Construction stalled on the gas station when Lassen Park
Superintendent L.W. Collins paid Supan a visit. Collins was under the impression that Supan’s claim was no longer valid as no formal assessment work had been done, thus the property reverted to the park. Supan agreed to suspend construction until the matter was resolved.
It would be a long convoluted affair. The matter dragged on with no decision in favor or against. On June 5, 1931, park officials took matters into its own hands and filed a condemnation suit in an effort to resolve the matter. As required by law, the park placed $31,000 in escrow, the amount it deemed was the value Yellow Ochre Mine.
With no end in sight, the Supans demanded their day in court. A three day hearing was held in January 1933. In the ruling concessions were made for both sides. The southern portion of the Supan claim of sixty acres was declared non-mineral in character and the property adjudged to the park. The remaining 100 acres was deemed valid and awarded to
the Supans.
There were two major developments in 1941. First, Milton’s son, Adlai built a gas station and “lodge.” The lodge consisted of a store, that sold tourist related items such as camera film, postcards, and souvenirs, along with a lunch counter. That fall, Milton passed away leaving a wife and ten children. This was not a good omen for the park, who would have to deal with more people to negotiate with, and improvements increased the value of the property. The park was powerless with no funds to purchase the Supan property.
After World War II, Adlai expanded his operations to keep up with visitors needs at the park. His two sons, Don and Ed, built a small cabin dubbed the Scenic View Gift Shop. By this time, Adlai’s sister, Ada Herrick made her presence with a bathhouse, cabin rentals and a restaurant known as Sulfur Works Inn. In 1947, Adlai built a crude rope tow for winter skiing.
All of this development alarmed park officials. In 1949, the park sent letters to thirty-five Supan heirs with an offer to purchase Sulfur Works for $20,000. The family was divided, some willing to sell and others opposed. They were in complete agreement the offer was too low. It should be noted Milton Supan’s original offer was $100,000.
Discussions between the park and the heirs continued throughout most of the year. About the only thing that resulted in these talks that the value kept increasing to what the park considered “gold mine proportions”. In December 1949 with no solution on the horizon the park once again resorted to filing condemnation of the Sulfur Works and
deposited $31,00 in escrow, their appraised value. The Supans immediately challenged that figure and placed the value at $525,500.
In 1952, after lengthy litigation, the court awarded the property to the park and Supans $48,950 in compensation. The park was confronted what to do with the improvements there. It was finally decided to demolish the thirteen buildings that consisted of the Sulfur Works Lodge and Inn.