Site 10 – The Maxfield Lodge Resort
Location: Approximate location of resort area: 6820 S. Maxfield Dr. This is now private property.
Date: About 1887 - 1973
Significance: The Maxfield family was in the canyon in the early 1850’s, originally with the lumber industry and then transitioning to mining. One family member developed the Maxfield Lodge Resort. The Maxfield Resort and the Brighton Hotel were the beginning of the canyon’s hospitality business.
Photo Title: “Young women employed at Maxfield Lodge announce services.” Unknown woman on the left and Virginia Brinton on the right. Virginia was the niece of Lois M. Recore and Jo (Josie) M. Reenders. Photo taken in about the mid-1930s. Used with permission of Jill Derr.
The Maxfield Lodge Resort was one of the first hospitality enterprises in the canyon. From about 1887 to 1956, the resort was a seasonal, family-run endeavor; evolving from a waystation for travelers in buggies, to a camping and restaurant destination, and finally as a lodge restaurant and outdoor dining area serving small groups and banquet parties. Members of the Maxfield Family had been in the canyon since 1855 when brothers Richard Dunwell (b. 1831- d. 1916) and Robert Quorton (b. 1829 – d. 1880) began lumber mill work. [1] Their extended family had arrived in Utah four years earlier from Prince Edward Island, Canada, and by 1870, family members had transitioned from lumber to mining as was common. One family member, Richard (Dick) Dunwell Maxfield Jr. (b. 1859 – d. 1931), homesteaded 80 acres, had a modest home built in 1887, [2] claimed water in 1895 and received the land title in 1908. When a few cottages and campsites were added to the residence, it became a desirable destination for visitors. [3]
The location was critical when traveling upcanyon; a large, flat area adjacent to the creek after an extremely steep uphill section. Animal teams required rest, food and water here. This natural place of respite was also a convenient break for people making the journey to and from Brighton, where the first summer hotel was constructed in 1874. Sisters Lois (b. 1885 – d. 1981) and Josie (Jo) Maxfield (b. 1889- d.1984), daughters of Dick Maxfield Jr., reminisced, “People would come from the city in buggies or surries and spread their picnics on the ground. When it came time to return home, no attempt would be made to gather up and take back the huge amount of food that had been prepared. So after they left we children would raid the spot to see what remained. We have lugged home on a Sunday afternoon enough clean, unused food to last our family a week.” [4]
The Maxfield Lodge Resort had three distinct periods: 1887 to 1931 when Dick Maxfield Jr. started the lodge, 1932 to 1956 when Lois and Josie took ownership from their father, and 1956 to about 1973 when the lodge was sold to an owner outside of the family. During each era, the lodge adapted its services according to customer needs. In the first phase, Dick Maxfield Jr., his wife, and their seven children initially developed a waystation for travelers making their way to and from Brighton in the spring and summer. People could pay to water their livestock, rest, and picnic. By 1912, newspaper articles and advertisements invited people to the Maxfield Lodge Resort. [5] The Salt Lake Herald reported on an auto stage that would meet the Holliday streetcar to bring people up the canyon, as well as furnished cottages, chicken and trout dinners, and good fishing for anglers in the nearby streams. [6] A 1916 advertisement recommended, “If you wish ‘a day off’ point the nose of your car towards this sylvan retreat in the Wasatch range at Maxfield lodge and return this evening in the moonlight with your mind and body refreshed and rested from the strain of busy days in the office. Take the ‘Maxfield Cure’ for ‘nerves.’” [7] In 1931, the year of Dick Maxfield Jr.’s death, an advertisement described “a delightful place for a cool and restful vacation. Camping space among pines and grass, with beautiful river of sparkling water running through the camp.” The ad goes on to describe, “The region surrounding the lodge is rich in scenic, geological and recreational interest. Enjoy hiking, fishing, the wild mountain flowers, the tall, whispering pines, the romantic moonlight nights.” [8]
