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As It Was: Floras Lake Resort Opens in Summer of 1926

For John R. Smith, construction of his Floras Lake Resort proved slow due to difficulties getting material and equipment into the remote location on the Southern Oregon Coast.  With the accommodations scarcely complete, he held a grand opening in the summer of 1926.

Smith touted the resort as the most desirable spot in Oregon for short-term tourists, because of its proximity to the ocean and opportunities for boating, swimming, and fishing.  Three hundred people arrived for the inaugural weekend.

His three-story hotel had high-quality floors laid in the lobby and dance hall.  A 12-foot-wide porch ran along the east-to-west side of the building, serving as an additional dance floor.

The resort had electricity in the hotel, cottages, and throughout the camping grounds, and a player piano installed in the ballroom that sounded like a full band for a dime.

In addition to several rowboats for rent, a large pleasure launch had a capacity for 25 passengers.

Violation of prohibition rules and rollicking good times through the heyday of logging tarnished the hotel’s reputation.  By 1967 it had deteriorated beyond repair and was demolished.
 

Sources: Boice-Strain, Patte. Floras Creek Precinct and the Boice Family of Curry County. Hal & Patti Strain, 2003, pp. 386-87; "Floras Lake Offers Splendid Summer Resort." Curry County Echoes, Sept. 1986, p. 8.

Laurel earned a Bachelor’s degree in Geography from Humboldt State. Her research efforts as a volunteer for the Curry Historical Society produced numerous newsletter articles and exhibits and earned her a reputation as a seasoned local history buff. Laurel is the author of "Renderings from the Gold Beach Pioneer Cemetery", a 50-page booklet containing a walking tour and snippets about the lives and times of folks buried there. She is also a contributing writer to Oregon Coast Magazine.