The Brinkerhoff facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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The Brinkerhoff
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 Location in Wyoming
Location in the United States
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| Nearest city | Moose, Wyoming |
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| Architect | Jan Wilding |
| MPS | Grand Teton National Park MPS |
| NRHP reference No. | 90000622 |
| Added to NRHP | April 23, 1990 |
The Brinkerhoff is a special old lodge located in Grand Teton National Park in Wyoming. It sits right on the shore of Jackson Lake. This lodge is important because it's the last building left from a time when people could lease land from the forest service for vacation homes inside the park.
The main log house and a smaller caretaker's lodge were designed by an architect named Jan Wilking. They were built in 1946 for the Brinkerhoff family. Back then, this land was managed by the United States Forest Service. Later, when Grand Teton National Park was created, the National Park Service bought the property. They used it as a place for important guests, like presidents John F. Kennedy and Richard M. Nixon. The Brinkerhoff is also famous for its unique "rustic style" of architecture, which became popular after World War II. Inside, the lodge still looks much like it did when it was first built.
History of The Brinkerhoff Lodge
When Grand Teton National Park was first being set up, there were 111 special land leases. These leases were a leftover from when the United States Forest Service managed the land. One of these leases, located on Jackson Lake, was given to Ben Sheffield in 1930.
Sheffield's house burned down in the 1940s. In 1947, Zachery K. Brinkerhoff Sr. and his son bought the lease. The Brinkerhoffs owned a successful oil company called Brinkerhoff Drilling. They hired Jan Wilking to design their new vacation home. The lodge was built by Scotty Sloten and four skilled carpenters from Sweden. These builders were experts at log construction.
The Brinkerhoff house was filled with furniture and decorations made by a famous Western-style designer named Thomas C. Molesworth. In 1955, the Brinkerhoffs sold the house to the National Park Service. All the Molesworth furnishings were included in the sale. The lodge became quite famous because of the visits from presidents. Today, the National Park Service uses the Brinkerhoff for meetings and as a place for people to stay.
What The Brinkerhoff Looks Like
The Brinkerhoff is a great example of how the "rustic style" of architecture changed over time. This style was often used for public buildings in the Jackson Hole area. But at the Brinkerhoff, it was used for a private vacation home, making it feel like a cozy, natural retreat.
Jan Wilking's design for the Brinkerhoff shows a shift in the rustic style. It moved from the very heavy, rough look of older park buildings to a cleaner, more polished style. This new look would become popular in many vacation homes across the Western United States.
The main house has two stories and is built from carefully shaped logs. The upper part of the house has vertical wood panels. The front roof section has planks arranged in a V-shape. A large wooden deck stretches across the entire west side of the house. From this deck, you can see amazing views of Mount Moran and Jackson Lake. Having such a large deck was quite new for homes at that time, but it's very common now. Inside, the living room is two stories tall. The walls are covered with knotty pine wood, and the floors are polished wood. There's also a smaller caretaker's cottage that looks similar to the main house.
The Brinkerhoff was added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 23, 1990. This means it's recognized as an important historical building.
