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Still standing tall By Sarah Lemon for the Mail Tribune Apr 26, 2020 12:00 AM A A A new gallery of historical photographs commemorates the Ashland Springs Hotel’s 95th birthday. And a summer open house to unveil the hotel’s mezzanine-level “history wall” offers just a glimpse of festivities for the hotel’s upcoming centennial. “The celebration of this historic hotel will be the celebration of Ashland, Oregon,” says hotelier Becky Neuman. A community-wide celebration of the hotel’s 100th birthday in 2025 likely will inspire other businesses to host their own Roaring ’20s or 100-themed events, says Neuman. Ashland Springs Hotel, the flagship property of Neuman Hotel Group, has founded several annual celebrations, including the Oregon Chocolate Festival, that other Ashland entrepreneurs also highlight, says Neuman. While specific plans have yet to emerge for the hotel’s centennial, Neuman promises it will be “so memorable and so unforgettable.” The hotel’s grandeur was all but forgotten until Neuman and her husband, Doug Neuman, purchased it at a 1998 bankruptcy auction amid rumors that the once impressive edifice might become senior housing. A five-year renovation by a former owner to bring the nine-story structure into compliance with fire codes wasn’t enough to repair leaky ceilings and peeling plaster. Where so many others saw a money pit, the Neumans saw promise. “People would say, ‘Oh, Becky and Doug, our condolences,’ ” says Becky Neuman, recalling the hotel’s reputation as a “white elephant.” “We just had a different vision.” Nearly 20 years later, that vision couldn’t be clearer to Southern Oregon visitors and residents. After spending approximately $10 million to restore the hotel’s Romanesque, Gothic and Neoclassical design, the Neumans reopened it Dec. 1, 2000. In subsequent years, the hotel has gained sister properties, including Ashland’s Lithia Springs Resort, Medford’s former Red Lion, rechristened Inn at the Commons, Ashland Hills Hotel & Suites, reinvigorated as an events center, and Jacksonville’s historical Nunan mansion. But the “grande dame” holds a special place in the Neumans’ — and Ashlanders’ — hearts. “The aesthetics are just so glorious,” says Becky Neuman. “It takes you to another time.” The hotel’s new “history wall,” assembled with assistance from Southern Oregon Historical Society, will take guests back to Ashland’s heyday as a destination to nourish mind, body and spirit, with mineral-water cures and Chautauqua lectures, a popular educational movement of the early 20th century. The era’s optimism gave rise to “subscription hotels” commissioned by several other Oregon cities from the Portland architectural firm Tourtellotte and Hummel. Ashland’s is the only one remaining in operation as a hotel among Tourtellotte and Hummel landmarks in Grants Pass, North Bend, Astoria and Baker City. Rising 112 feet, the Lithia Springs Hotel was the tallest building between Portland and San Francisco when it opened in 1925, crowned by letters spelling out “Lithia Hotel,” as it was alternately known. Lofty hopes for the hotel’s future were dashed a year later, however, when the passenger railroad changed its route to run through Klamath Falls instead of Ashland. The Lithian Hotel Co., a group of 10 Ashland businessmen, were broke in two years, foreshadowing the Great Depression. Although Ashland reclaimed some of its prominence, the hotel endured decades of hardship. Renamed the Mark Antony Motor Hotel in 1960, the structure was redecorated according to mid-century trends: drop ceilings that masked ornately carved beams, cheap carpeting covering marble mosaic floors, and Formica and chrome that replaced original accoutrements. An English Tudor theme was intended to evoke the growing popularity of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival with new furnishings and a swimming pool. But by the 1970s, the hotel was known as a flophouse of cheap lodging and apartments as more and more tourists flocked to modern motels instead. “So many of those beautiful, historical properties are destroyed,” says Neuman. While some may consider the Mark Antony persona an ugly chapter in the hotel’s history, Neuman wanted to make sure the Ashland byword would get due credit. Realizing the history wall project had a dearth of Mark Antony photos, she and her staff sought assistance from SOHS and spent days researching at its Medford library. “They are just such a golden resource.” The result is an exhibit of at least 75 photos that illustrate the hotel’s original magnificence, its persistence in the face of adversity and its reemergence as a regional treasure. “I’m just so proud to be caring for her,” says Neuman. “She really does deserve it.” Reach freelance writer Sarah Lemon at [email protected]. The Ashland Springs Hotel opened in 1925 as the Lithia Springs Hotel. Southern Oregon Historical Society #5115