Lake McDonald Lodge in Glacier National Park was opened in 1914. It was then known as Lewis Glacier Hotel and was renamed in 1957. The front is on the lakeside because all early visitors came by boat since the first roads weren’t completed until 1921. After Glacier National Park was established in 1910, the need for expanded accommodations arose, and the lodge was built. It is interesting that, for many years, the Great Northern Railway operated everything in the Park except the lodge, which was privately owned and on private land. It was sold to the National Park Service in 1930. The first photo is dated 1920 and shows the front before it became obscured. The side view is from 1915.
