Vista House

Vista House
Photograph of a scenic building on a high promontory with an expansive view over a river and canyon
Vista House
Locator map
Locator map
Location of Vista House in Oregon
Locator map
Locator map
Vista House (the United States)
Location40700 E Historic Columbia River Highway
Corbett, Oregon
Coordinates45°32′22″N 122°14′40″W / 45.539579°N 122.244401°W / 45.539579; -122.244401
Area3 acres (1.2 ha)
Built1916–1918
ArchitectEdgar M. Lazarus
Architectural styleArt Nouveau[2]
Art Deco[3]
NRHP reference No.74001705[1]
Added to NRHPNovember 5, 1974

Vista House is a museum at Crown Point in Multnomah County, Oregon, that also serves as a memorial to Oregon pioneers and as a comfort station for travelers on the Historic Columbia River Highway. The site, situated on a rocky promontory, is 733 feet (223 m) above the Columbia River on the south side of the Columbia River Gorge. The octagonal stone building was designed by Edgar M. Lazarus in the style of Art Nouveau, and completed in 1918 after nearly two years of construction.

In 2000, restoration on the building began, and lasted five years. The Vista House is located within the Corbett locality,[4] and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Vista House is a popular place for viewing the aurora borealis.[5]

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ Bosker, Gideon; Lencek, Lena (1985). Frozen Music: A History of Portland Architecture. Western Imprints, the Press of the Oregon Historical Society. p. 34. ISBN 978-0-875-95164-5.
  3. ^ Jepson, Tim; Lee, Phil (1998). Pacific Northwest. Rough Guides. p. 101. ISBN 978-1-858-28326-5.
  4. ^ Ritz, Richard Ellison (2002). "Lazarus, Edgar M.". Architects of Oregon: A Biographical Dictionary of Architects Deceased – 19th and 20th Centuries. Portland, Oregon: Lair Hill Publishing. pp. 247–248. ISBN 0-9726200-2-8.
  5. ^ R, Mike (2019-03-18). "Vista House Astronomy Site". CosmosPNW. Retrieved 2022-01-17.