In August, 1915, the Susanville’s Emerson Hotel was destroyed by fire. This left a huge void for accommodations, especially with the town which was growing leaps and bounds with the arrival of the railroad two years earlier. Unfortnately, the Emerson would not be ressurrected like the proverbial phoenix due to inadequate insurance coverage.

For years, this prime location remained a vacant lot. While there was interest to build a new hotel there, the lack of funding doomed such proposals. Ironically, Susanville was in the midst of an unprecedented twenty years of expansive growth, so one would not think that financing would be such an obstacle.

After ten years, something that was thought to be impossible, was on the verge of reality—the city’s bid to host the state American Legion Convention for 1926. Should Susanville be selected there was the issue of how to provide accommodations for 2,500 visitors. On April 7. 1925, a stock company, the Susanville Hotel Company was formed. It was their goal to riase $300,000 in stock to construct a three-story concrete hotel, to contain 70-rooms. Construction began in July, it was estimated the building would cost $155,000. With construction underway, the group had leased the hotel to Frank Coffin for ten years at an annual rate of $7,440. The new facility was named the Hotel Mt. Lassen and opened its doors on April 27, 1926.

The Hotel Mt. Lassen has been shuttered for quite some time now.  Whether it will ever re-open remains to be seen.

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Susanville’s iconic Elk’s Lodge had an interesting history way before the Elks acquired it. Built in 1884/85 it was initially the home Dr. J.G. Leonard, a dentist. In 1890, hard times struck Leonard who filed for bankruptcy. Susanville merchant/investor William Greehn purchased the residence. For the next eighteen years it was rental. The monthly rent was ten dollars a month. It should also be duly noted during that time, portions of the house had never been completed, and would not occur until the Swains bought it.

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The Susanville Post Office on North Lassen Street adorns one of the older murals in town. While I am slowly working on the mural tour, this particular may not be included due to the hours of operation at the post office.

Construction of the Susanville Post Office began in 1937, and was one of the last Works Projects Administration (WPA) in the area. Another part of Roosevelt’s New Deal projects was Treasury of Fine Arts program. These funds were used to hire artists to adorn federal buildings. In 1939, San Francisco artist, Helen Katherine Forbes (1891-1945) was commissioned to do a mural in the Susanville Post Office entitled, “The Deer.”

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Alexander Avenue came into existence in 1912 as part of the Lassen Townsite subdivision. It was named for Jules Alexander who came to Susanville in 1877 and eventually became a successful merchant. He left that field, and became involved in banking until his death in 1935.  Alexander was also a major investor in the Lassen Townsite Company.

Alexander Avenue is one of those handful of city streets that witnessed a major realignment. In the early 1970s, the street was straightened between Main and Cornell, thus moving Sherman’s Texaco Station to the other side of the street, as Alexander had separated it from Walker’s.

Then there is the lingering issue, will Alexander Avenue be extended all the way to Richmond Road, as has been suggested in previous planning documents.

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Harry Coleman possessed that wonderful “can do spirit” trait. He came to Susanville to manage Fruit Growers Story Club. In 1925, he became the post commander of the Thomas Tucker Post of the American Legion. Yet, it was previous year, that Coleman and four other post members made their ambitions known. In 1924, they attended the annual State Convention of the American Legion in Santa Cruz. They were not only there to promote Lassen County, but to put their bid in to become the host city for the 1926 convention. Initially, locally Coleman and company had a lot of critics who were skeptical about Susanville being a convention city. After all, it involved being host to some 2,500 people—more than double the town’s population.

The local Legionnaires began their campaign and traveled to various post throughout the state to obtain their support. In the beginning of 1925, four cities were in contention, including Susanville—the others being San Francisco, Santa Rosa and Stockton. By spring, San Francisco withdrew its bid and supported Susanville.

Their advertising campaign was called  “Watch Our Smoke” a reference to Mount Lassen’s famed eruptions. One of their many selling points was how the community was joined together to build a new three-story hotel for the convention—and that is how the Mt. Lassen Hotel came to be.

Next month, more on their campaign.

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Seasoned residents will remember with fond memories of the B&B, a fine restaurant and bar located in the Knoch building. Before it became the B&B it as the B.B. Liquor Store. The B.B. stood for Brouillard’s Beverages, after the owner, E.H. Brouillard.

Some may recall in the banquet room, there was a rather large canvas mural 6’ x 20’ of Mount Lassen. It was painted by J.E. Lane, and the mural still exist, it being in storage. It should be noted that two other works of Lane have graced the walls of the Lassen County Courthouse since 1917. One is of Susanville as it appeared in 1864. The other is of Warner Valley, with Lassen Peak in the background. Why the County Board of Supervisors selected the latter has always confused me. First Warner Valley is in Plumas County. And, secondly, Lassen Peak is in Shasta County.

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