Canyon of Arizona * Californi Regional ElTovar By Fred Harvey A New Hotel at Grand Canyon of Arizona Text by W. H. Simpson Cover by Louis Akin Photos by Detroit Photographic Co, Putnam & Valentine, and others. Grand Canyon of Arizona NO ONE can describe it to you. It must be seen not once, but many times. Only by frequent visits may a small portion of its ineffable loveliness be apprehended. For a distance of nearly 500 miles (from tbe junction of the Grand and Green rivers in Southern Utah to the mouth of the Rio Virgen), the Colorado River flows through a series of deep canyons, culminating in the Grand Canyon of Arizona. This latter chasm begins near the mouth of the Little Colorado River and extends southwest 217 miles. The granite gorge section is sixty-five miles long. Here the plateau level varies from 6,500 to 8,000 feet above the sea. The river has carved a winding channel through the uplift more than a mile deep and from ten to thirteen miles wide. In this titanic trough are hundreds of mountains more imposing than Mount Washington, yet none of which project their peaks above the canyon's rim. The ages-old rock strata are many- tinted, creating a rainbow sea of color. There are safe trails at three points on the southern side from rim to river. The civilized world first heard of the Grand Canyon in 1540, when it was discovered by early Spanish explorers. From then until the middle of the nineteenth century it remained practically unvisited. The rediscovery of this notable world-wonder by Maj. J. W. Powell occurred in 1869. The journal of his venturesome journey in frail boats down unknown rapids and waterfalls, braving the dangers of sunken rocks and powerful eddies, is an epic story of sub- limest heroism, modestly told. Not until the building of the Santa Fe's 'cross-the- continent line in 1884 was the scene of Major Powell's exploits made easily accessible. To-day there is a branch railway from Williams, Ariz., on the main California line of the Santa Fe, to the head of Bright Angel trail, in the middle of the Grand Canyon district. Visitors now number thousands yearly, where a decade ago they were counted by dozens. The latest triumph of the American invader is the new $250,000 hotel, El Tovar, described in these pages. THREE 1 Tovar^from the North El Tovar t from the South An All-the-Year-'Round-Resort IT IS now so easy to reach the Grand Canyon, and you are so delightfully cared for at El Tovar, that every Cali- fornia traveler should make the short detour and arrange for at least a few days' stay. Two or three weeks and more could be profitably spent here. This section of Arizona is an all-the-year-'round resort. In summer the altitude, averaging 7,000 feet, insures cool nights and comfortable days. The atmosphere has so little moisture that even at midday the heat is never oppressive. A step into the shade brings instant coolness, should it happen that you tire of the glorious sunshine. In winter the nights are moderately cold and the days pleasantly warm. Before breakfast there may be ice by the roadside. By ten o'clock the fervid sun dominates a cloudless sky, and the air seems like June. Thick wraps are then thrown aside. Snow rarely falls until midwinter and does not last long; by going part way down into the canyon you may altogether avoid it. Winter in Arizona is, as a rule, very enjoyable. On any day there is a tonic quality in the thin air that makes action a delight. You walk and ride horseback and take long drives in the open without a hint of fatigue. Merely to be alive is joy enough. You feel a kinship with nature. You welcome the quick tan of the sun. You loiter for hours on the brink of some sheer cliff. You penetrate park-like pine woods and toil up steep trails. Inside and out you are a new person. Concerning Pedro de Tovar NEARLY everything worth while in the Southwest dates back to Francisco Vasquez Coronado, the Spanish governor of Galacia, who left Mexico in the year 1540, accompanied by several hundred warriors, in search of the mythical seven cities of Cibola. Coronado and his men found no gold, but they discovered New Mexico, Arizona, and other sections of the Rockies. Their most spectacular "find" was the Grand Canyon of Arizona. Chief among Coronado's lieutenants was a conquistador FIVE named Don Pedro de Tovar, leader of the detachment that explored and conquered the province of Tusayan, now known as Hopiland. His father was lord high steward to Queen Dona Juana. While among the Hopis, Tovar heard of the Grand Canyon, which borders old Tusayan on the west. He reported the tale to Coronado, and Cardenas was sent to verify it. Cardenas reported that the Tison (Firebrand) River meaning the Colorado seemed to be three or four hundred leagues across from bank to bank; his