A Lost Piece of Zigzag’s Oregon’s History
A Mysterious Rock Wall and a Forgotten Hotel
Howard’s Hotel at Sharon Springs – As you drive along the east end of Barlow Trail Road near the confluence of the Sandy and Zigzag Rivers, you may notice an old moss-covered rock wall. Weathered by time and nature, this beautifully crafted basalt and stone wall stands as a silent sentinel to the past. Yet, few—if any—know its origins. A 1920 map already labeled it as an “old rock wall.” Historical accounts mention it as a marker near old bridge brow logs from an original Barlow Trail crossing. But why was it built? What once stood behind those stones?
Piecing together historical maps, newspaper articles, and land records points to one answer: Howard’s Hotel at Sharon Springs. Built in the early 1910s, this long-forgotten inn lasted only a few years before fire destroyed it. Unlike the well-remembered Welch’s Hotel in Welches, McIntyre’s early hotel, or the Rhododendron Inn, Howard’s Hotel vanished from collective memory. Yet, its story is worth rediscovering.
The Mount Hood Road and the Growth of Tourism
The land where Howard’s Hotel stood was known as Sharon Springs, named after a small, year-round spring that still flows into Clear Creek near the Sandy and Zigzag Rivers. W.R. McGarry originally owned the land and subdivided it in the early 1900s as tourism in the Mount Hood region grew.
This growth followed the expansion of the Barlow Road, a pioneer-era route that later became a toll road. By the early 1900s, it transitioned into an automobile road, drawing more visitors. Travelers sought lodging along the way to Government Camp and Mount Hood’s higher elevations. Hotels and lodges sprang up to serve them.
Seeing an opportunity, Mr. and Mrs. Archibald Howard built a hotel at Sharon Springs, close to the Barlow Road and Mount Hood’s foothills.
Howard’s Hotel at Sharon Springs: Built for the Boom
Constructed in 1910, Howard’s Hotel was a three-story, 14-room cedar structure. It stood on the north side of the Sandy River along the old north bank road.
From the start, challenges arose. In 1911, a freshet washed away a crucial bridge over the Sandy River near the hotel and damaged two others, the Zigzag River and Bear Creek bridges. Access became difficult, forcing visitors to detour through Brightwood, where J.T. McIntyre had built a bridge.
Plans to rebuild the bridges were made, but the setback likely hurt the hotel’s early success. Meanwhile, competitors like Welch’s Hotel and the Rhododendron Inn thrived with easier access.
The Fire That Erased Howard’s Hotel
On a September night in 1912, disaster struck.
A report in The Oregonian (September 14, 1912) stated:
“The home of Mr. and Mrs. S. Howard, near the junction of Sandy and Zigzag River, in the Mount Hood district, known as the Howard Hotel, was destroyed by fire a few nights ago, and Mrs. Howard, who was alone at the time, barely escaped with her life. Fire started in the lower story from sparks from the fireplace after Mrs. Howard had retired for the night in an upper room.”
Mrs. Howard woke to flames blocking the stairs. Forced to escape through a side window, she fled in her night robe.
The hotel burned completely, with nothing saved. The financial loss ranged from $3,500 to $4,000. With no efforts to rebuild, Howard’s Hotel disappeared from both the landscape and local memory.
Why Has Howard’s Hotel Been Forgotten?
Unlike Welch’s Hotel, the Rhododendron Inn, or McIntyre’s Hotel, Howard’s Hotel lasted barely two years. No surviving photographs or major advertisements recorded its existence. Without a rebuilt structure or continued operation, history left it behind.
Nearby hotels thrived because they became part of a lasting tourism infrastructure. Welch’s Hotel evolved into the town of Welches. Rhododendron and Government Camp grew into permanent tourism hubs. But Howard’s Hotel faded, leaving only the rock wall as a possible clue to its past.
A Call for Further Investigation
The rock wall remains the only visible evidence of Howard’s Hotel. Its basalt and stone construction, multiple entryways, and elevated stone columns suggest more than a simple boundary wall.
Could forgotten records, lost photographs, or hidden remnants beneath the forest floor reveal more?
For now, the story of Howard’s Hotel at Sharon Springs remains an intriguing historical mystery—one that deserves to be remembered.
Conclusion: Preserving the Lost History of Howard’s Hotel at Sharon Springs
Howard’s Hotel burned in 1912, but its legacy should not be forgotten. Among the histories of Welches, Brightwood, and Rhododendron, it represents the challenges of early tourism in the Mount Hood wilderness.
Next time you pass through Zigzag, take a moment to consider the rock wall, the spring at Sharon Springs, and the stories hidden beneath the surface.
The past is still there—waiting to be uncovered.
