The Bar Harbor Inn
I want to write how disappointing the Bar Harbor Inn was; the lack of style, no atmosphere, and its terrible location, because I don’t want people swarming to my place, but I won’t.
I believe we all have special places in our lives. These places help weave the fabric of our memories. We go to them first in our youth, then return as a married couple, in the fullness of time we bring our children, because we want to share with them. When the children leave, (and it’s a cruel ironic reality of parenting we raise our children to leave and lead their own lives), we come full circle and return as a couple. We come back again and again, because it’s one of our places.
This place can be a campsite, lakeside cabin, or favorite beach. It’s the place you always try to get to every year. When you do return, you take a deep breath and smile. You are content and ready for another adventure. That’s Acadia National Park and the Bar Harbor Inn for us.
To talk about the Bar Harbor Inn, I need to talk about the town of Bar Harbor itself, and then the Reading Room, because the Reading Room became the Bar Harbor Inn.
The first European settlers came to Mount Desert Island to farm and mill lumber. Around 1830, several artists visited the island, drawn by its beauty. Their paintings were show in Boston, New York, Baltimore, and Philadelphia, drawing visitors to see the area these pictures inspired. People began to read about Bar Harbor in newspapers and popular magazines. As the number of summer visitors increased, locals made an extra buck renting rooms, later building boarding houses, then even later, investors put up small hotels. By the 1870s, a gilded age began when ‘the cottagers’ arrived. These people represented some of the wealthiest families of the era; Pulitzer, Morgon, Vanderbilt, and Rockefeller. A cottage in this place and time meant a structure with dozens of rooms, richly furnished, manicured gardens, designed by some famous architect. These places had names like Ledge Lawn, The Briars, Brook End, and Mossley Hall. Pulitzer’s cottage had 26 bedrooms, stables, a heated swimming pool, and a yacht longer than a football field.
Combined with the construction of several grand hotels, Bar Harbor became the place to summer and rivaled Newport, Rhode Island. People arrived to see and be seen, walk through nature trails, go horseback riding along the ocean, swim, play golf, or simply be at ease. During the evening there were dances, music, social soirees, and private parties to attend. Writers sent their stories to appear in the society pages, on who’s yacht was seen sailing into the bay, what family arrived, where they are staying, and what they were wearing.
Into this world came the Oasis Club, which opened in 1874 as a social club. A group of the summer people rented a house as a men’s only social club. The Roosevelts, Astors, and Morgans, soon outgrew the place and the Reading Room was born.
The Reading Room was designed by architect William Randolph Emerson, a cousin of Ralph Waldo Emerson, and was the first structure in a larger building later to become the Bar Harbor Inn. At its height, the Mount Desert Reading Room was one of the most exclusive gentlemen’s clubs in the country. The captains of industry came to discuss business, play cards or chess, read, and simply socialize. Guests to the Reading Room included presidents, congressmen, celebrities, and senior naval officers.
In a book called, A History of the Bar Harbor Inn, by Vincent C. Messer, he writes, “The Mount Desert Reading Room was an extravagant building, and it reflected the club members’ taste. The building had all the features any gentlemen’s club might require. It had a stylish café and dining room. Members could browse its library, relax, and read in its several drawing rooms, or entertain themselves in its elegant billiard room. If they wanted to enjoy Frenchman Bays’ summer sea breezes and Porcupine Island views, members could settle down on spacious, curved veranda, one of the building’s most distinguishing features, which offered a nearly 180-degree view of the bay and the building’s piazzas that were part of Emerson’s design.”
WAIT, you say, why aren’t I taking tours of Bar Harbor’s exotic cottages like I do with the Newport mansions in Rhode Island. Several reasons, first the tourist industry changed. Passenger ships became faster and more luxurious, people wanted to explore new places and it became all the rage to summer in Europe. Next came WW1, all the young men went to war and the need to frolic, showing off your prosperity seemed to be in bad taste.
In 1917, the country needed money, and congress passed the War Revenue Act, increasing taxes. In 1850, when Bar Harbor first took off, there was no income tax at all. After the Civil War in the 1860s, the first income tax was passed to raise revenue, but only 3% for most people. The tax passed in 1917, however, upped the ante quite a bit, if you made $40,000 you paid a 16% tax, if you earned $1,5 million you paid 67%, suddenly the discretionary income which allowed you to summer in Bar Harbor disappeared, along with many of its visitors.
