Columbia Hotel

The Columbia Hotel is the oldest hotel in Ashland, Oregon, and has been in continuous operation since its construction in 1910. The hotel occupies the second floor of the Enders Building, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.[3]

Designed by architect Frank Chamberlain Clark, the Enders Building was the first concrete commercial structure in Ashland.[4] The Ashland Tidings, December 12, 1910, called it "the largest structure of its kind in Southern Oregon." Featuring characteristics of the Chicago style, it is also significant as an early example of a department store. Hotel accommodations on the second level were constructed to make it possible for shoppers from Northern California as well as from Oregon towns as far north as Grants Pass to travel to the mercantile shops in downtown Ashland by wagon, train, or car to shop and then stay the night at the hotel, and return home the next day.[4]

For decades, under the direction of local businessman H.G. Enders, the building was the largest mercantile establishment between Sacramento and Portland. The Columbia Hotel, the only surviving Ashland hotel from this period, continues to prosper today and remains true to its original construction with much of the original fixtures, furniture, and all of the original millwork.[5] Its interior features an antique tin-lined wooden telephone booth, believed to be the oldest booth in Oregon still serving callers.[6]

The same year the Enders Building brought its shops, restaurant, and Columbia Hotel to Ashland the Citizens Banking and Trust Co. Building went up next door (with a bank, grocery, and professional offices), while a four-story Elks Lodge (BPOE #944) was constructed directly across the street—all part of the 1909–1913 building boom[5] that shifted attention and commerce away from Ashland's traditional town center, the Plaza.[7] While all three buildings continue to accommodate a range of shops and other establishments today, only the Columbia Hotel and the Elks Lodge retain their original names and functions. On October 10, 2010, Ashland temporarily closed a stretch of Main Street for a centennial celebration in which re-dedication ceremonies were held at both buildings.[8]