More pictures of our prototype in Idaho
Recently I received from our house designer, Trent Roman, some new images of the Stanley, Idaho museum which is the prototype for the Blizzard Gulch “Ranger Station”. Gretchen Roman was down that way recently and, knowing that I’d never taken pictures of this side of the museum, took these nice shots.
Stanley Museum (Valley Creek Ranger Station) from the highway.
This view, of the gabled main entry, is one I did not have when designing our log house. Had I known about this gable I might have felt obliged to copy it instead of drawing a hip-roofed dining porch. For our setting, though, I think the side gable entry might have been too grandiose and not located in the right place anyway. Due to the slope of our land it would have required a lengthy staircase.
Originally the “new” Valley Creek Ranger Station, replacing a 1909 ranger station, the building was completed in 1933. Ranger Merle Markle cut and hauled the logs, his wife Kathleen helped with peeling them, and a crew of men constructed the building. It had nine rooms and a bathroom. (I’m glad I didn’t know that, either.) Other outbuildings that still remain are a log garage/telephone office, log-sided barn, and woodshed/cellar.
I believe the building at left, with some replacement logs showing, is the garage/telephone office. It could also be the barn. Maybe someone can tell me.
All information about the Valley Creek Ranger Station (Stanley Museum) is from Les Joslin’s book, Uncle Sam’s Cabins: A Visitor’s Guide to Historic U.S. Forest Service Ranger Stations of the West.
Here are the pictures that I had when designing the house:
View from the parking lot. This side entrance became our main entrance.
Rear view of the Stanley Museum, from the parking lot.
At the time we were there, in the spring of 2006, the museum was closed and drifts of snow made looking around difficult.
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