The economic bounce back known as the Roaring Twenties, passed Bar Harbor by, this included the Mount Desert Reading Room, which dissolved in 1921.
There were ebbs and flows before, during, and after WW2. In 1923, the building was bought by the Maine Central Railroad and leased to the local yacht club, women no longer excluded, but couldn’t survive the great depression and closed again in 1932. During WW2, the military had many operations on the island, including a radar station on the top of Cadillac Mountain. The U.S. Navy gave the Reading Room new life and used it as the headquarters for northeastern coastal observation group. When WW2 ended, the military discontinued its presence and the Reading Room was vacant, again.
The final death blow to the gilded age of Bar Harbor came in the form of fire, in October, 1947. Speculation varies, it had been one of the driest summers on record and one theory said the cranberry pickers in the nearby bog were smoking and accidently started the blaze. Another, a favorite of mine, a piece of glass from the window of a junked car magnified the sun’s rays and started the fire. It started slowly, burning as little as 200 acres, until October 21, when strong winds started the fire burning out of control. In the end, 65 of the extravagant cottages of the ultra-rich, 168 local homes, and several farms were destroyed. Firefighters were able to force most of the fire away from Bar Harbor, but not until all of the town’s major hotels were gone. Over 17,000 acres were burned, including more than 10,000 acres in Acadia.
The Reading Room, empty since the Navy left, was one of the few large buildings left standing. The American Red Cross used it for a disaster services headquarters and the Reading Room had another life.
I took the time to cover these years to give you an idea of the Bar Harbor Inn’s place in history. I wanted to remind people there was a time when anyone, who was anyone, “summered” in Bar Harbor. These ultra rich vacationers created the Reading Room and the story of the BH Inn, is the story of the Reading room.
In writing the accounts of these places, all have their glory days, endure hard times, some going to the brink of extinction, then making a comeback. The resurgence can be the love the locals have for the place, some from a need to keep the history alive, but most of all, because the places these hotels service are special. You only have to visit Bar Harbor once to realize the ocean, mountains, woodlands, wildlife, and scenic beauty, will always draw artists, lovers, and outdoor enthusiasts.
In 1948, the Bar Harbor Hotel Corporation was formed to sell stock to raise money to purchase the Reading Room and the land around it. In 1949, work began on a new hotel. The plans called to alter the Reading Room, adding a wing containing 50 rooms, all facing the ocean of Frenchman Bay.
The new building was named the Hotel Bar Harbor. The new incarnation of the Reading Room was not a grand hotel of the Gilded Age, but it was a New England establishment of the highest quality and service. An early tour of the hotel by more than 200 curious locals found a modern hotel with large rooms, 180-degree ocean views, and every luxury of the time. In 1950, the hotel opened for the tourist season.
The opening of the Hotel Bar Harbor was the spark, over the following years more hotels were built, and the town ever so slowly returned to a summertime destination. The hotel was sold several times, but always kept its reputation as the best place in town, and still is.
When auto travel exploded in the 60’s and 70’s, a single-story motel like building with 20 rooms was added along to shore front, and the Hotel Bar Harbor, became the Bar Harbor Moter Inn.
In 1987, the Inn was to sold again to its current owner, David Whitman, who fell in love with the location. He began a project to expand and improve the property, one of his first decisions was to change the name to the Bar Harbor Inn. He knew the history and beauty of the Reading Room and wanted it to always be a part of the Inn. To this day the Reading Room is the trademark feature of the Inn.
In subsequent off seasons, the 20-room motel was moved across the grounds. Next, the new, two-story Oceanfront Lodge was built, adding 64 rooms. We have stayed there many times and the views are spectacular. In 1992, the building moved to make room for the Oceanfront, was torn down, replaced by the Inn’s Newport building, to complete the current Bar Harbor Inn.
If you visit the Bar Harbor Inn today, you will discover a classic New England seaside inn, with light blue shingles and white trim. A doorman greets you, leading you into a lobby with comfortable furnishings set in front of a welcoming fireplace. The front desk is opposite the lobby, next to a tasteful gift shop.
