The Salish Lodge at Snoqualmie Falls has been a popular spot for tourists and residents of Washington state for decades. So it’s no surprise that many postcards were created highlighting this destination. Here is another one with a photograph by Ben Harrison.
THE SALISH LODGE AT SNOQUALMIE FALLS POSTCARD – CT-2562
The front of this postcard features The Salish Lodge perched high above Snoqualmie Falls. Built in 1916, the Snoqualmie Falls Lodge began as a one-floor restaurant. Long before Interstate 90 was constructed, this location served as popular halfway spot between Seattle and Snoqualmie Pass.
In the 1980s, Puget Power (known today as Puget Sound Energy) decided not to renew the lease on the restaurant well known for hearty breakfasts and their “Honey from Heaven” service where servers poured honey on biscuits from high above dining room tables (a tradition continued today).
By 1988, the Lodge had been remodeled as a 91-luxury room hotel and renamed as The Salish Lodge. In 1996, it was renamed again to The Salish Lodge and Spa after a world-class spa was added. The hotel’s exterior would serve as The Great Northern in Twin Peaks with the sacred Snoqualmie Falls renamed as White Tail Falls in the show.
The back of this postcard – CT-2562 – contains a small paragraph about the hotel and falls:
THE SALISH LODGE AT SNOQUALMIE FALLS, WASHINGTON
Located just 26 miles east of Seattle, the Northwest’s most luxurious country inn is perched at the crest of this beautiful 268 foot waterfall.
The rainbow image was captured by the late Pacific Northwest photographer Ben Harrison. The card was published by Smith-Western Co. in Tacoma, Washington who still makes souvenirs for tourist attractions today.
The card also contains another manufacturing mark – MCG 53153686 – in the bottom left corner. I’ve found no information about MCG other than they must have printed numerous postcards from landmarks across the United States. CardCow.com has more than 500 MCG cards listed on their site.
PHOTOGRAPHER BEN HARRISON
This isn’t the first time Ben Harrison’s photographs have been featured on postcards. The Salish Lodge has featured his images on postcards from the late 1980s to early 1990s
According to an obituary for a Benjamin Harrison from January 21, 2018, he was 92 years old when he passed and lived in Issaquah, Washington.
The obituary also stated he attended University of Washington School of Forestry, receiving his B.S. in 1966 and spent years “working with Weyerhauser [sic] in Federal Way, supporting and planting the forests in the Snoqualmie National Forest.” Ben worked as a private contractor helping individual owners manage their timber after his retirement.
“His love of photography often saw him with his camera around his neck, at the ready to catch the scenes of nature,” continued his obituary. The fact his love of photography was highlighted leads me to believe that this World War II and Korean War veteran was the “Ben Harrison” who took spectacular images of Snoqualmie Falls.
Download high-resolution images of this postcard on my Flickr account – https://www.flickr.com/photos/aloha75/albums/72177720314797263/
