Hotel Charbonneau

The Hotel Charbonneau is located at 88 Wisconsin Street (formally 207 Wisconsin Street) in Priest River, Idaho and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was originally constructed in 1912 by Charles and Dora Charbonneau (architects PJ Young and Charles Charbonneau). During the first half of the 20th century, Priest River and the Hotel Charbonneau, which is located one block away from where the train station used to be, was a popular stopping-off point for people traveling to nearby Spokane, Coeur d'Alene, Sandpoint, and Priest Lake. In 1920, Dora Charbonneau added a brick addition onto the south side of the hotel to accommodate more guests. After the brick addition was built, the Hotel Charbonneau boasted 27 guest rooms with more than half of them having their own private bathrooms; an extravagant luxury at that time.[2]

Hotel Charbonneau
Location207 Wisconsin Street
Priest River, Idaho
Coordinates48°10′45″N 116°54′32″W
Arealess than one acre
Built1912; 1920
Built byCharbonneau, Charles (original hotel); Young, P.J. (hotel addition, 1920)
NRHP reference No.91001718[1]
Added to NRHPNovember 19, 1991

History

It was purchased by Bob and Lorraine Shaffer in the mid-1940s and then renamed to be the Lorraine Hotel.[3]

The Charbonneau operated as a hotel/boarding house until the late 1980s when it was abandoned and risked being condemned. In 1991 the Priest River Restoration and Revitalization Committee (PRRRC), a local non-profit group composed entirely of volunteers, took control of the Hotel Charbonneau and saved it from complete deterioration. Among the PRRRC's accomplishments was having the Hotel Charbonneau added to the National Register of Historic Places (11/19/91), which was hoped to protect the historic structure for future generations.[2] The hotel was purchased by the PRRRC for $50,000; the group hoped to rehab it to serve as a combination bed-and-breakfast and apartments for senior citizens.[3]

In 2010 the Hotel Charbonneau was privately owned and undergoing restoration.[2]

According to its website, in 2017 the hotel is under renovation and is not open.[4]

  • The Hotel Charbonneau
  • Restored front entrance

The three-story building has an irregular U-shaped plan. The original L-shaped building of 1912 was expanded by three-story addition on the south side making the U shape.[3]

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. W. Charbonneau, consistent with NRHP nomination text
  3. Robin Bruce (April 29, 1991). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: Hotel Charbonneau / Lorraine Hotal / 012941". National Park Service. Retrieved August 21, 2017. With three photos from 1991.
  4. http://www.hotelcharbonneau.com


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