A short walk leads you to the Reading Room, reservations highly recommended. The Reading Room has a lovely spot for larger parties and tables set along the curved walls of Emerson’s original design.
You will be looking out at the same views those captains of industry did over a hundred years ago.
The service and food are top self, it’s one of those restaurants you leave plenty of time for your meal. You’re not in a hurry for the food to come rushing out of the kitchen. You want to enjoy the luxury atmosphere, take in the view of sails on the bay, sip your wine slowly, and enjoy the person you’re sharing the table with.
If you read the introduction about this site, I said it started from a conversation in the bar of the Reading Room. If you are waiting for dinner or dropping in after a day at the park, treat yourself to the comfy confines of the Oasis Lounge, named for the original Oasis Club. There is a full array of cocktails, wines, and beer. Of the local brews, I enjoy Atlantic Brewery’s Real Ale (Brown Ale) and Mountain Hopper (IPA). For those who enjoy a good stout of the Guinness variety, Atlantic Brewery’s Cadillac Mountain Stout is outstanding.
You won’t find high vaulted ceilings at the BH Inn, what gives the Inn its appeal over hotels with airplane hangar size ballrooms or massive lobbies you can play basketball in, are the small details to make the guests feel special. There is a small pantry off of the lobby where you can walk in anytime for coffee, tea, or hot chocolate, in the fall they add hot cider. In the afternoon you’ll find a tray of cookies.
The lobby is stocked with classic board games; Candy Land, Boggle, Sorry, Life, Chess, Clue, Scrabble, even Mystery Date. There is a stand of umbrellas for the guests use. At check-in from time to time you are presented with some welcoming bling; such as a bag with a bar of fancy soap, a lip balm, and maybe citronella candle. If there is a special event; birthday or anniversary, the kitchen is all too happy to send out a special cup cake.
When you check in, the front desk welcomes you as if they were waiting especially for you to show up. The housekeeping staff always has a friendly greeting. The wait staff makes you feel as if you are their only table.
At night, a firepit roars within a circle of Adirondack chairs, with all the Smore fixings at your disposal.
These are little things, but they help make a place, your place.
Around the inn you will see displays of its history. There is a little nook by the front desk of the WW2 years, with framed pictures on the wall of naval personal in and around the inn, some have warships in Frenchman Bay, with the Porcupine Islands in the background. A heavy picture book sits on a table with more photos of the ships and military personal stationed at Bar Harbor during the war.
In the small hallway leading to the Reading Room, there is a museum type display case filled with items and souvenirs from the past; plates, teaspoons, an old room key, a stereoscope with pictures, among other things.
There are pictures on the walls in the main inn and along the hallways showing different eras of the Reading Room and the hotel. There is a reservation request form for the Bar Harbor Motor Inn from 1979, when you could get a room with a balcony, facing the bay, for $45. One shows a crowd in front of the Reading Room waiting for President Taft. There is a woman in the foreground in the full dress of the nineteen hundreds, full length dress and gaudy hat, who looks as if she is turning to admonish the photographer.
Another is a color painting of the old Reading Room dock in the 1880s, with the bay full of sailboats.
One of my favorites is a shot of the pool, in what looks to be the 1960’s, with the bay in the background.
I like this picture because when we first started to go to Bar Harbor in 2002, I remember this pool. By that time, the pool really needed work, the kids still loved it, I’ve never seen a pool a kid didn’t like, but the space needed an update. Then, around 2016 or so, if I remember correctly, the entire Inn needed a good sprucing up to keep its standards, and it got it; a renovated lobby, guest rooms, fresh paint inside and out, and new landscaping.
Part of the improvements was a beautiful new pool, looking out over the bay.
The new pool area is just the spot to kick back and relax, with a pool bar for food and drinks. When the weather demands it, we always designate one day of the vacation as a pool day.
The location is one of the BH Inn’s greatest features. When you turn off Main Street onto the long driveway to the Inn, it’s like leaving the busy summer town behind, heading to your own sanctuary. You can leave your car safety parked and you are a short walk to Bar Harbor’s shops and restaurants.
A few personal thoughts; best ice cream, go to Ben and Bill’s Chocolate Emporium, the left side of the store is candy and the right side has a plethora of ice cream flavors, including, and I kid you not, lobster. If you are looking for some summer reading, visit Sherman’s book store. The place is one of those cozy book stores you find in small vacation towns. There is a section for local titles, and they also sell puzzles and nick knacks.
