Catskill Mountain House Site
Posted by: 
briansnat
N 42° 11.665 W 074° 02.075
18T E 579710 N 4671813
This incredible overlook is at the former site of the historic Catskill Mountain House. It's about a 10 minute walk from parking at North Lake.
Waymark Code: WM2YAX
Location: New York, United States
Date Posted: 01/09/2008
Views: 100
The Catskill Mountain House was built in 1823 and soon became a popular tourist destination. It was expanded and redesigned several times and by the 1850's the hotel had become the preeminent tourist destination in the region and was a playground of the rich and famous. Presidents, generals, industrialists and prominent politicians were regular visitors.
The Mountain House was unmatched in size and grandeur until the 1880's, when several competing hotels were constructed. Competition from these and other area hotels took their toll on the Mountain House.
By the turn of the 20th century the rich and famous had moved on to other resorts and it struggled for survival. The Mountain House closed its doors in 1941.
Still its owner at the time had dreams of restoring it and made several attempts throughout the 50's, but he was ultimately unsuccessful. The hotel and surrounding land was sold to the state of NY in 1962.
The state deemed the hotel too expensive to restore and too unstable to remain, so the once grand hotel was burned to the ground by DEC rangers on Jan. 25, 1963.
Fortunately the outstanding view that attracted presidents, kings, senators and generals remains today.