The Eastern Slope Inn is a historic hotel at 2760 White Mountain Highway (

U.S. Route 302 U.S. Route 302 (US 302) is an east–west spur of U.S. Route 2 in northern New England in the United States. It currently runs from Montpelier, Vermont, beginning at US 2, to Portland, Maine, at U.S. Route 1. It passes through the states of V ...

) in North Conway, Carroll County,

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

. Built in 1926, it is one of the community's most prominent examples of large-scale

Colonial Revival architecture The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture. The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the arch ...

, and is historically important as a major element in the popularization of

downhill skiing Alpine skiing, or downhill skiing, is the pastime of sliding down snow-covered slopes on skis with fixed-heel bindings, unlike other types of skiing ( cross-country, Telemark, or ski jumping), which use skis with free-heel bindings. Whether ...

in the area. The inn was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1982.

Description and history

The Eastern Slope Inn stands at the northern fringe of the commercial downtown area of North Conway, on the west side of White Mountain Highway, the town's principal thoroughfare. It is a three-story wood-frame structure, with a

hip roof A hip roof, hip-roof or hipped roof, is a type of roof where all sides slope downward to the walls, usually with a fairly gentle slope, with variants including Tented roof, tented roofs and others. Thus, a hipped roof has no gables or other ve ...

crowned at its center by an open

widow's walk A widow's walk, also known as a widow's watch or roofwalk, is a railed rooftop platform often having an inner cupola/Turret (architecture), turret frequently found on 19th-century North American coastal houses. The name is said to come from the W ...

. A four-column pedimented

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

projects at the center of the main facade, and single-story porches extend from it to either side; that on the left has been enclosed. The interior features richly decorated public spaces. The hotel was built in 1926. It was designed by Harold E. Mason of Haynes & Mason, architects of

Fitchburg, Massachusetts Fitchburg is a city in northern Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The third-largest city in the county, its population was 41,946 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Fitchburg State University is located here. History ...

, with apparent inspiration from the

Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is the former residence and plantation of George Washington, a Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States, and his wife, Martha. An American landmar ...

estate in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

. It was the third hotel on the site, the first two (dating to 1864) having succumbed to fire. Originally the Hotel Randall, it was purchased in 1937 by

Harvey Dow Gibson Harvey Dow Gibson (March 12, 1882 – September 11, 1950) was an American businessman. Early life Harvey Dow Gibson was born on March 12, 1882, at North Conway, New Hampshire, North Conway in Carroll County, New Hampshire. He was the son of James ...

, a native of North Conway, who was by then president of

Manufacturers Trust Company Manufacturers Hanover Corporation was an American bank holding company that was formed as parent of Manufacturers Hanover Trust Company (MHT or, informally, Manny Hanny), a large New York City bank formed through a merger in 1961 with ancestor c ...

of New York. Gibson added the hotel to the Manufacturers Trust's National Hotel Management Company (NMH) range of hotels, which was then overseen by hotel pioneer

Ralph Hitz Ralph Hitz (1 March 1891 - 12 January 1940) was a pioneer in the hotel industry, whose ideas for marketing and customer service became the industry standard for luxury lodging. During the 1930s he was the head of the National Hotel Management Comp ...

. The hotel was renamed the Eastern Slope Inn as part of a larger effort to promote

in the area. Gibson developed the nearby

Cranmore Mountain Resort Cranmore Mountain Resort, operating in the summer with a Mountain Adventure Park, is a ski area located in North Conway, New Hampshire, United States. It began operations in the winter of 1937–38, and was owned until 1984 by the Schneider fa ...

into one of the most successful ski areas of the time, and used the Eastern Slope Inn as a year-round facility. In 1977 the inn was purchased by

Eastern Mountain Sports Eastern Mountain Sports (or EMS) is an American outdoor clothing and equipment retailer in the Northeastern United States headquartered in Meriden, Connecticut. EMS sells outdoor equipment and clothing from both name brands and its own EMS line. ...

and converted into a retail establishment. As part of this conversion many of the public spaces were altered to accommodate retail functions. Around 1982 it was sold to an ownership group, which has rehabilitated the property and converted it back into a hotel.

References

External links

Official Eastern Slope Inn website
{{NRHP in Carroll County, New Hampshire Hotels in New Hampshire Buildings and structures in Carroll County, New Hampshire Hotel buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in New Hampshire Hotel buildings completed in 1926 Colonial Revival architecture in New Hampshire National Register of Historic Places in Carroll County, New Hampshire North Conway, New Hampshire

Description and history

See also

References

External links