party spent several days looking in vain for a passage down to the water; those who descended part way swore that the rocks which seemed no taller than a man were really bigger than the great tower of Seville. Though not the first white man to see this sublimest of gorges, Tovar was largely instrumental in its discovery, so when the Santa Fe needed an appropriate name for the new hotel at Bright Angel, El Tovar was selected. It is a fad of the Santa Fe and of Mr. Harvey to name their finest railway station hotels after the Spaniards of the Conquest. The Alvarado, at Albuquerque, commemorates Capt. Hernando de Alvarado, commander of artillery for Coronado's expedition and the first European to visit Acoma. The Castaneda, at Las Vegas, is named for Pedro de Castaneda, of Najeras, Spain, the principal historian of Coronado's expedition. The Cardenas, at Trinidad, keeps green the memory of Don Garcia Lopez de Cardenas, a captain in Coronado s army, the first white man to behold the Grand Canyon. The Hotel in General OCCUPYING a site 7,000 feet above sea-level, close to the rim of the Grand Canyon, at the railway terminus and not far from the head of Bright Angel trail, El Tovar commands a prospect without parallel in the world. A perpendicular mile from rim to river (seven miles by trail) and thirteen dizzy miles across to the opposite canyon wall, is the story of the measuring line. The roaring Colorado below looks like a silvery thread. Its tumult seldom reaches thii3 stillness of the upper air. On three sides are the fragrant pines of Coconino, a Government forest reserve and the largest continuous belt of pine timber in the United States. Everywhere a riot of color and beauty of form. El Tovar is a long, low, rambling edifice, built of native boulders and pine logs from far-off Oregon. The width north and south is three hundred and twenty-seven feet and from east to west two hundred and eighteen feet. Its lines are in harmony with the simplicity of the surroundings. The architect has combined in admirable pro- portions the Swiss chalet and the Norway villa. Here are expressed a quiet dignity, an unassuming luxury, and an appreciation of outing needs. Not a Waldorf-Astoria admirable as that type is for the city ---but a big country clubhouse, where the traveler seeking high-class accommo- dations also finds freedom from ultra fashionable restrictions. You may wear a dress suit at dinner or not. You may mix with the jolly crowd or sit alone in a quiet nook. You may lunch at almost any hour of the day or night. You may dine with other guests or enjoy the seclusion of a private dining-room. Good fellowship perhaps best expresses the motto of El Tovar. The hotel is from three to four stories high. It contains more than a hundred bedrooms. The main building and entrance face the east. Ample accommodations are provided for 250 guests. More can be comfortably housed in the annex at Bright Angel Camp. Outside are wide porches and roof gardens. Boulders and logs for the walls and shakes for the roof, stained a weather-beaten color, merge into the gray-green of the surroundings. The inside finish is mainly peeled slabs, wood in the rcugh, and tinted plaster, interspersed with huge wooden beams. Triple casement windows and generous fireplaces abound. Indian curios and trophies of the chase are liberally used in the decorations. The furniture is of special pattern. El Tovar is more than a hotel ; it is a village devoted to the entertainment of travelers. Far from the accustomed home of luxury, money has here summoned the beneficent genii who NINE minister to our bodily comfort. Merely that you may have pure water to drink, it is brought from a mountain spring 120 miles away! And that is only one of the many provisions ">r unquestioned excellence of shelter and food. The hotel is conducted on the American plan. There are -nty rooms at $3.50 a day ; about forty rooms at $4.00 a lay; the remainder are $4.50 a day and upwards. Bright Angel Camp TO accommodate those desiring less expensive quarters. Bright Angel Camp old Bright Angel Hotel remodeled has been opened on the European plan. Rooms 75 cents a day each person, meals at Harvey cate. The lodg- ings and fare here are of a simpler kind than at El Tovar, but clean, wholesome, and thoroughly comfortable. This Camp admirably supplements the higher-class service at the big hotel. The Rendezvous LEAVING the train at the station a short distance from the hotel, you proceed up a winding road to the main entrance, a hasty glimpse through low cedars revealing the far canyon wall. Above the wide steps and in front of the Norway gable, hospitably swings the Tovar coat-of-arms. On the broad porch are numerous rocking-chairs and small tables, with a push-button handy for