Restaurants could be a separate section, but we like the Side Street Cafe, try the Mac and Cheese. If you want more of a pub atmosphere, try Paddy’s Irish Pub and Restaurant, nice bar area and there is a good chacuterie if you want something lighter. Another spot is Atlantic Brewing, low key, with a limited menu, but you go there for the beer; try a flight and pick out a favorite. Last, if you are looking for just a drink, the Cottage Street Pub is a bar about the length and width of a train car. No food, though there is a popcorn machine, but you will find a creative list of cocktails, and a robust summertime attitude. These are just a few places we have scouted out over the years.
Most of my writing, I call up from my own memories or things I’ve heard or read along the way. When I feel the need to be more precise, I sometimes pull facts from a specific source, and I want to be sure to acknowledge that source. In this case, many of the historical facts and some of the pictures were taken from, A History of the Bar Harbor Inn, by Vincent C. Messer, which is a fantastic 110-page paperback, which the Inn offered to its guests one summer. If the stories of the cottages and grand hotels of the gilded era interest you, I suggest, Lost Bar Harbor, by G.W. Helfrich and Gladys O’Neil. It’s filled with pictures of the flamboyant cottages and grand hotels, with a small writeup on each. You’ll also find entries for the Bar Harbor Swimming Club built in 1903 and now long gone, the Mount Desert Canoe Club, an early picture of the Jordon Pond House, and the original Oasis Club. The book is a joy to flip through.
If you do decide to come for a visit, enjoy the park, enjoy the town, and enjoy the Bar Harbor Inn as much as we do. Make it, one of your places.
Acadia National Park, Maine
The Bubbles as seen from Jordon Pond
Acadia National Park, was the first national park east of the Mississippi, and remains the only national park in the northeast. It takes up about half of Mount Desert Island, with 49,075 acres. The area was named Lafayette National Park in February of 1919, and became Acadia National Park in January of 1929. The park is a stunning mix of mountains, lakes, and forests, which descend to the sea. Within its boundaries you will find Cadillac Mountain, the largest mountain on the island and highest point on the Atlantic coastline, during specific times of the year it’s the first place the morning sun touches in North America.
There is a variety of hiking trails from an easy walk around Jordan Pond to the Dorr Mountain ladder trail, which should be called the stair trail. There are 95 flights of stone stairs, one online review called the trail, ‘the fourth circle of hell’. I’m not in a position to make a direct comparison, but I didn’t think it was that bad, just make sure your cardio is up to snuff before attempting. If you are looking to challenge your bravery, there are the Beehive and Precipice trails, which put you on the edge of the mountains, (not for those with a fear of heights). The views are worth the effort on any trail you pick.
If biking is more your thing, you are in for a treat. Between 1913 and 1940, John D. Rockefeller built fifty-seven miles of carriage trails. The hard packed gravel roads weave through pine, spruce, and hemlock forests and the granite bridges lead to wonderful overlooks of the ocean. To this day, the carriage trails are for pedestrians, horse riders, and bikers. Cars are not allowed.
Need some beach time, no problem, Sand Beach sits in the shadow of the Beehive trail awaiting your pleasure. This stretch of sand welcomes thousands of visitors a year. A schooner named the Tay, filled with a cargo of lumber and shingles, wrecked on the beach in 1911. The ribs of the schooner can still be seen after bad storms.
Within the park is a place called Jordan Pond House, nestled in the south end of Jordan Pond, with a view of a pair of mountains called, The Bubbles. The original farm house was built by the Jordan family, thus its name. In the 1870s it became a restaurant, servicing the wave of people who discovered the boundless beauty of the area. Jordan Pond house is perfectly situated as a rest spot to break up a long bike ride or hike.
The restaurant has a full menu, but my favorite order is the popovers, which the place is famous for; with a pot of tea. It’s the perfect light snack to refuel. If you need a few more calories for your activities, there is a popover sundae which will not disappoint.
The best testament I can offer is my wife and I have been going to the park for twenty years and there is always something to do. We are at the point where trails and bike paths we haven’t done in years, are new again. We have been to almost 40 of our national parks, and yes, I am bias, but Acadia is one of our country’s real jewels.