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Before World War II, Crescent Lake was a boom town that attracted ski trains in winter

by Doug Bates | Apr 10, 2021 | Cascade Summit/Crescent, Communities, Featured Sidebar, Outdoors

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crescent lake history,southern pacific railroad,ski trains,willamette passOregon Historical Society photo

The trains would remain at the Crescent Lake railroad siding during the day so skiers would have a place to get out of the weather.

By DIANE KAHLER/Correspondent/The Herald — The community of Crescent Lake was originally a railroad town built to support the Southern Pacific Railroad Line.  The town was not on Highway 58, but if you turn at the junction of Highway 58 and Crescent Lake Highway 429 (across from Manley’s Tavern) and travel down and cross the railroad tracks you will see a large water tower and some parking.  That was Crescent Lake and in 1926 the place was booming.

crescent lake snow train adKlamath Falls News & Herald

The site included a roundhouse large enough to turn locomotives around to Eugene or Klamath Falls. The Southern Pacific train depot was there which included a ticket office, telegraph office, waiting room and baggage room.  The community lodging house with 100 rooms and a restaurant known as the “Clubhouse,” two general stores (one containing a tavern), a restaurant, a one-room schoolhouse and a post office.

So what happened? After World War II, the community began moving to its present site on Highway 58.  In 1958, the roundhouse was decommissioned and soon torn down.  In 1970 a fire in the restaurant destroyed the remaining businesses on what is now known as Crescent Lake Highway.

Prior to the war, Crescent Lake was also quite the skiing destination. The following is from an article, source unknown, called “Lost Oregon Ski Areas”:

The first ski area in the Willamette Pass area was located near Crescent Lake in 1936. When skiing in Hand Lake  (near Three Fingered Jack) was closed due to snowfall the rope tow from Hand Lake was installed at Crescent.

crescent lake ski train adEugene Register-Guard, 1938

The hill’s proximity to railroad tracks led to numerous ski trains over the short life span of the area. Trains would be sponsored by the Langlaufer and Obsidian Ski Clubs of Eugene and the Klamath Snow Clan from Klamath Falls.

The Eugene clubs would have live music on the trains and on several occasions would add an additional baggage car for dancing on the return trip. It was not uncommon between the two trains to have over a thousand people out playing. The ski hill was small and folks would engage in Nordic skiing as well.

The size of the ski hill was a topic of criticism from a writer with the Eugene newspaper. He claimed that it was a terrible place for skiing and would only accommodate three skiers. Local users disputed his remarks as petty jealousy and his attempt to get skiers to use Willamette Pass as the ski hill. The writer wrote another story apologizing for his earlier comments and wrote that he was wrong and the ski hill could accommodate 37 people if half of them were using the rope tow.

Downhill skilling was discontinued at Crescent Lake in 1941 and moved to the summit of Willamette Pass.

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Written by Doug Bates

April 10, 2021

Alpine Stream Construction Highway 58 Oakridge Oregon

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