on the building, almost 2,000 dollars went towards the excavation and embankment. A little over 8,000 was spent on concrete and forms and about 900 was spent on incidentals. In all the final cost was 100,000 dollars (Drifter) (nearly $2.4M). 

(Drifter) What they ended up with was a 3 story octagonal shape building high up a cliff in one of the many bends of the Columbia River. The walls of the Vista house are made of Alaskan Marble and the floors are made of terrazzo. The wood finishings were made out of Tabasco mahogany. It is designed to be fireproof, which is good since its in the mountains and it would take the firefighters a long time to get to the building. They had a large 50 foot tunnel built underground that allowed visitors to walk out to a viewing area of the gorge. The tunnel is lined in the Alaskan marble and terrazzo floors as well as the steps. 

(Gypsie) Steam piping was installed in the basement but once the building was completed a steam heating system was never installed and the pipes were never used. Rather the building was heated electrically but they only heated the basement. The women's section had five lavatories, seven toilets for adults and one for the kids. The mens section had the same number as well as several urinals. In each of the sections was a vitreous china drinking fountain. 

(Gypsie) They built quarters for a full time attendant to live in. Lazarus believed that a full time caretaker was needed, he wrote (Drifter) “Provision has been made for quarters for the attendant. It is advisable that this station have an attendant, for vandals and petty thieves would not only destroy the fixtures, but wrench away any removable parts." (Gypsie) No caretaker was ever hired and no money was ever set aside for this position, which down the road would prove to be a bad decision to not have someone there full time watching over the place. 

(Drifter) They also built an emergency room if there was an accident on the highway. They even had a room built for motorcycle officers with a telephone that connected to other communication stations along the highway. They had a concession area built on the second floor that included payphone booths, vending machines, shoe polishing station, and newspaper stand. The hope was that money from the concession would pay for the upkeep and repairs to the building in the future. During construction John Yeon received several letters from people petitioning to sell paintings and postcards at the Vista House. Edward Dimmitt of Cross and Dimmitt was awarded the contract to sell souvenirs there. The third floor of the Vista house was designed as an observatory. It has several tall windows that give visitors a panoramic view and a place to come in from the cold. 

(Gypsie) May 5, 1918 construction on the vista house was completed and it was ready for the dedication. Roughly 2 thousand people showed up for the event. Frank Branch Riley gave a speech where he dedicated the memorial to the noble band of men and women, living and dead, who, following the racial movement into the setting sun, had reached the farthest west. There will be no more pioneers, he said, because beyond the ocean intervened and west becomes east again.  Mayor George Baker was there but he passed his responsibility of giving a speech on to John Yeon where he was introduced as the goat. The mayor did not want anyone in the city to think they had anything to do with the cost of the building, even though the land was donated to them. John got on the mic and said (Drifter) “For such a good cause, I am willing to be the goat.” 

(Drifter) The final and most memorable act of the dedication was when 6 small girls dressed in white passed between two lines of Royal Rosarians, as they did this they scattered rose petals on the ground. Behind them were four veterans carrying a large American Flag. After the men were three pioneer women and survivors of the Whitman massacre. As the Star Spangled Banner played the flag was raised up the large flag pole. The flag itself had a history. It was the same flag that was used at the white house when President Wilson was able to press a button and electricity was used to raise the flag. 

(Gypsie) Soon after the Vista House was dedicated, Nora Withrow filed a lawsuit asking for a detailed accounting of every cent spent on the building. The lawsuit stated that Multnomah County commissioners wrongfully entered into contracts for construction of the visitor center, and that the highway that circled it was only for millionaires who could afford cars, thus the visitor center would be used by the rich. Though the lawsuit did not go anywhere she was not wrong in her statement, at that time not everyone had a car, nor could they afford to travel. 

(Drifter) As visitors began to travel the highway and make stops at the vista house it soon earned the nickname (Gypsie) “Queen of Rest Stops” for the “King of Roads”, alluding to the Columbia highway.  (Drifter) A few days after the dedication, Columbia Optical donated a 1000 dollar telescope for visitors to use for free while there (Gypsie) (over $20K in value today). (Drifter) Edward Dimmitt set up his kiosk in the middle of the second floor and began selling paintings, postcards, and photographs of the area to travelers. Cafe’s, gas stations, and hotels began popping up around the Vista House as well. With more travelers that meant an opportunity to make some money. 

