L. W. Currey, Inc.

(California: Shasta County) Tavern of Castle Crags, Geo. Schönewald, Manager. SHASTA AND THE CRAGS GEO. SCHÖNEWALD, MANAGER [cover title]. N.p., n.d. [Circa 1893-1900.]. 14.6x17.5 cm (oblong octavo), pp. [1-24] (not paginated), illustrations from photographs, floor plans, publisher's pictorial self wrappers, stapled. A well-illustrated promotional for the Tavern of Castle Crags, a luxurious nineteenth-century three-story resort hotel located in Castella, California, on the east side of the Sacramento River at the mouth of Soda Creek. The popular tavern and resort, hailed as the most "delightful" mountain retreat on the Pacific Coast, was built in 1892 by the Pacific Improvement Co., a subsidiary of the California & Oregon Railroad, later part of the Southern Pacific Railroad. "The tavern and resort were constructed in a meadow on the east side of the Sacramento River at the mouth of Soda Creek. At the time of its construction, it was the largest and most luxurious resort hotel ever built in Shasta County and included luxuries such as hot water and ice-making machines. The resort was located in a beautiful park-like area of over 6,000 acres on the main line of the railroad. Passenger trains stopped at a railroad station siding and bridge on the west side of the Sacramento River and passengers walked across the river on a footbridge to the resort property. The main building contained gables and broad verandas. It stood three stories tall, contained 250 rooms, had its own ice house capable of producing two tons of ice every 24 hours, a steam laundry, a power-generating system and three cooks to provide meals to a dining room seating 350 people. In 1893, a large luxuriously furnished addition with 200 sleeping apartments was constructed, complete with water piped to each room, an electric light system, bathhouses and barber shops. Weekly fees averaged $14. Eighty employees now worked at the resort. Also on the grounds were several log cabins, a clubhouse and a private dining room for children and their nurses or nannies. A spring house, which is still standing, dubbed "The Temple," was built nearby next to Soda Creek, where guests obtained cold, sparkling, mineral water" (Dottie Smith). The original tavern and resort were completely destroyed by a fire in 1900 caused by lightning. The site is now a private, gated retreat known as the Berry Estate (named for Clarence Berry, who purchased it in 1928) and is not open to the public. Short tear and several creases to first leaf, mild soiling to outer leaves, a very good copy. OCLC reports 4 copies. (#179120).

Price: $350.00