Cultural Landscape Report for The Ahwahnee Hotel National Historic Landmark District

Yosemite National Park, California

The Ahwahnee Hotel and associated designed landscape—built between 1915 and 1927—is a National Historic Landmark District exemplifying National Park Service Rustic style design. The hotel, designed by Gilbert Stanley Underwood to serve wealthy guests, was constructed at the base of the Royal Arches rock formation and offers views of Half Dome, Glacier Point, and Yosemite Falls. The Olmsted Brothers served as consultants for the design of the grounds that include a dormitory, 24 cottages, rock entrance gatehouse, pool, trails, roads, gardens, meadows, and woodlands abutting the Merced River. Interestingly, the grounds also included a golf course and other active recreational facilities and the hotel was occupied during WWII by the US Navy to provide medical and psychological rehabilitation services. The project scope of work focused on the preparation of a cultural landscape report (CLR) coordinated with a concurrently prepared historic structures report for the hotel and cabins undertaken by Architectural Resources Group. The CLR documented the historic landscape and provided treatment and design recommendations and guidelines for the management of this important site. The CLR also provided guidance in support of a multi-million dollar rehabilitation of the hotel and grounds.

RMLA principal Rob McGinnis served as the project director for this project while with EDAW/AECOM.

Image Credits: Historic period photographs: National Park Service; Photographs and plan graphics: AECOM