Grand Canyon National Park

Trails and Treasures Home Page Road Trips Searching for Fred Harvey, Fall 2006.htm

Grand Canyon National Park

Buildings on the South Rim

This was my third visit to the Canyon, the second to the south rim and the first to Phantom Ranch. Since Fred Harvey (now Xanterra) has operated the hotels and restaurants on the south rim since the El Tovar was built in 1903, there are numerous Fred Harvey postcards of the canyon and the hotels. Thus, it was impossible to research more than a small fraction of the published cards during my week's visit.

Bright Angel Lodge

One of the most noticeable differences between the lodge as it appeared on the old postcards and today is the amount of foliage around the building. In most of the exterior views which I replicated the building is almost hidden by trees. The sign over the front entrance has been changed; it used to be perpendicular to the face of the building. The murals in the lounge are original. Superficially, the dining room is quite similar to the one on the old postcards, but I was told that it had been renovated and changed several times over the years.