ordering light refreshments, The porch corners are of solid rough masonary, built in old mission style, the arches wide and low. The first impression is one of good cheer. Once inside, the traveler will willingly linger a few moments in the Rendezvous or Nimrod's Cabin. This is a large room, forty-one by thirty-seven feet, notable for uneven walls of dark stained logs and bulky rafters. In a huge corner fire- place pine knots burn cheerily when the air is chilly. From the low roof hang electric lights placed in log squares swinging at the end of long chains. Gray Navajo rugs cover the ELEVEN The Ladies' Lounging Room The Office brown floor. There are cosy tete-a-tetes and easy chairs. On an upper shelf repose heads of the deer, elk, moose, mountain sheep, and buffalo, mingling with curiously shaped and gaudily tinted Indian jars from the Southwest pueblos. An old-fashioned clock ticks off the hours. A small escritoire reminds you of letters to be written to the home folks. Recessed window seats, partly hidden by red curtains, com- plete the picture. What wonder that every morning and evening most of the guests gather in this room the ladies to read and gossip; the gentlemen to smoke and tell of their latest adventures. Few country clubs have as pleasant a meeting place ; yet it is only one of El Tovar's many allurements. The Office and Ladies* Lounging Room CROSS the western edge of the Rendezvous and you are in the Rotunda, the center of the hotel's many activi- ties and its very necessary hub. Whether bound for dining-room or parlors, for guest chamber or amusement room ; whether attracted by the click of billiards below or the brightness of the roof-garden above, all paths here intersect. On the first floor is the Office. A story above, reached by an easily ascended stairway, is the Ladies' Lounging Room, nestled around an octagonal open space that extends from the Office to the roof. After registering at the clerk's desk and before starting to the room assigned, you notice that to the right is a rustic stand where are sold those indispensable things newspapers, magazines, cigars, and sweetmeats. Just beyond is the Art Room, devoted to the sale of paintings and photographs; on the walls hang paintings of Southwest scenery from the brushes of noted American artists, including some of Thomas Moran's masterpieces. Yellow hangings and electric lights brighten the dark tones of the woodwork in the Office. Standing at the clerk's desk you may look up and occasionally catch fleeting glimpses of fair faces smiling over the rotunda rail at some friend below. THIRTEEN A Suite Sitting Room The Ladies Lounging Room is draped with crimson hangings. In it the better half of the world may see without being seen ---may chat and gossip may sew and read ---may do any of the inconsequent nothings which serve to pleasantly pass the time away. The first impression of hospitality is deepened and you more fully realize what is in store for those who make El Tovar their temporary home. The Sleeping-Rooms THERE are more than a hundred of them. They are found on all four floors. The Arizona sunshine generously enters each one at some hour of the day. No dark, gloomy corners--- everything is bright and cheerful. The canyon may be seen from nearly every window; not always the whole panorama, but sections of it. Of these sleeping-rooms, all but twelve have rough sand- finished walls and ceilings, appropriately tinted in Nile green, buff, and cream colors. The remaining dozen are larger than the omers and more elaborately decorated, the walls being attractively papered and the furniture of rich pattern. The floors are covered with Wilton carpets. Steam heat, electric lights and office telephones are provided--- willing servants quickly to do your bidding. On the first and second floors are forty-two rooms en suite. There are twenty-one commodious bath-rooms, white as snow and kept spotlessly clean. On the office and first floors are two private parlors, en suite. The furniture is mostly of arts and crafts design, made to order at the best factories ---nothing cheap nor tawdry; in the suite rooms colonial style, mahogany finish, is used ; in the other rooms, weathered oak, old mission style. As you enter from the corridor the open bedroom door reveals a restful scene, in which plate-glass mirrors, fine linen, filmy lace curtains and leather couches each contnbute their quota of daintiness. Think of a comfort, here it is --- even that chiefest one, a bed that is neither too hard nor too soft, but just right FIFTEEN The Dining Room WHEN travel stains are washed off and fresh garments are donned it is time for dinner. You are directed to the great Norway dmmg-room. It is quadrangular in form, eighty-nine feet long by thirty-eight feet