The Paradise Inn lobby has been a cozy spot for lots of years. This photo was taken around 1949. The same clock stands by the same fireplace.
Speaking of the clock . . . “An elderly German carpenter, Hans Fraehnke, was hired to carve the woodwork in the lobby. It was Fraehnke who built the rustic hand-hewn Alaska cedar 13-foot grandfather clock and upright piano and bench. This is the same piano which was played by President Harry Truman when he visited the park years laster.
“Fraeknke also built the two huge Alaska cedar table, the six wiring tables, the registration desk, and the big chairs. All the cedar came from the Silver Forest.” (The Big Fact Book About Mount Rainier.)
If you want to read more about the rustic furnishings at Mount Rainier National Park, just click HERE.
My dad was so inspired by the piano bench, that he came home and built a similar one for piano.
Photo courtesy of Diane Mettler.
Click on image to enlarge.
Eatonville To Rainier 