The Historic Hotel Washington
Historic Hotel Washington and Grand Room, a beautiful Place
for Weddings
by Victoria Stewart
The historic Hotel Washington
Grand Room and Vintage Motorcycle Museum at 545 North Market Blvd.
in Chehalis is a fun location to hold a wedding, or any special event. Barbara and Frank mason are the owners of this historic 1889 hotel
which was once touted as a prime location to stay in Lewis County,
as it was right next to the Northern Pacific Train Depot; now
the Lewis County Museum.
Upstairs in the Grand Room there
is plenty of room for dancing, along with room to host a live band,
or a dj. In addition to renting the grand room, guests may also
rent the vintage Motorcycle Museum, or arrange tours of that facility. The Hotel Washington opened in 1889 between the railroad station and
uptown Chehalis. In 1911, The Dream Theatre was constructed inside
the spacious ground floor of the hotel along with Rice's Millinery
Shop and The Hotel's Offices. while the upstairs remained hotel rooms.
Years later, the building
was known as Ben Franklin's Five & Dime Store, and most recently,
Phyl's Furniture. On Friday evening July 11, 1997, a tragic fire destroyed
the furniture store and the entire third and fourth floors of the
hotel. In October 1997, Frank and Barbara Mason obtained the building
and proceeded with a complete restoration. The masons' have received
many awards for their ongoing efforts at restoring historic buildings
in Lewis County including a Preservation award for the
Columbus block 1892 building in 1992 and the judd building in
1994,
Barbara Mason,
Gov. Gary Locke, Mrs. Mona Locke, Frank Mason.
In 1999, a state Preservation award was presented them by
Governor Gary Locke for The Hotel Washington building restoration.
in
2002, Another preservation award was given to them for restoring the
1904 judge seymour white house located at 120 Pacific Ave. in Chehalis.
