In 1860 Reuben Stover located at Big Meadows, known today as Lake Almanor. He established a dairy operation near the present site of the town of Chester. Stover died in 1897 and his son, Charley, would eventually take over the family business.
Charley Stover looked at every situation through a variety of angles. The dairy business fluctuated with good and bad times. With Great Western Power busy buying properties at Big Meadows for its Lake Almanor project, it reduced places for summer visitors to stay. Charley saw an opportunity to diversify. The ranch house became an impromptu hotel. During busy times, family members slept in the nearby bunkhouse. Stover next ventured into cattle ranching, and it turned out to be a profitable move. By the mid-1920s with developments at Chester with more accommodations available, the Stover Hotel reverted back to a ranch house.