ABOUT

Paradise Inn is a historic hotel built in 1916 at 5,400-foot (1,600 m) on the south slope of Mount Rainier in Mount Rainier National Park in Washington, United States. The inn is named after Paradise, the area of the mountain in which it is located.

History

The inn was designed by Frederick Heath of Heath, Gove & Bell in 1915. It was initially planned to be built at Longmire. The National Park Service moved the planned location to Paradise when the original financier, John Reese, backed away from the project. The inn was built by the Rainier National Park Company, founded by Steven T. Mather, assistant to the Secretary of the Interior. Native building materials were used including cedar shingles, native rock and weathered timbers salvaged from a fire in 1885. After 30 years of aging the timbers had developed an unusual silver sheen. The original plan called for a red roof but the Park Service vetoed this in favor of a green roof which blended in with the natural environment. This is in keeping with the National Park Service Rusticstyle of architecture. The inn opened on July 1, 1917 and cost between US$90,000 and US$100,000.