Paradise Historic District
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Paradise Historic District
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The guide dormitory at Paradise
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| Location | Mt. Rainier National Park, Paradise, Washington |
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| Coordinates | 46°47′11″N 121°44′4″W / 46.78639°N 121.73444°WCoordinates: 46°47′11″N 121°44′4″W / 46.78639°N 121.73444°W |
| Area | 10 acres (4.0 ha) |
| Architectural style | Rustic style |
| MPS | Mt. Rainier National Park MPS |
| NRHP Reference # | |
| Added to NRHP | March 13, 1991 |
The Paradise Historic District comprises the historic portion of Paradise developed area of Mount Rainier National Park. The subalpine district surrounds its primary structure, the Paradise Inn, a rustic-style hotel built in 1917 to accommodate visitors to the park. The Paradise Inn is a National Historic Landmark. Five other buildings are included in the district. The district was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 13, 1991. It is part of the Mount Rainier National Historic Landmark District, which encompasses the entire park and which recognizes the park's inventory of Park Service-designed rustic architecture.
The Paradise area had been burned by an 1885 forest fire that left a great deal of standing timber in a "silver forest", primarily Alaska Cedar. Much of this timber was harvested to build park structures, particularly the Paradise Inn. The area's chief attractions are the wildflower meadows above the built-up area. The development of the area was undertaken by the Rainier National Park Company, which built the Paradise Inn in 1917 and added the annex in 1920, as well as the Guide House the same year. Three other buildings were built by the National Park Service.
The Paradise area formerly included a group of 215 frame cabins built in 1930, served by the Paradise Lodge of 1931, which were open year-round. The cabins were sold in 1942 to be used to house defense workers As part of the Mission 66 program, the Paradise area was proposed as a day-use area, with the Inn to be demolished. Public pressure resulted in the preservation of the Inn and its renovation. The Paradise Lodge was intentionally burned on June 3, 1965 to make room for parking for the new Paradise Visitor Center.
The 1917 Paradise Inn is a large hotel with a prominent dormered roof, built in an "alpine" variant of the National Park Service Rustic style. The inn's interior features exposed log structure, with a high lobby housing handcrafted log furniture. Fourteen doors open off the lobby to the northeast, flanked by log buttresses that follow the slope of the roof to the ground, carrying the local snow loads. The Inn was designed by Heath, Grove and Bell, of Tacoma. Twenty-eight guest rooms were in an attached wing above the dining room, with a further wing housing suites and rooms.
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