Sunrise Historic District
Encyclopedia
The Sunrise Historic District, also known as the community of Sunrise, Washington, is located on a ridge overlooking the northeast side of Mount Rainer in Mount Rainier National Park
. The district comprises seven individual structures designed in accordance with the principals of the National Park Service Rustic
style. The area is inhabited and open to the public only during a brief period in the summer season.
Landscape Division and the Bureau of Public Roads. Davidson prepared a master plan for Yakima Park, by way of contrast to development in the southern portion of the park at Paradise and Longmire, where haphazard development had become a significant management problem. Davidson's plan included a large hotel supporting a community of housekeeping cabins, an automobile service station, toilet facilities, and the unique blockhouses and stockade.
Initial construction was completed in 1932 with the first phase of the Sunrise Lodge, the Sunrise Comfort Station
, the service station, the South Blockhouse and the Stockade. The North Blockhouse and Community Building were completed in 1944.
. Foundations for another wing of the planned U-shaped hotel were excavated, but never completed. The incomplete hotel continued in its original function, and is open on a seasonal basis in the present day.
on March 31, 1991. The Yakima Park Stockade Group
was declared a National Historic Landmark
on May 29, 1987. The Sunrise Comfort Station
was individually listed on the NRHP on March 13, 1991. The Sunrise Historic District is in turn part of the Mount Rainier National Historic Landmark District
, which encompasses the entire park and which recognizes the park's inventory of Park Service-designed rustic architecture.
Mount Rainier National Park
Mount Rainier National Park is a United States National Park located in southeast Pierce County and northeast Lewis County in Washington state. It was one of the US's earliest National Parks, having been established on March 2, 1899 as the fifth national park in the United States. The park contains...
. The district comprises seven individual structures designed in accordance with the principals of the National Park Service Rustic
National Park Service Rustic
National Park Service rustic, also colloquially known as Parkitecture, is a style of architecture that arose in the United States National Park System to create buildings that harmonized with their natural environment. Since its founding, the National Park Service consistently has sought to provide...
style. The area is inhabited and open to the public only during a brief period in the summer season.
Planning
The area was originally known as Yakima Park, and became accessible with the construction of a new road in the northeastern portion of the park, planned by Ernest A. Davidson of the National Park ServiceNational Park Service
The National Park Service is the U.S. federal agency that manages all national parks, many national monuments, and other conservation and historical properties with various title designations...
Landscape Division and the Bureau of Public Roads. Davidson prepared a master plan for Yakima Park, by way of contrast to development in the southern portion of the park at Paradise and Longmire, where haphazard development had become a significant management problem. Davidson's plan included a large hotel supporting a community of housekeeping cabins, an automobile service station, toilet facilities, and the unique blockhouses and stockade.
Initial construction was completed in 1932 with the first phase of the Sunrise Lodge, the Sunrise Comfort Station
Sunrise Comfort Station
The Sunrise Comfort Station is an example of the National Park Service Rustic style, located in the Sunrise Historic District of Mount Rainier National Park, Washington, USA. Built in 1932, the building was designed by Thomas Chalmers Vint of the National Park Service in association with landscape...
, the service station, the South Blockhouse and the Stockade. The North Blockhouse and Community Building were completed in 1944.
Sunrise Lodge
The Sunrise Lodge is a large shingled structure with a steeply-pitched roof, built by the Rainier National Park Company in 1931. The 2-1/2 story building was intended to be the first wing of a resort hotel. It was built in about six weeks, serving as the centerpiece of a complex of 200 tourist cabins. The lodge accommodated dining facilities and staff dormitories. The cabins were removed through the late 1930s and 40s, sold to Eastern Washington farmers for migrant labor housing, or for housing around Puget SoundPuget Sound
Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...
. Foundations for another wing of the planned U-shaped hotel were excavated, but never completed. The incomplete hotel continued in its original function, and is open on a seasonal basis in the present day.
Designation
The area was placed on the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on March 31, 1991. The Yakima Park Stockade Group
Yakima Park Stockade Group
Yakima Park Stockade Group, also known as North and South Blockhouses, Museum, and Stockade at Sunrise, is a building complex consisting of four log buildings in Mount Rainier National Park that is architecturally significant on its own. The first of the blockhouses and the stockade were built in...
was declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
on May 29, 1987. The Sunrise Comfort Station
Sunrise Comfort Station
The Sunrise Comfort Station is an example of the National Park Service Rustic style, located in the Sunrise Historic District of Mount Rainier National Park, Washington, USA. Built in 1932, the building was designed by Thomas Chalmers Vint of the National Park Service in association with landscape...
was individually listed on the NRHP on March 13, 1991. The Sunrise Historic District is in turn part of the Mount Rainier National Historic Landmark District
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
, which encompasses the entire park and which recognizes the park's inventory of Park Service-designed rustic architecture.