A few weeks ago, I wrote about C.P. Snell’s Lassen National Park Club as a venue to develop his property at Juniper Lake, located in the southeast portion of Lassen Volcanic National Park.
In 1917, when Snell had the property divided in 1,500 lots as part of the Juniper Lake Resort. It was Snell’s intention to operate a resort and sale lots, with an emphasis on the real estate division. However, there were natural obstacles to overcome. The lake’ remoteness and high elevation, coupled with the fact the area’s high snowfall amounts made it for a very short season.
One of the problems with the first enterprise was the lack of a road. Snell recruited A.J. Forbes of Oakland to assist. There was, of course, a right of way issue of three miles through Lassen Park. Forbes went directly to the Department of Interior, which granted the request for the road with the stipulation that no tolls be imposed.
However, things got stymied with the relationship with Forbes that soured. To complicate matters, A.W. Keddie sued Snell for compensation for his services of surveying to creation the 1,500 lot subdivision.
In future, we will explore first Snell’s resort operation and the fate of the majority of the Juniper Lake Resort subdivision during the 1950s.