(Gypsie) Several suggestions were made that Dimmitt should have to pay a monthly fee of 50 dollars to sell his stuff there and that that money would be used to maintain the building, but nothing ever came of that (Drifter) (about $1K). (Gypsie) Lorens Lund who donated the land for the Vista House became somewhat of a caretaker but he was never paid for his services and was very limited at what he could do. After 10 years being open, the rest stop was starting to fall apart. The tile roof was leaking water down the walls destroying the plaster and paint. In 1939 a report was filed on the repairs needed to save the Vista House from destruction. Once the repairs were completed in 1941 it came to a final cost of 10,000 dollars (Drifter) (about $206K). 

(Drifter) In February 1947 Edward Dimmitt was given a 30 day notice to remove his kiosk at the Vista House. A new contract was offered to Jack Flaucher to sell his products there for 10.5 percent of the gross receipts going to support the rest stop. But soon complaints began to roll in from Patrons saying the place was in “Untidy conditions.” In 1958 Jack was facing a lawsuit. Mr. and Mrs. Montford Robert Moore was trying to restrain him from selling his goods and felt the place was meant to be just a scenic stop.  

(Gypsie) The State Parks who were in charge of running the Vista House did not want Jack to leave; they were receiving roughly 8 to 10 thousand dollars a year from him (Drifter) (up to around $105K). (Gypsie) (DriftThey challenged the lawsuit and though they ended up winning they were scolded by Judge Eugene Oppenheimer for allowing the viewing station to fall into disrepair and that it was a poor reflection on the state. 

(Drifter) Other repairs done to the Vista house Included a new copper roof that was installed and completed on September 24, 1949. Then in the mid-1950’s they installed an oil furnace in the basement to help with the moisture in the building but it did nothing to fix the issue. (Gypsie) I could not find a cost for the roof but the furnace cost almost 7,000 dollars, which would be about $79K today. (Drifter) Complaints were also made that all the lights around the outside of the Vista house were no longer working but they did not want to put the money into fixing them because the rest stop closed at 8pm and they felt light wasn’t needed. 

(Gypsie) In the spring of 1980 with the rest stop opened to the public it opened up this time without concessions. That same year President Ronald Reagan announced that he would be making a visit to the Vista House. Crews quickly got to work repairing the plaster, painting,  and cleaning and repairing the outside brick on the building. Unfortunately the president canceled his trip and as quickly as everyone was brought in to fix it they left just a quick.

(Drifter) In 1981 a report was filed and submitted to the Columbia River Highway Project and members of the National Park Service. In the report it stated that an estimated 2 million dollars was needed to restore the building (nearly $6.7M). It detailed the need to remove the copper roof and replace it with a tile roof, remove unused mechanical systems, reopen the lower level tunnel, remove the concrete top step that was covering the glass skylights, and restore the first floor windows. 

(Gypsie) In 1983 it was announced that a gallery would be opened in the rest stop. This time they didn’t want to set it up on the second floor, they wanted it set up in the basement. A suggestion that had been brought up years back but people didn’t think it would be successful down there. A group of volunteers got to working cleaning up the basement and by August 7th that year it was ready. They had several handmade items, paintings, photographs, and books all from local artists. Even Though they were unsure if the gift shop would work in the basement it proved to be a huge success. Today the gift shop is still in the basement and even if you don’t buy anything it is still worth the trip downstairs to see it. 

(Drifter) In 1998 the Vista House received several needed updates and repairs. The stone wall surrounding it was rebuilt and no longer falling down. 60,000 dollars went into the restoration of the windows (Gypsie) (just over $111K). (Drifter) In 1999 a large sign was placed on the east side of the parking lot. All of this was still not enough. In 2000 a wedding was held at the Vista House. While two of the Board members said their vows in front of friends and family a large piece of plaster for the ceiling fell onto the cake. It was becoming more clear that if the Vista House wanted to stay open it would need millions of dollars worth of work to do so. 

(Gypsie)  In August 2001 a restoration project was started at a cost of roughly 1.1 million (Gypsie) (closer to $1.9M today). (Drifter) Crews fenced off the area, placed trailers to be used as the gift shop and construction office, and got to work. They started with the outside, they ground out and re-tucked all the joints of the sandstone bricks.  But they soon found that the winter's up there were too difficult for them to work in and they moved inside to start work on the basement. When the crew was forced to move inside the volunteers were given one week to move everything out. They enlisted the help of inmates at the Multnomah County Corrections. 

