Robert Reamer
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Robert Reamer (1873-1938) was a western American architect, most famous for the Old Faithful Inn in Yellowstone Park. This work was commissioned in 1902 by Harry W. Child 1st, and funded with loans from the Northern Pacific Railroad. The 40 laborers who started the project were experienced railroad trestle builders.
The Old Faithful Inn is today listed in the National Register of Historic Places, honored as the inspiration for a rustic style of architecture popular throughout the western United States. The rustic style is sometimes considered a branch of the Arts and Crafts movement, which emphasized fine, hand-hewn details and harmony with the surrounding environment. It became so popular at western National Parks that it is sometimes referred to "parkitecture".
At the Old Faithful Inn, the pitched roof is covered in yard-long redwood shingles; the roof shape echoes the shape of surrounding mountains. Inside, a spectacular, six-story lobby features native lodge pole balconies, and it is anchored by a 500-ton rhyolite chimney and fireplace. Reamer carefully placed windows to mimic light filtering through a canopy of pine trees. Furniture was provided by the Old Hickory Furniture Company of Indiana, whose 100-year old dining room chairs are still in use today.
Reamer also designed the Roosevelt Arch entrance to Yellowstone, the cornerstone of which was laid by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1903, as well as many other buildings in and around Yellowstone Park. Reamer's life was the subject of a 2004 biography by Ruth Quinn. Preserving the historic architecture of the United States' national parks was a high priority of President George W. Bush, who gave $30 million for maintenance of the Old Faithful Inn.
