Hotels in Payette
By Ron Marlow
A publication with wide mid-west circulation that included photos of large and beautiful Payette Valley homes (real or not) influenced investors to come west. This publication of the early 1920s reported:
"Lack of space prevents this paper from doing justice to the beautiful, sunny Payette Valley. Much has been unsaid to round out the picture as it exists in the writer's mind - a vision of loveliness. We cannot speak too highly of the thrift and enterprise and patience which have wrought the marvels that unfailingly fascinate all who visit this spot. Nor can we say too much for the wholesome honor and sterling worth of character at the builders of this valley.
We can truthfully say that we have never met such a fortunate combination of all the natural, climatic, commercial, industrial, educational and social elements in any one community and we know of no happier or more prosperous people than those in the Payette River Valley."
Inquisitive investors can west by rail as there were no highways and few autos. The Oregon Short Line main line railroad delivered them to the Payette depot and they headed to the nearest hotels, watering holes and restaurants. This is a story of Payette's hotels.
The Payette Hotel was built in the 1885 - owned by Ethel Clausen who offered room and board to patrons. It was on the west side of the block between 1st and 2nd Avenue North facing the railroad tracks. Many patrons were railroad workers.
Peter Pence owned a two-story hotel in the old town of Weiser on the south side of the river. When the railroad came through in 1884 the depot was built about a mile west of the old Weiser townsite. The town moved so Mr. Pence loaded his hotel on wagons and moved it to Payette in 1885. It was located on a lot north of the A. B. Moss Payette Merc (now the senior citizen’s center). This was Payette's first hotel - the Pence Hotel - later the Oriental Hotel. It was destroyed by fire years later.
Early hotels did not have electricity - relying on kerosene lamps - did not have plumbing - only wash basins with water pitchers in rooms. The rest room was out back, or a chamber pot under the bed.
Hotel Idaho, built in 1892, on South Main Street housed the offices of financier A. B. Allen. The Hotel ran into financial difficulties after two years of operation. On October 18, 1894, a sheriff's sale disposed of all the furnishings and property. Bert and May Gilmore purchased the Hotel and renamed it "The Commercial" in the spring of 1904. They hosted a banquet honoring Payette High School graduates.
Gilmore Hotel, built in 1893 was on the east side of North Main Street (120 North Main) by W. W. "Bert" Gilmore and wife May Gilmore. The upper parts of the old wooden building are still visible. The top floor windows can be seen, painted green, in back of the present day Field of Dreams.
Commercial Hotel was on the east side of Main Street at 1st Avenue South (101 South Main) where the U.S. Bank is now located. It was owned by the Gilmores. The first floor was in the ground a few feet. To enter the lobby one had to go down a flight of five or six steps. A small house was built in back for D.J. Scott, doctor.
The Bancroft Hotel was built in 1916 one the east side of Main Street at Center Avenue (where Bancroft Park is located) by H. E. Dunn for $50,000. There were 52 large rooms of which only 25 had private baths. The coffee shop could seat 50 people and meals were served at all hours. In the basement was a large dance floor and banquet rooms for private and public gatherings.
Without side entrances, on the north side (Center Avenue), were the offices of fruit dealer, Frank Arata. The Fitch Realty and Insurance Company was on the north east side of the building. Dr. M. F. Clark, H. J. Davis Real Estate, Hamm Sodja (later Reece Jenkins) had a tobacco shop. A clothing store, teen center and Penny Annie's store came later. About 1940 Joe Morris remodeled the restaurant into Joe's Bar.
The Hotel was truly the meeting place of the Payette Valley. Eastern fruit buyers rented rooms each fall.
In 1948 Don French became the owner - then Jay and Barbara Fitch - then Bud McGary. In 1971 Mr. and Mrs. Eugene Daines assumed ownership and started an extensive remodeling project to bring the building up to code and city standards.
In the early morning hours of Friday, January 19, 1979 a fast burning fire swept the Hotel claiming the lives of four people. It was reduced to ashes by 5 a.m. Sunday. The entire town turned out to offer assistance and food and drinks to the firemen and emergency crews who responded from Fruitland, Ontario, New Plymouth, Weiser and Payette. This was the last of the hotels in town. One by one they succumbed to the changing times and public needs. A nationwide network of highways challenged the motoring public.
They jumped into their cars and, after 400 or 500 miles on the road, they wanted to be able to drive up to a motel conveniently located adjacent to the highway and spend the night with the comforts of air-conditioning or instant heat. There always seemed to be eating establishments nearby. Passenger train travel declined and was almost nonexistent after 1971 the exception of some Amtrak runs.
When hotels were built no one thought of insulating them. As a result the second and third floors were extremely warm in the summer. Fans were the only relief. In the winter, buildings were heated by huge coal furnaces which required constant attention. The temperature was regulated by the whims of the manager. The linens were changed only when they got noticeably dirty. Rooms with baths were a rarity, most had a shared bath down the hall.
There was no thought of safety for patrons in case of fire. No fire escapes or fire exits existed. As a result many hotels were fire traps.
To remodel an old public building, install insulation, new wiring, new plumbing and heating with cost prohibitive. It was cheaper to demolish the building. With the demand for hotel rooms falling off hotels were soon a relic and memory of the past.