2. Hotel Lakeside

Hotel Lakeside was erected in 1875.  Along with the Methodist Episcopal Chapel (Heritage Hall), it is one of Lakeside’s two original public buildings.

This first section had 36 rooms, a dining room and an attached two-story outhouse.  In 1879, an annex was built south of the main building.  It consisted of 32 small rooms, for the purpose of housing the servants of hotel guests and hotel staff.  In 1890, a hotel wing was added along Maple Street and nearly tripled the hotel’s capacity by adding 77 guest rooms.  Indoor plumbing and electricity was added about that same time. In 1914, the front porch was enlarged and a concrete floor was installed, along with a fireplace in the lobby.

By the mid-twentieth century, deferred maintenance and neglect began to take their toll.  The south annex was razed in 1963.  Also in the 1960s, the second floor porches were removed for safety. By 1972, more than half of the rooms were unusable and the hotel was scheduled for demolition.  A group of concerned Lakeside residents, determined to save and restore the hotel, formed the Friends of Hotel Lakeside to accomplish those goals. Lakeside’s Board of Directors later changed course and resolved to save and preserve the hotel.

For more than 40 years, The Friends of Hotel Lakeside were dedicated to preserving and upgrading the facility. The most important improvements included complete rewiring, new plumbing, installation of a sprinkler system, elevator access, new kitchen, foundation repair and restoration, as well as air conditioning of the dining room, lobby and all guest rooms. All of this has been completed with the help and cooperation of the Lakeside Chautauqua staff and the Lakeside Board of Directors.