(Drifter) Spring of 2002 they were unable to open the Vista House like they had done for so many years. They still needed to install the new tile roof. They had new glass windows with iron frames to install, as well as replace the 3rd floor viewing decks floor with tiles that looked just like the original ones but they had a waterproof membrane on them to help keep the elements out. It was reported that for the first few weeks of the Vista House opening every spring volunteers would spend time cleaning up roughly 120 gallons of water that had leaked into the building. They were hoping with the new restoration project that not only would it bring a new shine to the building but it would also help with all the water making its way inside. 

(Gypsie) The volunteers at Vista House got a huge surprise when they received a 200,000 dollar grant from the Save America’s Treasures Program (Drifter) (over $337K today). (Gypsie) The newly acquired money would dramatically help with finishing the inside of the building. They received another surprise in September that year, they received a grant of 100,000 from the Meyer Memorial Trust (Drifter) (just shy of $169K). (Gypsie) The trust was created by Fred G. Meyer, who some of you may or may not know this name but he created the chain store Fred Meyer’s. 

(Drifter) Things were looking great for the Vista House as well as the volunteers running the place. As 2004 was approaching they were nearly complete and hopefully would be ready to open that season. Unfortunately in January of 2004 everything was put on hold. The city found out that in order for the Vista House to be in all compliance they needed to install ramps to get into the building as well as a way to access the basement. Things that were never thought of back in 1918 when it was first built. 

(Gypsie) The construction for the building was basically completed and word was getting around that the Vista House would be open by spring, but with the new ADA requirements in place they had to stop everything while they designed an elevator as well as ramps into the building. The volunteers where still allowed to operate out of the trailers but this was not enough, people were excited to see the newly restored building. The volunteers argued with the city that they should be allowed to open the building even though it was not ADA compliant. 

(Drifter) It was finally agreed on that if a ramp was installed outside of the building that they could open it but they would not be allowed to open the basement until an elevator was installed. They installed a ramp that wraps around the stair case that is off to the side of the main entrance. This put them closer to being complaint but it still wasn't enough. Opening the second floor and leaving the basement closed off seemed like an idea that could work but without the ability to open the gift shop in the basement how would they make money? 

(Gypsie) Soon they were put in contact with a company that felt they could design an elevator that would not take away the beauty of the second level and it would not damage the Alaskan marble on the floor. With the new elevator plans in place the city allowed them to open the Vista House back up for guests. Temporary bathrooms were placed outside of the building and volunteers were more than eager to get guests that were unable to make it into the basement anything they needed or wanted.  

(Drifter) The city gave them until September 2006 to have the elevator put in place. They gave them permission to open up the Vista House for guests but if they did not meet the deadline the city would be forced to close the basement off again. The lift is built into the floor of the second floor. When the lift is in the basement you would have no idea there was even a lift there. The top part of the lift has the original marble floor placed on it and when in the down position it blends in perfectly. Unfortunately, We were not able to see the lift in action. 

(Gypsie) The grand reopening celebration was set for April 28, 2006. It was a total cost of 4 million dollars but it brought back life, and beauty to a building that holds a special place in several peoples hearts and will hopefully be around for another 100 years (Drifter) (just over $6M today). (Gypsie) On May 5, that year they had a large anniversary party to celebrate 88 years of the Vista House. Several speakers talked about the joy the building has brought to the area. They were followed by the flag being raised by the Royal Rosarians. Finally they had a ribbon cutting and the building was ready and open for guests. They had a vintage car show in the parking lot, as well as a fly by of two antique biplanes. Several of the guests were dressed in costumes as well. 

(Drifter) Today if you want to visit the Vista House you can see it during the hours of 9am to 5pm. They are closed Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The building also closes if the winds in the area reach over 50mph. We could not see anything saying that they close during the winter but to be honest driving those roads in the winter are going to be a little on the dangerous side. If you ever get the chance to stop and see this rest stop make sure you take the time to do so. It's well worth the stop and the views it offers are views you will never get to see anywhere else. 

(Drifter) Well, I think that wraps up our stop and history of the one and only Vista House. 

(Drifter) Dad Joke

(Drifter) Alright then. Thank you all so very much for joining us and supporting the Rebel At Large adventure podcast. As alway’s, if we're active at all, we’re most active on the Instagram (Gypsie) @rebelatlarge if you want to see what we’re up to. You can find links to our email, patreon, merch store in the show notes and any of our social deals. (Drifter) We’ll talk to ya here in a couple of weeks, (Gypsie) Safe Travels, (Drifter) We’ll see ya down the road.

Begin 30 seconds of the same uplifting Rock/Western tune as the introduction.