Chateau at the Oregon Caves

Story

The Oregon Caves Chateau is an historic American hotel that opened in 1934. It is located in Oregon Caves National Monument in southern Oregon, near Cave Junction. The Chateau was designed and built by Gust Lium, a local contractor. Declared a National Historic Landmark in 1987, the Chateau building is architecturally significant because of its construction and design.The Chateau is six stories high and is built across a steep ravine. All floor levels except the top two have ground level entrances because of the steep slope. From the main front entrance the building appears to be only three stories high, but from the creek bed below the hotel, all six floors can be seen. The lowest two floors house storage and building systems. The third floor contains the dining room, coffee shop and kitchen. The fourth floor, at the level of the driveway, houses the lobby and some guest rooms, while the fifth and sixth floors have guest rooms and the manager's quarters.Exterior architectureThe architecture of the Chateau building, as well as several other buildings nearby of the same age, is rustic. The building exterior is sheathed with cedar bark, giving it a shaggy appearance. Both shed and dormer style roofs mimic the surrounding mountains. Extensive rock work was constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps under the direction of the Plans and Design branch of the Park Service, headed by Thomas Chalmers Vint, creating a bond between the building and the landscape. A small pond with a waterfall is in the courtyard.