Lucerne Inn

Last updated
Lucerne Inn
USA Maine location map.svg
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Nearest city Dedham, Maine
Coordinates 44°42′10″N68°35′59″W / 44.70278°N 68.59972°W / 44.70278; -68.59972 Coordinates: 44°42′10″N68°35′59″W / 44.70278°N 68.59972°W / 44.70278; -68.59972
Area0.3 acres (0.12 ha)
Built1815 (1815)
Built byNathan Phillips
Architectural style Colonial Revival
NRHP reference # 82000742 [1]
Added to NRHPJune 16, 1982

The Lucerne Inn is a historic hotel and restaurant at 2517 Main Road (United States Route 1A) in Dedham, Maine. Its main house built in 1818 and repeatedly enlarged and renovated, the Lucerne Inn has served travelers for nearly 200 years. In the 1920s it was the centerpiece of an ultimately unsuccessful effort to develop a resort catering to the wealthy on nearby Phillips Lake. The inn was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. [1]

Dedham, Maine Town in Maine, United States

Dedham is a town in Hancock County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,681 at the 2010 census. The town includes the site of a Cold War airplane crash on Bald Mountain.

National Register of Historic Places federal list of historic sites in the United States

The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance. A property listed in the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, may qualify for tax incentives derived from the total value of expenses incurred preserving the property.

Contents

Description and history

The Lucerne Inn is set on the west side of Route 1A, roughly midway between Bangor and Ellsworth. Its main building is a 2-1/2 story wood frame structure, six bays wide, with a hip roof, clapboard siding, and a brick and granite foundation. A porch extends across the east-facing front, supported by paired Tuscan columns. To either side of this main block there are three bay extensions with front-gable roof, that on the left side further extended by an enclosed porch area. [2]

Bangor, Maine City in Maine, United States

Bangor is a city in the U.S. state of Maine, and the county seat of Penobscot County. The city proper has a population of 33,039, making it the state's 3rd largest settlement behind Portland (66,882) and Lewiston (36,221).

Ellsworth, Maine City in Maine, United States

Ellsworth is a city in and the county seat of Hancock County, Maine, United States. The 2010 Census determined it had a population of 7,741. Ellsworth was Maine's fastest growing city from 2000–2010, with a growth rate of nearly 20 percent. With historic buildings and other points of interest, including the nearby Acadia National Park, Ellsworth is popular with tourists.

One of Dedham's early settlers, Nathan Phillips, established a traveler's accommodation near this site in 1810. Under the auspices of his son the property grew to assume its present dimensions, and was known as the "Lake House". In 1925 this property, as well as all of the land surrounding Phillips Lake, was acquired by New York investor Harold M. Saddlemire, who proposed to a major resort development called "Lucerne-in-Maine". The Lake House was moved a short way to its present location and given a then-modern Colonial Revival restyling, with the intent that it would serve as a clubhouse for the facilities. A series of roads and house lots were laid out, the golf club (now the Lucerne-in-Maine Golf Club) was established, and a log lodge was built for the exclusive use of resort members. The resort had the support of a significant portion of the state's political and business elite. However, mismanagement of its funds, combined with the effects of the Great Depression, spelled the failure of the enterprise. [2]

Lucerne City in Switzerland

Lucerne is a city in central Switzerland, in the German-speaking portion of the country. Lucerne is the capital of the canton of Lucerne and part of the district of the same name. With a population of about 81,057 people, Lucerne is the most populous town in Central Switzerland, and a nexus of economics, transportation, culture, and media of this region. The city's urban area consists of 17 municipalities and towns located in three different cantons with an overall population of about 250,000 people.

Great Depression in the United States began in August 1929, when the United States economy first went into an economic recession

The Great Depression began in August 1929, when the United States economy first went into an economic recession. Everyone in the Great Depression struggled financially due to the collapse of the banking system. Although the country spent two months with declining GDP, it was not until the Wall Street Crash in October 1929 that the effects of a declining economy were felt, and a major worldwide economic downturn ensued. The stock market crash marked the beginning of a decade of high unemployment, poverty, low profits, deflation, plunging farm incomes, and lost opportunities for economic growth as well as for personal advancement. Altogether, there was a general loss of confidence in the economic future.

Today

The inn today offers rooms and suites, and has a dining room with a view overlooking the lake. Other amenities include a swimming pool, indoor and outdoor seating areas, and gazebos.

See also

National Register of Historic Places listings in Hancock County, Maine Wikimedia list article

This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Hancock County, Maine.

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References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2010-07-09). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 "NRHP nomination for Lucerne Inn". National Park Service. Retrieved 2015-03-07.