June 12, 1915, was
the Grand Opening of the Rapids Lodge built by
John Lapsley Ish and his family. The lodge had
running water and baths, with electricity provided
by an "overshot" water wheel in the nearby Tonahutu
River. Ish built his own sawmill on the site, constructing
the lodge from the plentiful lodgepole pines in
the area.
J.L. Ish was
three months old when he left Missouri in a covered
wagon with his parents and he was six months
old when they reached Denver in 1863. The family,
including eleven children, lived on a farm outside
of Denver.
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Leslie
John Ish, Guy Lapsley Ish
Alice Shearer Ish, John Lapsley Ish |
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In 1881,
when Laps Ish was 18 years old, he came to Grand
County, staking claims outside of the mining
town of Teller in the mountains north of Grand
Lake. He mined for 4 years and stories about
him abound. He carried mail from Teller to Grand
Lake, going winter times on skis or snowshoes;
he preferrred skis. Often the 8' snow pole he
carried would not reach the bottom of the deep
snow on his mountainous journey. Ish thought
it was a mere hike to walk from Teller over Cameron
Pass and down the Cache La Poudre Canyon into
Ft. Collins. Once he carried two kegs of pickles
into Teller, thrilled to deliver them to the
miners who relished the pickles with their wild
meat.
While still occasionally
trying his luck with mining, Ish married and homesteaded
with his family near Rand. He built the Rand Hotel,
operating it with his wife until 1910. After a
brief stay in California, they moved to Granby,
built the Middle Park Auto Company garage and ran
a stage line to Grand Lake. The Ish Family operated
the Rapids Lodge in Grand Lake for many years.
The Pine Cone Inn was also constructed by him and
managed by his son, Leslie.
"To J. L. Ish, pioneer
days were not days of hardships and privations.
Life was teeming with enthusiasm and thrills, with
hard work thrown in. He loved the open country
and driving a car did not give him any more pleasure
than a walk among the pines and the creeks of his
beloved mountains."
Obituary - Middle Park Times, Jan 14, 1943 |
