The Story of the Lake House Hotel 

The Lake House Hotel | Origins | Grand Expansions | Glory & Hardship | Mid-Century | The Hotel of Horror

This historic photograph shows the Lake House Hotel following the major expansion completed in 1895. Although the exact date of this photograph is unknown, the figures gathered on the porch and their period clothing place the image firmly within a bygone error. The photograph was likely created to promote the hotel while documenting the completion of this ambitious addition, preserving a striking view of the building at one of the most important moments in its history.

From Stagecoach Stop to Victorian Era Hotel | 1700s-1880s

The Stagecoach Stop & Inn

This early- 1800s lithograph depicts the original Saylorsburg Hotel before it’s grand Victorian transformation. The modest inn stood upon a foundation dating back to the 18^th century stagecoach stop, linking the property to the earliest days of travel through the region. It preserves a rare view of the building that came before the Lake House Hotel and marks the beginning of the long history that followed.

The Civil War Soldiers

This dramatized scene represents what it may have been like when the proprietor of the Lake House Hotel welcomed the entire Monroe County Battalion- six companies of soldiers during the Civil War. Though not a surviving photograph of the event, the depiction brings this remarkable chapter of the hotel's history to life recalling a time when its rooms and tables offered hospitality to men preparing for service.

The Victorian Addition

This historic view shows the Lake House Hotel after its grand early Victorian expansion, when the original roof was removed to make way for a third story. The transformation gave the building a more imposing and ornate appearance, marking its evolution from a modest early hotel into the prominent landmark that begins defining the property for generations to come.

Building The Lake House Hotel Landmark | 1891-1895

The Chestnut Ridge Miners 

This dramatized scene represents the nearby mines along the Chestnut Ridge, where rare white clay was extracted and fashioned into bricks and other building materials. During this time, the already expanded Victorian hotel underwent its largest and final architectural transformation, becoming the massive structure seen today. The new addition also served as a grand showcase for the Blue Ridge Brick Factory and the mine's distinctive white clay products and operations.

The Grand Victorian Expansion

This historic photograph shows the Lake House Hotel, following the completion of its largest architectural expansion. Figures in period clothing can be seen posing along the front porch, suggesting that the image was carefully arranged to commemorate the newly transformed building. It is believed to have also served as promotional material for both the hotel and the local brickworks, whose white clay products were showcased throughout the grand addition and sold around the country. 

The Pre- Automobile Era

This historic photograph shows the Lake House Hotel after the completion of its grand 1895 expansion. Guests and staff in period clothing can be seen gathered along the porch, while a row of horses stands tied to the hitching posts out front. The scene offers a remarkable glimpse of the hotel during the horse and carriage era, before the automobile transformed travel to the property.

Leisure, Crisis, and Changing Times | 1900-1929

The Lake House Grove

This turn of the century photograph depicts the former Lake House Grove around the nearly 1900s. The rustic lakeside shelter may have served as a gathering or boarding point for the wooden swan boat rides that became one of the hotel property's memorable attractions. Surrounded by trees and overlooking the water, the grove recalls the leisure and natural beauty that helped make the Lake House Hotel, a widely popular destination. 

The Spanish Influenza Arrival

This dramatized scene depicts what life may have looked like after local papers announced the arrival of Spanish Influenza in the Pocono Mountains in October 1918. As the crisis spread, numerous resorts throughout the region were converted into makeshift hospitals to care for the sick. The image reflects a somber chapter in local history, when places built for rest and recreation were called upon to serve communities in a time of emergency.

The Great Crash of Stock Market

This dramatized scene represents the fear and desperation that followed the stock market crash of October 1929. According to local accounts, Saylorsburg gained a grim reputation as being dubbed as “the place to hang yourself”. Former guests of the Lake House Hotel, once there for leisure and celebration – returned during the darkest periods of their lives. This image reflects the profound shift from prosperity and recreation to hardship, uncertainty, and tragedy.

Entertainment, Industry, &  Celebration | 1940s-1980s

The Saylor’s Lake Pavillion

This 1944 postcard depicts Saylor’s Lake Pavilion, one of the defining attractions associated with the Lake House Hotel. The lakeside pavilion hosted prominent performers of the era and welcomed many of the hotel’s high-profile guests. Together, the lake, boating, entertainment, and resort atmosphere helped establish the Lake House as one of the region’s most celebrated destinations.

The Vickie Lee Blouse Company

This dramatized scene depicts women working in the basement of the Lake House Hotel, where the Vickie Lee Blouse Company operated during the late 1950s through the 1960s. The scene reflects a very different chapter in the building’s long history, when parts of the former resort property were adapted for light industry and garment production. It stands as a reminder that the Lake House was not only a place of hospitality and entertainment, but also a site of everyday labor and local enterprise.

The Mid-Century Banquet Hall

This mid-century photograph captures the banquet hall dining room of the Lake House Hotel, prepared to welcome guests beneath its chandeliers and formal table settings. Beyond serving the hotel’s visitors, the room became a gathering place for weddings, proms, corporate functions, and other important celebrations. It reflects an era when the Lake House remained at the center of both hospitality and community life.

The Hotel’s Final Reinvention | 1990-Present

The Marine Room Bar

This dramatized scene depicts the Marine Room, a lower-level bar added to the Lake House Hotel during the mid-century era. Its nautical décor celebrated the leisure, recreation, and lasting popularity of Saylor’s Lake. The room offered guests a relaxed gathering place while preserving the memory of the lake that had helped define the hotel for generations.

The Antique Co-Op

This dramatized scene depicts the antique co-op established within the Lake House Hotel after the property was sold in 1990 and its contents were liquidated at auction. The former hotel rooms and public spaces were transformed into displays filled with antiques, collectibles, and remnants of the building’s past. It marked another dramatic reinvention of the historic property as its days as a traditional hotel came to an end.

The Haunted House Attraction

This dramatized scene depicts the opening of the Hotel of Horror haunted house inside the former Lake House Hotel in October 1992. The new attraction marked another dramatic chapter in the building’s long history, transforming the aging hotel into a destination for Halloween entertainment. What began that year would grow into the enduring haunted attractions housed within its historic walls today.

* These original graphics were created in the likeness of Victorian Era cartes-de-visite, treasured photographic keepsakes once used to preserve people, places, and important moments in time. Their antique presentation celebrates the Lake House Hotel's deep ties to Victorian history and architecture, while allowing each chapter of the property story to be reimagined as part of a carefully assembled historical collection. Wherever possible, authentic historical photographs were used; when no surviving image was available, dramatized depictions were created to help bring those moments to life.