wide, arched overhead, the roof supported by six huge log trusses. Walls and trusses and roof are all finished in rough wood and are as brown as a coffee berry. The two end fireplaces are built of gray sandstone. A dozen electroliers of rustic pattern hang from the ceiling. Electric wall lights and candelabra for the side tables complete the lighting. Through any one of the many triple windows may be seen the large-eyed stars; for here the sky seems to bend closer to earth than in lower altitudes. The tables are adorned wifli glass, silver and flowers. You also notice old brass dishes, antique Dutch and English platters, and Indian ollas, displayed on the plate rail. Well-trained waitresses, in white uniforms, deftly serve the meal, which is Harvey s best. While you are leisurely dining it is pleasant to look around and see who your neigh- bors are. They have come here from every section ---perhaps a New York banker, a Harvard professor, an Arizona ranch- man, an English globe-trotter, and a German savant. Pretty women and lovely children complete the picture. The dinner itself is prepared under the direction of a capable Italian chef, once employed in New York and Chicago clubs. He presides over one of the most complete and up-to-the-minute hotel kitchens in the United States. On the right of the main entrance is a small breakfast room, tastefully decorated in fifteenth century style. On the left is a private dining-room, whose wall decorations mainly consist of Indian deer hieroglyphics reproduced from old pictographs in Mallery's grotto. SEVENTEEN A Private Dining Room The Solarium The Music Room AT the end of the north wing, on the office floor, fronting the canyon's abyss, is a spacious room devoted to refined amusements. The wall decorations are of gold, trimmed in old ivory, imitating fifteenth century leather. Sunshine streams in from numerous windows, whose seats of upholstered leather and curtains of French arras look very inviting. When the Oriental rugs are removed from the waxed floor and the Chickering grand piano gives forth a Strauss waltz, tired indeed is the guest who will not be tempted to try at least one dance. The music-room is so admirably located and so daintily furnished that it is a favorite resort for lovers of music, cards and dancing. The Solarium, Grotto, and Roof Gardens WHERE the south wing terminates, and on the office floor, is a sunny, glass-enclosed nook, open on three sides and sheltered from cool north winds. It is called the Solarium or Sun-Parlor. To this retreat come the ladies, with sewing baskets and books. The wicker chairs are comfortable and you may work or talk or nap undisturbed. It is quite the fad to take a sun bath here. Down below is the Grotto, a shady, half underground affair, adorned with graceful palms and made social by little tables on which are often seen thin glasses full of cracked ice and other things. Gentlemen may stroll in the Grotto and enjoy a friendly game of cards. On the top floor and out of doors are two Roof Gardens, where light refreshments are served. By daylight the outlook is magnificent --- across the Grand Canyon and Coconmo Forest. The Amusement Room and Clubroom ON the ground floor, easily reached from the office and from the rim pathway, is the Amusement Room, fitted with billiard, pool, and card tables, and shuffle- boards. Adjacent is the Clubroom not a showy place, but NINETEEN subdued in tone and with simple furnishings. Across the way is the harber shop, which is also headquarters for a masseur, manicurist, and chiropodist. General Information EL TOVAR has A complete laundry fitted with the latest machinery. An ice plant and an ice machine. A water tower and tank, capacity 162,000 gallons; extra pure spring water is brought from Del Rio, Ariz., 120 miles distant; every pound of ice is made from triple-distilled water---for drinking purposes it is also aerated; 28,000 gallons of water are used daily. Ample fire protection; convenient fire escapes; hose and reels on each floor; fire hydrants and portable extinguishers. A motor for running the ice-cream machinery, ice cubator, coffee-mill, printing-press, and ice-crusher. A power house, burning many barrels of oil daily. An electric-light plant, comprising two generators of 3,000 lamps capacity and operated by a tandem compound engine. A complete sewage system; all sewage is piped under- ground to an antiseptic tank for reduction. A herd of Jerseys and a poultry farm, supplying fresh milk, butter, and eggs. The Hopi House A SHORT distance east of El Tovar and a stone's throw from the sheer canyon wall is the Hopi House, an irregular stone structure, plastered with adobe, cover- ing a ground space sixty by ninety feet and rising three stories high. It looks like an Indian pueblo ; and so it is, in miniature. If you have ever witnessed the snake dance at Oraibi you may have seen on a side street the original of this picturesque building. These quaintly-garbed Indians on the housetop hail from Tewa, the home of Nampeyo, the most noted pottery-maker TWENTY-ONE Trail Party Leaving El Tovar Corner of the Rendezvous in all Hopiland. Perhaps you are so fortunate as to see Nampeyo herself. Here are Hopi men, women, and children some deco- rating and burning exquisite pottery; others spinning yarn and weaving squaw dresses, scarfs, and blankets. Go inside and you see how these gentle folk live. The rooms are little and low, like their small-statured occupants. The floors and walls are as cleanly as a Dutch kitchen. The Hopis are making "piki, twining the raven black hair of the "manas" in big side whorls, smoking corn-cob pipes, building sacred altars, mending moccasins ---doing a hundred un-American things. They are the most primitive Indians in America, with ceremonies several centuries old. It is almost as good as a trip to the province of Tusayan, minus the desert. And there are tall, taciturn Navajos--- smooth-faced, keen- eyed Bedouins who live in adajacent " hogans." The Navajo women weave nne wool blankets. The men cunningly fashion silver ornaments. Both sexes are at home on horseback, being expert riders. Elle of Ganado, the most famous blanket- weaver of the Navajos, usually makes her headquarters at the Grand Canyon. Perhaps a band of Supais, wandered from their Cataract Canyon home, forty miles away, will offer you a basket, or entreat you to invest a dime, and see a live Supai baby blinking in the wooden cradle on its mother's back. Several rooms in the Hopi House are devoted to an exhibit of rare and costly specimens of Indian handiwork. Here is displayed the priceless Harvey collection of old Navajo blankets, winner of a grand prize at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition. Here, too, is a Hopi ethnolographic collection, likewise a prize-winner at the World's Fair. And a Porno basket exhibit, the finest of its kind in the world, comprising ceremonial baskets, burden baskets, and baskets for food. And Eskimo handiwork from Alaska. And a room filled with rare buffalo-hide shields. And, finally, a salesroom containing the most interesting display of genuine Indian handiwork in this country, gathered from all sections of the West. TWENTY-THREE L What You Can Do at El Tovar GO DOWN Bright Angel Trail and back a day's trip; or camp over night near the river and come up the next day. The trail stock is sure-footed and accustomed to the zigzags. Ladies may rent divided skirts and other riding accessories. Take short carriage drives to Hopi and Yavapai points, where there is a wide outlook up and down the canyon. Go to lovely Grand View (altitude 7,500 feet), eastward thirteen miles hy stage through the Coconino Forest. There and hack in a day; or stay longer and enjoy the excellent Grand View Hotel, a new modern frame structure with log annex, admirably equipped a quiet place where a very beau- tiful section of the Canyon may be leisurely enjoyed. The trail here down the Canyon wall is safe and attractive. A few miles farther on is Hance's Ranch. By the rim path one may walk to Moran and Zuni points. Go down Boucher trail, about 8 miles west of El Tovar, to Dripping Spring and beyond. Drive to Bass's, 25 miles west, and descend Bass trail, perhaps crossing the river and visiting the north rim. Make up a party for Cataract Canyon, forty miles away. This is the home of the Supai Indians. Here are waterfalls as beautiful as those in Yosemite. Ride horseback. Safe and speedy horses may be hired, and the forest roads are good. Take long walks, or dream the day away on the edge of a cliff in some secluded spot. Inspect the Hopi House and Navajo hogans. The management of El Tovar provides varied indoor entertainment such as music, dancing, "smokers," lectures, etc. Special attention is given to outdoor sports. And there is always the Grand Canyon to look at. Tourists have come thousands of miles just for that and nothing else. For further information, address FRED HARVEY, Manager, El Tovar, GRAND CANYON, ARIZONA TWENTY-FIVE Copyright, 1905, by Detroit Photographic Co. Roof Garden Party, Hopi House Copyright, 1005, by PiUuira & Valentine Main Indian Curio Room, Hopi House TWENTY-SEVEN The Laundry The Power House and Electric Lighting Plant TWENTY-NINE Bright Angel Camp and Start Down Trail Looking Bast from Hop THIRTY-ONE Ail.23. 7-10-06. 5 M 000 737 947 University of California SOUTHERN REGIONAL LIBRARY FACILITY 405 Hilgard Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90024-1388 Return this material to the library from which it was borrowed. QLOClOIjb Santa] South