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| Keywords: bon echo inn bonechoinn bon echo bonecho dr. weston price drwestonprice flora macdonald denison floramacdonalddenison merrill denison merrilldenison 1935 mazinaw photo border road outdoor architecture This group of 6 photos show different angles of the Bon Echo Inn on Mazinaw Lake. All 6 photos were taken in 1935 one year before the devastating fire that destroyed the Inn in 1936. The information below is cited from 'The Mazinaw Experience' by John Campbell - available in the online bookstore of the CDHS: www.cloynepioneermuseum.ca Many interesting details about the Inn can be found in John Campbell's book. Bon Echo Inn was constructed on the peninsula across from Mazinaw Rock in 1899 by Dr. Weston Price, a dentist from Cleveland, Ohio. Dr. Price grew up in Newburg north of Napanee and spent his summers on the Weese farm on the lower Mazinaw. On his honeymoon with the new Mrs. Price, they came to the Mazinaw for camping and fell in love with the property that is now Bon Echo. The Prices purchased land from the Weese and Tapping families to form the Bon Echo Inn property with an intent to build a lodge for like-minded naturalists. Dr. Price continued to practice dentistry in Cleveland. In only a year and a half the new hotel was built near the Narrows. A fire 10 years before had burned all vegetation from the peninsula so the first order was to remove the charred remains. A portable sawmill was used to produce between 23,500 and 30,500 metres of needed lumber for the Inn and outbuildings. The Inn was designed by Cleveland architect Charles E. Tousley and was not a simple task to build. All supplies had to be brought in by wagon along the Addington Colonization Road. Many local people were skilled carpenters and eager for work at reasonable wages. Unskilled workers were paid $1.00/day and experienced carpenters $1.50. One storm blew down the north wall (photo) and with the high cost of nails, all nails were salvaged and straightened. By 1901 a number of buildings have been completed as this collection of photos will show (28+ photos). In 1906 the rates of the Inn ranged from $9-$15.00 per week, a rate considered relatively steep for the period. After a decade of successful operation the Prices sold the Inn to Flora MacDonald Denison and her husband Howard in 1910. From 1913 to the 1920s the Inn became a centre for visitors interested in painting , theatre and the arts. In May 1921 Flora MacDonald Denison died of pneumonia and her son Merrill was the inheritor of the Inn and all of the property. During Merrill's ownership of the Inn many of the Group of Seven stayed and painted Bon Echo. The Inn did well financially throughout the 1920s. With the advent of the depression the Inn was forced to close in 1929 and was struck by lighting in September 1936 and burned to the ground. This group of 6 photos show different angles of the Bon Echo Inn on Mazinaw Lake. All 6 photos were taken in 1935 one year before the devastating fire that destroyed the Inn in 1936. The information below is cited from 'The Mazinaw Experience' by John Campbell - available in the online bookstore of the CDHS: www.cloynepioneermuseum.ca Many interesting details about the Inn can be found in John Campbell's book. Bon Echo Inn was constructed on the peninsula across from Mazinaw Rock in 1899 by Dr. Weston Price, a dentist from Cleveland, Ohio. Dr. Price grew up in Newburg north of Napanee and spent his summers on the Weese farm on the lower Mazinaw. On his honeymoon with the new Mrs. Price, they came to the Mazinaw for camping and fell in love with the property that is now Bon Echo. The Prices purchased land from the Weese and Tapping families to form the Bon Echo Inn property with an intent to build a lodge for like-minded naturalists. Dr. Price continued to practice dentistry in Cleveland. In only a year and a half the new hotel was built near the Narrows. A fire 10 years before had burned all vegetation from the peninsula so the first order was to remove the charred remains. A portable sawmill was used to produce between 23,500 and 30,500 metres of needed lumber for the Inn and outbuildings. The Inn was designed by Cleveland architect Charles E. Tousley and was not a simple task to build. All supplies had to be brought in by wagon along the Addington Colonization Road. Many local people were skilled carpenters and eager for work at reasonable wages. Unskilled workers were paid $1.00/day and experienced carpenters $1.50. One storm blew down the north wall (photo) and with the high cost of nails, all nails were salvaged and straightened. By 1901 a number of buildings have been completed as this collection of photos will show (28+ photos). In 1906 the rates of the Inn ranged from $9-$15.00 per week, a rate considered relatively steep for the period. After a decade of successful operation the Prices sold the Inn to Flora MacDonald Denison and her husband Howard in 1910. From 1913 to the 1920s the Inn became a centre for visitors interested in painting , theatre and the arts. In May 1921 Flora MacDonald Denison died of pneumonia and her son Merrill was the inheritor of the Inn and all of the property. During Merrill's ownership of the Inn many of the Group of Seven stayed and painted Bon Echo. The Inn did well financially throughout the 1920s. With the advent of the depression the Inn was forced to close in 1929 and was struck by lighting in September 1936 and burned to the ground. | ||||