The lodge’s next era began in 1932 when daughters, Lois and Josie, assumed management after their parents’ deaths. Over the years, the two sisters and their husbands, developed the lodge into its post-war peak in the late-1940’s to 1950’s; this canyon destination catered to small groups and large banquet parties with indoor and outdoor dining. An outdoor area called “The Picnic Grove” welcomed guests with red picnic tables, electric lighting, built-in barbecue ovens, and additional parking. Patrons could bring their own food and pay a small fee to use the facilities, or order food from the restaurant, or even buy food and beverages from a refreshment stand. The post-war boom brought economic prosperity, allowing more Americans to buy cars and easily access the canyon for a day. In the late-1940’s, a restaurant building was constructed in a “rustic” style. The new lodge featured a stone base, first-floor windows to enjoy the views, a wooden roof, and a two-story stone chimney. Inside, guests were welcomed with white linen tablecloths, red water pitchers, red flower vases, and a Navajo rug hanging above the large stone fireplace. A favorite spot for summer lunches was the stone patio next to the creek. Lois and Josie were the primary cooks, laboring over two cast iron stoves to prepare T-bone steaks, fried chicken, and trout. Guests enjoyed salad, homemade rolls with jam, and strawberry shortcake, while waitresses bustled around the new restaurant that could seat up to 40 people. In addition, the Maxfield “complex” included a two-story barn building where the seasonal help, mostly high school girls, lived on the second floor. Throughout the 1940’s and 1950’s, newspapers reported on numerous social and community meetings held at Maxfield’s; 150 people attending the annual dinner of the Salt Lake Lion’s club [9], an instruction class for PTA officers in Granite School District, [10] a conference for 60 Girl Scout leaders [11], and in 1952 a luncheon to announce the engagement of Miss JoAnn Hunsaker. [12] In 1956, Lois Recore and her husband Oliver, and Josie Reenders sold the Maxfield Lodge Resort after Josie’s husband, Martin, died. The new owners were not relatives, bringing an end to decades of Maxfield family hospitality.
In the final era, 1956 to about 1973, there were several owners, the old lodge was demolished, and a modern restaurant was constructed. The new owners, formerly from Switzerland, [13] envisioned a Swiss chalet restaurant and resort. They kept the well-known “Maxfield Lodge” name, but made renovations including a chalet room with Swiss décor, and even added a Swiss baker to the staff. [14] For several years, the lodge hosted parties and picnics, had dancing on the outdoor terrace, and rental cottages. In May of 1960, a fire destroyed the main kitchen and in July the complex and about 30 acres were sold to a new owner. The old lodge was demolished, [15] and ultimately, the Maxfield Lodge was rebuilt in a different location as a contemporary stone restaurant at the creek’s edge featuring triple-height windows to showcase the impressive north canyon wall. An article described it as, “…a completely modern restaurant in a scenic setting...Two floor shows are offered nightly featuring all well-known stars from San Francisco, Lake Tahoe, Reno, and Las Vegas.” [16] Throughout the 1960’s and until about 1973, a succession of restaurants and enterprises were housed in the modern Maxfield Lodge. In July 1968, a Salt Lake Tribune advertisement proclaimed, “One of Utah’s most famous eating places is now for sale.” This historic area at the creek’s edge, naturally suited as a place of respite, is now remembered simply by the street name identifying “South Maxfield Drive” just off the main canyon road.
Interesting Fact: Maxfield sisters, Josie (b.1889-1984) and Lois (b.1885-1981), are most responsible for the success of the lodge after their father’s death in 1931. They loved growing up in the canyon and working at their father’s resort. As girls, they named several canyon landmarks with the most famous being Storm Mountain. [17]
Photo Title: Maxfield Lodge P.1, [18] (Original Maxfield Lodge, c. 1900. Big Cottonwood Canyon . Maxfield, Lois; Richard D.; Maxfield, Josie; Maxfield, Ellen; Maxfield, Kenneth; Maxfield, Hunt Mary; Maxfield, Irene Julia; Phelps, Alice; Thorstesen, Jennie).
Photo Title: Maxfield Lodge P. 3, [19] (Josie Reenders (at left) and her sister Lois Recore, c.1925).
Photo Title: Newspaper photo of a barbecue at Maxfield Lodge in 1937. [20]
Photo Title: Maxfield Lodge P. 2 [21] (The Lodge constructed in the late 1940’s.)
Photo Title: The 1960 Maxfield Lodge. [22] This is now private property.
Photo Title: 1965 print advertisement for Libbey Owens Ford's (LOF) thermopane insulating glass. This photo was taken inside the 1960 Maxfield Lodge looking out to the north canyon wall.
Canyon Stories:
The “Canyon Stories” sections include personal stories, family histories, anecdotes, recollections, excerpts and other information that adds depth and colorful perspectives. Some information might be repetitive, and it has not been as carefully reviewed for accuracy and sources.
